Bad habits die hard
Some months ago, I put up a post entitled Thoughtlessness can breed contempt. I won't go into too much detail; one can read it if they really want to know.
This morning, the same editor who was the subject of Thoughtless, opened his mouth again. This time, however, extended conversation revealed that he's not necessarily thoughtless. It seems, instead, that he's simply very opinionated, but unable to (or unwilling to) view a circumstance from any perspective beyond his own. That is, he doesn't take into account that another person's experiences might color the actions they take in any given situation.
Today, a local reader called with a story to tell. She was born and raised in Kenya, but emigrated to the U.S. as an adult. She'd just returned to the States from visiting her family. The destruction and devastation she saw prompted her to plan a return trip. But first, she wanted to tell us about her visit.
"She's crazy," he said when I told him we needed to hook her up with a reporter before she left again. "That's wacko, going back there."
"No," I insisted, "she saw something there that moved her. She saw her people, maybe even her family, suffering and she wants to help because she's in a better position to do so than the people she left behind. That's her country, no matter where she lives now. Those are her people."
"Yeah," he said. "She's either brave, or vastly misinformed about the situation there."
"She was there," I whispered furiously, afraid we'd get into another shouting match. "That's why she's calling us. She was there and she thinks she needs to share what she saw before she goes back to try to do something about it."
"Well," he told me, "that is crazy."
I'm starting to think this man, as likable as he is in a casual sort of way, might be lacking in all fellow feeling. In the same way he thought this woman was "crazy" I told him some might think him "cowardly" and/or "selfish".
"But I don't care what people think of me," he said.
Usually, I'd say that was an admirable sentiment. In this matter, however, I wish he cared just a bit.
This morning, the same editor who was the subject of Thoughtless, opened his mouth again. This time, however, extended conversation revealed that he's not necessarily thoughtless. It seems, instead, that he's simply very opinionated, but unable to (or unwilling to) view a circumstance from any perspective beyond his own. That is, he doesn't take into account that another person's experiences might color the actions they take in any given situation.
Today, a local reader called with a story to tell. She was born and raised in Kenya, but emigrated to the U.S. as an adult. She'd just returned to the States from visiting her family. The destruction and devastation she saw prompted her to plan a return trip. But first, she wanted to tell us about her visit.
"She's crazy," he said when I told him we needed to hook her up with a reporter before she left again. "That's wacko, going back there."
"No," I insisted, "she saw something there that moved her. She saw her people, maybe even her family, suffering and she wants to help because she's in a better position to do so than the people she left behind. That's her country, no matter where she lives now. Those are her people."
"Yeah," he said. "She's either brave, or vastly misinformed about the situation there."
"She was there," I whispered furiously, afraid we'd get into another shouting match. "That's why she's calling us. She was there and she thinks she needs to share what she saw before she goes back to try to do something about it."
"Well," he told me, "that is crazy."
I'm starting to think this man, as likable as he is in a casual sort of way, might be lacking in all fellow feeling. In the same way he thought this woman was "crazy" I told him some might think him "cowardly" and/or "selfish".
"But I don't care what people think of me," he said.
Usually, I'd say that was an admirable sentiment. In this matter, however, I wish he cared just a bit.
posted by Tea Oli at 7:56 AM
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