It’s everywhere. You can’t escape it. People are rude. And they seem proud of it! When did this become a thing?
There were a few different situations this week that caught my eye or occupied space in my brain so I thought I would explore this topic. Some family members have either had issues at work or there were things I noticed in the news. Of course, if you’re looking for rude people in this world all you have to do is go on social media. I guess it’s easier to go “viral” by being a jacka** so why not go for it? Who cares about decency if you can get clicks?
In one situation this week, my wife was telling me about something that happened at work. She’s a paramedic and they were transporting a patient to the hospital with lights and sirens going. They were on a two lane roadway near Boston and everyone had pulled over to the right and she was traveling down the left lane. That’s when she noticed a guy, over to the right, who was hanging out his window screaming at the ambulance and “flippin’ the fing-uh!” I guess he was a bit inconvenienced?
I have to ask: What did he expect them to do? Someone needs to get to the hospital so you need to give way. I wonder how he would feel if that was his mother, grandmother, or if that was him? Was he late for work? Whose fault is that? The ambulance? Do you think you could have left a little earlier? Maybe they were just loud and his favorite song was on the radio.
Then there was the Congressional hearing in Washington Thursday night.
The hearing was supposed to be about Attorney General Merrick Garland but it quickly turned into something else. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York and Dallas Rep. Jasmine Crockett got into a back-and-forth that was, in my opinion, anything but professional.
During Thursday night’s hearing in the House Oversight Committee, Rep. Crockett asked Rep. Greene: “Do you know what we are here for?” To which Rep. Greene responded, “I don’t think you know what you are here for … I think your fake eyelashes are messing up what you’re reading.” As some of the other members of Congress reacted, Rep. Ocasio-Cortez said, “That is absolutely unacceptable. How dare you attack the physical appearance of another person? Move her words down.” Rep. Greene then asked Rep. Ocasio-Cortez, “Are your feelings hurt?” To which Rep. Ocasio-Cortez responded, “Girl. Baby girl, don’t even play.”
Oh but wait, there’s more.
A few minutes later, Rep. Crockett apparently wanted to know what comments were appropriate for the hearing so she asked the committee chairman, “I’m just curious, if someone on this committee then starts talking about somebody’s bleach-blonde bad-built butch body, that would not be engaging in personalities, correct?”
And no, I’m not making this up! This was in a United States Congress House Oversight Committee hearing.
When did this become acceptable behavior?
Now I’m not taking sides here. None of this, “Well she started it!” I say they are both wrong. My momma taught me that two wrongs don’t make a right.
I have to seriously ask, “Will we ever go back to being decent with each other?” If we don’t see any decency from our, so-called, leaders…. where will it come from? Have you noticed that when there’s a story or video about somebody being a decent, caring human being it gets treated like…“LOOK AT THIS! ISN’T IT AMAZING?” I remember a time when it was normal for people to be nice. Now it’s the exception.
You see it everywhere. People are rude in restaurants, in traffic, at school board meetings, at Little League baseball games. And, of course, online. I still haven’t decided if social media has been a good thing or bad. It’s been good in some ways as we can reconnect with people from our past. We also now have access to so much information (whether real or fake), but it has also given everyone a platform to share their views no matter how ugly or rude they may be.
I get it. It ain’t easy trying to get ahead or just trying to get by. There is so much division and mistrust today.
So what’s the answer?
I’m not going to pretend that I know but I do have two thoughts and I have to fall back on the way I was raised. Sometimes it’s all I’ve got.
First there’s the Golden Rule.
“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” And don’t give me a “Yeah but…..” No. Treat people the way you would like to be treated. If the server gets your order wrong in the restaurant, how would you want to be approached if that were you? Maybe try to be decent. If the ambulance makes you pull over on your way to work in the morning, maybe be thankful that it’s not you that needed the help. Let the professionals take care of that person. You’ll be on your way again soon.
And my other thought? While it’s true that I can’t change the world and make everything right I can do something about what’s right in front of me. I’m reminded of that song “Let There Be Peace On Earth” that was written by Jill Jackson-Miller and Sy Miller.
Let there be peace on earth
And let it begin with me
Let There Be Peace on Earth
The peace that was meant to be
I think I’ll just try and control what I can and maybe only share the nice stories I find.
Miss any previous Sunday Columns? Catch up by clicking here.
Leave a Reply