Is Modern Society Nearing the Apocalypse?
60’s Poets Saw the Apocalypse Coming
The music of the 60’s was eerily prophetic, at least from where I’m sitting right now. Whether it’s “Rioting in Africa” by Bud and Travis, “Sounds of Silence” by Simon and Garfunkel or any of the countless songs of protest penned as a result of war, inequities, and the general unrest of the time, they spoke of the frustrations felt by many—both then and now. Little did the poets of the 60’s realize how much more their words would resonate 60 years later.
As I sit here listening to “Sounds of Silence”, chills are running down my arms. My fellow humans are screaming: in pain, in frustration, and in rage, but is anyone really listening? Are they screaming into an unforgiving silence while those they love are dying alone in hospitals, being murdered in the streets, or starving when they can’t afford basic needs like food and shelter? Or worse, having those sworn to protect and lead us acting like we’re little more than collateral damage on their trajectory towards some kind of science-fiction inspired world domination.
The 60’s were a scary time. Rioting in the streets, though people like Dr. Martin Luther King spoke out for peaceful protests (and ironically, was murdered for his efforts), police shooting into a crowd of college students at Kent State, killing students needlessly, young men being called off to a war we never should have entered—all in all, a lot of senseless deaths, much like today.
Prophecies In Song
But the 60’s also gave rise to some of the most amazing, and in hindsight, prophetic poetry ever put to music. In fact, when I was in high school, English teachers believed it so important, part of the curriculum was to analyze the songs of Bob Dylan, Arlo Guthrie, Simon and Garfunkel, and more. Did they suspect those songs would come back to haunt us as they are today? Or am I the only one revisiting them and seeing how much they, like the works of my favorite sci-fi authors are coloring our present? And not in a good way.
Though I was too young to truly understand, the protestors of the 60’s knew things weren’t right, and did what they could to try to change the trajectory, or at least make people wake up and see where they were headed. Perhaps the world woke up for a second, for all the good it’s ultimately done.
Corporations continue to alternately poison, or rob us. Racial, cultural, and religious groups continue to be the scapegoats and targets of people who are morally and ethically bankrupt; using them to create unnecessary infighting so they can ignore laws, and even human decency to rape both Earth and Humanity without penalty or remorse. They whip the ignorant into a frenzy of insatiable entitlement; using the voices of the ignorant to mask their actual intent behind a smokescreen of greed.
A Morally Bankrupt Society
Interestingly, human decency is at an all-time low, but it’s also at an all-time high. It depends where you’re looking. The common folk are doing more to take care of their own, despite increasingly high odds. The least ethical and moral among the rich and powerful are feasting on the rotting bodies of their supporters and opponents alike. To them, blood is blood, and they can’t get enough. Yet the rich and powerful who do have a social conscience are denounced by the pawns of their peers as having unseen agendas.
To me, it’s not unlike a cheating spouse who can’t see there are plenty of people who honor and respect their marriage vows. In the minds of those who rape and pillage the masses, anyone in power must believe as they do.
The bright light in this darkness is the numerous stories of people contributing to the greater good rather than to increasing their own wealth at any cost. It’s the people who don’t have much themselves, yet giving of themselves to others. It’s the voices who dare to breach the silence and speak the truth despite being shouted down by louder, more well-funded voices spewing not only lies, but viciousness and hate.
A World on the Brink of Self-Destruction
The part those at the top don’t see yet, and won’t until it’s too late, is this kind of world; this society we’ve built, not only in the US, but around the world, isn’t sustainable. People are dying at the hands of both seen and unseen enemies, and the unseen ones don’t recognize money and power. Denial of their existence isn’t an antidote or a vaccine. The firm foundation they believe they’re standing on is riddled with holes, and rotten from the inside out.
Just as people can be infected by hate, greed, entitlement, and other destructive behaviors, so, too, are they susceptible to the unseen enemy we call COVID-19. I can’t help believing this purge, which doesn’t differentiate is somehow meant to purge humanity of some of its ugliest and most destructive traits. Sadly, it’s already taking many who epitomized Humanity’s better qualities, and will continue to do so while people have to make hard choices like feeding their families vs. staying safe inside their homes.
Those who could, and should be doing something for the struggling masses are too busy shoring up their rapidly toppling castles in the sand to realize they, too are fighting a losing battle. But in their case, it’s because they’re too busy supporting the wrong objective. They also ignore how historically, those who get drunk on money, power, and greed ultimately self-destruct along with the unholy empire they created on a flimsy foundation of hate, lies, false promises, and ignorant sycophants.
In the words of Sir Winston Churchill in a speech to the House of Commons in 1948:
Those who fail to learn from history are condemned to repeat it.
Sadly, they always seem to take a lot of other people; good people down with them in the process. My hope right now is the rest of us learn something, and build on a more solid, more compassionate, more accepting foundation next time.
Finding Gratitude in the Midst of a Shit Storm
My gratitudes today are:
- I’m grateful for people who continue to prove we can have a social conscience in spite of tremendous odds.
- I’m grateful for the ability to put my thoughts and feelings into words on the page, though sometimes, they need to be coaxed out instead of flowing freely.
- I’m grateful for a private space I can shield and protect against the insanity that creeps ever closer to my admittedly insulated world.
- I’m grateful for an “off” button. When I become overwhelmed by everyone else’s emotions, I can still turn off social media, the news, and even the world, if only for a little while.
- I’m grateful for abundance; compassion, kindness, social consciousness, good people, sparks of sanity amidst the chaos, friendship, love, hope, balance, health, philanthropy, and prosperity.
Love and Light
About the Author
Sheri Conaway is a Holistic Ghostwriter, and an advocate for cats and mental health. Sheri believes in the Laws of Attraction, but only if you are a participant rather than just an observer. Her mission is to Make Vulnerable Beautiful and help entrepreneurs touch the souls of their readers and clients so they can increase their impact and their income. If you’d like to have her write for you, please visit her Hire Me page for more information. You can also find her on Facebook Sheri Levenstein-Conaway Author or in her new group, Putting Your Whole Heart Forward
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