Were you aware that black people are the enemy?  It's true according to Rush, who tut tuts over some random overinflated article about one specific crime in Oakland.  Rush spends an awful lot of time pointing fingers at black kids, and paraphrasing the article as "If you see a bunch of African-American or Latino youths, don't look 'em in the eye! In Oakland, don't speak to 'em. You might die!"

Yes, those terrible "youths"!  With their lack of common decency.  The story is sparked by one violent incident, in a violent neighborhood, in a fairly notoriously crime-ridden town (Oakland).  Now don't get me wrong, the Asian guy should not have been killed just for speaking up against a violent gang of thugs who punched his son in the face.  People should not be killing each other.

But to conflate this with an ongoing national trend, or with the ruination of society at large, is just ridiculous.  You know who's nearly ruined our society at large?  Immoral bankers who committed mass fraud, like Goldman Sachs.  These guys defrauded millions of Americans out of billions of dollars.  When their house of cards fell, so did our entire national economy.  White guy, white guy, white guy.

Or how about the white guys at the head of check cashing empires of predatory lending?  These check cashing companies prey on the needy by charging ridiculously high fees, thus putting their customers on an endless treadmill, one where you're constantly falling farther behind, and paying more to catch up, and falling behind again.  White guy, white guy, white guy.

Countrywide?  White guy.  Washington Mutual?  White guy.  Bear Stearns?  White guy.

You don't really need me to continue, do you?  I didn't think so.  I think it's clear that if you want to point fingers at the downfall of common decency, then the upper reaches of society - the place where Rush's fantasy Ayn Rand lives - are the best place to start.  It's the greed and corruption and complete lack of ethics at the top of the heap that's the cause of most of the problems we're seeing today.  The financial collapse has put pressures on all levels of society, and if an astronomical unemployment level isn't going to kick crime up a notch, then I don't know what will.

Oh wait, my bad - I forgot - it's all Obama's fault.  Oh and health care, too!

But enough of the BORING OLD FACTS.  Which are boring!  How about we point the finger for the downfall of civility at, oh I don't know, bloviating talk show hosts - both radio and television - who stand on their pulpits and yell and scream, and post inflammatory talk, and cozy up to the idiots in the Tea Party regime?  

If Rush is one thing, "civil" is not that thing.  I think even he would agree with you there.  And if Rush isn't going to bother to practice common decency, and keep a civil tongue, and comport himself with dignity and treat people decently, then why should anyone else?

Creative Commons-licensed image courtesy of Flickr user loop_oh