<p><strong>To the editor:</strong></p>
<p>I continue to be struck by a pervasive sense of national disillusionment and angst — possibly reinforced by current presidential campaign tactics that arguably are beneath the dignity of the nation’s highest office.</p>
<p>Somehow I cannot escape a clear sense of cultural decline in this great nation and am increasingly concerned that many in our nation have embraced a culture dismissive of traditional moral and artistic values — an attitude that may partially reflect a self-centered mentality unaware of any boundaries imposed by natural and/or divine law.</p>
<p>If true, the trend does not bode well for the character of a nation once built on a culture of honesty, prudence and self-reliance. A seeming retreat from acceptance of personal responsibility for one’s actions may have also fostered an attitude of unwarranted self-esteem and entitlement.</p>
<p>Perhaps more importantly, a mindset ignorant of America’s many God-given blessings while embracing the misguided idea that we are self-sufficient enough to dismiss those blessings could lead to a societal decline not unlike that of the Roman empire.</p>
<p>While I truly hope that my concerns are misplaced and overstated, I do pray that this nation will wake up to the certitude of moral truth and return to the vision of founders who understood the real meaning of “one nation under God.”</p>
<p><p style="text-align: right"><strong>David A. Nealy</strong></p>
<p><p style="text-align: right">Greenwood</p>
