Watched this video last night and felt it was true to its purpose and relatively well done, albeit a bit gratuitous in its violence and mayhem. I am concerned, though, about the spate of media and entertainment lately that play on the faults of America and contrasts
them to the perceived 'spiritually better' lifestyles of other
cultures.
I sense Americans are going through a 'guilt phase' concerning our
history and our present condition and the political/cultural sins we have committed. It's true we are not a perfect society and have made serious errors, particularly with the callous treatment of Native Americans and Africans in slavery. Nevertheless, our experiment in democracy is only as good as the intrinsic values individuals carry in their heart because these values form the collective experience of the nation.
Character does matter and because we are human and sinful by nature, the flaws show up all too frequently in the events of history and our times.
However, if we believe in ourselves as a free people and an open society, all the warts will show and our adversaries and those who are jealous of who and what we are will exploit our weaknesses. We must remain on guard for that and demonstrate by our purposes and actions that our way of life, on balance, is the best that the world offers in these times. Otherwise, we may enter an irreversible spiral of decline.
