If there is an image that corresponds to the state of the nation, it would be that of a cruise ship on a never-ending cruise. On each of its multiple decks we find every modern comfort and entertainment. The bands are playing; the theaters are full, the restaurants crowded, and the boutiques well stocked.
The atmosphere is outwardly marked by fun and laughter. Everywhere there is dazzling spectacle, amusing games, and gadgetry. There is always one more joke or one more dance to keep the party going. The cruise ship gives an almost surreal impression of fantasy, unrestraint, and delight.
Cruises are normally celebrations for special occasions, but this party cruise is different. Over the decades, many have come to see the cruise not as a holiday but as an entitlement; it is no longer an exceptional event but the norm. Rather than leave the ship, many seek instead to prolong the party on board without worrying about a final destination, or who will pay the bill.
Breakdown of a System
Even the best of cruises reaches a point of exhaustion. Even the best of parties can last only so long. Behind the festive veneer, things start to run down. Scuffles and disagreements break out among passengers. Crew members quarrel and cut corners. Financial problems curtail the festivities. Yet no one has the courage to suggest that the party should not go on.
This image is a fitting way to explain the present crisis. As a nation, we are in the same dilemma as those on a never-ending party cruise. Economically, we have reached a point of unsustainability with trillion-dollar deficits, economic crises, and financial crashes. Politically, we have reached a point of immobility as polarization and strife make it difficult to get anything done. Morally, we have stooped to such great depths with the breakdown of our moral codes that we wonder how society will survive. The course is plotted to send us to our ruin, but all the while the bands play on.
Instead of confronting these problems head on, many are looking for ways to prolong the party. No one dares to declare that the party is over.
Ill-equipped to Face the Storm
The problems inside our cruise ship are compounded by those outside it. We are facing an
impending economic collapse that appears on the horizon like a gathering storm. Few want to admit the storm is approaching. When the full thrust of this storm will break—be it months or even a few years—is difficult to determine. We do not know exactly how it will strike or the precise means to avoid it.
What we do know is that a storm lies ahead. It is not just a passing tempest for we already feel its strong winds. By its sheer magnitude, we sense there is something about this particular crisis that touches the very core of our American order. It will have political, social, and even military consequences. What makes it so grave is that our ship seems so ill-equipped and its crew so divided as we approach the ever more menacing storm.
In the past, we had a unity and projection that helped us stay the right course in storms like these. We were a people solidly united around God, flag, and family, but now all seems fragmented and polarized. By our great wealth and power, we once held the respect and awe of nations, but now we are unexpectedly attacked by unforeseen enemies and forsaken by friends and allies. Now, our certainties are shaken; our unity is in doubt. There is anxiety and dark pessimism about our future.
Our purpose in the book Return to Order is to explain how we got here and where we need to go if we are to save our nation. To buy a copy, go here:
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