I guess it depends on where you set the bar.
If I set that bar, comparative to the world, yes, I would have to agree 'is.'
If I set that bar, pre-'93 (I exampled this date only because of the date specified
), we have slid so far down that I doubt this society will recover... thus, was.
we reap what we sow, it was lost when mediocrity became the standard.