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We Need Heroes
A nation that can’t agree on heroism is a nation destined for extinction
The United States of America is in trouble. We are rapidly becoming a nation without heroes, and our nation will cease to exist if we don’t do something about it.
That America is in trouble is perhaps beyond dispute. A Quinnipac poll last year revealed that most Americans believe our nation is in “danger of collapse.” According to a Harvard Kennedy School poll, a majority of young Americans believe our democracy is in serious “trouble” or has “failed.” A European think tank has categorized the United States as a “backsliding democracy.”
The above examples just scratch the surface. Virtually all Americans agree we are in trouble. They may differ on the scope or degree of trouble and certainly over the reasons and solutions, but we all seem united around the diagnosis that the country that some of us still love is not healthy — not at all.
There are several factors contributing to our troubles. They include (but are not limited to) deep polarization, breakdown of the family, distrust in virtually every institution, and an inability on the part of many people to keep up with (and cope with) changes in technology and our world.
