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Cruelty in the World

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  • #90761
    Aislynn
    Participant

    Just yesterday I found a note I had written about a year ago, to myself, which said something that I feel I still do not understand no matter how I try to analyze the situation. It’s been weighing on me a lot for the past year, and I think it’s time I get other’s to chime in. So let me know what you think of all of this, and where you stand in regards to all of this.

    My note: I love people, we as humans are capable of great things. Yet, I hate people as well, for we are capable of very atrocious acts. I feel a sense of despair and hopelessness when I turn on the news and watch all the crimes, rapes, murders, and thefts committed by others. I feel the anger welling up in me because the victims are just that, victims, innocent bystanders who unfortunately had to deal with the terrible actions of others. I can’t fully comprehend how some people can be capable of committing such heinous crimes.

    My questions: What do you feel when you hear of all the horrible things some people have done? How does this affect your stance on the death penalty? Is it better to just stop watching the news?

    If I’m being honest with myself, I get very angry when I hear of everything happening around the world. Angry at the people who brought the horrible crime into action. Angry that innocent people suffer the consequences. Yes, it is a matter of life because there are bad people everywhere, but how does this shape us?

    For me, I’ve always been a strong supporter of the death penalty. Yes, I am aware that two wrongs don’t make a right, and that killing someone will not make everything right again. It won’t bring back to life the victims. However, the way I see it, if that person who committed the crime is killed, well then it means that they can no longer hurts others and to me that is what matters. Yes, there will always be others, but it is one less to worry about for the time being. It means we won’t have to live with perpetual worry. Plus, why should these criminals get to enjoy 3 meals a day, a bed, and all other sorts of things at the expense of the tax payers, and of the families who they’ve harmed?

    This is weighing on me because I want to believe in their redemption, that they can change. Isn’t that what we are taught? To give second chances? But the matter of fact is, things will never be the same for the families of those affected, time does not lessen what they did or the responsibility for their actions.

    I am conflicted because part of me says that I cannot hold on to this anger because it does amount to anything positive and that it does not help me achieve anything in terms of my spiritual growth. If anything, it hinders and blinds me. The other part of me feels that it is good to feel this way because it keeps me grounded as to how cruel people can be, and that these people do not deserve another chance. It also helps to motivate us to make a change, do something good for our communities and people we know, or even strangers. Also, it serves as a reminder as to how precious life is and how everything can can change in a moment.

    So what do you feel about all of this? Where does it stand or what does it mean to you in terms of your spirituality?

    #90776
    TriangleSun
    Participant

    I don’t think we’re any better or worse than we have been 20, 200, or 1000 years ago. The difference between now and then is access to information and consequently things spread at the speed of light. That and lots and lots of money. Good news rarely make headlines because it often doesn’t invoke the same emotional response as something that is plain disturbing. That’s the stuff that makes money and keeps media agencies in business.

    Things will be this way for a very long time going forward. We’re going to make the same mistakes over and over again. We’re going to kill each other just like we did throughout our existence. All of this will keep happening until humanity, at some point, will reset itself into the next generation of our civilization. A civilization that is guided by the modern principles of life that we probably don’t even understand yet and leaves ancient traditions and religions behind. A highly advanced world where every single being (notice the word being, not animals which is what we are now) is on the same level in terms of their beliefs and comprehension of everything around them. However, before we get there we will probably wipe out more than half of the population on this planet.

    So yeah, short term – don’t watch the news. That’s what i do and it’s working quite well 🙂

    #90781
    jock
    Participant

    thanks for your honest and sincere post Aislynn.
    Firstly the news. If it depresses you, I’d skip it . If you are a reflective person, (which you seem to be), I don’t think it is useful.
    I go into survival mode if the news is too atrocious.Just block it out. I have to in order to get on with my life. The state of the world can really get me down. I worry about the economy (being unemployed) and of course ISIS is the big one now. Gun control in the US is another one. I mean, I can’t solve it, so it is better I think about something else.
    There was one documentary I watched this year about a poor child from Russia who was bought by a couple and just used a plaything for paedophiles. So disturbing was the story, that I feel physically nauseous just contemplating it.Better I not spend too much time thinking about this, otherwise I will just feel despair all the time.
    re death penalty. Look I don’t agree with you, Aislynn, but I respect your opinion. Death penalty in Australia hasn’t been in since the sixtees. I know a lot of these people are almost sub-human, acting worse than animals, but I feel the death penalty conjures up images of medieval barbarism. it would be a practical solution, as most prisons are overcrowded. Maybe some prisoners want to be executed. Well let them get their wish.Otherwise, I’m not going to join a protest group supporting the reintroduction of the death penalty in Australia.

