Is it just me, or has anyone else noticed that things like stop signs, speed limits, and traffic lanes seem to have become a matter of personal preference of late? In my neck of the woods, it is most prevalent in the shopping center near my house, where drivers seem to think that because they are on private property, not only do the rules of the road not apply, but neither do the laws of physics or the potential results of a vehicle collision. But it isn't just in parking lots. The "rolling stop" has been replaced in many cases by not stopping at all. Forget signals. Most people change lanes on a whim. When I took driver's ed, the concept of "two car lengths" was drummed into our heads. Now, if someone estimates that their car might fit between your vehicle and the one ahead of you, they simply swing right in. Never mind that they might end up on the evening news or rush-hour traffic report. Someone should have made way for them. A yellow or even a red light is an invitation to put the pedal to the metal to beat everyone else to the intersection.
I (and probably many others) am of the opinion that things like reckless driving, graffiti, flash mob shoplifting sprees, and riots are only larger reflections of the decline of society as a whole, and that decline has trickled down into the seemingly meaningless things like deciding that traffic laws and the rules of basic civility are optional. After all, if a BLM mob decides to burn down a city block, who cares if I blow through an intersection at full speed or crank my subwoofer up so everyone around me has to hear my music whether they wish to or not? Kids today, as the old saying goes.
Maybe it was the internet; maybe it was the rise of pornography. Maybe it was smartphones, video games, social media, activist teachers, the Tides Foundation, corrupt legislators, or '60s holdovers who still haven't figured out that Jerry Garcia is dead and that they are no longer relevant. Whatever the causes, the rules that used to keep us civilized have become less and less pertinent. On a macro level, that looks like riots and burning Tesla charging stations. On a micro level, it looks like broken windows and blown stop signs.
And it isn't just kids, it's a whole lotta everybody. If bigger, broader laws don't matter, neither do smaller ones. The reverse is also true; thus, we risk ending up in a feedback loop of people who care nothing for whoever is on their left or right. Consider the following exchange between Charlie Kirk and a college student:
Charlie Kirk to female pro - abortion student : " I can tell you're not married ". 😂😂😂😂😂 He lowered the boom! Babies in the womb have their own bodies .... so it is NOT MY body...MY choice . It's THEIR body... and they don't have a choice. #ChooseLife pic.twitter.com/zS81ru4pr6
— ❤🎹 Ames 🎹❤ (@Ames2420) March 19, 2025
You should note that Kirk's opponent is primarily, if not solely, interested in herself. Her life is the only life that matters, to the point that a baby in utero is not even "life" to her. She has deluded herself into thinking she is engaged in something noble, but in reality, she will never heed the call to anything more significant than herself.
In a similar vein, Todd Friel of "Wrecthed" and I probably agree on...very little in terms of theology or soteriology. But listen to this young woman berate Friel, and in particular, her rationale for doing so:
I'll save the theological opining for another time, but Friel's point is valid. Not only does the young woman in the video attack Friel for not doing things that Christians have been doing for centuries in terms of aiding the poor and the dispossessed, but she winds it up by demanding to know what someone is going to do for her. Friel points out that probably none of the detractors in attendance have done anything for the sick, the suffering, the poor, widows, orphans, etc. No, the average college student these days is likely to pat themselves on the back for tearing down a flyer, screaming at a protest, hitting someone over the head with a bike lock, or fogging up their sunglasses behind a keffiyeh.
And why? A great deal of it can be chalked up to indoctrination by the usual suspects, but some of it is that people have been directed to put themselves first, always and everywhere. They are being taught that their satisfaction, their alleged needs, and, for that matter, their groins and base animal desires are essential components of the Axis Mundi. They are understandably surprised when they encounter people who disagree or harbor the same opinion of themselves. It is one of the reasons why DEI has struggled in practice: there is no permanent consensus around whom the universe should revolve at any given moment.
I have mentioned before that the architects of the Third Reich were evil, but they were by no means stupid. They understood that the human ego was one of the most valuable sources of power someone could harness. One trick the Nazis used was to encourage people to join various leagues, societies, clubs, and what-have-you and festoon themselves with ribbons, medals, patches, uniforms, and titles. They may have been loyal citizens of the Reich, but they also had a new identity and a new feeling of power.
Lenin called such people "useful idiots." They are under the impression that they are serving a higher good, even if their locus is themselves. Useful idiots are easily exploitable. What they do not realize is that they will not remain useful forever. Furthermore, the idiots are never the only ones who suffer.
