But I do not despair...

Adam Jeske:

Close your eyes and imagine this…

Imagine if our culture was taken to the -nth degree, to its logical end.

Maybe Lady Gaga is president. Maybe digital devices hang in front of our faces, precluding any unmediated communication. Maybe our nations war over water. Maybe norms about intimacy and privacy have melted. And maybe our speech has deteriorated into grunts, slang, and chuckles.

If North American culture keeps it up, we could be in big trouble.

Our culture is infatuated with stars like Justin Bieber, and our top TV show is even called “American Idol.” We revel in Charlie Sheen “winning.” Our king is LeBron. Chatroulette and PostSecret spotlight our basest tendencies and hidden shames. College grades are inflated. Polar ice caps are melting. Our states are broke, and our nation is $14,421,378,214,947 in the red.

As consumers, we spend more than we make. Kids kill other kids. Yesterday, I heard the phrase “economic collapse” on the radio a few times. A friend of mine jokes that she’ll put her tent in our yard when it really hits the fan.

And that just may be in the United States. Think of international conflicts, malnutrition, malaria, HIV and AIDS, human trafficking, simple grinding poverty, and the vulnerable people (especially children) who take the brunt of it.

Holy smokes. I’m only 33, and I sound like a crotchety old man. My years overseas have held a lot of pain for me and for those near me. But I’m not a Chicken Little kind of guy — I do not despair.

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