A Study In Escape

Compare these news headlines "American Wedding" tops the North American box office, AIDS Cases on the Rise in United States, and Robert De Niro, Howard Stern Among Those Licensed to Carry Guns. And let's not even start talking about the international scene with the US, Iraq, Liberia, North Korea, Israel/Palestine, and Iran all begging for preiminence as the greatest pain in the neck for peace lovers everywhere. Let's not talk about the national economy or the insane intent of Californians to reverse a legal election because they don't like how their governor has managed their economy (here's a tip: don't vote for him next time).

So here is my point, do you see a connection between what Americans are choosing for entertainment and what is going on around them in reality? Obviously the word for the day is "Escape." And while I can't join 'em, I don't blame 'em either. I can understand the need to disconnect from this insanity and spend 2 hours in a fantasy world where either their are not villains, just innocent sexual frolicking, or at least any that do exist are well-defined and inevitably defeated before the lights come back up.

Here is my question: After we have succeeded in giving ourselves a much needed break from the horrors of the day, after the lights do come back up, what then? Do we use this respite to refuel our resolve to do the work of truly forging a nation that lives by the peace it holds to be its ideal? Do we tackle the complexity involved in responsibly deciding just what is in the best interests of humans worldwide and how we are to balance that with what is best for us personally? What comes next?