America faces a myriad of problems, but one that is not often discussed is the growing epidemic of mediocrity and dishonesty in the work force.
Whether it is the alarming deterioration of the air traffic controllers performance in doing their job, or the alarming number of errors made by various medical personnel  in hospitals, or the poor performance of many teachers who just do the minimum in teaching their students, or the lack of knowledge and common sense by many politicians who show an amazing ability to be stupid and ignorant in alarming numbers, this country is in a major crisis!
Too many Americans in all occupational fields are satisfied to cut corners, cheat, steal, do just the minimum, avoid responsibility for their behavior, and put their own personal needs ahead of wishing to excel in job performance!
This is also evident more and more among students at all levels from elementary school through college, who wish to just go along with the minimum, have no desire to explore and inquire about knowledge beyond the amount needed to pass tests, and seem to have no common sense or general knowledge base, and are seemingly happy being clueless and ignorant, as if ignorance is bliss!
Ignorance, mediocrity and dishonesty are not a state of bliss!
Instead, it is a warning of a rapid decline in America over the next two generations, if this attitude of malaise and lack of concern about performance and excellence is not reversed, and pronto!
I would like to add another problem I see as even more of a problem to our society. It affects all levels of employment, all career fields and what is worse….it’s a choice. This problem is ETHICS…or lack of. I think we have all seen how the lack of ethical behavior has, like an oozing, putrid wound, has infected every corner of our society and our lives. WE have seen the damage it causes all of us.From insurance companies who place profits above the needs of patients,to banks who deliberately create loan packages that are guaranteed to fail and make homeowners lose their homes as well as the unscrupulous dealings of people involved in securities trading, to corporations whose wealthy CEOs across this great nation have seen their salaries increase exponentially into the millions and the average worker has seen their salaries decrease. And one only has to listen to the news or pick up a news paper to see all of the news and attention paid to those who have demonstrated that they were devoid of moral ethics in the way that they have conducted their business.
We are all well aware of politicians who seem to believe lying about issues to get elected or to obtain some favor or advantage, is perfectly acceptable. It is not uncommon to hear someone refer “Government Ethics†to more of an oxy-moron statement. How many of us firmly believe that many politicians have clearly demonstrated absolutely no ethics in decision making at all. Another is journalism: How many of us can agree that the media industry surely needs an educational campaign designed to curb false and distorted news through the twin processes of self-inspection and self-correction, in a bid to promote media ethics and strengthen reporters’ sense of social responnsibility! Framing this lack of ethics in our society is greed. Profound and unbridled greed!
Ethical values provide the foundation on which a civilized society exists. Without this foundation, civilization collapses. On a personal level, everyone must answer the following question: What is my highest aspiration? The answer might be wealth, fame, knowledge, popularity, or integrity. But if integrity is secondary to any of the alternatives, it will be sacrificed in situations in which a choice must be made. Such situations will inevitably occur in every person’s life and invariably will affect..or hurt somebody elses life. One has to wonder HOW the young people today view this current world of greed and harmful unethical behavior by authorties,maybe their parents, political and business leaders, pundits on television.. everywhere in their world and HOW this must be forming their view of how they should function in a demoncracy when our fellow humans don’t seem to matter.