Is Life Getting Cheaper?

“It is a world where life is cheap. Death can be bought for a few hundred pounds [sterling] and there is no shortage of those willing to provide the service.”—The Scotsman.

During April 1999, in an assault that shocked the entire world, two adolescents violently took over Columbine High School, in Littleton, Colorado, U.S.A., leaving 15 dead. Investigation showed that one of the attackers had a Web page on which he had written: “DEAD PEOPLE DON’T ARGUE!” Both attackers died in the tragedy.

MURDER is universal, and untold numbers of people die a violent death every day. South Africa led the world with a murder rate of 75 per 100,000 inhabitants in 1995. Life is especially cheap in one South American country, where more than 6,000 were killed for political reasons in 1997. Killing by contract is a normal procedure. One report on that country states: “Shockingly, the murder of children has also soared: In 1996, 4,322 children were killed, a 40 per cent rise in just two years.” However, even children are becoming murderers—of other children and of their own parents. Life is cheap indeed.

Why the “Death Culture”?

What do these facts and figures show? An increasing lack of respect for life. Power-loving and money-hungry people kill without any qualms. Drug lords order the murder of whole families. They euphemize their killing by using such expressions as “whacking,” “rubbing out,” “eliminating,” or “terminating” the victims of what they call hits. Genocide and ethnic cleansing have added to the toll and have cheapened the value of human life. As a result, killings have become daily fare on the news menus of TV stations worldwide.

Add to this the violence and mayhem glorified on television and movie screens, and our society appears to be wrapped up in a morbid culture centering on death. In this regard the Encyclopædia Britannica says: “During the latter half of the 20th century, death has become a strangely popular subject. Before that time, perhaps rather surprisingly, it was a theme largely eschewed in serious scientific, and to a lesser extent, philosophical speculations.” According to Josep Fericgla, a Catalonian professor of cultural anthropology, “death has become the last effective taboo in our societies, and therefore, it is one of the most important sources today of ideological manipulation.”

Perhaps the most outstanding characteristic of this “death culture” is the popular belief that power, supremacy, money, and pleasure are of much more importance than human life and moral values.

How is this “death culture” spread? What can parents do to counteract this negative influence that surrounds them and affects their children? These are some of the questions that will be answered in the following articles.

How Is the “Death Culture” Promoted?

“Thousands of miles lie between the traumatized young refugees of Kosovo and American children exposed to violence and other painful experiences, but the emotional distance between them may not be so great.”—Marc Kaufman, The Washington Post.

Whether we like it or not, we are all affected directly or indirectly by death. This is true regardless of where we live—in a country that is racked by violent conflict or in one that enjoys relative stability.

THE manifestation of the “death culture” can be seen in the high incidence of depression, anguish, drug addiction, abortion, self-destructive behavior, suicide, and mass murder today. Professor Michael Kearl, of the Department of Sociology and Anthropology of Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas, U.S.A., explained with regard to the manipulation of the subject of death: “From our late twentieth century vantage point [1999], we find that . . . death is becoming recognized as the central dynamism underlying the life, vitality, and structure of the social order. Death is the muse of our religions, philosophies, political ideologies, arts and medical technologies. It sells newspapers and insurance policies, invigorates the plots of our television programs, and . . . even powers our industries.” Let us examine some examples of how this phenomenon, called death culture, is manifested in our times.

The Sale of Arms

The “death culture” is manifested on a daily basis in the sale of arms. Armaments are used to kill soldiers, but mainly they kill civilians, among them innocent women and children. In wars, whether civil or otherwise, life is always cheap. How much does the bullet of an assassin or a sniper cost?

Easy public access to arms in some countries has resulted in a terrifying and constant increase in the deaths of individuals as well as groups of people. After the high school shooting tragedy in Littleton, Colorado, protests arose because of the widespread sale of arms and their easy availability to minors. The number of young people in the United States who die violently is alarming—according to Newsweek magazine, an average of 40 a week. Of these, almost 90 percent are shooting victims. This is equal to 150 massacres like that at Littleton each year!

