A few miles from my house, a mentally ill man forced an evacuation of an elementary school, claiming he had a truck full of explosives. The school evacuated with no casualties or problems and, as of this writing, the perpetrator was in custody.
In New York over the weekend, a bomb was set off in Chelsea, leading to a manhunt that has already been resolved.
Stabbings in Minnesota. Yet another cop-related shooting, this time in Oklahoma.
This is the news of the last twenty-four hours.
It can be hard at times like this to declare, unequivocally (also with hyperbole), that this it has never been worse in this country.
As a history teacher, it's hard not to want to raise my hand, clear my throat, and say, albeit timidly, "That's not true."
The hard part isn't looking into the history books for the evidence. It's feeling as though the data aren't skewed. Anyone can look up the information. In the last two decades alone, FBI statistics show a steady decrease in violent crimes.* There are, no doubt, a lot of indications that this is the case. In fact, this TED Talk points out some of the trends.** But even after doing research and study, it can still feel like the world is in chaos. I mean, when Agent Orange*** gets over 40% popularity in the polls running up to the election, it can feel as though America's grip on reality is slipping.
In some ways, it is. The election of 2016 is bizarre, even for a historian who is interested in preserving some semblance of sanity when looking at current events. It is not the strangest thing that America has ever done (look at the election of 1860--in my mind, the election of Abraham Lincoln was one of the largest reasons for the secession of the South), but it is definitely up there.
And is the GOP candidate really a fascist? Historically, fascism is a right-wing dictatorship that incites nostalgia for a lost past, a promise to restore the greatness of the country, a militant demeanor, and is founded upon racist and/or xenophobic principles. So, yeah. The Republican candidate for president checks almost all of those boxes (though the dictatorship one seems a stretch; maybe it's because I didn't think "dictator" worked when describing President Obama and I want to remain non-judgmental on what an actual Trump administration would look like).
So doesn't that mean that it really has "never been worse"?
I still have to answer, No. As a nation, we're confronting the long-deferred consequences of generations of choices, most pointedly the second-class treatment of people of color, women, and other minority demographics--including but not limited to LGBTQA+ and religious minorities. The facing of injustice will always hurt, will always be uncomfortable, will always make us feel worse. That's why it's been deferred: We don't want to face those issues.
However, the facing of these problems is why I don't think it's the worst the world has seen: We're facing them. That means we will be able to confront them and pass through the trial into the next batch we create for ourselves.
Also, as a student of history, I have a hard time seeing how people can claim that the times now are worse than they were when human beings were turned into gloves and riding saddles, or men were corkscrewed to death because they were black. Humans have done a lot worse things to each other than what my recap of the news indicates.
This analysis, by the way, in no way exculpates those who perform perfidy in the world. Criminals--regardless of their class, career, or level of political influence--should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.
But don't mistake the tragedies of our mortal coil for the signal of the end times. It has been a lot worse than this ere now.
---
* One article I read--so long ago I can't find it now--pointed out that gang violence (a massive problem during the mid-'90s) was on a steady decline after the release of the Sony PlayStation. The argument, tongue only partially in cheek, was that gangbangers were too busy playing the new console to go out and shoot each other in real life any more.
** Yes, I know, I cited a TED Talk. And there are people who argue with Pinker's analysis. This shouldn't really surprise anyone, especially since his presentation is boring--a larger impact on the way you consider his points than you might think. His analysis is very Euro- and Americentric, which could be detraction, but that's also the area I want to talk about, so I still find his video persuasive.
*** Credit for the nickname goes to "Moviebob" Chipman.
In New York over the weekend, a bomb was set off in Chelsea, leading to a manhunt that has already been resolved.
Stabbings in Minnesota. Yet another cop-related shooting, this time in Oklahoma.
This is the news of the last twenty-four hours.
It can be hard at times like this to declare, unequivocally (also with hyperbole), that this it has never been worse in this country.
As a history teacher, it's hard not to want to raise my hand, clear my throat, and say, albeit timidly, "That's not true."
The hard part isn't looking into the history books for the evidence. It's feeling as though the data aren't skewed. Anyone can look up the information. In the last two decades alone, FBI statistics show a steady decrease in violent crimes.* There are, no doubt, a lot of indications that this is the case. In fact, this TED Talk points out some of the trends.** But even after doing research and study, it can still feel like the world is in chaos. I mean, when Agent Orange*** gets over 40% popularity in the polls running up to the election, it can feel as though America's grip on reality is slipping.
In some ways, it is. The election of 2016 is bizarre, even for a historian who is interested in preserving some semblance of sanity when looking at current events. It is not the strangest thing that America has ever done (look at the election of 1860--in my mind, the election of Abraham Lincoln was one of the largest reasons for the secession of the South), but it is definitely up there.
And is the GOP candidate really a fascist? Historically, fascism is a right-wing dictatorship that incites nostalgia for a lost past, a promise to restore the greatness of the country, a militant demeanor, and is founded upon racist and/or xenophobic principles. So, yeah. The Republican candidate for president checks almost all of those boxes (though the dictatorship one seems a stretch; maybe it's because I didn't think "dictator" worked when describing President Obama and I want to remain non-judgmental on what an actual Trump administration would look like).
So doesn't that mean that it really has "never been worse"?
I still have to answer, No. As a nation, we're confronting the long-deferred consequences of generations of choices, most pointedly the second-class treatment of people of color, women, and other minority demographics--including but not limited to LGBTQA+ and religious minorities. The facing of injustice will always hurt, will always be uncomfortable, will always make us feel worse. That's why it's been deferred: We don't want to face those issues.
However, the facing of these problems is why I don't think it's the worst the world has seen: We're facing them. That means we will be able to confront them and pass through the trial into the next batch we create for ourselves.
Also, as a student of history, I have a hard time seeing how people can claim that the times now are worse than they were when human beings were turned into gloves and riding saddles, or men were corkscrewed to death because they were black. Humans have done a lot worse things to each other than what my recap of the news indicates.
This analysis, by the way, in no way exculpates those who perform perfidy in the world. Criminals--regardless of their class, career, or level of political influence--should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.
But don't mistake the tragedies of our mortal coil for the signal of the end times. It has been a lot worse than this ere now.
---
* One article I read--so long ago I can't find it now--pointed out that gang violence (a massive problem during the mid-'90s) was on a steady decline after the release of the Sony PlayStation. The argument, tongue only partially in cheek, was that gangbangers were too busy playing the new console to go out and shoot each other in real life any more.
** Yes, I know, I cited a TED Talk. And there are people who argue with Pinker's analysis. This shouldn't really surprise anyone, especially since his presentation is boring--a larger impact on the way you consider his points than you might think. His analysis is very Euro- and Americentric, which could be detraction, but that's also the area I want to talk about, so I still find his video persuasive.
*** Credit for the nickname goes to "Moviebob" Chipman.
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