    #90782
    Saiisha
    Participant

    Aislynn,
    This debate has been going on for ages now, and although I don’t agree with death penalty I don’t want to debate about it either.

    But what I want to add in addition to what the others said above is how we can make the world a better place, especially if we don’t agree with the atrocities that are going on. This world is what we created. And we can continue making it the place we want it to be, by being “the change you wish to see in the world” (Gandhi). This is the ONLY way we can make the world a better place, even in the face of all the atrocities. Do as many positive things you can do as possible. It will create a ripple effect in the world you live in, the immediate world around you.

    I do this by not boycotting the sensationalized news media, I do this by using plastic as little as possible, I do this by creating as tiny a footprint on the planet as I possibly can, I do this by traveling as little as I can so I don’t pollute the environment and use earth’s resources unnecessarily, I do this by commenting / helping people on positive places like TinyBuddha and my own website. This is how I’ve chosen to create the world I want to live in. You can call me naive, but if we can all do that, I do have an ideal that we can create the world a better place to live 🙂

    #90808
    Anonymous
    Guest

    Dear Aislynn:

    I no longer watch the news or TV, not since Feb 2013. Do not miss it. I don’t have to watch the news though to witness cruelty. It is everywhere. It is in my past, my memories, lots of memories of cruelty. I will mention one that does not involve me: I was at a neighbor’s house, Rosi, was her name. It was in Israel. Her sister Rita visited her from the U.S. with her sons Harley 13 and David, younger. At one point, Rosi had everyone stand outside her house because her sister Rita was about to beat up Harley inside the house. Rosi had everyone wait outside as Rita proceeded to beat up Harley. I was 15. I remember the noise, she must have used some belt, it made a loud beating sound, a whip coming down hard on the boy, and he screamed like he was being murdered. Rita took her time, didn’t say a word. All you could hear was the whip and the screaming of the child. When she was done, she was done. It was all.

    It was not in the news.

    There is so much more. And here, on this very forum, this very day, someone called someone else a jerk. Out of nowhere, with no prior communication with the attacked, the attacker threw “you are a jerk!”

    Cruelty is business as usual, anywhere and everywhere. Just make sure it is not inside your home, that inside your home there is empathy and respect and safety.

    anita

    #90815
    Anonymous
    Guest

    More: the innocent, the real innocent are the children, and child abuse in various forms hurt like hell, hurts millions of children as I type this, right now, feelings are hurt so traumatically that most never heal. It is heart breaking. Most defend their abuser to their last day. Harley, the severely beaten boy I mentioned. He turned out to be a teacher, just like his mother, and living with a much older woman, still trying to please and get the love of the woman who hurt him so.

    These children are in the adults you meet every day.
    anita

    #90983
    Aislynn
    Participant

    Thank you everyone for your responeses. It help put my concerns into perspective.

    TraingleSun, I believe you are right. Back then we simply wouldn’t have known everything that was going on in the world, yet it’d still be taking place. The difference is that now there are literally hundreds of not thousands of different news channels/websites. What a great thought, about the world resetting itself at some point in which people will finally have a bigger and greater understanding. I really like the sound of that.

    Juanita, survival mode. That cracked me up. I thought I was going crazy and being too paranoid with all the precautions I take, but calling it survival mode makes perfect sense. You’re right, we can’t solve it, so yeah it is better to just block it. I didn’t think of it that way. I had always thought I was being selfish for not wanting to worry about the problems going on in the world. Oh my, I wouldn’t have been able to sit through and watch a whole documentary about that. Much too disturbing for me, then I’d worry excessively for a few days about the problem. Thank you for respecting my view. I respect yours as well, and I have to say that what you said about it makes sense.

    Saiisha, you’re right, we do need to be the change we want to see the world. Otherwise we’ll never get there. And I, much like you, like to travel as little as possible, and when I can, I take public transport or I walk, I recycle, don’t leave the water running, etc. However, sometimes I get impatient because it seems like too few people do it to make a difference. However,I also know that I have to be patient and trust the process.

    Anita. Wow, what a shattering story. What I difficult life Harley was thrust into. You’re right in that bad things occur all over us and are not always in the news. It scares me how cruel we as humans can be. Which like TriangleSun said, we are animals. Well, that was very rude of whoever called someone else a jerk. Especially without prior communication. It’s uncalled for.

