SO, here we are again. One person did a bad thing and the whole bandwagon party blames a TOOL related to that one person and goes hog wild in the “taking care of the tool”…a tool that will not make the problem go away, a tool that will not stop that behavior from happening again because the REASONING BEHIND THE BEHAVIOR is the real problem. But, acknowledging that fact takes too much thought and effort.
So they blame the tool.
As tragic an event as every event was – and they were tragic – a gun did not kill those people in Charleston or Aurora or Ft. Hood (or anywhere else) any more than a fork made people obese; a laptop keyboard committed a teen suicide after cyber bullying; or a stick of glue kidnapped somebody.
These are all tools, used by PEOPLE, who should be responsible and held accountable for their actions but are allowed to get away with throwing accountability out the window.
A gun was not the culprit in any sadly tragic shooting, whether mass or individual, it was the BRAIN involved. Should we get rid of all of those? People don’t seem to be using them much anymore. Someone with mental issues THOUGHT of a way to get a tool to harm others and managed to find a way to carry out those actions.
A fork is not the culprit why so many in our country are obese (extremely overweight) and unhealthy, causing millions of dollars of medical events, drugs, procedures and doctors having mai tais on their yachts with the insurance carriers. People’s BRAINS are the culprit! They are either depressed or lonely or habitually addicted to eating or whatever other reason, and they think that food will make them feel better. The simple fact is, THEY ATE TOO MUCH. That’s it. Should their forks be taken away? Of course not! The underlying cause should be addressed so they can be healed and that behavior changed!
Cyber-bullying occurs in EPIC numbers now. Technology and social media need to desperately be reigned in but the point here is that what used to take place in person, as referenced by “Mean Girls” movies everywhere, now takes place when cowards – of every age – sit down at their computers or smart phones and type ugly, vicious, malicious attacks about somebody else. They don’t have the juevos to do it in person because they can hide behind a computer screen or a phone app. It’s not the keyboard’s fault. IT IS THE PERSON’S FAULT. That person chose to do what they did. It was intentional, with thought, with planning, with full knowledge of what they were doing.
A stick of glue does not kidnap anybody. It. Just. Can’t. The person who thinks about doing the kidnapping thinks up the plan and uses the stick of glue to craft a spiffy ransom note. The glue is a tool in the hands of the PERSON executing the bad behavior.
Are we seeing a common theme here?
Where has accountability gone?? This latest guy who killed innocent people in the church – I don’t remember his name and I won’t look it up because he doesn’t deserve the notoriety – this guy’s gun did not wake up that morning and decide to shoot people! THE GUY did it! And he used a gun as his tool. He thought about it and planned it and prepared for it. He is mentally ill and obviously racist. Where were his parents? Where were his friends? What kind of people did he hang out with? What kind of shows did he watch? What video games did he play? Where were his self-imposed boundaries, the ones normal people are supposed to impose on themselves as part of being responsible human beings?? WHERE IS HIS ACCOUNTABILITY? It’s not the gun’s fault, and it certainly isn’t some FLAG’s fault. If that was the fix, then taking down the Confederate Battle Flag (which I’ll talk more on below) this morning will erase ALL racism from here on out.
Let’s see how well that works…
This world has become flooded with people who want to place the blame on any and every other place than where it squarely belongs – on THE PERSON. WE have the thoughts. WE do the deeds. It is OUR responsibility. PERIOD.
The fact that some numbnut spilled hot coffee on himself is no big deal; people do that all the time. The fact that the clumsy numbnut found a lawyer numbnut to SUE an eating establishment for serving hot coffee – and WON – proves this world is becoming stupid beyond all reason.
For gosh sakes, it’s coffee. IT’S SUPPOSED TO BE HOT! And you are supposed to be careful with it so it doesn’t spill! If it does, wipe it off and don’t do that again. Don’t SUE over it. But, nope, it’s not the clumsy guy’s fault he spilled hot coffee on himself and burned his skin. It’s not even the food establishment’s fault for serving hot coffee. It’s not even the sleazy lawyer’s fault for being able to argue a good case and twist facts to win his point. It is OUR fault…for allowing all of that to be able happen in the first place.
I know the slope is slippery, but for cripes sake people, use some safety spikes once in awhile to slow your descent.
I read about the word “divergent” today. It means “differing or deviating”. It hit me that this is only partially how not only our country, but the whole world, is. We all have different views, opinions, thoughts. This is a good thing actually, this is how America was founded, on the right to be different without being attacked. Some of those ideas have not survived so well, and it seems the majority of people have hopped on the bandwagon that says “you can have your own opinion but if it’s different than mine, you’re wrong”.
However, there is a minority that still tries to hold to these foundations. And thank God. There needs to be stability, especially now. Because the world is also VERY divisive: “forming or causing division or dissension”. It’s one thing to be divided because of the divergence; we differ in our views and beliefs. It’s another to be how we are today…CAUSING that division on purpose. People are deliberately trying to pick a fight, if you will, because somebody else doesn’t agree with them. They are trying to force their views or beliefs on others and that’s not how it works! I’m not going to change you and I can tell you right now, you won’t change me, but I will listen to you (to a point) and we can RESPECT each other’s differences and agree to disagree.
