The error of our ways

I guess every generation thinks they have the answers to the problems that seem to plague mankind and my generation was no different.  In my time the Viet Nam “conflict” was the driving force that caused us to “sit in,” march, demonstrate, and otherwise scream for peace with every ounce of energy we had.  It spawned the “peace movement” that had us burning draft cards, wearing “flowers in our hair,” tip-toeing through the tulips, and moving into communes.

Love was the answer, free love, we loved everything to death, especially each other.  It all seemed good but eventually free love turned into the sexual revolution and that was not good.  It subverted the traditional American family values.  Other traditional values were also cast aside, like religion.  Suddenly, led by the Beatles, it was cool to be steeped in eastern philosophy.  Suddenly the teachings of Paramahansa Yogananda were the light and the way.  If, by chance, you had read the writings of Kahlil Gibran then you were in, and if you listened to the musical strings of Ravi Shankar, wow!

Khalil Gibran

Paramahansa Yogananda

Ravi Shankar

I never connected the dots at the time but, looking back, I can see that we were terribly wrong.  I can see how all these liberal thinkers were shaping our lives and we were fighting the American way.  Moving into communes, what the hell were we thinking?  It seems like we were headed for the very things we abhor today, Communism!

Most of us were forced out of this mindset when we had to make our way in the competitive world but some of us did not.  Many of those who did not became college professors and carried that liberal mindset with them to pass along to the next generation.  That’s where most of the damage took place.  Today we are plagued by these liberal thinkers and we have nobody to blame but ourselves.  I blame liberalism for spiraling this country into moral and financial bankruptcy and I am sorry that I was part of the movement that left this legacy for those who must follow.