Decline

"For [Nephi] had been forth among the people who were in the land northward, and did preach the word of God unto them, and did prophesy many things unto them; And they did reject all his words, insomuch that he could not stay among them, but returned again unto the land of his nativity. And seeing the people in a state of such awful wickedness, and those Gadianton robbers filling the judgment-seats—having usurped the power and authority of the land; laying aside the commandments of God, and not in the least aright before him; doing no justice unto the children of men; Condemning the righteous because of their righteousness; letting the guilty and the wicked go unpunished because of their money; and moreover to be held in office at the head of government, to rule and do according to their wills, that they might get gain and glory of the world, and, moreover, that they might the more easily commit adultery, and steal, and kill, and do according to their own wills— Now this great iniquity had come upon the Nephites, in the space of not many years ..." - Helaman 7:2-6

We read that the Nephites turned to wickedness "in the space of not many years." I wonder how similar their degeneration was to our society. It seems that people have been drifting for a long time without realizing it. Now, there are many who do not realize the significance of the issues we face. Things are presented in a distorted fashion. Many who stand for good and truth are deemed as ignorant, intolerant, and disrespectful.