U.S. Is Losing its Morals

 

As our daily media headlines continue to bombard us with stories about the our border crisis, sexual assaults by Catholic priests, mob-style  slash-and- grabs, car-jackings, shootings, and murders, one has to wonder what has become of the morals in our society.  One of today’s headline stories even further defines America’s moral dilemma.   Dollar General announced that they will begin removing all self-checkout devices from their stores, due to item theft.  Walmart and Target also announce they will now limit the number of items you can check out in their self-checkout lines.

And to top things off we have two men running for president that have serious ethical and moral deficiencies.  In fact, one is presently defending himself from 91 charges in four criminal cases.  However, no one seems to really care anymore when one’s moral character is suspect.

I think my friend best summed up the present day moral sentiment in our country when I questioned him about the moral insufficiencies of these two candidates and he replied, “Well no one is perfect, and to find someone morally fit is not possible today, and should not be expected.”  Please pause and think about what he said.  Do you also buy into this belief?

If so, I wonder if we even internalize what we hear every time we attend church or synagogue.  And while we may simply wish to ignore what we as a society are willing to morally tolerate, one best review the long term plans of two of our top adversaries, namely, Russia and China.

Neither of these adversary’s plans involve going to war with the U.S. for world dominance. Their plan is simply to foster self- destruction of our society from within. Pit us against each other by destroying our moral fiber.  And if you think this is some sort of looney belief on my part, you need only to review the recent report released by our intelligent agencies about all the disinformation that is being disseminated by both these countries on social media to foster not only divisiveness, but to influence our elections. They are striking at the very core of our democracy.

Just look at how successful these two countries have been with their plans in creating a climate of ineffectiveness due to polarization and divisiveness at our Congressional House and Senate levels, and at the many state legislative branches.  Presently, these entities spend most of their time in power struggles rather than focusing on improving the quality of life in our society.  Many simply have sunk so low as to resort to name calling and personal attacks like preschoolers on a school yard.  And, we condone and reinforce this by our cheers and laughter when the folks running for the highest office in the land do it.   

Our political leaders no longer intellectually debate each other on issues important to us. They just personally demean each other.  But then again, maybe they lack the intellect to do otherwise.  However, whatever the reason all are contributing to implementing the perfect Russia/China plan.

Just how low will we morally and ethically go before we come to the realization that Russia and China are succeeding, and we decide to stop it?   It’s time to take your head out of the sand and notice what‘s going on.

What is LSU's Legacy?

As LSU continues to bask in the media surrounding its football team’s, men’s and women's baseball teams’, women’s gymnastics team’s and now the women's basketball team's elite successes, one ranking that is sorely missing from all this excitement is LSU’s academic successes.

According to the LSU website its mission and vision statement reads as follows:

“As the Flagship institution of the state, the vision of LSU is to be a leading research-extensive university, challenging undergraduate and graduate students to achieve the highest levels of intellectual and personal development. Designated as a Land, Sea and Space Grant institution, the mission of LSU is the generation, preservation, dissemination and application of knowledge and cultivation of the arts.

In implementing its mission, LSU is committed to:

• Offering a broad array of undergraduate degree programs and extensive graduate research opportunities designed to attract and educate highly qualified undergraduate and graduate students;
• Employing faculty who are excellent teacher-scholars, nationally competitive in research and creative activities and who contribute to a world-class knowledge base that is transferable to educational, professional, cultural and economic enterprises; and
• Using its extensive resources to solve economic, environmental and social challenges.”

Sadly, when it comes to addressing its academic mission LSU seems to be unable to repeat it sports’ successes. In the 2024 college and university rankings published by U.S. News and World Report, LSU ranks 185 in national universities, which is a 32 point drop since 2021 where it scored 153, and a 9 point drop over last year’s ranking.  Understandably, the media glossed over this stat, reported it in the back pages of the local papers, and never did any in-depth follow up investigative reporting as to why this continual drop is occurring.

Why would you expect any different coverage since LSU is promoted as the “Flagship institution” of the state?

However, I bet if this year’s women's basketball team had suddenly started losing games, that would have been front page news, and all the sports writers would have done in-depth stories as to what was going on.

So as our new governor embarks on focusing his energy and monies on the hot topic of combating crime in our state, just maybe he ought to put as much excitement and resources into combating the educational problem in our state which has now even reached the doorsteps of the state’s premier university. But as of now, he seems to have decided to grant raises to state agency heads as yet another priority.

It’s time for LSU and the governor to decide not only what's the Flagship institution’s legacy is to be, but the state's as a whole regarding educating its youth.

Thank God for Mardi Gras

As Mardi Gras approaches and the city breaks into revelry there is a particular group of individuals that surely is thankful for these celebratory days, namely, the homeless.  In order to make the city as attractive as possible, the homeless gathering in Treme under the Claiborne Avenue bridge is once again being disbanded by city workers and these individuals placed in subsidized apartments.  How long they will be permitted to remain there is anybody’s guess, but at least they are out of view to the tourists.

Sadly, this appears to be the only solution the Cantrell administration has to deal with this chronic problem, and after Carnival ends this population will once again grow on full display for all residents.

When the city will enact a realistic and sustainable plan to deal with the homeless in New Orleans is an unknown, but thank God for Mardi Gras to give these folks some temporary relief.

Just maybe some of that city income from Mardi Gras could be dedicated towards dealing with this problem permanently, instead of using the yearly band-aide solution.

