There are really only two elements in assessment of issues: fact and fantasy.  Fact is defined as a thing that is known or proven to be true.  As an example, it’s impossible to argue that mathematics are not facts.  Two plus two equals four, there is no other answer, period.  Fantasy is defined as: The faculty or activity of imagining things, especially things that are impossible or improbable.  Maybe two plus two could really equal six?

Our American society has regressed into a country where a significant portion of the public advocate the acceptance of fantasy over facts.  This seems to be a result of the self-serving nature of a society that cannot be satisfied and has always been provided with more, often more than they actually need for a satisfactory existence.  Therefore, it behooves those wanting to ensure their careers as elected officials to continue to ensure the public that their fantasies are real and facts are just the devious results of “fake news” promoted by those who live in the dregs of society (and the media).

We have watched children irreversibly sickened by Flint’s drinking water but are told that there is no need for regulations prohibiting pollution, especially if it affects the bottom line.  We suffered the loss of 24 persons in Newtown and 50 in Las Vegas but are told that there is no need for regulation of firearms, even for mentally disturbed people.  We see the growing number of homeless and destitute people roaming or city streets and we are told that the problem is theirs and not society’s.  And, when we are told it’s not an issue that Senate candidate Roy Moore is accused by six women of sexual misconduct, we argue they are likely all liars and that Joseph wed Mary when she was a teenager anyway.

Another example of fantasy, a good number of people support Donald Trump’s recent denial that the Access Hollywood tapes were anything but forgeries, even after hearing his previous apology “I’ve said and done things I regret, and the words released today on this more-than-a-decade-old video are one of them.”

Wolfhart Pannenberg (1928 -2014) wrote, “The real danger in faith lies in its estrangement from rationality.”  We are already there.