Preserving America-- Ten Things We Must Change To Survive

-by Dr. Steven Porter

I’d like to tell you that my new book, Preserving America, is a happy book. It isn’t. I’d like to tell you that as a nation, America is on the cutting edge of greatness. It isn’t. In fact, it is on the cutting edge of great tragedy, and the only way to avert that tragedy is to honestly assess current issues and offer solutions to current problems which heretofore have not been given much attention.

In Preserving America, I have tried to research the origins of our dilemmas and to offer facts which explain their severity. I chose ten topics which I believe are eroding our nation. They are: the decline of the American family, the failure of American education, the corruption of both major parties, the consolidation of the American media, our financial irresponsibility, the insolvency of Social Security, the unaffordability of healthcare, our misunderstanding of terrorism, the way in which we have ignored ecology, and our religious intolerance.

Like an addict who must first face the reality of addiction in order to attempt a cure, America is going to have to acknowledge her problems with a degree of honesty which, frankly, seems to be missing. If she can do that, however, she will then be in a position to find ways in which she can deal with her problems more successfully. That is why I end each chapter of the book with a section devoted to what we can do to solve our problems-- issue-by-issue.

It won’t be easy for us. We have dug ourselves into a huge hole on many fronts, and glib slogans for the sake of gaining political power are only going to contribute to a further decline. I am afraid that meaningful assessments and meaningful actions will not come until the level of pain experienced by our people worsens. We seem to react better to crisis. I guess that is true of all peoples. But the stakes are really too high for delay. We can’t wait for the economy to collapse completely before we right the fiscal ship. We can’t wait for the ecological tipping point with respect to global warning before we curb our emissions.

It is because I see such great peril in so many areas that I have tried to write honestly and to offer solutions rooted in reality. I hope you will visit the book’s website. I hope you will read the book. I hope you will find it of importance to your own lives and to the life of our nation.

And as you read it, please let me tell you what I have told my students throughout my teaching lifetime. Don’t believe me just because I say it. I have referenced my work for you. Check the references. Verify that what I say is accurate. Form your own opinions about the problems which confront us. I do not have the only mind or the only data or the only answers. Let my work be an inspiration and a catalyst for you to join the march of progress for our country and our world.

Thank you for reading this. Thank you for visiting the website. Thank you for reading the book.