    Again, thank you everyone. I really do intend to stop watching the news. However, my question is, if I stop watching the news how will I be informed if there is a natural disaster going on, a terrorist attack, or a safety issue with a product or an ecoli outbreak? Forgive me if it seems ignorant, its just that the news is usually where I get that information from.

    #91027
    Anonymous
    Guest

    Dear Aislynn:

    What a gracious person you are! Responding to each individual with attention and appreciation to what he/ she wrote!
    This is how you make the world a better place, isn’t it? This attentive, positive response to each individual!

    As far as getting the news, how about this attitude: Just the facts, mam! Get a news channel or source that gives you only the facts in a … factual way, no drama, no going on and on and on for the purpose of fueling emotions and keeping the reader, listener or watcher hooked. Only the facts, mam!

    anita

    #91096
    Aislynn
    Participant

    Anita,

    Thank you for that. It’s just such a part of who I am that sometimes I forget I’m even doing it. I like to make sure I include everyone and thank them for their help. I wouldn’t have it any other way.

    That’s a great way to look at it. (In regards to making the world a better place). I suppose you’re right. I just had never thought of it that way.

    That sounds like a great idea. It’ll probably be trial and error for a while then because most news sources just thrive on the gossip, gory details, and exaggeration of details/lies.

    #91103
    Anonymous
    Guest

    Dear Aislynn:

    I just read your heart felt comment on the Please Help Me thread eight hours ago or so. I sure hope the original poster will reply. I am mentioning it here because it makes me wonder… reaching out to people, you would think he or she will appreciate the effort to help him.. or her. You take great care in expressing appreciation and I found myself thinking: it would almost be cruel (topic of this thread) if Aislynn’s replies on that thread, such VALUABLE two replies (having your experience so similar to original poster’s and your insight and articulation etc., if those will NOT be answered.

    But this is how it is. I see replies, heart felt, very well meaning and at times very valuable, like yours on this one, and yet… no answer. And I wonder why is that. It is possible that the original poster does not come back to the forum. But if he or she is back, I do not understand why they do not reply.

    I figure even if the OP does not come back, does not read or does not appreciate the reply, then maybe someone else reading it is going to find it helpful.

    Happy New Year Day for you and good year ahead! Hope to see more and more posts by you here !

    anita

    #91189
    Aislynn
    Participant

    Dear Anita,

    “I see replies, heart felt, very well meaning and at times very valuable, like yours on this one, and yet… no answer. And I wonder why is that.” I completely agree. I spend time reading some of the threads here on tinybuddha, and I see that the person who sought out the help never never replied, regardless of how good the advice was. I think that sometimes people don’t respond because the advice they get is much too true, and they are not willing to open old wounds or fix the issue. It is hard to get the advice you know you need when you are unwilling to accept it.

    “I figure even if the OP does not come back, does not read or does not appreciate the reply, then maybe someone else reading it is going to find it helpful.” Yes, my thoughts exactly. Hopefully they reach those who really need it.

    Happy New Year to you as well Anita. May this be a great year for you, and may you keep helping as many people on this forum as always. I have seen that you take the time to respond to a lot of people here on this forum. Some of which are very broken souls, others which have questions about where they are in life and their journey. You give great sensible advice and always encourage the OP to respond. I admire you for that because you genuinely care, and for some of these people who are so hurt and alone, your concern and friendliness makes all the difference in their world. That is how YOU make the world a better place. You take the time to analyze the situation of these people and give great advice to them, something that not many people do. I’m glad you are here on tiny Buddha helping all these people because it really does make a difference. You take advice to a whole other level, you give it a greater meaning because you are willing to continue to help these people even after you’ve answered their questions and given them advice.

    #91196
    Anonymous
    Guest

    Dear Aislynn:

    I concur with your first and second paragraph and glad you posted it. It is so nice to get your attentive replies, what I do try to do answering others. It is refreshing and very much appreciated.

    I thank you very much for the third paragraph, much appreciated. You wrote that some of the people posting on the website are “very broken souls”- I too have been, until not too long ago, a broken, very broken soul myself. I used to wish my own death often, as a way out of misery. What a difference my now five year healing journey has made! There is no Happily-ever-after state of mind in my case, not now, not expecting there to be, but healing is amazing, an ongoing process and I highly recommend it, and try to encourage it, for anyone who needs healing.

    Thank you again, I am so very glad you are here on tiny buddha. You are much appreciated!

    anita

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