It\u2019s at this time of the rolling year that we think about what matters most in our lives.\u00a0 Just as Charles Dickens designed into his story we think of the past, present and future.\u00a0 And at this point in my life these become very distinct groupings.<\/p>\n
When I think back to my childhood and youth it\u2019s as if I\u2019m looking out on a different world.\u00a0 The America of my past was like a fantasy world where opportunity and optimism was omnipresent.\u00a0 And Christmas was the epicenter of that sense of optimism because children are the center of Christmas and America was arranged around providing the next generation with a future of limitless opportunity.\u00a0 And that culture back then was still a Christian culture and the religious and moral aspects of the Christmas story were at the very least still acknowledged.\u00a0 Even Charlie Brown ended his troubled search for the meaning of Christmas with Linus reciting the New Testament text at Luke 2:8-14.\u00a0 And all this positivity and solidarity produced a remarkably happy life for the great majority of Americans.<\/p>\n
Now look at the present.\u00a0 It\u2019s not an exaggeration to say that pessimism is the dominant sentiment among Americans of every stripe.\u00a0 And young people are convinced that the opportunities their parents and grandparents enjoyed will not be there for them.\u00a0 And as far as Christmas goes, not only is religion now almost abandoned by the young but any spirituality or even morality associated with Christmas has been drained out of it by the popular culture and the cultural institutions on the Left.\u00a0 Christianity is only referenced as a symbol of Western oppression or the patriarchy.\u00a0 What has replaced it is a confused cult of \u201csocial justice\u201d that allows any depravity as long as it\u2019s in the name of sexual identity.<\/p>\n
But what of the future?\u00a0 I think it\u2019s certain there\u2019s no way back to the past I knew.\u00a0 But that does not rule out escaping from the desolation we find ourselves in now.\u00a0 We do not have to try to reclaim the lost souls that surround us on the Left.\u00a0 We do not even have to hate them.\u00a0 But we do have to separate from them.\u00a0 In their confusion and despair, they have taken it upon themselves to destroy our children by confusing them with their insane views.\u00a0 This must be prevented by any means possible.\u00a0 The beginnings of this resistance can be seen appearing in various parts of the country.\u00a0 To know if this will be effective, we\u2019ll have to wait and see if it starts expanding during the friendlier environment of the Trump administration.\u00a0 And there is some hope that the Supreme Court will lend a hand.\u00a0 There are hints in the statements after the reversal of Roe v Wade that gay marriage may be headed for a similar reversal.\u00a0 As with any discussion of the future every fork in the road is a flip of the coin.\u00a0 But sometimes the coin comes up heads.\u00a0 So, there\u2019s hope.\u00a0 What we\u2019ll need to do is rebuild our culture on the durable parts of our heritage.\u00a0 Morality will have to be redefined to support a healthy community that centers around normal family life.\u00a0 Those who don\u2019t fit into that pattern will have to be left to the other side to find a place in the world.\u00a0 We\u2019ll concentrate on people who can face reality and want to build something positive for their children.<\/p>\n
So here we are on Christmas Eve and I try to remember and point to the past as a template, ignore the worst of the present and hope for and work for a better future.\u00a0 Now past the roast beast and gravy and let\u2019s get this show on the road.<\/p>\n