Kali-Yuga, The Age We Are Now Living In

I suppose every generation has said there has never been one such as this. I would agree and say every era is unique and has its particular qualities and characteristics.
As one who has been in this earthly body for close to seven decades I do notice certain things about this 21th century that are unlike others I have witnessed.

They are in no particular order:
A marked increase in murders, mass murders, and  terrorism.
An increasing preoccupation by the masses on being entertained and having every desire, whether good or bad, satiated.
Materialism and having "things" no matter what the cost or consequences.
The acceptance of abortion, pornography and pretty much any kind of sexual activity between two consenting people.
A scorn for religions that have a definite standard or code of conduct. I am not referring here to certain Christian and Jewish faiths that have changed to fit a society's changing(debased) mores.
This last  one may seem minor but it isn't. A lack of civility, manners,couth, decorum and appropriate behavior by the populace.
There are more but you get the picture as they say. I list the above with a certain degree of sadness because I lived through a time when the above wasn't either a part of our society or so prevalent.

When I was a Christian we were taught that these were simply symptoms of the end of the age. The age before the return of Jesus Christ when He would come and rule over this earth. The problem with this belief was that people have been saying this for centuries, since shortly after Jesus was resurrected.
I have now come to believe what the Vedic Scriptures describe as the Age of Kali-Yuga.
Below is a brief description of this age taken from the excellent Krishna.com website.

"Kali-yuga, the Age of Quarrel, is a period of time lasting 432,000 years and characterized by hypocrisy, degradation, and an overall rise in vice. It is the last and worst of the four great ages (Satya-, Treta-, Dwapara-, and Kali-yugas) mentioned in ancient Vedic literature. We're now living in a Kali-yuga that began around five thousand years ago."

Bellow is given the solution to avoiding the consequences and influence of this age:

"The sole redeeming feature of Kali-yuga is that anyone can be released from degradation and anxiety simply by chanting God's names. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, who is Krishna Himself in disguise during Kali-yuga, encouraged everyone to chant the Hare Krishna mantra. Many scriptures recommend this chant as the most direct route to genuine happiness and enlightenment in the Age of Kali."