Road to Demise

Are we on a road to our own demise? Have we chosen a path that will ultimately be our own destruction? Have our life choices set us on ways that will destroy us from either enemies or nature? Have we not learned from history or not paid attention?

Life is a circle and if one follows history, will see if not changed will repeat itself, over and over and over again. The United States claims a status as a super power for now, but is still very young in it nationhood. Like many superpowers from history that have risen, we can fall just as easily.

Many 1000's years ago, in fact 900 years before Christ, in Greece, in the Providence of Sparta, a young man who would be the leader of Sparta named Lycurgus, wanted his city of Sparta to be the greatest when he took control over from his father. So he set out to educate himself and traveled for many years, visiting all of the great countries and cities and civilizations of his time, to learn what made a country, city, civilization great. He did this to become the best ruler that Sparta would ever know.

What Lycurgus learned in his travels before he took over as leader of Sparta, was this; that when a people thought chiefly of hard work, did what they ought to, whether it was pleasant or not, they were a good strong people and would be tough to beat in battle, but when a people thought chiefly of fun and pleasure, of amusing themselves and having a good time, they were not worth much, were weak and would be easily beaten in battle.

When Lycurgus returned and took control of Sparta, he wanted no weaklings, so when boys reached the age of seven they were taken from their families and placed into training camps. They were not taught math, or geography, or reading or writing. They were taught to become good soldiers, at times a Spartan boy would be whipped not because he did something wrong, but to teach him to endure pain without whimpering. He was exercised and drilled and expected to keep on going no matter how hungry, tired, aching or thirsty he might get. Sort of like special forces training for seven year olds.

This is where the old saying "Hard as Nails" came from. Soon Lycurgus turned Sparta into the strongest civilization of the time. And very soon Sparta conquered all of the people around them, even though there were ten time as many. Lycurgus was correct people who thought of fun and pleasure, concentrating on amusing themselves, instead of concentrating on hard work were easily beaten in battle and not worth much, as he made slaves of the conquered people for the Spartans to use as labor in the fields.

Now another principle that Lycurgus did learn as a youth and bring into his rule, was respect for elders. Everything that Lycurgus learned as a young man traveling, he learned from older wiser men, and Lycurgus learned that just because someone has gotten older and has slowed down, or lost an arm in battle, they have not lost their ability to contribute wisdom of their life experience. So Lycurgus taught Spartans to respect and care for their elders and benefit from the wisdom they could offer.

Now on the other peninsula of Greece was Athens, and the Athenians were fond of athletic games. (The original Olympics). The Athenians were a bit different than the Spartans, as they believed in training the mind and the body and did the arts also, music poetry, art, statues verses the Spartans way of discipline and everything military. The Athenians did not want war with the Spartans and invited them to a day of athletic games.

The day of the big games arrived and a very old Athenian man was looking for a seat in the stadium on the Athenian side, all were taken and not one person would give up their place to the old man. Seeing this the Spartans called to the old man, brought him to their side and offered him a seat, the very best seat in their section. ( History of the World, page92)

Now in looking back in our very own history, our country was much the same as the Spartans. Of course we did not take children from their mothers at the age of seven and put them into military training camps, but people came here from many nations, worked hard, from sun up to sun down. Plowed fields, built homes, raised families and fought the British to win our independence.

Families took care of families, their were no nursing or retirement homes. Many generations of the same families lived in or on the same property for years and years and years. Sons and wives took care of parents, parents and grandparents spread their wisdom from generation to generation. Hard work was the chief concern, but fun was had also. My father is 78 years old and he speaks of times without TV and cars and a lot of money and hard work, but he also speaks of times his brothers and he would get out in the field and play a game of cowboys and Indians, or how they would go skinny dipping down at the pond. Fun could be had without an IPOD, or a game boy.

So what happened to the great Sparta, like so many other superpowers of the distant past they fell. One thing Lycurgus could not learn or control was death or how to keep things going after his passing. Like everything else in life Lycurgus's time came to an end, he died like everyone has to. After his passing a more liberal government took control of Sparta, things changed, hard work stopped, the seeking of pleasure took over, Sparta became weak and a superpower fell. Just like the many superpowers before and after. The Assyrian Empire, the Babylonian Empire, the Egyptian Empire, the Roman Empire, the Greek Empire, The British Empire, the USSR. Superpowers are their own nemeses and will destroy themselves from within before their enemies take control.

Look at the road we have chosen. We have abandoned hard work for pleasure seeking, we want fast cars, fast computers, fast food. Our drive for fast food, has created a nation of overweight people, and made a multi-million dollar industry out of dieting. We have children and babies hitting talk shows that are obese. There was a 4 year old on Montel Williams the other day that was 200 pounds!!!! A 4 YEAR OLD PEOPLE !!!!!! We will sit around on our game boys and our ipods and our cell phones and wonder what will they invent next to entertain us. And we use to be the inventors of the entertainment, the new items are now coming out of Asian countries. We sit and gobble up our fast food, get fatter and lazier and say "I AM BORED" what will amuse me now.

Our elderly get no respect, they are not used for their wisdom. They are put into homes and forgotten about. The government wants to cut the benefits and make the retirement age older and older. Use to be 62 when you could start collecting SSI, but now if you are born before a certain date it is 68 and if you are born before another date it is 72. The elderly are eating pet food and doing without heat and air conditioning just to afford their medications. We are treating our elderly just like the Athenians, letting them fend for themselves and find their own seat. They are worthless, they are old, they are forgotten.

The United States encompasses 7% of the worlds population but we produce 35% of the carbon dioxide that is destroying our atmosphere and creating the greenhouse effect, causing our climate change. As the oceans stay warmer we get more intense hurricanes, look at our winters, our weather patterns are changing, the storms we are getting are more violent and destructive. Mother Earth is saying "Enough is Enough".

Yet we in the United States will still fill up both tanks on our dually, hook up the camper and go traveling seeking our fun and pleasure. We will still fill up our tanks on the gas guzzling SUV pack up the kids and head off to Six Flags, to ride the rides and seek the thrills. We will still fill up the tank on the boat and spend the day out on the lake. We don't care how much carbon we throw into the atmosphere, nothing will get in the way of our FUN.

There are 1 million North Koreans anxiously waiting to come into their own as a superpower. The Iranians are looking to become a nuclear superpower in the very near future. Thousands are crossing our boarders illegally every week. Mother Nature is lurking in the wings awaiting to unleash her full anger. Yet we sit back in Burger King stuffing our faces, filling the tanks on our dually's, riding the rides at Six Flags doing nothing but self seeking our own pleasure and fun.

Are we not worth much, weak, ripe to be beaten? Will we slip away silently as another superpower, in the history books of life? Will Mother Nature rip us from her breast in disgust? Will we fall and be the cause of our own demise?

History will repeat, if people will not learn from it. Are we too far gone, to change the path we have chosen? We have become the most arrogant, stupid, intelligent people on the planet only time will tell if we have become smart enough to change the road we are on, or if we will become another Empire read about in history books of the future.

Something to think about!

Just one man's opinion. As always, put the wind in your hair and keep the sun to your back. Be good and stay safe. Peace, Love and prosperity to all.

Frank WOLF watchdog taking a BITE out of corruption!

Copyright © Frank J. Ball Sr.