Never before has any nation’s economy and gross national product been so heavenly influenced by fun, vacations, gambling and non-essential purchases; America is truly in uncharted waters. Just over a generation ago, the U.S. was far the world’s largest producers of automobiles, appliances, steel, factory equipment, machines tools, and other items vital to a modern society.  Looking for the Union Label, as the slogan says has become a thing of the past. Now that millions of those jobs (which paid decent wages) have been moved to Third World Sweatshops, where does that leave the American economy? As durable goods production has nose-dived, other industries have emerged and prospered. Sadly, today’s star performers are not the kind of business that contribute to the long term health of a nation.  The booming companies of the early mid 90’s such as Disney, Blockbuster Video, and Caesar’s Palace tend to have one thing on common. They are heavily dependent on hedonistic mentality (Fun is everything!) that has saturated American society.

 

Much of the prosperity of computer and software firms can be attributed to customers who use those products primarily for playing games, suffering the net for entertainment and getting connected to X-rated on-line services. Those who boast about purchasing a PC for its educational and work related values are often rationalizing the cost of what is really their newest toy.

 

What does America export? Topping the list are R and X-rated movies DVD’s, CD-ROM computer games, sport perihelia, McDonald's and Pizza Hut franchises and a host of non-essential items. But take heart! Nobody can compete with the U.S. when it comes to theme parks and fast food. Is that what makes a great nation, probably not!

 

A generation ago it was said that Chicago was the most American of all cities, and with good reasons.  Chicago’s mix of plentiful blue collar jobs (steel mills, factories, stockyards and Ford plant) combined with numerous white collar jobs and financial positions made the city a popular destination for job seekers of all kinds.

 

People who even a modest amount of ambition could quickly find productive work in Chicago and other American cities. Even a humble factory job often paid enough to support a family and purchase a home. The situation has changed dramatically, as the socialistic, tax hungry policies of city governments across the country combined with the  North American Treaty, NAFTA and GATT, have created an exodus from increasingly chaotic cities.

  

As industrial cities such as Detroit have become notorious for poverty and crime and economic contraction, one town has developed a well earned reputation for constant growth and bullish job market. That city is Las Vegas. Like Chicago in the 40’s and 50’s, Vegas still is the quintessential American city of the 21 century. A (1/20/1997) Time’s Magazine named Las Vegas as having the fastest growth job market in America. 

 

Las Vegas is commonly known as The Entertainment Capital of the World; and the most visited city, The center of gambling in the United States and the world,  famous for its massive and lavish casino resorts, availability of alcoholic beverages at any time (as is true throughout Nevada), and various degrees of adult entertainment. It is also referred to as Sin City, but in recent years the city itself has stopped using this moniker in its marketing. The city's image has often made it a popular setting for films and television programs.

 

Las Vegas is the fastest growing area in the United States having grown 57 times its population of 1950, with a growth rate over the past ten years of 85%. Population since the mid 90’s was 258, 295 (59%), early 2000 was 478.434 (85%) and the year 2006 552,539 (15%) and still growing.

 

Home to all ten of the world's ten largest hotels, it has more hotel rooms than New York and San Francisco combined.  Las Vegas has the tallest structure in the western United States - the Stratosphere Tower. The tower even has a roller coaster at the top, making it yet another 'only in Vegas' attraction! Much of the city is open 24 hours a day, no wonder people feel Las Vegas never closes. Dozens of  cities and states (especially Orlando, Florida) rely on heavily on tourist and pleasure seekers as an economic base, but Vegas is easily the most recreation oriented city in America. “Are we having fun yet!” or “get your bets down” would be appropriate mottoes for this city.

 

Most Americans would admit to it, but Los Vegas is the city that is most representative of the current state of the nation – of what America has become. U.S. News & World Report (3/14/94) in an article entitled “America’s Gambling Craze,” wrote: No one howled in protest last month when H & R Block set up makeshift tax preparation offices in four Nevada casinos and offered gamblers same day refund-anticipation loans. And few people cared recently when a Florida investor won a U.S. patent that could some day enable television audiences to legally bet on game shows, football games, and even beauty pageants.

 

Republican presidential candidate Fred Thompson has a plan for Social Security and proposed overhauling the retirement system by creating 401(k)-style personal accounts. Our Nation is now planning to invest our hard earn money into a system that eventually could go bankrupt.

 

The U.S. National Debt is now more than $9.815 trillion for the first time ever. In fact, we add another $1.4 billion to it every day.  To risk our hard earn retirement money in a system like the stock market, one might just go ahead and gamble away his future retirement in Las Vegas.  In fact, that is the mind set of many people today when asked, why they play the Lottery.

 

Not to long ago, Americans held gambling in nearly the same esteem as heroin dealing and applauded when ax-wielding police paid a visit to a corner dice room. But  moral outrage has become as outmoded as the penny slot machines… in 1993, Americans for the first time made more trips to gambling casinos than they did major baseball parks, some 92 million trips. It took six decades for gambling casinos to become America’s past time, from legalization of Nevada casinos in 1931 to the 1990’s

 

If one really want to understand the times, of the present decline of America, and why these things are happening.  There is an even greater work which shines an even greater light on our present condition than even Gibson's or Shire's excellent historical accounts. And that is the Holy Bible, this book written under the supervision of God the creature of the Universe, not only describes the rise and fall of nations and rulers over the first 4000 (or so) years of human history, but includes the history of mankind, written before time began.

 

For the first 175 years of America's history, our people, leaders, and government (whether they believed in, followed, or paid allegiance to the God of the Bible and His Son Jesus Christ) at least followed, practiced and adhered to the principles, values and rules which the Lord laid down in Holy Scriptures (both Old and New Testaments). Those values worked! America was happy, prospered, and had more opportunity, it was free; the freest nation and people in the history of the world!

 

When we as a nation followed the principles of the Bible, families were for the most part healthy and intact; the sanctity of life was respected and protected by the government, and freedom and justice were maximized in America. But after World War II, with the onset of massive prosperity in America, and the rise of power of the socialist and secular humanist, the old rules (which had worked for 175 years)- God’s rules- were thrown out, and America decline as a great nation began. That decline has now become a free fall- as happened in the latter stages of Rome and Nazi Germany.

 

If we want to restore America to her former greatness, we must return to the God of the Bible, to His rules, precepts, principles, and values. That will probably only happen (if it happens at all) in the midst of a national crisis which threatens our very existence as a free people. But it can happen to individual right now if they will return to the God of the Bible (or turn to Him for the first time); find a personal relationship with Him, study and follow His instruction manual (the Bible) and obey Him as any good soldier in the army would obey his general.

 

2 Chronicles 7:14 says:  “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sins, and heal their land.” And that is the bottom line!