The Entertainment World

Movies exploit the subject of death. For example, the plot of a film might glamorize immorality, violence, drug trafficking, or organized crime and thus minimize the value of life and moral principles. There are films in which death is even romanticized—depicting the myth of life after death and the supposed return of some to visit the living—serving only to trivialize death.

The same is true of some television programs and music. According to news reports, the young murderers of Littleton were fervent admirers of a rock singer who has become famous for “androgyny, satanic images,” and songs with “themes of rebellion and death.”

In the United States, the way television programs are rated was revised to protect young people from seeing material that might affect them adversely. The result has been counterproductive. Jonathan Alter, writing in Newsweek, comments that this “may make kids want the forbidden fruit more.” He added that in order to shame and obligate those responsible into reducing violence in the media, President Clinton would have “to publicly read the names of all the big companies (and their CEOs)” that not only make movies of knifings and recordings of ‘gangsta rap’ but also produce computer-game programs that allow children to “‘virtually’ kill people.”

Death in Video Games and on the Internet

In his book The Deathmatch Manifesto, Robert Waring analyzes the popularity of so-called deathmatch games among adolescents.a Mr. Waring believes that an underground society of gamers has sprung up around this phenomenon. These games really have the effect, not of educating, but of teaching to kill. “Playing with a live opponent from anywhere in the world, and trying to prove yourself, is a powerful experience. It’s really easy to get sucked into that,” Waring comments. Adolescents are trapped by the force of the three-dimensional scenarios designed as backdrops for the bloody struggles. Not having access through the Internet, some buy video-game packages to use on the television at home. Others customarily go to public places where they rent video-game machines and have ‘virtual’ fights to the death with other opponents.

Although “deathmatch” games are classified according to the age of the player, the truth is that there is very little control. Fourteen-year-old Eddie from the United States commented: “People usually tell you you’re not old enough, but they don’t stop you from buying [the game].” He enjoys one that consists of shoot-out orgies. Although his parents are aware of this and do not like it, they rarely check to see if he is playing the game. One teenager reached this conclusion: “Our generation is far more desensitized to violence than any other generation. TVs raise children now more than parents do, and television caters to children’s violent fantasies.” John Leland, writing in Newsweek, stated: “With as many as 11 million teenagers now online [in the United States], more and more of adolescent life is taking place in a landscape that is inaccessible to many parents.”

Life-Styles That Lead to Death

What about behavior outside the world of “deathmatch” games and violent films? Although in real life we do not have to compete in a struggle to the death with outlandish creatures, the life-style of many people includes self-destructive behavior. For example, in spite of family influence, health systems, and other authorities who warn about the danger involved in smoking and drug abuse, these practices continue to increase. In many cases they lead to a premature death. In order to increase illicit profits, big business and drug traffickers continue to take advantage of the anxiety, hopelessness, and spiritual poverty of the people.

Who Is Behind All of This?

Does the Bible present death as an apt subject for entertainment? Are the life-styles that can lead us to death justified? No. For true Christians, like the apostle Paul, death is nothing less than an “enemy.” (1 Corinthians 15:26) Christians do not view death as something attractive and fun but, rather, as something against nature, a direct consequence of sin and rebellion against God. (Romans 5:12; 6:23) Death was never a part of God’s original purpose for man.

Satan is said to have “the means to cause death.” He is called “a manslayer,” not necessarily because he produces death in a direct way, but because he does it by using deceit, by seducing people into sin, by promoting conduct that produces corruption and death, and by fostering murderous attitudes in the minds and hearts of men, women, and even children. (Hebrews 2:14, 15; John 8:44; 2 Corinthians 11:3; James 4:1, 2) However, why are young people the principal target? What can we do to help them?

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“Our generation is far more desensitized to violence than any other generation”

Helping Youths Escape the “Death Culture”

What accounts for the fascination with the subject of death that is seen among young people today? Representative Henry Hyde, of the state of Illinois, U.S.A., said: “There is a spiritual vacuum in these young people that is filled with the culture of death and violence.”

