The loss of passion in America

Over the last 20 years or so, it has become apparent to me that passion in America has gone from a tool utilized to “fire up” the masses, alerting them to the idiocy or dangers of certain policies or laws being put forth by their elected officials to a nuisance emotion better left dead.
Today it just seems to me that showing any passion for anything is construed as anger, emotional instability or pointless complaining over that that you-as an individual-have no power over. The pendulum has swung so far from the very passionate decade of the 1960’s-when leaders such as Martin Luther King, Jr. made it “hip” to be passionate-that even having passion for simple things such as time spent with your family, is ridiculous and mocked by many of those you many count as friends. And don’t ever get caught telling your buddies about planning a night of “passion and romance” with your significant other because they will, as the British like to say, take the mickey out of you for weeks for it.
Even worse is showing passion for a particular movement or belief.
It used to be that someone who was passionate about their beliefs could stand up, orate them freely, and attract a crowd of supporters cheering them on, regardless of location. Today such actions would be seen as those of either and angry and unstable person, or that of an raving lunatic who belongs in a loony bin. Take the Fair Tax and "Tea Bag" movements of today. Those how vociferously support these movements are considered "wacko's" by those who do not.
Of course there are other, and in some ways better, methods to express ones passion today (such as using the internet), but gone are those individual acts of passion which spawn whole movements as Rosa Parks did in the 1950’s.
No, unfortunately American's are either too scared, to weak or just don't care enough. As a result America hasn’t just turned its back on passion, I think we are losing more of it each day.