CHAOS
The dictionary
defines chaos as "a state of things in which chance is supreme". Most of us
have used it in exaggeration to define family picnics or perhaps an outing
to a large event. Occasionally we see it in its real form. Think of New York
on Sept. 11th. New Orleans. Any one of a legion of historical events which
created true chaos. In current terms we might cite Nickel Mine in
Pennsylvania where just this past week, young Amish schoolgirls were lined
up and summarily dispatched as the world watched in horror. Laced with irony
as the tragedy unfolded in a community which clearly chooses a simpler
lifestyle and goes to great lengths to avoid the social ills that usually
are at the root of such an evil act. Nonetheless, the perpetrator was
nearby, having just dropped his own children off at school before embarking
on his mission.
Chaos is interesting. Is it the default human condition, or an anomaly?
Certainly, when chaos erupts, humans go to great lengths to try to
neutralize it, to try and return to "normal" as quickly as possible. This
would imply that it is not the default condition but one that we are
uncomfortable with. There is security in normalcy. There is security in the
predictable. And yet, more and more, we see chaos bubbling up in more and
more places and in myriad manifestations. The Amish school slaughter was in
fact one of a handful of school shootings in just one week. Today, the
President announced that he will appoint someone to study school security.
Did you ever think you would see the day that schools, of all places, became
a magnet for random violence of this extreme nature?
It's not just the school shootings however. There is a general trend toward
chaos in many layers of society. Our promiscuous culture and entertainment
industry is helping to erode basic tenets of decency that most of us have
always taken for granted. Couple this with the disintegration of the family
unit and one can see why we are headed for trouble. Hard enough trying to
instill values in your children when so much of what they see and hear
outside the home flies directly in the face of what you may be trying to
teach them. Confused? I would be. Now imagine a child coming from a home
where there is drug abuse, violence, or probably worse, complete
indifference coming from the parents, or more likely, parent. Slowly,
quietly, the stage is being set for an interesting generation. The upcoming
generation may be once again labeled "X", only this time it will be "X" for
"extreme".
The war in Iraq. Chaos. No matter how you slice it, and regardless of where
you stand on the legitimacy of the action in the first place, the current
state of affairs could only be described as chaos. And it's not just the
enemy. Just yesterday a Navy Corpsman testified in a case involving a Marine
patrol that murdered an Iraqi civilian. Hashim Ibrahim Awad was placed in a
hole and shot ten times in the head. Sgt. Lawrence Hutchins was angry that
this guy, apparently a known terrorist, had been caught three times and
released. He decided to put an end to it right then and there. Three
soldiers from the patrol participated in the execution. For the record, the
entire patrol has been arrested and court marshaled and the trial is
underway. Most likely they will do life. I can tell you that I do not hold
this act against these soldiers because they are operating in chaos. Also,
for those paying attention, this demonstrates in crystal-clear terms the
difference between us and them. We hold our soldiers accountable to rules
and apply justice. This enemy of course, has no rules and had it been an
American soldier on the receiving end of those rounds there would have been
celebration, not a court proceeding. We are witnessing the decay which
inevitably ensues when chaos cannot be reigned in, when it continues
unabated. Some are calling it a Civil War. I call it a "state of things in
which chance is supreme."
Finally, the war in Iraq in combination with the saber rattling by Iran and
North Korea, which may well be performing their first live nuclear test as
you read this, is an indication to me that the chaos is not going away
anytime soon. Switch to our homeland. The immigration crisis, the
polarization within the country, and the unabated growth of the social ills
I touched on earlier cause me to wonder if we may soon find ourselves mired
in irreversible chaos right here. Even with Sept. 11th we seem unable as a
country to focus on anything for any length of time, or at least a length of
time suitable for devising and implementing solutions. Imagine that school
shootings become so commonplace that it is not even news anymore. How about
the increase in home-invasions? When occurrences such as these become so
common that they become simply a fact of life, what will we do? When we have
finally allowed the internet to bring video of child-rape to every household
that the act becomes accepted and the disappearance of a child is akin to
losing a cat, what will we do? When alcohol and drug abuse become so rampant
that the crimes they give birth to are just an accepted daily hazard, what
will we do?
There is an additional definition of chaos in Webster's dictionary: "a state
of utter confusion", "chasm, abyss". If that sounds like a fair description
of where you would like to live, then relax and enjoy the ride. For everyone
else, it should come as a call to arms. For whatever little bit anyone can
do, even if it starts with holding the door for an elderly neighbor, then
you better get started. With any luck, that will grow into a greater effort
to make some kind of difference. We need to get past the bickering, the
name-calling, the polarization and accept that there is indeed a "culture
war" in play right here at home. I would like to keep "a place where chance
is supreme" the apt definition of Foxwoods or Vegas. I would hate to have it
be the new national anthem or the replacement for "welcome" on every door
mat in America.