Where Are the Gallant Knights

Whither the true gentleman who holds the door open for a lady Whither the noble scout, escorting an elderly matron 'cross the street Whither the friendly officer who greets me as I pass him on his beat Whither the shopkeeper who knows my name, who seeks my welfare Whither chivalry? Where has it fled? Where are the gallant knights in shining armor today? The gentleman? --passed on, bidding farewell to a world where he has no place The noble scout? --become timid and weak, emasculated by equality's relentless drumbeat The friendly officer? --grown mean and wary, cowed by violent lawlessness The shopkeeper? --relic of an age that is no more, replaced by a faceless superstore Chivalry? --buried in the annals of history beside gallant knights in shining armor languishing in cobweb-covered attics rusted helmets shuttered forever