‘There are pockets of our society that are not only broken, but frankly sick,’ he said.

‘When we see children as young as 13 looting and laughing, when we see the disgusting sight of an injured young man with people pretending to help him while they are robbing him, it is clear that there are things that are badly wrong in our society.

‘For me it is clear that the root cause of this mindless selfishness is the same thing that I’ve spoken about for years. It is a complete lack of responsibility in our society. It is as much a moral problem as a political problem.’

These comments were made on Aug. 10, 2011, by Prime Minister David Cameron in response to the rioting that has been taking place across this England.  Hearing comments of this type from someone who is considered to be a conservative in British society doesn’t surprise me all that much.

Hearing the same type of comments coming from a liberal media source such as The Guardian is a different story.  Here’s an example…

The biggest problem our country has faced over the last two decades is that everyone thinks the government should do everything. Personal responsibility and community responsibility have been replaced by state responsibility. If the riots have shown us anything, it is that this approach does not work.

And there’s also this…

In a way, we are all responsible for the riots, whether directly or indirectly. We watched the previous government talk up rights for young people but with no mention of responsibilities. We have allowed our welfare system to prop up immoral lifestyles. We have not taught all our young people that an entitlement culture is morally wrong. And we have paid the price for this liberalism. Now we need to collectively grow up and take responsibility for responsibility. (emphasis mine)

Shocking, isn’t it?  This author of the Guardian article almost sounds like what is being called a “right-wing extremist” in our own nation.  And not just any “right-wing extremist”, mind you…one of those dreaded social conservatives who take the long-term moral and ethical implications of societal influences into context in their world view.

It seems, at least for the time being, that the people of England are attempting to acknowledge the underlying moral and ethical issues that are at the heart of the matter contributing to the rioting that is taking place.  I wish them the best of success in turning back the tide of an entitlement culture.

All the same, I’m finding myself somewhat envious of them at this point.  Consider these facts…here we have a nation of people, i.e. Great Britain, who have long held the reputation of being a very civilized society, facing a very public uncivilized uprising.  Even amongst their most liberal citizens, the moral and ethical downside of socialism is being openly and honestly acknowledged.  A proud people they may be, but foolish they are not.  Even if it is late in coming, this honesty speaks volumes about their willingness to address the many problems that excessive government intervention has ultimately caused in their nation.   It also plays a significant role in their ability to succeed in overcoming the negative influence that socialism has had on their nation.

Seeing another nation facing the hard cold reality of the long-term moral and ethical consequences of socialism this honestly and openly should be providing Americans, and particularly Conservatives, with a source of inspiration and encouragement to do the same.

I have no expectations at all for the more liberal elements of our nation to be this honest.  The left is still too enamored with their ideology to be realistic about the long-term moral consequences of encouraging members of our society to depend too much on government rather than accepting responsibility for their own actions.  For years on end, they have maneuvered and schemed to move this nation in the direction of becoming a fully-functional socialistic society.  All their dreams and ambitions are centered around this goal.  They aren’t in the least bit likely to acknowledge the truth that socialism is a failure.  It is a failure economically.  It is a failure politically.  It is a failure socially.  Socialism is a failure.  Period.  No, American liberals are still trying to deceive themselves into believing that it has been the methods of implementation that has led to the failure of socialism in other countries, not the policies themselves.  All they have remaining to them is a willful, self-deceitful denial of the truth and a fool’s hope based on a false premise.

But for every citizen of this nation who falls to the right of liberals on the political spectrum, a door of opportunity is now wide open to us.  As the author of Guardian article said, “An entitlement culture is morally wrong”.  Now is the time to present an approach that will allow us to re-establish an environment that empowers individual responsibility.   Not only is this the right thing to do morally and ethically…it is the wisest course of action to take in the long run, for all our sakes.

The question is do we have the courage and resolve to turn back the tide NOW?

Will we speak the truth openly and honestly?

Or will we wait until it is too late?