2008, Novemeber 05: Society that Mourns for what it has Lost..But is not Allowed to Cry for it.
[For November 5 – 10, 2008]
SOCIETY THAT MOURNS FOR WHAT IT HAS LOST …BUT IS NOT ALLOWED TO CRY FOR IT
The key leader of the Church of England recently wrote that his country was suffering from Cultural Bereavement. That is, the world and culture of that country – its values, heritage, faith, language, etc., – has changed so much that it is no longer connected to its history. The inevitable result is that the people who have watched it change find themselves missing something but are subtly intimidated to not acknowledge it. But they feel it. Those changes result in a dis-connect about which it is politically incorrect to address. The reality, of course, is that it is there nevertheless. It was eloquently illustrated last week in a conversation I had at a dinner meeting with a lady from England. She explained, unapologetically, how the people in England avoid flying or displaying their flag because it would make other people feel unwelcome and not a part of what some academicians have called “The Hive.” The hive is a place where each bee only exists for the survival of the membership.
The Archbishop of Canterbury understood it. And it certainly relates to the cop job. The ten year study by Scotland Yard – released just last year – was more than disconcerting and it has left that country and its criminal justice system increasingly in disarray. It is becoming impotent to address the safety of its people – particularly the elderly. Armed assaults on officers are up 400% and armed assaults on citizens are up 200%. And that is in a country that declared its populace pretty much gun free ten years ago. And to make things worse the same policies were pushed in its former colony, Australia, with the same results. Objective reality apparently has nothing to do with idealists who push their power on the populace. One study indicated London is now 6 times more dangerous than New York City. Something has definitely changed . But this Signal 1 is not about gun control. It is about something much more foundational. It is about a culture adrift from its moorings.
One English prison psychiatrist wrote, the elderly, particularly in the villages, have quit reporting the burglaries which occur even while they are home because the system which, by social contract, is supposed to protect them, does not. If they testify in court they are preyed upon in the aftermath by the accused, must not defend their homes at risk of prosecution, and are told this is the function of police and the government. So their desperation increases and they feel something’s not quite right. It isn’t. And the revealing question for you is why you haven’t heard about it.
Cultural bereavement is not a fiction. It’s the proverbial elephant in the living room which no one is allowed to admit. And if you follow the nerve endings back it eventually revolves around what a culture thinks about God – or not. A recent poll (random sample size 3,000) in England revealed that most of the younger generation did not believe that Winston Churchill really existed (nor Florence Nightingale or Gandhi) but they did believe Sherlock Holmes was a real person. It’s not hard to guess what they think about God or their society and its central values.
When a culture strays far from it historical “script” it becomes less and less recognizable and our own disconnect likely began back in the early 1970’s. The head of the English department at Kent State, on one of our weekly programs, indicated we were witnessing the first a-historical generation ever in the United States. And another generation, built on even less a foundation, has succeeded it. Think about what has been lost: A generation that basically doesn’t know who the good Samaritan was or what Hitler did. Small wonder that civility, treatment and understanding of law enforcement roles are lost on increasing numbers. And it’s cops, who are facing the roughest of uncivil behaviors (sanitized by the time they get to the courts and juries) that are often most aware of it. Something is not right about all this. Something’s missing.
And nothing has yet replaced it. Any culture or politic in disconnect must seek a new philosophy or religious base to provide meaning for its continued existence. It is no accident that the Judeo-Christian world view and its values are eroded from the process. But no one has stepped forth to replace it – only dismiss it.
It is in that world that you and I find ourselves. It is in that world that law enforcement finds itself, too. There is a phrase in the Bible that indicates one cannot live on just bread. Slowly the system, the organs, will starve from malnutrition. As cops you and I are going to be caught in the middle of all this because you will have to enforce laws which are losing their rationale in an ignorant populace. And our profession will struggle with it. Just sit back and watch.
If, along the way, you find yourself hungry as well as bereaved there is still the nourishment that built and continually reformed this nation. When you get hungry enough you can always come to the table for the authentic soul food. Or eventually starve.
Stay safe, keep your mind and heart vigilant and you have been prayed for.
