The Sleazing of America

It's often said that money is the root of all evil.

Au contraire; I like money, and as a retired and financially challenged man, I'd like to have a lot more of it. I would welcome an influx of big money from winning the lottery, or inheriting big from a wealthy relative I didn't know I had. I'll happily take the chance, assume the risk, that having significantly more money might make me evil.

But there is real truth to the acknowledgement that money is the root of all evil, as long as the shibolith is modified to say, "Money used to corrupt is the root of all evil.

It's also often said, that if you don't understand something, follow the money.

I don't know about you, and I'm sure others have wailed against the decline in decency over all of recorded history, but I seem to be inundated with sleaze whenever I watch TV, surf the Web, check out the newstand or take in a movie.

I'm no prude. My real concern is that the sleazing of America, perhaps more accurately called the sleazing of civilization, leads to the decline and fall of decency, which knows no country.

Censorship leads to even more corruption, like what happened during Prohibition. That's not the solution.

It's often also said that in all organizations, small to large, the tone of the culture usually reflects the values of its leaders.

In the US, at least for the previous eight years, our leaders essentially told us that they were above the law. If the law is what keeps regular folks decent, and if our leaders say they don't have to follow it, it's not a stretch to conclude that, consciously or unconsciously those who follow the leaders will take on the same attitude.

What do you think? Use the comments option to chime in.

Lighthouse Keeper