Today’s Wayward Society and How We Arrived Here

Orienteering is the term used to describe a cross country race in which each participant uses a map and a compass to navigate to different reference points on a wilderness course. It is the ultimate test of map and compass reading skills. One wrong interpretation of your equipment or surroundings could result in miles of misguided steps. In fact, what may start out as a small error in judgment could eventually culminate into a huge expanse of separation between you and the right path.

If you veer off course by just one degree, each mile will get you 92 feet further away from the correct path. After five miles you will be 460 feet off course. And that’s just one degree off. The more degrees that you are off, the worse it gets. There is a price that every hiker pays for going wayward. Sometimes that price is wasted energy. Sometimes it’s two days without water. On some occasions it costs the ultimate price.

So how does this relate to society as a whole? I have my own reason. I like to call it the “slippery slope effect”.  Have you ever noticed how things seem so harmless at first but after a period of time, they end up terribly and regretfully wrong. Just as an example, let’s take a look at tv. Back in the days of I Love Lucy, married couples couldn’t be shown in bed together. At least one person had to have a foot touching the floor at all times. That soon became boring to everyone. And so it went–one, two, three degrees off course until I accidentally ran across an episode of Nip Tuck. One of the main characters was interviewing for a nanny (or maybe a housekeeper). His interview process included having her laying on the coffee table, legs in the air. Gee, I’m so glad I witnessed that. Most recently I flipped to a reality channel and accidentally watched a few moments of some sort of dating show called NEXT. It involved several young adults on a bus. They would come out one by one to experience a quick date with the bachelor or bachelorette waiting outside. Many times the person waiting outside the bus would take one look at the appearance of the person exiting the bus and say, “Next” right off the bat. Wow, way to instill an extra level of shallowness in the youth of today. As I continued to watch, a homosexual version of NEXT came on. Time to change the channel…

Not enough proof? Ok, that’s just tv…How about the abortion issue? Yes, I’m going there…Started out with illegal abortions, progressed to abortions during certain medical situations and rape, progressed to late term abortions, progressed to partial birth abortions, and finally it has progressed to botched abortions where the baby is sometimes born alive, but still considered a fetus and a blob of human tissue (even at 7 or 8 lbs) and placed in a bucket without a right to medical care, until it slips into death. Yet we wonder how America has arrived at its current state of dysfunction.

There is no reason to wonder. Here is your formula…anything you are appalled by, take the time to do a bit of research on the subject. I guarantee you, the slippery slope effect will come into play. Compromise begets compromise begets compromise. Parents are no longer parents. Parents now respond to the whims of their children. Parents don’t lead by example, they lead by compromise. And in today’s world, anyone with a shred of moral fiber is labeled as being some sort of freak trying to suppress our rights.

Don’t believe me? Do this little experiment (if you are a parent). Next time its bed time or chore time, simply and matter-of-factly tell your child to go to bed or to do the dishes. Take a look at the response you get. Does your child say, “okay” and get up to do it? Or does it turn into a back and forth debate that is exhausting? Parents may think it wise to thoroughly explain the reason why they are telling their child to do each and every thing. Gone are the days when a parent say, “because I said so.” It always has to be a huge explanation now. (which may be okay sometimes, but most of the time “because I said so” should be enough).

If you do not agree with me, ponder this: Your toddler is playing on the front lawn with a ball. As you watch, the ball rolls into the street. The toddler is not thinking clearly and runs full force between two parked cars to retrieve the escaping ball. You yell, “STOP!” There is no time for explanations, you need immediate obedience. Your child needs to “STOP” because you said so, not because you have time to explain. Think about it. When in the military, the men don’t ask the sergeant “why”. I’m not one for complete dictatorship, but any thinking person would agree that we as parents have become wishy-washy people who just want to please our children. That’s not our job. Our job is to raise them properly so that they will become useful citizens.

That’s why slippery slopes come with warning signs…