Exaggerated?

Of course I have my own ideas of how things should be. And, yes, I have my own visions of what could be in the future. But -- and I think anyone who has been following the latest thread with a modicum of attention will agree -- I'm doing my best not to fix the blame, and I'm not trying to convince anyone that what they think is wrong. All I'm asking -- and this happens rarely enough -- is that you give some serious thought to what you do think. Why? Because it may be more important than ever.

Don't get me wrong, though I sound like it at times, I'm not really a doom-and-gloomer. I may not be the most optimistic soul out there, but I'm realist enough to know that what comes will come and we'll have to deal with whatever that is when it appears. I do believe, however, that we still have a chance, albeit a slight one, to do something about the future, even if the system itself can no longer be fixed. I'm sticking by my guns on that one (at least until someone convinces me otherwise). The point is, if you haven't engaged your brain before opening your mouth, you're just pumping out hot air, no more.

If all we have to deal with is hot air, we've got no chance at all. I'm concerned because when we distill the entire situation down to its essence, it's no longer about who's right and who's wrong. In fact, it's not about right and wrong at all. It's about good and bad: what's good for everyone, not just a few; what's bad for everyone, not just a growing majority. We're not dealing anymore with economics or politics or even sociology. No, we're dealing with morals: the most basic, fundamental understanding of what is good and what is bad. It's a matter of morality. And for that reason, our ability to reason and discuss is more important than ever. Morality can never be edicted, it can only be agreed.

But even here, in the most (in my mind, at least) important aspect of human existence, we have lost our ability to reason, discuss and debate. We've turned -- or are at least in the process of turning -- our morality discourse into another struggle for power. What the fewest people realize is that this is one of the most dangerous turn of events there can be. If we get this one wrong, we just could be doomed ... at least as most of us think we understand the term. There's simply a lot at stake.