Big bother is no brother of mine

A few weeks ago I went on a ride along (not in the back seat but as an observer) and what I observed brought to mind a few questions and concerns about who we are becoming as a people and as a society in general.  It may have been somewhat mundane for the officer but for me it was an eye opening experience that solidified the idea that we have lost our way.

With an incredible amount of patients and professionalism the officer showed me the underbelly of a beast that is slowly but inexorably devouring our spirituality, consuming our morals and digesting our very souls with its insatiable hunger and desire to overtake, overshadow and destroy all in its path. The hapless and lost meandering the streets, most thinking all is well fall prey to the appetites of this great beast and simply provide fodder as they unknowingly feed its deprivation.

From a drunk and stumbling man to two innocent but foolish girls drinking in their car it was a continuous ride of the same, a seemingly unending parade of hungry souls willing to do almost anything for what they believe will bring them pleasure.  No peace, no tranquility of mind only the overriding drive toward lasciviousness and desire.  This is the motivation of so many these days that the police are overwhelmed with crime, hatred and a blood lust so pervasive that I fear nothing can be done to stem the feeding frenzy that is to come.

With expert skills the officer negotiates the thrills and dangers each night and with his partners patrols the city streets like heroes looking for those telltale signs of delinquency, intervening, interceding and interrupting those crimes as best as possible while knowing that they are understaffed, underequipped and hamstrung by liberal politicians that mandate policies that not only put them in danger but endangers everyone they are trying to protect while those that govern are safe and protected in their ivory towers never concerning themselves with the reality of what they have created, happy with the outcome as long as there remunerations continue.

There is nothing in the future to indicate a change that will reverse these trends. Today it was reported that the gap between the very rich and the rest had widened to its most extreme for the last 100 years with only more of the same to follow.  Evan as a teacher I see the signs posted blatantly on the walls of life as neon loud posters strewn the streets in warning.  We can all see the behaviors the insensitivity and the lack of compassion poisoning our children’s minds while we drink from that same fetid well self-medicating ourselves into oblivion. How can we save our children if we can’t save ourselves?

We have the tools and the technology and in the patrol car each officer has a computer and through that connection a massive and extensive data base connects his patrol car to all the others and with it the information needed to investigate millions.  The Big Brother scenario may have seemed like a science fiction fable but those in charge have all the information and the use of that technology is being used to control not assist. 

They know how old you are, where you live and where you used to live, they know what car you drive and what color it is and beyond the police connection we can only imagine what they know about our buying habits, our propensities and our secrets, they probably know us better than we know ourselves.

While we try to live in a world filled with crime and corruption those who are placed as fiduciaries are probing and prodding, pulling and pushing, leading us along like sheep to the slaughter, milking our God given freedoms until we are bone dry and lifeless, sucking our sanity and draining our spirits, letting us die in obscurity as they leap and sing, laughing over our bodies and the bodies of our children, never considering or even thinking about the carnage left in their wake.

Many will die and more will suffer thinking they are boldly in pursuit of fame and desire seeking their fortunes at the expense of their own celestial riches. There are millions who blindly live day to day, plodding along waiting like an addicted gambler hoping for the numbers to fall in their favor only to be gravely disappointed in the end.

There are those who proclaim the words of warning, courageously battling those that would have us fail.  The David’s against the Goliath’s, battling daily, never ignoring the cries of those in need.  They stand as sentinels, armored with truth and goodness knowing perhaps of the futility of what they do but also understanding that good must prevail over evil and that God will stand with those that stand against evil.  Like a modern day Moses their arms are raised toward the heavens guiding our eyes toward His will with the understanding that nothing will vanquish the goodness of God.

It may have only been a few short hours but that ride along opened my eyes to the challenges of overcoming and enduring, knowing that without these courageous few the front lines of life would be forfeit and the rest would fall in short order.  It is the police, the firefighters, the pastors, the teachers and the honest among us that hold that line against the evil monster that would consume us all.  If we are to be victorious, and I believe victory will be ours, we must never surrender, never give up, never give in, never doubt the goodness of God and always know that truth and righteousness will prevail.