A spiritual depression stalks the United States. It cannot and will not be alleviated by elections.

We have become reptiles with no moral compass.

Our gratifications have become entirely hormonal, not spiritual: cravings for power, money, fame, sex and creature comforts.

Whatever happened to justice?

Whatever happened to self-discipline and restraint?

Whatever happened to wisdom?

Whatever happened to benevolence, kindness and selflessness?

Whatever happened to moral courage — doing the right thing because it is the right thing to do, without ulterior motives?

Whatever happened to exalting the Thinker over the armored knight?

Whatever happened to abstinence in lieu of licentiousness?

Whatever happened to honesty in lieu of lies, equivocations or alternative facts?

Whatever happened to common courtesies in lieu of belittlements, sneers or vilification?

Whatever happened to elegant, elevated and epic language in lieu of vulgarities that flourish in the sewers and gutters of morality?

Whatever happened to the grand principle that it is better to be the victim of injustice than to be complicit in it?

Whatever happened to acting on the idea that it is better to give than to receive?

Whatever happened to acting on the understanding that to be rich is to have little but desire nothing else, and to be poor is to have everything but be saddled with a sleepless, insatiable craving for more?

Whatever happened to critical thinking that refuses a “just following orders” defense to immoral conduct?

Each day should be welcomed as an opportunity to display kindness and respect to invisible men and women.

Laws cannot remedy our spiritual depression. The Prohibition amendment made no dent in alcoholism and wife beating. But it made crime pay handsomely for the Mob.

If not laws, what? Ostracism and public rebukes against miscreants. Peer pressure is more effective than a galaxy of statutes.

We should not associate with philanderers and should exhort others to do the same.

We should not associate with liars and should exhort others to do the same.

We should not associate with narcissists or egotists and should exhort others to do the same.

We should not associate with people who chronically employ curse words to demonize or defame opponents or critics and should encourage others to do the same.

We should not associate with people who live immoral lives by skirting the law, celebrating sexual promiscuity and flaunting cardinal sinning, and should encourage others to do the same.

We should take guidance from Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail.” We cannot be silent in the face of evil or immorality.

Lies should be publicly rebuked.

Dishonesty should be publicly rebuked.

Discourtesy should be publicly rebuked.

Stinginess should be publicly rebuked.

Lawlessness should be publicly rebuked.

Racism should be publicly rebuked.

Bigotry should be publicly rebuked.

Idleness should be publicly rebuked.

Indiscipline should be publicly rebuked.

Spiritual perfection should be inculcated in children, students and religious adherents at every opportunity. Spiritual perfection should be valorized more than heroism on the battlefield or stardom in Hollywood. Spiritual perfection should be honored with luminous presidential and congressional medals brighter than all others. Spiritual perfection should feature during the Super Bowl’s halftime in lieu of lascivious excitements.

You may ask, “Who is going to lead this lofty spiritual revival?” Who will be the role models to inspire emulation?

If not us, who? If not now, when? We cannot escape our spiritual responsibilities by escapism. We must all set a standard to which the wise and honest may repair. Parents have a special responsibility for the spiritual health of their children, who learn by example more than by lectures or sermonizing. Parents should prepare weekly spiritual report cards to discuss with their offspring. A failing grade should be answered with commensurate punishment. A passing grade should be its own reward to both parent and child. We should do the right thing because it’s the right thing to do, not as part of a bargain, expecting something in return.

Schools are nearly as important as parents. The curriculum should be anchored to spiritual uplift. Moral philosophy should be its centerpiece. Graduation speakers should be selected for spiritual perfection, not grades or eloquence.

The workplace should not be forgotten. Do not tolerate vulgar, demeaning language. Do not tolerate disrespectful behavior. Do not tolerate rudeness or callousness. Treat everyone as a king or queen but permit none to wear a crown.

I recognize that mankind is made of crooked timber. Spiritual perfection is an aspiration beyond the reach of mortals that should nevertheless serve as our north star as we navigate the vicissitudes of life without capsizing.

Spiritual depression has been the death knell for all empires. Let us learn from those sobering examples.

Armstrong Williams is manager/sole owner of Howard Stirk Holdings I & II Broadcast Television Stations and the 2016 Multicultural Media Broadcast owner of the year.