As 2024 comes to an end, I’ve been fascinated by how dysfunctional our society has become. As a historian, I tend to view the world through a lens that has been formed both by my studies of our past and my personal history.  I grew up in a 1950s Navy family, and traveled around America moving from one base to another as my father was transferred. We moved from Illinois, to Texas, to California, to Louisiana, to California, to Louisiana, to Virginia, and finally to my father’s home state of Texas. We travelled through the entire south and southwest.

It was on those trips that my parents instilled in me a love for the history of the areas we visited. It was also during those travels, where I saw the “whites only” signs at restaurants and service station bathrooms, plus numerous other places. I learned about the “colored” and the “wrong side of the tracks” sides of towns.

I came of age during the turbulent 60s. Watched on TV as the freedom riders were brutalized in the South, and people protested not being allowed to sit at a counter and have lunch. People were beaten as they tried to vote or simply attend a better school. Watched as “law and order” candidates came into power demanding America return to the old days. Witnessed on television a president and other national leaders assassinated, simply because they wanted to change the way we behaved towards one another.

As the 60s ended, I was serving in the military during the Vietnam conflict and watched as many of my peers protested against the war.  When the 70s began, I witnessed what was known as the “women’s liberation movement”, and our nation argued about life and morality. We were as conflicted as we have ever been, and I can see us heading down the same path and behaving in the same way as we did then. Only this time, there doesn’t seem to be anyone willing to make us look at ourselves.

You see, every now and then, if we are lucky, we have an opportunity to see our true selves. Usually this happens by accident, but on occasion, it takes place because a piece of popular culture captures our attention and our essence. If we’re truly lucky, this takes place over a period of time, so we have ample opportunity to get to know ourselves. One such event took place during the middle decades of the 20th century.

Daily from 1946 until 1976, millions of Americans opened their newspaper and spent time reading, laughing, and learning about the lives of certain citizens who resided in the Southeastern part of the United States. Created by cartoonist Walt Kelly, it was the world of Pogo Possum, and it took place in Georgia’s Okefenokee Swamp. The main character, Pogo Possum, often found himself caught between the get rich quick schemes of Albert Alligator and the cynical intellectual musings of Dr. Howland Owl.

Pogo occasionally encountered a slimy wildcat named Simple J. Malarkey who bore a striking resemblance to the infamous communist hunting U.S. Senator  McCarthy. There were numerous other characters, all of whom were clearly based on normal everyday human beings. The strip dealt with many of the issues that were prevalent in the United States during that time period, such as, integration, crime, the environment, and Vietnam. In other words, it was a window into the American psychic at that time. We need another Pogo Possum that can make us look at ourselves, because today we again find ourselves at odds with one another.

We take absolute positions on major issues; we refuse to compromise or discuss. The national news media does not attempt to show us both sides, they endeavor to only show the point of view that they believe will earn them the most viewers and thus the most profit. Politicians worry more about staying in power and reaping the financial benefits of their office than in helping to find solutions to our issues. Both the media and the politicians thrive in the echo chambers they have created. They have no desire or motivation to actually tell the truth.

Meanwhile, the ordinary citizens are left to watch as the pseudo-intellectual pundits discuss and pontificate on the following major issues the country faces. CAVEAT: The following are simplified versions of actual arguments I have heard about several topics.

Climate change AKA, the environment. The headline for this article came from a Walt Kelly drawing that was published for Earth Day in 1970. Over 50 years ago, we were discussing cleaning up the environment, today we’re still arguing about it. Only now the arguments are more strident, and people are far less willing to actually talk about it. The arguments go something like this: The alarmists – the sky is falling, the sky is falling, the whole planet will disappear in (xxx) so many years. The deniers – oh relax, there’s nothing happening here, it’s all natural, we don’t have to do anything about it.

Immigration: This has been an issue ever since America became America.  I have to admit, sometimes I shake my head about this one for two reasons. First, part of my family came to Texas with Steven F. Austin’s original 300, and were here illegally, because they lied about being Catholics. Second, my father’s grandfather came from Norway, and my mother’s parents came from Hungary. So, what’s the argument? Pro-immigrations – we’re supposed to take in the oppressed regardless of where they’re from, remember that large statue on the island in New York?  Anti-Immigrant – No more, the door is closed, they’re all criminals who just want to freeload off society,  especially those who want to come in who are not white.

Race: This is an issue that never goes away in America. There are still those who believe the civil war wasn’t over slavery and that there’s no need to teach the actual history of race in America. The anti-discussion people want everyone to believe race doesn’t matter and that society is color blind. They argue that racism is only in the mind and that it doesn’t exist in their world. The pro-discussion people want everyone to admit that racism is part and parcel of the American lifestyle. Neither side wants to sit down and figure out a way to calmly discuss the past, the present, and what the future will be like when it comes to race and race relations. And of course, there are those who believe that both immigration and race are the major causes of the next issue.

Crime: Good old crime. Talking about Law and Order helped Richard Nixon become president in 1972. Complaining about  “rampant” crime and “criminals running the streets” helped Donald Trump become president in 2016 and 2024. How to solve the problem? Putting everyone in jail and throwing away the key is the primary solution proposed by the law-and-order crowd.

According to Statista, “the United States is home to the largest number of prisoners worldwide. Roughly 1.8 million people were incarcerated in the U.S. at the end of 2023.”) and yet we still have crime…hmm. Anyway, a counter argument is that if we make things that were once illegal legal that will help solve the problem. After all, if there are no laws to break there can be no law breakers. (YES, I KNOW THAT’S A SIMPLISTIC ANALYSIS OF THE ARGUMENT) but still….it is a synthesis of what some recent legislation concerning criminal justice has done.

There are other issues that every American should concern themselves with, such as income inequality, inadequate healthcare, homelessness, and reproductive rights. Sadly, instead of being able to examine them from the viewpoint of the citizens of the Okefenokee Swamp with both sides being heard, we are left with poorly produced videos on TikTok, YouTube, and other platforms. Videos that have no desire to shed any real light on the subjects or to generate actual discourse, but are instead designed only to get clicks, views, and thus earn the producers more income.

Our society wants simple feel-good solutions. There doesn’t seem to be a desire to truly solve our nation’s problems. We only want to be right. I know I don’t have the answers, but I’m not afraid to ask the questions and have the discussions. Are you?

Indeed, we have met the enemy, and it is us.

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