So early in the year, we hear about the Tucson shooting which claimed the lives of six people, including a nine-year-old little girl, and which had put a bullet in a lawmaker’s head. It’s such a tragedy hearing about these things and it often leaves me with more sadness for the loss of the victims’ families than rage for the perpetrator. It also makes me wonder how in this age and time, when people are more educated, when laws are in place, when governments are constituted that societies seem to continue to fail every now and then and in more ways than one. Who is to blame then?
Not too long ago, a disgruntled police officer took a number of Hong Kong nationals hostage out of frustration and enmity towards a government that he dutifully served and in the end, allegedly turned its back on him. That incident left a number of the hostages dead together with the hostage-taker. Who is to blame?
These are just two of the millions of headliners that the media had picked up. I’m not even talking about the drug wars in Mexico, terrorist attacks in various parts of the world, the rapists, the bank robbers, etc…Who is to blame?
I blame myself. I blame you. I blame everyone, the society, the whole world order. And you should do the same. Bad things, except those by acts of God, happen because we allow them to happen. Somehow and somewhere along the way, we could have been remiss in our duties as parents, as teachers, as neighbors, as friends, as superiors. Somehow, we failed to see the signs of discontent and anxiety. Somehow we failed to appreciate people and deeds, we paid more attention to mistakes made, were more harsh than necessary. Somehow we failed to be just. The list can go on and on. Yes, it is just impossible to keep track of everything that we do and say, of every person that come our way. But I still believe that as humans, we should at least strive to live by a set of minimum standards of how we relate to our own kind.
Not too long ago, a disgruntled police officer took a number of Hong Kong nationals hostage out of frustration and enmity towards a government that he dutifully served and in the end, allegedly turned its back on him. That incident left a number of the hostages dead together with the hostage-taker. Who is to blame?
These are just two of the millions of headliners that the media had picked up. I’m not even talking about the drug wars in Mexico, terrorist attacks in various parts of the world, the rapists, the bank robbers, etc…Who is to blame?
I blame myself. I blame you. I blame everyone, the society, the whole world order. And you should do the same. Bad things, except those by acts of God, happen because we allow them to happen. Somehow and somewhere along the way, we could have been remiss in our duties as parents, as teachers, as neighbors, as friends, as superiors. Somehow, we failed to see the signs of discontent and anxiety. Somehow we failed to appreciate people and deeds, we paid more attention to mistakes made, were more harsh than necessary. Somehow we failed to be just. The list can go on and on. Yes, it is just impossible to keep track of everything that we do and say, of every person that come our way. But I still believe that as humans, we should at least strive to live by a set of minimum standards of how we relate to our own kind.
Always act in good faith. Always be considerate of others. Always strive to be patient. Extend help when it is needed. Do not be judgmental. One does not need superhuman powers or intelligence to know and to live by these ethics. We just need to believe in the innate goodness of our hearts. Let the fact that we are good by nature inspire us to be more in touch with our humanity and that of others. I assure you, this world will be a better place.
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