Current Events

You know, there are times, many of them actually that I like to put my head in the sand and pretend the world around is not really taking place. I avoid conversations, I avoid reading articles and close my eyes to the headlines. I found this tactic, more than once, keeps me sane. And ... I was doing a really great job of keeping my head in the sand and going about my business on this whole kneeling / not kneeling protest thing. UNTIL ... my not-into-current-events-husband comes home and asks my opinion... I replied calmly with 'I don't have an opinion ... I don't know enough about the situation to have one.' That is what I have taught my kids, right ... you can only have a valid opinion when you know both side of the subject. I have chosen to not know. Right or wrong, that is what I have decided... Well Lou was pretty adamant about having a conversation on this subject, so I said I would have to get back to him after I sifted through all the articles and facts.

While I still don't have an opinion ... these are the points I have taken so far from my reading ...

1) People are looking to be angry. Weather it is over simple things like an outfit someone wore or something more serious there are many people in this world looking to be angry. I don't like it and I make a choice every morning to not be an angry person. Maybe there should be a class on this in schools around the country. I read an article this morning by a soldier's widow and what I took from the article was that some people have forgotten that for many years there are many people in your every day life that have put aside differences (religion/race/gender) and learned to work as a team for the greater goal of winning. Are we so worried about what someone else said that we have to 'divide' again? We forget the unity that has been formed? If so, then I'm more sad to see the superficialness (is that a word) of it all. The right to free speech includes you getting to say your piece and then me getting to say mine weather or not you agree. Lets not forget that. Let us also not forget, that when we work together toward a greater goal, the teamwork involved often times reminds us that just because we may not see eye-to-eye on one subject that person may still be a great person. How would you even know that if you chose to divide?

2) Many many many people who are protesting don't even know why or what they are protesting. Some do, don't get me wrong, but many do not. It is the 'in thing to do' and so they do it. A few years ago when the kids were upset about the curriculum in Jefferson County I told my kids, if you can come to me and give me 3 facts about what you are going to protest about, then I will listen and I will defend your right to protest. Until you have those 3 facts don't even think about it. You will not be one of those people on the news that walked out and didn't know why. And I guess in all my years parenting I have learned that just because I teach my kids something doesn't mean everyone learned that lesson...

3) Another article informed me that college campuses around the country who are supposed to be encouraging free speech are having to cancel their 'free speech' speakers (here is looking at you Cal-Berkley) because the students have threatened to riot. Are you serious? When I was in college, if there was a speaker coming and I didn't care for that person, I just didn't go. There was no I think I'll riot or threaten the well being of another human. I find it unbelievable and sickening. And I guess I can only hope that the next group of kids to go through college are taught / forced to hear and see both sides of an issue instead of riot and threaten violence for those that speak a different viewpoint than your own. And how is that holding up what the 'Free Speech' deal is in the first place? I know I wrote about this very subject not long ago when my kids weren't allowed to speak about election results in a social studies class... The ironic thing about all of this is that the kids can usually hold a civilized conversation with different perspectives and many many many of us adults could learn from them. And by adults I mean literally everyone over the age of 18. The kids have yet to have college professors influence their minds into thinking that life only happens one way.

At a time when there are natural disasters happening all across the world and you see many people uniting and trying to get through another day while also helping their fellow neighbors I'm so incredibly sad that on the other side of the country we see the division happening because people aren't willing to listen to both sides of an issue. People are rioting because they don't like a speaker, people are being violent because of God-knows-why. In a world where there is so many positive things I wonder why we can't feed off the positive to try and help those struggling?