[HerbZ]

Jerry,

Maybe not in the American Southwest yet, but in many other parts of Our Nation crime has flowed out into the suburbs and into the small towns and rural areas. It sure has around here in Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana. If you haven't heard about all the "meth labs in rural America," just google that phrase and see! And it's not just the crime that comes with them, a meth lab is like an explosive toxic dump. If your local police and fire departments don't have hazmat training and equipment, they can't safely make the bust when they find these labs. But then the drug problem and its spread is just another symptom, not one of the root causes of the decadence, moral degeneracy and madness going on in Our Nation.

If I may poke a finger in it, I believe it's a matter of values. Civilizations, cultures, and nations rise and fall because of a lot of different factors, but their values, what motivates people and shape their lives, is a big part of it. If I may take a kick at what's become popularly known in political circles as the "blame game," I lay the blame where it always belongs, at the top. Like a lot of things, civilizations and nations rot from the top down.