by B.J. on 9/17/2003 06:58:00 PM 0 comments Print this post

Comments: Post a Comment
Breaking Down the Angers

Pops has been reading a funny, yet informative book entited Dealing With People You Can't Stand. It's interesting and informative, but it's not where the family's problem lies.

My fam is some funny peoples. We get mad so easily on the road that it can potentially not be funny. We get mad at strangers on the road. It's about one of the few times you can find any one of them unrelaxed and unhappy. This instantly developed anger we have from time-to-time determines the mood and tone of the day rather than something more important like the Bears sucking so badly.

For example, my dad chased to cut off some stupid
pick-up with a Marines sticker about 10 blocks from our original destination because it had cut us off twice in a Walmart parking lot on our way to yet another Filipino family party. As if the moment was frozen in time via a grainy, 1960s grainy NFL films video focusing on a crushing hit that would pop off a helmet, he made the tight lane switch to cut off the pick-up. A silent surge of joy for a split second. Then, "WHOA DAD ! That was tight !" Then an enthusiastic high five with the sister. My mom could only sigh with a "langya" look on her face. Some family fun, indeedy.

While chasing that one punk for 10 blocks was exciting, it was probably not the best way we could have handled things (or so society says so). But we got mad because we only saw the result of him cutting us off. We didn't see the rationale of the result; we didn't see if he cut us off unintentionally because he had to go somewhere. If it was some family friend that cut us off unknowingly, we would have laughed and joked it off.

Because we didn't know more of the Marines dude and he impersonally did something wrong to us, we got mad. And luckily nothing came over it.

It's easy to laugh at us. But this instantly developed anger is what consciously or unconsciously drives Americans in general to do stupid things. It's the haste, the heat of the moment that forces us to make stupid decisions. The easy-to-use-iness of guns and instant fire caters well to this society of speed. 11,000 in America die thanks to this speed and ease that guns provide in comparison to 60 in Canada with even more lenient gun laws.

More broadly, when "people" are blinded to what happens to "other" people, and those "other" people do something to annoy "people", "people" will get mad, fail to understand the "other" people, and see only negativity in "other" people. For example, the 9/11 attacks have lead the fallen Dennis Millers of the world to demonize Middle Easterners. Race and ethnicity are the easiest way to identify and demonize. When something bad happens, "people" only see differences in the strangers. As a result of seeing negativity, "people" will consciously or subconsciously stereotype "other" people and create more seperation.

It's one root cause other than the media to how the poor become lazy, blacks are scary and athletic, gays just want to rape you.

People are not people in this society of speed, fear, and indulgence.

Labels:

 



Home Page