Civilized?

I awake today to darkened skies,
No sunlight shines through faded clouds.
The faint explosion of far-off thunder,
Barely reaches my ears.
And with the explosions, a sudden terror overwhelms me.
I fear we’re slipping back into the dark ages.
Knowledge, valued less and less each day,
Is no longer realized at its true potential.
And who’s to say it ever was?
Sure we’re a “civilized” batch of primates,
But civilized compared to what?
You see, civility is a relative term.
In the grand arena of this existential plane,
We really aren’t all that great.
Sure, we’ve gotten better at controlling our primal urges,
But in doing so, we all share the same lie.
We are but highly-decorated apes,
Incapable of selfless acts,
Incapable of understanding this intricate world.