You won’t make me gay and I won’t make you straight. You won’t make me black and I won’t make you white. You won’t make me male and I won’t make males female. You won’t make me stop loving chocolate. Period. It. Just. Won’t. Happen. And that’s okay! It’s okay to be different, it’s GOOD to think differently. If we were all the same, life would be BORING. If we were all MADE to do the same things, we would be in a dictatorship somewhere in North Korea.
Because I was thinking of them, here are just a few examples of what I have witnessed in the “ridiculous” arena. Spoiler alert: you might not agree. And that’s okay. But this is the truth so I ask that you think about it.
The Confederate Battle Flag
This was a MILITARY flag, not a national flag, and it never flew over a slave nation, never was created to represent any idea related to slavery. It was used in battle, on the battlefield, by military groups for identification on the battle field…hundreds of years ago. However, European skinheads and neo-nazi and other stupid racist groups have adopted it as their “symbol” of racism, but it does not mean the flag itself, or its true, original meaning, is a bad one.
Did you know that our beloved United States flag, the flag that represents “united states” DID, in fact, fly over a slave nation for over 85 years? Should we now take that one down from everywhere also? Surely it must mean that everywhere it flies represents slavery and racism and inequality.
The Middle Finger
I don’t like when the middle finger is flashed at me without the other fingers around (not that it happens often). I am offended by that. We all know what it means and it is not nice. Should we get rid of all middle fingers everywhere? Just chop them off because they could possibly, potentially, maybe offend others? I don’t know about you, but I need my middle fingers. They help me hold stuff.
The Swastika
Did you know in the “old days” before Hitler stole it in the 1930s, like 15,000 years before, and maliciously twisted its representation, the swastika was a very positive symbol? It stood for “well being” and good luck. But you ask any holocaust survivor how they feel about it and it strikes dread into their hearts, because that is the only representation of that symbol they know. The symbol it was twisted into, not the original symbol.
Bandanas
These lovely creations began their existence as ways to save and share information about special events. Thankfully, they have evolved to help hair look pretty and stay in place, suck up sweat, and they also make cute belts. However, they also have been hijacked by gangs who use them as their “colors”. That could have ruined them for me, but I have chosen to ignore their stupidity. I was using colorful bandanas first, and I will continue to do so.
Ice Cream and Chocolate
I personally don’t care if every psycho, racist, animal abusive serial killer out there has a picture of themselves taken with a bowl of ice cream or a plate of chocolate cake, I will NOT get rid of my sweets. And if you try to TAKE them from me…you will lose a lot more than your middle fingers.
So…
If simply removing a symbol of what some think something represents would take away the underlying problem, this world would be a better place…and pretty bare. It isn’t physical symbols or representations that are the problem, it is the underlying hearts and attitudes of people. It is the inherent laziness of generations not to teach the next generations to do better, think better, BE better.
If this ideology worked:
- There would be no more children having children if we removed the term “baby daddy” from our vernacular (which I think is the stupidest term around next to “my bad”). But really? Where are the parents of these children?!
- There would be no more women raped if we removed high heel shoes from stores and closets. Because it’s not the attacker’s responsibility not to attack, it’s the victim’s responsibility not to wear pretty things.
- There would be no more drunk driving murders if we took away bottles and cans and glasses. Because these containers hold the alcoholic liquid these morons drink too much of.
- Obesity would be eradicated from the planet if we removed forks. Forks are the culprit. Forks get food into the mouth! It’s not poor self-esteem or bad habits or poor nutrition education, it’s FORKS. Get rid of the forks.
- There would be no more broken marriages due to cheating if we removed men and women from each other’s sight! There’s just not another comment to go with this one.
- There would be no more random murders committed by bored teenagers if the violent video games were removed from their living rooms.
- ISIL and other terrorist groups would be nice people if we took away the Koran. Because it’s not the shallow, narrow-minded, warped way they legalistically twist the words and meanings in the book to mean “kill everybody except each other” (and they even kill each other so where’s the line?), it’s the book itself that is at fault, the ink and the paper pages and the cover.
Does anybody else see the danger in the direction of this continued and unbelievably growing mindset? This must stop. People need to think. They need to think BEFORE they act. And they need hold themselves and others accountable.
Come to think of it, maybe this could turn into a new bandwagon…The Bandwagon of Common Sense! Hopefully coming to a town near you.
And you know what? A little prayer (or a LOT) would be a good thing right about now. It certainly couldn’t hurt. There are a lot of pawns out there right now, and they don’t even realize they are being utilized by the evil puppet master.
“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.” ~ John 10:10
“Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” ~ 1 Peter 5:8
But we CAN fight. And I will.
Ephesians 6:12 ~ “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.”
Ephesians 6:13 ~ “Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.”
1 Corinthians 16:13 ~ “Be on the alert, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong.”
*Author’s note: This post is admittedly more emotional than I usually get but there are dangerous precedents being set and I strongly feel that for the safety and self-respect of this and future generations, we desperately need to reign in the direction our country is going. I could not keep quiet any longer. Readers, you have the right to disagree, but I truly hope you decide to share this instead. At the very least, think about the issues, and consider what direction you want for your immediate family, and for your children’s futures. Thank you. And tell me what are your thoughts? (Nicely…)
About the author:
Becky Padilla is a local writer and enthusiast of many things. Check out her blog, Groovy Trails, here.
0 comments