Editorial – “What Have We Become”

Posted by Brad Osborne on August 1, 2021 · 29 Comments 

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More than a year ago, I changed the theme of my blog to be predominantly about poetry, my great love. But I have not lost the desire or need to write in a more editorial fashion. I simply do not use my blog as a venue to share those writings anymore. I am making an exception for today, as a change of pace for my readers and because looking back can be eye-opening at times. I wrote this piece on April 4, 2020 at the onset of the Covid pandemic. Some of the thoughts and feelings I captured then have changed and, sadly, some have not.

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For writers, our words are a catharsis. An opportunity to look at and try to understand our own feelings. In putting our feelings into words, we are able to understand them more clearly and can look for answers to the reasoning behind our emotions. How do we feel? Why do we feel that way? Where does this feeling come from? Is it rational? Is it fantasy? Is it fear?

We are often our own therapists. And with this limited skill and self-centric view, we do the best we can to be true to ourselves and accept what we find. Hopefully, we see any shortcomings as opportunities to improve, and any accomplishments as things to build on.

I sit here now, sadder than I can ever remember being. As my skeptical view of our society is proven true everywhere I look. How I had hoped I was all wrong about us. And, for once, being right doesn’t feel good anymore. There is a strangeness to it that I am still trying to digest.

Somehow, in 2020, an invisible villain has been introduced to the storyline. A small contagion with deadly intentions has come for us all. It has no bias. It does not see race, creed, color, religion, education, wealth, or anything else as a separator. Everybody gets to be just as scared as the next person. It has the kind of social acceptance we hope for from our fellow man, but so rarely see. It is more progressive than us in that sense.

And progressive it has been. Its evil touching on every continent. Its impact on everything from year-long vacation plans to day-to-day existence. It is forcing social distancing on a greater scale than our own recent endeavors at tribe mentality. Now we must maintain a distance from friends, as well as foes.

The immediate response, from many people, to this new scary character highlights my concerns as to who we really are as a society. We are a self-centered, greedy, and uncaring lot. How can I say this about our society? Because actions speak louder than words.

In the early moments of this pandemic, we saw store shelves being emptied of certain items. Not all of them are rational survival essentials, and even if they were, the rampant fear-driven over-purchasing of these items is indicative of what we really care about…only ourselves. Hoarding for our own benefit suddenly becomes acceptable behavior. Until we have taken care of our own irrational needs, we could care less about anyone else. And we don’t want some reasonable amount of these items. We want more than we could possibly use, even if it means others will have to do without. How is this who we have become?

I had a conversation with a friend yesterday, voicing my negative view of how we have reacted as a society, and she was quick to suggest that people are not doing this consciously, but simply out of fear, so they should not be held responsible for their actions. I could not agree. I agree with and understand the fear they feel, we all feel it. But that did not make everyone react in such a self-serving fashion. Somewhere along the way, they stood in that toilet paper aisle and decided buying way more than they could possibly need was rational and right (oddly enough, without any reasonable indication there would be a shortage), knowing full well that it would mean someone else would do without. They could not put the needs of others before themselves, or even on the same level. It suddenly became all about me and mine!

These are not the people who hoarded medical supplies and the like with the sole intent of profiteering during a time of crisis. No, those people are a whole different kind of evil. These are average, good folks, who when the shit hit the fan, reverted to their truer nature. Suddenly, what we care about became blatantly obvious to anyone willing to look. And that is what kills me.

It is what I have always suspected. That in this world of “thoughts and prayers”, those are the only things we can offer in the greatest times of need, because we are not willing to risk running out, even if it means someone else at least has a little.

And this is just the beginning. This situation could improve quickly, although the impact will already last much longer than we can imagine. Or it could take a nosedive into greater shortages, lack of medical care, unreliable government and leadership, climbing death tolls, and be the harbinger to a wide-spread sense of anarchy.

Although the Civil War is seen as the fight to abolish slavery, it was not the moral impotence of slavery that led to years of war, it was the impact that abolishing slavery would have on the southern states economy that fueled their fears and, in turn, the fight. If I use my friend’s logic here, then the south cannot be held responsible for their actions as they stemmed from fear.

In the movie “Men In Black”, Agent K talks with Agent J about why they have not come forward to tell the population that there are aliens living on Earth. His reply was, “A person is smart. People are dumb, panicky, dangerous animals, and you know it.” This is what the science of sociology is all about. As individuals we think and act in a particular way. As a herd, the dynamic changes greatly. Panic, fear, irrational thought, and behavior all become contagions that can skew our actions vastly and spread just as quickly as any disease. The “herd” is the birthplace for things like lynch mobs, riots, and racism.

As individuals, I can still hope we have grown as people, becoming more tolerant, caring, and connected. But as a society, I don’t see that has happened. Yeah, we had a good shine on things when everything was purring along just fine. But when things got tough, we resorted to who we clearly still are. And that makes me sad in a way nothing else does.

As a Marine combat veteran, I am not prone to over-react to situations. We are taught to think, adapt, and overcome. We have fears just like anyone else, but we learn to not allow fear to guide our actions. In a time of crisis, more than any other time, we focus on rational action and constantly remind ourselves of what the purpose of our actions are. Is what we are doing going to accomplish what we want to accomplish? If all you are looking to accomplish is to insure you have everything you could need with little fear of running out, then these shelf-clearing folks are succeeding. If you are looking to come together as a society and ensure that everyone is cared for in the best way possible, then maybe those actions were a bit self-serving.

Oddly, this sadness has made it impossible to write any poetry for the moment. And I don’t find poetry a viable outlet for the overwhelming disdain I feel for us as a society right now. I am hoping, with time, my feelings will change. I am hoping, with time, a lot of things will change. But, for now, I’m stuck here feeling a bit embarrassed by being part of a society that does not reflect who I am or what I had always hoped we would be.

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Filed under General · Tagged with behavior, covid-19, editorial, greed, herd mentality, human nature, humanity, mankind, pandemic, people, self-centered, shortages, social behavior, society, uncaring