Call me antique

 There was a time when we raised little girls to be ladies and little boys to be men.  Young women were taught etiquette, dressed fashionably but modestly, were courted by young men, and respected themselves.  Young men were taught manners, learned to work hard in order to provide for their family, and treated young ladies with respect.  When in mixed company, certain topics were off limits....and some topics were simply off limits regardless of the company.  People used common sense.  Families went to church together. People were not perfect...nor was society/the world perfect...but it was polite.  I am not entirely certain when it happened, but things changed.  Not only do boys and girls talk about things that should not be discussed with the opposite sex, they see it all over TV and hear it in the lyrics of music.  They are bombarded with unbridled sensuality and see nothing wrong with acting out what they see and hear.  They hear offensive, ignorant language and make it part of their everyday conversation.  They do not respect the personal boundaries of others...limited as those boundaries might be.  They speak disrespectfully to their parents and other adults.  They dress in a way that exposes parts of themselves that are not meant to be seen in public.  They make messes and leave them for someone else to clean up.  When did this become acceptable?   I don't believe that being a well-spoken, well-behaved, and well-mannered individual is old-fashioned...I believe it is appropriate and necessary. I would like to be able to go out in public, both now and with my children in the future, and not be accosted by offensive sights and sounds.  Frequently, I hear people complain about the state of things...society, country, world, etc.  Perhaps, if we returned to some of those "old-fashioned" values we would see an improvement.  Just an idea.