A READER of Time wrote: “It’s lazy parents, violent entertainment and a lack of moral and spiritual grounding that are responsible for the subculture of death that exists among our youths today.”

Loneliness is another of the major problems afflicting adolescents. Some live in homes where both parents work and are absent most of the day; others have only one parent. According to one source, adolescents in the United States pass some 3.5 hours alone every day and spend 11 hours less with their parents each week than young ones did in the ’60’s. In fact, some young people do not have the presence or the emotional support of their parents at all.

What Parents Can Do

In view of the “spiritual vacuum” that young people contend with, how important is the role of parents? Wise parents understand that on the one hand, their children need wholesome entertainment and on the other hand, they need regular personal support. Motivated by loving interest, parents can talk with them about their preferences in music, television programs, videos, novels, video games, and movies. Although young people may not express it, many of them crave the affection and loving guidance of their parents. They need forthright answers because they live in a world full of uncertainties. Adults should understand that children face a much more complicated world than they did as youths.

Parents who wish to protect their children will converse with them regularly, really listen to them, and warn them of the dangers involved in modern culture. When parents set firm limits and are consistent and reasonable as well as affectionate with their children, they will normally have good results.—Matthew 5:37.

Parents who are Jehovah’s Witnesses make an effort to have regular discussions with their children, using the Bible and Bible-based publications and videos.a They use such occasions, not to call their children to account, but rather to consider subjects that are spiritually upbuilding. In these family gatherings, they listen to problems or challenges that affect each of their children so that the youths have an opportunity to receive individual attention.

Young people who get no spiritual guidance from their parents can gain strength from Psalm 27:10, which says: “In case my own father and my own mother did leave me, even Jehovah himself would take me up.” How does Jehovah, the Father of tender mercies, help young people? The congregations of Jehovah’s Witnesses have been a refuge where many have found the affection of other people and have resolved their doubts. Josías, a young man who found that to be true, comments: “Jehovah’s organization fills a vital role. I felt that life was not worthwhile. I lived without purpose, without hope. To know that one is not alone changed my life completely. I saw in the brothers in the congregation the family that I had lost. The elders and the families in the congregation are like an anchor in an emotional sense.”

In fact, many youths and adults have improved their mental and spiritual health by regularly attending the congregation meetings of Jehovah’s Witnesses. Anthropologist Patricia Fortuny commented about this positive effect in her essay Los Testigos de Jehová: una alternativa religiosa para enfrentar el fin del milenio (Jehovah’s Witnesses: A Religious Alternative for Facing the End of the Millennium): “Jehovah’s Witnesses offer a clear and explicit system of order to apply to daily life, an exact code that serves as a guide for thinking and acting.” The “system of order” and the “code” referred to here are based on the Bible. Hence, although Jehovah’s Witnesses face the same problems and pressures as their neighbors, they are strengthened by the unique wisdom of that ancient book. Yes, the Witnesses find refuge in the clear doctrines and principles found in the Bible.

When “Death Will Be No More”

The teaching given in the Kingdom Halls of Jehovah’s Witnesses stresses again and again God’s promise of a new world that will soon begin, where “righteousness is to dwell” and where “there will be no one making them tremble.” (2 Peter 3:13; Micah 4:4) Moreover, the prophet Isaiah records that then God “will actually swallow up death forever, and the Sovereign Lord Jehovah will certainly wipe the tears from all faces.” Death struck the human race as a consequence of the transgression of the first man, Adam, but God’s promise is that soon “death will be no more.”—Isaiah 25:8; Revelation 21:3, 4; Romans 5:12.

If you are a youth looking for help, we invite you to find hope and a reason for living, through the pages of the Bible. With the help of Jehovah’s Witnesses, you can have the hope that the best of times are still ahead of us in the new world that God promises.

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Parents should take time to really listen to their children and understand their problems

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“Jehovah’s Witnesses offer a clear and explicit system of order to apply to daily life”