The United States seems almost as if its been falling apart recently. Shootings are terrifying the public, rapists are getting off with barely any punishment (looking at you Brock Turner), and to top it all off the two likely presidential candidates both have some of the highest unfavorable ratings of all time. There is a lot of negativity in the world right now, more than I think I’ve ever seen in my life. Not to say we’ve regressed as a society, we have definitely progressed over the years but despite that their are still so many things holding us back. A lot of people like to claim that everyone has become too sensitive, I don’t think that's true. Actually I think its the opposite, people just seem to lack empathy for others.
Moments of grief become moments of arguments where instead of even attempting to come together we just separate ourselves more from others because of different opinions and views. The lack of empathy is so apparent in politics its disheartening, a tragedy happened so many people are dead or injured, yet most politicians are only using this tragedy to further their own political agenda. Its even more disheartening to see so many politicians suddenly care about the LGBT community, when in the past they wouldn't even give them the time of day.
We see tragedies happen and it just becomes human nature to try and find a way to solve the problem. Although we have to take a step back and realize that the most extreme answer is probably not the right answer. We can’t allow ourselves to make brash decisions based on minimal information. When it comes to terrorism its important to realize its the vast minority of Muslims who commit these attacks. You can’t condemn the majority group of people for the actions of the few. People who hate others love to find expression through labels whether it be ISIS that hides behind labels calling itself Islam or the KKK hiding behind labels calling itself a christian group. You can find extremist people in practically every single group of people but they make up the minority not the majority.
The horrific part about tragedies is that we don’t see them coming they happen suddenly than send a shock through a persons system that is hard to explain. We can never fully control what happens in the world, but we can control our reactions to what happens. Its important that we allow ourselves to not only have vision of our own perspective but also have the ability to see things through others perspectives. It needs to be realized that our own personal opinions are not the only ones that matter. We need to respect the opinions of others but at the same time people need to give opinions that warrant respect and not ones that demean or spout hatred towards other people.
With all this being said about the negative narratives that are currently consuming our country I feel obligated to remind everyone of one thing. The glass is more than half full there’s more love in the world than hate. The news will never show it to you because it doesn't get ratings, but it is true. Here is a quote from Nelson Mandela that rings true and everybody should hear “No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite.” Having said all this I truly believe there is more love than hate in this world and I hope one day everyone is able to think that way too.