Lazy Parents

Several months ago, I penned an opinion on the public outcry to ban certain books from libraries that were deemed inappropriate or offensive for children by certain individuals.  These regulations even went so far as to allow only a one individual to raise a complaint in order to have a book reviewed for banning.  At the time I raised the issue of where the role of the parent fit into all this regulation, and how parents now days would rather have government regulation of their children’s behavior rather than assume the role of good parenting.

Today, the news media reported that a federal judge in Ohio has halted the implementation of a new law that would require children to get parental consent to use social media apps such as FaceBook, TikTok, SnapChat, Meta, X, etc.  In his ruling the judge claimed the law was an infringement on free speech and overly vague.

For me this law was more than that. It was yet another example of lazy parents who feel they have no responsibility in regulating their children’s behavior; an attitude that is clearly borne out by the rise in teenage crimes.

Additionally, there really is no need for such a law.  There is already a function on all smart devices that allows online sites to be blocked from the device.  It’s called “Parental Controls.”  And there is another function called “Delete” which allows the complete removal of an app from the smart device.   However, it is obvious that many parents today don’t want to be perceived as the ‘bad guys’ by their children and simply want to use the scapegoat of government regulation to enforce their online behaviors. 

Well, I can tell what parents should be doing irrespective of any law.  They should assume the ‘bad guy’ role, monitored their kid’s search history, review what apps he/she are using, and if you feel they are inappropriate or being used abusively (bullying), deleted them.  If your children defy you and put them back on their smart device, take the device away.  Simple isn’t it?

News flash for parents, you don’t have to be your kid’s friend or buddy.  Instead love them, nurture them, and for God’s sake take responsibility in monitoring their behavior.  It's called parenting!

Same old crap

Sometimes my naiveness is an embarrassment to myself. I truly thought that governor-elect Jeff Landry would actually make departmental cabinet appointments based upon an individual's experience and expertise in the area in which they were charged with overseeing. Today, in politics, it's almost a universal practice to appoint friends, cronies, or individuals who assisted monetarily in your election, to these positions.  Sadly, Jeff Landry has kept that tradition alive and even added the requirement that you supported Donald Trump to his qualification's list. His latest cabinet selection to the head the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries clearly demonstrates his appointment desires. 

The only qualification of that appointee that even remotely relates to Wildlife and Fisheries is her contact with water while serving as captain of the Ohio State rowing team, which Landry highlighted in his appointment speech.  The appointee has no formal experience in the areas of ecology, biology, or conservation.  However, she was a true Trump supporter, so she qualifies to head the department. Landry's other cabinet appointments follow a similar pattern.

Business as usual. Why would I think Jeff Landry would be a trail blazer, break the centuries old modus operandi and do the logical thing? Just how naive can I be?

Pay up or leave the city

As a former 40 year resident of the city, I wonder when the residents and businesses of New Orleans are going to put on their 'big boy' pants and start paying their fair share of the cost to live in the city they claim to love. Maybe if the city officials didn't 'rollback' property taxes and let them stay at the real value of property ownership in the city, they could adequately fund the sewerage and drainage system, police protection, the emergency response system, the school system, infrastructure repairs and maintenance, reliable garbage collection, and the drinking water purification system, just to name a few.

If New Orleans residents are truly desirous of a better quality of life for their children and themselves,they need to pony up and adequately fund the city.  Inflation is a reality, and the city finances need to reflect that.  Just as it costs more to shop for groceries, automobiles, and other necessities, so too does it cost more to provide city services. It's time for the New Orleans City Council to face reality and stop being an 'enabler.'

The Self-Destruct Mode of the U.S.

A recent poll conducted by the University of Virginia Center for Politics shows what many consider is the greatest single threat to our great nation.  And no, it’s not China, Russia, Iran, or North Korea, but the United States, itself; decay from within. The poll indicated that 52 percent of supporters of President Joe Biden say Republicans are now a threat to the American life, and 47 percent of former President Donald Trump supporters claim the same about Democrats.

Even more alarming was the finding that of those supporting Biden, 41 percent now condone violence as the way "to stop Republicans from achieving their goals." And almost identical percentages, 38 percent of Trump supporters, believe the use of violence is acceptable to stop Democrats.

Perhaps we should now assume that the January 6^th melee was not simply a onetime, isolated event, but instead an overt example of these feelings playing out in real time; a barometer of our future.

And if we as a nation don’t come to grips soon, our adversaries will get to see their game plan come to fruition.  Russia and China use social media to bombard us with disinformation in hopes of fueling division among us which will lead to societal destruction within the U.S.  They don’t need armies to defeat us if they can foster self-destruction by pitting us against each other. 

I always thought that such an approach was ridiculous and totally unattainable, for as we so proudly state in our Pledge of Allegiance, we are “one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all”.

But as a society we are becoming more and more divisive and obsessed with our own life’s style agenda as the only acceptable one.  Do it my way or I will do whatever is necessary to make you conform.  The abhorrent behavior of the present U.S. Congress serves as a prime example of the success of the alienation plan, as do both the present Democratic President and the leading Republican contender for the presidency.

When will it stop? When we as a society realize the value of human life, stop the idolization of material things, and put in the effort to function responsibly as a member of society.

We as a country have two choices.  We can continue on our present course of closed mindedness, intolerance, and violence, or we can actively work to achieve some middle ground approach to be more pliant and tolerant of others.

However, to save our society requires a desire to change and perhaps now, we as a nation, are beyond the point of no return. You decide!