OPINION:
People of a certain age were taught by their parents and grandparents to respect the police and obey the law and other rules and regulations. They believed such things would lead to better lives for themselves and for the nation. For many, they did.
Today, we look at the lawlessness, the antisemitism, the hate speech directed at the president, teen takeovers and attacks on police officers and others, and we might ask: Why is this happening?
The answer can be found on the side of the road. To use a metaphor, the guardrails have been removed. Guardrails are crash-tested barriers designed to keep vehicles from running off the road. Moral, ethical and deportment “guardrails” have kept us from “running off the road.”
Politicians, including President Trump and Democrats in Congress, throw rhetorical barbs at each other, sometimes using vulgar language.
What kind of lesson does this teach young people?
A Washington Post opinion piece titled “Name-calling won’t win elections” puts it this way: “Republicans could explain why putting bureaucrats in charge of the economy has ended disastrously everywhere it has happened. They could lay out why economic incentives, rather than government diktats, are more effective at allocating resources. But the GOP led by President Donald Trump has spent more time name-calling than making a positive case for the American system.”
Calling people names does not change their minds. It hardens their hearts.
Republicans should focus on why they think — and then prove — that their ideas are better than what the democratic socialists are selling. A little bit of history might help, especially when the younger generation may have missed learning about much of the 20th century, when communism and socialism killed millions of people, imprisoned millions more, suppressed speech and religion, and controlled the press.
If guardrails are destroyed, where does one turn for protection of what we in America know as basic human rights? No guardrails, no freedom — and anything goes, depending on who has the power.
As the verse says: “If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?” (Psalm 11:3). Assuming, that is, anyone can be called “righteous.”
The World Cup, watched by hundreds of millions of people around the world, has boundaries on the field. So do other sports. There are speed limits and limitations on other behavior to protect our safety, to allow for the pursuit of happiness (or at least contentment), and to contribute to the general welfare.
If there were no boundaries in sports, how could anyone keep score? If there are no moral boundaries in life, anarchy results.
Replacing these guardrails cannot be done solely by the government, or even mainly. It requires a change of heart for individuals, which can then lead to a change in direction for the country.
I have quoted it before, but the condition in which we find ourselves deserves repeating it: “In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes.” (Judges 21:25)
Guardrails are coming down faster than Mr. Trump’s name came off the Kennedy Center in Washington. Truth has become subjective. Everyone does what seems to him or her to be right, without being able to define right or wrong using a universal standard. (Notice the number of politicians who refuse to define “woman.”)
As in ancient times, we are seeing the results of what we are dismantling.
• Readers may email Cal Thomas at tcaeditors@tribpub.com. Look for Cal Thomas’ latest book, “A Watchman in the Night: What I’ve Seen Over 50 Years Reporting on America” (Humanix Books).
Follow the author
Please read our comment policy before commenting.