You ever have this feeling like you're flipping through stations on the car radio, stuck in traffic, and the only thing that's not commercials is a song you didn't realize how much you absolutely loathed until this exact moment?
I sincerely hope with all my heart that I don't grow into one of those condescending grumps always spouting on about kids these days.
I've read a lot of frantic whining lately about how certain social justice movements, in attempting to promote the welfare of marginalized groups, are pushing for their agenda at the expense of more traditionally influential groups. Being as my mindset on a lot of topics related to gender roles, sexuality, race, economics, religion in politics, and other fun stuff has changed so vastly in the past few years, I can relate to those who are on many levels of recognizing that what we've been presented as default or right is actually more often just the way things have been for a while. Trying to come to grips with say, your white or male privilege can be made all the more difficult when it seems like one side is telling you you're the enemy and the other side is telling you that the first side is the enemy. Seems like no one is much helped by the idea of labeling who the enemy is except for those who'd rather things stay the same. Any rethinking of old paradigms is gonna rattle some cages, but I've been trying to do my utmost to relate to anybody who seems to be in pain.
See, I think the loud, angry folks and the soft, bitter folks are both hurt pretty bad. I may not always understand the vast technicalities and histories and anecdotal inspirations behind every feud, but I do know what it's like to feel ignored, dismissed, and abused. I don't think it does much good for anyone's cause to try and invalidate someone else's sense of disillusionment. I genuinely believe that if someone says they're in a lot of pain, the most constructive response isn't immediate disbelief (and certainly not immediate mockery).
Not to be all doom and boom, but we've always lived in a world where those with the greatest power to kill most often have the biggest funds behind their muscle. As long as we're not the ones being beaten, shot, or blown to bits, we can hypothesize and wring our hands and play keep away with life-saving medicine.
At some point, though, we all have to decide what kind of world we'd like to live in. Not for vague notions of future generations but for the literal, tangible now.
Are you okay with being the bully on the playground?
Are you okay with being the evil empire?
Are you okay with your time and labor fueling an egregious overabundance of imprudently employed death machines?
Are you okay with the abuses of your club, friend group, neighborhood, church, party, business, or any other subset of people to which you choose to belong while maybe turning away from the icky underside so long as the perks stay comfy?
Are you okay with living as part of a society wherein one can be said to deserve to be killed or to starve or to suffer in illness simply due to their standing in relation to imaginary figures favoring the greedy, the callous, and the blood-thirsty?
Thanks for reading,
Odist
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