| In his immensely popular book, "The Purpose | | | | view theft as being almost as bad as violence and |
| Driven Life", one of the major points that Pastor | | | | then treat it that way. Our new view of it would |
| Rick Warren tries to make is that people must | | | | result in theft becoming more stigmatized. At that |
| change the way they think before they can | | | | point, we would likely institute more of a |
| change the way they live. I believe the same | | | | zero-tolerance policy toward it, with thieves being |
| principle applies to cultures. As I've mentioned | | | | punished more severely than they are today. |
| many times before, I do not believe morality can | | | | Then, perhaps, theft would become more of an |
| be legislated. All the laws in the world against | | | | anomaly and less of an expectation.Foul language |
| every imaginable immoral act will not make any | | | | has become a mainstay of modern dialogue. While |
| culture or nation better or more righteous. | | | | I don't agree with the cultural conservatives' |
| Instead, we need a cultural change that comes as | | | | efforts to censor various forms of media, I do |
| a result of modifying our opinion about certain | | | | agree with their perception that our culture has |
| things in our society. Specifically, we must change | | | | become coarsened. One of the major |
| the way we view violence, theft, foul language, | | | | manifestations of this coarsening is our increased |
| and personal responsibility.Sadly, the culture of | | | | use of profane and vulgar language. In fact, our |
| violence is so ingrained into American culture that | | | | language has become outright callous and is |
| the two have become almost interwoven. We | | | | quickly headed toward becoming atrocious. On top |
| have come to accept violence as a fact of life. | | | | of that, habitual use of foul language makes us |
| We wink at it. We even laugh and make jokes | | | | seem collectively boorish.When I was growing up, |
| about it. I believe this attitude stems from the | | | | back in the 1960's and 1970's, I believed that |
| fact that, for many centuries, we have blithely | | | | certain "bad" words had just recently been |
| accepted idea that it is sometimes okay for a | | | | invented. I was wrong, of course. They've been |
| man to strike or assault another man for reasons | | | | around for centuries. However, they weren't used |
| other than to defend himself or someone else | | | | in polite society or mixed company. They were |
| from imminent physical harm. For example, we | | | | mainly confined to locker rooms, sports fields, |
| seem to think it is sometimes acceptable for a | | | | bars, dance halls, smoke-filled back rooms, |
| man to give another guy "a good beating" for | | | | battlefields, etc. They weren't used in many other |
| "mouthing off" at him. Some people refer to this | | | | venues because people viewed them as |
| attitude as "old school." Well, if that's old school, | | | | inappropriate.Fast forward to the early 21st |
| classes need to be shut down immediately!Let's | | | | century and we can't escape foul language, no |
| look at what this mindset as led to. Since that | | | | matter where we go, except maybe for our |
| kind of escalation has been accepted for so long, | | | | houses of worship. It's on TV, it's in the movies, |
| people now often escalate from hitting to | | | | it's at our work place, it's in the classroom, it's at |
| shooting or stabbing, without thinking twice. Many | | | | social events, it's in the "music" being blared out |
| young people today see no difference between | | | | by the driver next to us at the stoplight, etc. |
| those forms of violent escalation. In their minds, if | | | | Things have gotten to the point where some |
| one form of escalation is acceptable, then why | | | | people literally can't verbally communicate without |
| not another? Of course, mobsters, gangs, and | | | | the use of profanity or vulgarity in every other |
| those involved in the drug culture have never had | | | | sentence.What happened? We let our guard down |
| any problem with the escalation of violence, but | | | | and started accepting this kind of language |
| now that sentiment has spilled over into | | | | without blushing or raising an eyebrow. We |
| mainstream society.Violence has become a staple | | | | stopped correcting and punishing children for using |
| of our entertainment industry. Violent | | | | it. We eventually became indifferent to it. We |
| entertainment, even in its most graphic form, and | | | | need to shrug off our indifference and start |
| is considered socially acceptable. In fact, the FCC | | | | looking at foul language as both unnecessary and |
| cannot fine broadcasters for violent content as it | | | | extremely rude. Once this attitude change |
| can for sexually explicit or vulgar content.We need | | | | becomes prevalent, we could well be on our way |
| a whole new attitude toward violence. It should be | | | | to a more gentile society.Another problem that |
| completely abhorrent to us. Those who harm | | | | plagues modern American culture is that we have |
