Humanity

I write this entry partially in response to Lisa’s entry on Black Friday over at Glass City Jungle and partly in response to a classroom discussion on “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep” in my English 275 class. This entry looks at us humans, and how we treat each other. Do we demonize some, in order to exploit and harm them? Are we kind to all of our fellow brothers and sisters? Are we ethical or are we just psychopaths?

Three people were killed on Black Friday, one due to a mob, and the other two because they shot each other. That’s right, two people died because of the consumers need to save maybe 5% overall. In a store where they are advertising 70% off sales, most items are regular priced and there are only 6 items or so that are 70% off. Nobody got those items, but everybody thought that they had a chance. So, in order to save 100$ they killed somebody… Seriously, what is wrong with people these days? How can anybody justify trampling somebody, and then trampling those trying to get and help him, in order to save money? If you are running for your life it is one thing, but rushing in to save a buck is not worth anybody’s life!





Far too often we see other humans killing or harming each other with no concern over their safety. From people who shoot-up on drugs and run through red-lights, to people beating up homeless, simply because they are homeless. They seem to think that other people do not matter (in the drug case), and thus they can be reckless because there is no harm possible to themselves. Or, in the case of the homeless beaters, they demonize the homeless so much that they do not appear to be humans, and thus can be beat up. To me, this is absurd and terrifying. If we can demonize and thus ignore a person, simply because they are in some way less fortunate than us, how long is it until we, as a country, start taking out specific groups in organized mobs, smashing glass and gassing people?

In a paragraph that will get me in trouble with my cousin…
This summer, over in Italy, two Roma girls drowned while the tanning and lunching Italian couples ignored them. Even after the girls were pulled from the sea, and laid out on the beach with towels over their bodies, the beach goers just seemed apathetic and callous about the whole situation. WHAT THE HELL? Two girls, young and with their entire lives still ahead of them, were not saved, and were treated no different than animals. I am willing to bet that these people would have looked and felt remorse if they saw a dead dog, or a dead kitty, but felt nothing when other humans were laying there dead. There is something wrong with this, and something wrong with people these days.

And what about death porn, or snuff films? Sure, there are no main stream films, but you can find all sort of shit on the internet. From chicks shitting in cups (no link given, google it if you are that sick) to blondes getting their head blown off (saw this, I think it is fake, but not sure), you can get anything. What does this tell you about our society? Sure, they used to go and watch hangings, go and watch public shootings, and the like, but they did not watch some of the things that are online now. Typical death scenes are one thing (including the hanging of Saddam), but the torture, rape, and then killings that are seen online are a whole different thing.

What is wrong with us, if we can justify doing these things to others? Hell, what is wrong with us if we then share them and have people enjoy them? There is something wrong with our country, and I, for one, think that we need to change this. Teach empathy in schools, punish kids who act out and harm animals, do what is needed to be done. Too often we take the PC course, which is to assume that the kid has troubles and council them. SCREW THAT, send them to jail for doing stuff like that. Take down the websites (for violating the law, not for expressing themselves), stop this deceptive sales pitch, and teach people that trampling is not the answer.




On a side note, to those of you who work in stores during this time, when you have customers attacking you, yelling at you, and harming you, my heart goes out to you. Good luck Read more ...