Civilization should pat itself on the back. No, seriously. Societies of the world, give yourself a big round of applause. We have, people of this dear earth, managed to wipe out all bad people in, from what I can see, the space of a Generation. There are no more murderers, thieves, gluttons, adulterers or even liars on this blue pearl we call home anymore!
No, this is not a Headline from Equilibrium, it is a statement reflecting the here and now. But wait, there are still murders every day, precious items are still pinched, people cry on Zone Reality about their weight and adultery has its own show! But you see, no one is truly to blame for any of these acts. The teenage girl starving herself only does it because Magazines tell her she should be thin. That young boy only took an Uzi to his classmates because of the violence in video games and that ....thing.... on the couch is 238kg because McDonald's is so damn tasty and didn't tell him that shoveling said snacks into his mouth with a dumper truck would make him gain weight. Or in the case of gelatinous women: It's the baby's fault.
We live in a world with no accountability. A civilization where everyone is to blame but the person who committed the act themselves. Sure, we'll toss the Columbine kid in jail, but only because video games have poisoned his mind so. He is just a victim himself. My personal favourite is the 14 year old girl with twins crying about how unfair life was to her and how she had no idea how it all transpired. Seriously? You talk about sex all day with your friends and could probably give Dr Ruth a few pointers but you can't figure that one out?
And where is Reason? What happened to Sanity? Well Reason is crying itself to sleep in a cupboard until the next time Jack Thompson or some other Vulture needs to wheel him out, make him dance all the right moves with a shock collar around his neck and throw him back before collecting the next big pay cheque. Sanity is dodging his summons. We proudly train people to be so adept at twisting the truth, warping the facts and hiding the obvious and then we wonder why everything seems to have gone a bit pear shaped. That, coupled with our fear of taking responsibility, has taken a pair of scissors to out moral fibre. Terry Pratchett once said that a Lie will run halfway around the world before the Truth has even got its shoes on. This is only true because Truth's shoes have been impounded and the State attorney has moved to postpone the hearing.
And yes, I realise that the majority of lawyers are not stealing, lying, pillaging bastards but the uncomfortable fact about stereotypes is that they all have a basis in solid observation. The problem is that while this very vocal minority has us all dancing in circles while the majority of level headed people are too scared to stand up mention that the tune is wrong. Attorneys have made a wonderful business of satisfying our need to feel innocent. No one will stand up and point out that the kid who butchered his classmates might just be a crazy murdering bastard and that video games had nothing to do with it. No one will point out that the guy that sat on his remote last year and needed a crane to get up and remove it from his arse is a glutton who got what he deserved. Because the vocal minority has us all too scared with "It could happen to you". And while any sane person will think to himself "No it won't, I don't want to look like the Blob" they make us believe that all these "afflictions" come from mainstream media and therefor no one is immune and we all sit down and shut up because "Hey, what if it did happen to me? I would rather place the blame somewhere else too!"
So who is to blame for the state we find ourselves in? The media? No, don't believe the ANC. Then maybe it is Games and Movies! Nope, if you can not identify the difference between fantasy and reality, you should be in a room with padded walls. Okay, what about those few people that so vocally spread those lies and make us too afraid to speak up? Nope, they are just milking the benefits, pushing the rock faster down the hill it was already on. We are to blame. Yes we, the sane but silent majority. Too afraid to speak up in case we are seen. Too bored to turn off that stupid show about the girl with the 3 kids and 7 boyfriends. I mean, it's kinda funny and it is better than reading or playing those terrible Computer Games we always hear about.
We live in a world of crimes without perpetrators, tragedy without responsibility. And until we get of our behinds, kick political correctness out of the door and call a spade a spade, and decide to take responsibility for our own action, I fear we will find more "Caution, sticking this knife in you eyes could cause loss of vision" stickers in our lives. Now if you will excuse me, but I have shot down an alien research vessel over Peru and I have to go shoot some Sectoids. Don't worry. Like every sane person on this planet, I know it is just a game.
I agree! And I could add to that - it takes half the effort to live with the truth than it does to create an elaborate delusion. All you need is a backbone. And no, a lack of backbone is not caused by cellphone towers, microwaves or the fact that your mother had some coffee when she was pregnant.
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