| others with violence, other than in cases of self | | | | become a nation of blame-shifters. Far too many |
| defense or the like, should be considered | | | | of us are constantly looking for someone (or |
| disgusting. Now, don't get me wrong, I don't want | | | | something) else to blame for our own actions. In |
| to see all manliness as well as manly sports | | | | addition, we often hold one person (ex., the child |
| erased from our culture. I'm not one of those | | | | who got his bike stolen) accountable for the |
| fanatics who advocate such foolishness. In fact, | | | | deliberate and illegal actions of someone else (ex., |
| football and boxing, what some people would call | | | | the person who stole it). We also expect the |
| the two most violent sports, are two of my | | | | government and or our fellow citizens to bail us |
| favorite sports. Also, if two guys want to | | | | out or relieve us of the consequences stemming |
| mutually agree to settle their differences by | | | | from our illegal and/or unwise behavior. When |
| "duking it out", that's fine with me. However, | | | | they fail to do so, we act as if we have been |
| when someone resorts to the use of | | | | wronged. The root cause of these attitudes is |
| unnecessary and unexpected violence against | | | | that we have a distorted view of the role of |
| another person, it should be interpreted as a | | | | personal responsibility.We need to amend our view |
| barbaric act and treated as such by our laws. | | | | of personal responsibility in such a way that we: |
| Violence will never be completely eradicated from | | | | (1) require that any natural consequences resulting |
| our society, but it can be greatly reduced. | | | | from a person's behavior, both private and public, |
| However, this will only happen when we begin to | | | | be borne solely by that person and (2) hold people |
| view it as unacceptable.As is the case with | | | | entirely responsible for their own actions and |
| violence, our culture seems to accept the | | | | entirely blameless for everyone else's.Accordingly, |
| inevitability of theft. It didn't use to be that way. | | | | we would rightly blame the person who actually |
| There was a time when almost everyone | | | | does the crime, not the one who (although |
| respected the property of others and would not | | | | negligently) might make it easier for him or her to |
| bother it. However, people now have to keep the | | | | do it. A person would not be allowed to blame |
| doors of their homes and cars locked to keep the | | | | "hate speech" for his or her violent actions. |
| contents of such from being stolen. In fact, we | | | | Criminals would not be permitted to use the |
| spend millions of dollars a year on devices that | | | | excuse that their parents abused them as |
| attempt to prevent would-be thieves from | | | | children. Poverty would not be a valid excuse |
| stealing our cars, breaking into our homes, and | | | | either. The victims of shootings and/or their |
| robbing us of other precious possessions.We | | | | families would be blocked from suing gun stores. |
| sometimes excuse theft and take it lightly. We | | | | Rapists could not pin the blame for their actions |
| treat it in such a matter-of-fact manner that we | | | | on pornography or indecency in the media. |
| assume that a certain (high) level of it is always | | | | Whoever commits a crime would do the time. We |
| going to exist. For example, most stores seem | | | | would rid ourselves of the scapegoat mentality |
| resigned to the "fact" that a certain percentage | | | | that says someone else could be prosecuted or |
| of their merchandise will be lost to shoplifting.In | | | | sued for it. If the perpetrator could not be caught, |
| addition, we often seem to hold everyone but the | | | | no one would be punished (criminally or civilly).We |
| thieves themselves responsible when theft occurs | | | | desperately need a cultural change affecting all of |
| (I'm getting to a general point on that later). For | | | | the areas that I have described. Without it, we'll |
| example, if a child leaves his bicycle outside, | | | | soon find ourselves in the wastebasket of |
| unprotected, overnight and it gets stolen, the child | | | | history.Terry Mitchell is a software engineer, |
| gets yelled at for being irresponsible. Now, if the | | | | freelance writer, and trivia buff from Hopewell, |
| child goes outside and gets molested by a | | | | VA. He also serves as a political columnist for |
| pervert, I bet his parents wouldn't yell at him. | | | | American Daily and operates his own website - - |
| Why the difference? Because we treat child | | | | on which he posts commentaries on various |
| molestation as unacceptable while treating theft | | | | subjects such as politics, technology, religion, |
| as somewhat of a norm. I don't mean to make | | | | health and well-being, personal finance, and sports. |
| light of child molestation in any way, but we ought | | | | His commentaries offer a unique point of view |
| to treat theft as unacceptable too.We should | | | | that is not often found in mainstream media. |