Do you guys want a healthy dose of perspective?
Read this passage and guess the year the work was published:
>By their valor, they had wrested a jewel from the British Crown, and had inaugurated a system of government by the people, which on their sacred honors they had sworn to defend. But, not a generation had passed away when they saw new dangers, and were forced to contemplate again taking up arms in defense of their rights. The land was theirs, even far towards the setting sun, pioneers had explored it, and they knew whence might come a hostile foe. But of the waters from far away to the eastward, that flowed on until they washed every shore and filled the great Bays, even to the heart of the Republic, they knew little, save that over that almost immeasurable expanse might come the fleet of destroyers to penetrate they knew not where, and inflict incalculable damage months ere the dreary tales might be told.
This next part may give some of it away, so make your educated guess from the first half of the paragraph, then move onto the second half.
>It must be remembered there were no telegraphs, no railroads, no steamboats, in those days, and time taken by the forelock was time gained. The speed of man could not be overtaken as we see it to-day in the wonderous inventions of the last generation. Each community was dependent upon itself, alone, in time of danger, to ward off the blow or yield to a more powerful foe; assistance could hardly be obtained in months and perhaps not then. It was not possible for any man to study or to learn the points of danger, and prepare a system of defence.
Now, here's the source of this paragraph: from the article "The Survey of the Coast" by Herbert G Ooden, published in 1888 in the very first issue of the National Geographic magazine. Just found it rather fascinating because all you have to do is change a couple of terms and you'd think it was published today.