United We Stand, Divided We Fall

Citizens of this country are becoming more polarized and concerned about only themselves. We seem to be losing the concept of community.

A community runs smoothly through the efforts of individuals, but only if those individuals work together for the common good to move the community forward. The very leaders who promote division in this country often profess to be Christians. They seem to have forgotten the Bible’s warning in Matthew 12:25 that “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand.”

The 2008 presidential campaign is a blatant example of what has gone wrong with this country. Candidates who share plans to benefit the masses often face charges of fiscal irresponsibility. Voters must take responsibility for the truly irresponsible policies that result when we support only people who can line our own pockets or calm our misguided fears. We rally around citizens who face extreme crises, but remain indifferent to the everyday needs of those who who struggle just to survive. Many see those in trouble as dead weight or competitors rather than as children of God, potential consumers of our products and services, and possible contributors to the needs of the community.

According to a recent news report based on statistics from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, the state of California could provide a Harvard education for the same amount it spends on each non-violent offender now housed in the penal system because of the three strikes law. Wouldn’t the Harvard education be a better investment? And how many people could we send to state universities, two-year colleges, and trade schools for the same price? We need skilled workers to keep jobs in this country and to help us compete in a global economy. Instead we move our jobs to other countries, often citing a shortage of skilled workers. At the same time, we maintain the highest incarceration rate in the world, according to the International Centre for Prison Studies at King’s College in London, and place higher education out of reach for more and more citizens through cuts in government funding that lead to constant tuition increases.

Last week brought the news of another school shooting. This time in Cleveland, OH. Still another was thwarted just the next day when a student in Pennsylvania reported a former schoolmate, who allegedly had tried to recruit him to participate in a Columbine-type assault.

Though I applaud the classmate who blew the whistle before anyone was hurt, where was the community when the perpetrator was crying for help? Why did his parents feel that homeschooling was the only way to shield him from constant bullying? When will school officials and parents around the country begin to teach children to respect each other? And what was his mother thinking when she purchased guns to pacify him? The problems of others don’t seem to prompt focused action until those problems threaten us.

We are on a course toward internal destruction. Unless we unite to ensure that the only citizens left behind are left by choice, we will cease to exist as a free nation. Our way of life is too precious to let it disintegrate from self-centeredness and neglect.

From the introduction to the booklet, United We Stand, Divided We Fall, now available with a subscription to this blog. To start your subscription today, click on the link to complete the subscription form in the left column of this blog.