I haven't posted in a while because exams are right around the corner. Well, sort of. Because of the local elections, we only have two papers scheduled for next month. The remaining three have been pushed to March, which is kind of a bittersweet situation.
Anyway, while being confined to commerce books, I was able to find pockets of personal time wherein I reflected on my misanthropy that has been growing as of late. I'll be frank - I am a cynic. I don't much like people, you see. I was not always like this, however. I used to be an idealist. I used to think highly of others. I thought that people always had some good in them, no matter how rotten their deeds may appear on the outside. I envisioned a world wherein people could break down the barriers of race, religion, sex, and other differences, uniting in a single anthem that resounds to the beat of the human race.
And then I really saw the world.
It's not a charming place. Far from it. I see suffering everywhere. On the face of everyone I meet is an untold story of despair etched so deep that the only way out of it is to cover it with a smile. To make some sense of the chaos, we cling to each other, which makes the suffering that much greater when we lose someone close.
And yet we contradict this by creating wars and oppressing others, for all sorts of nonsensical reasons. We shed the blood of our brothers, we force our eyes shut to the millions starving every single day, we shut out the sounds of those begging for a morsel of bread. And we have the audacity to hail ourselves as the golden child of evolution. Laughable.
I turn on the news and I see the horrible deeds that people do to one another. There are instances where people witness a girl being raped right in front of them and they do nothing. Some see a limping dog trying to cross the street and they just walk by as they continue talking on their cellphones. Others yet see people being driven out of their homes and all they do is shake their head, post a status on Facebook about how unjust the world is, and then go watch cat videos on YouTube.
What's worse is that many of us do cry out for change. We want to create a better world where no one has to suffer, where no one has less than the other. And while we march in the streets proclaiming "Change!" we march past a homeless person, we march past starving animals, too absorbed in self-righteousness to notice any of it. And too often do these proponents of change stand up for all the wrong causes. I'm sorry, but charities for starving gay erotic artists (yes that is a real thing) is not a valid cause, at least not in a world where there are much more pressing issues at hand. How about a simple charity to help homeless people earn active income? Or one that helps stray animals find a safe home?
When I voice my opinions, I am often met with condescension and insults. People would rather watch rich housewives bitch at one another as opposed to a programme that raises awareness on critical issues. They do not want to look at the ugliness of the world, so they choose as little of it to view as possible. Just because you don't want to look at children being subjected to starvation, rape, or slave labor does not mean it is not happening. And if you do happen to see such things, thanking "god" that you live a good life is not the way to go either.
And yet, there are too many that do behave this way. Too many would rather look at the world through rosy lenses. And it is precisely because of this reason that I have little, very little, hope, in my fellow man.
Anyway, while being confined to commerce books, I was able to find pockets of personal time wherein I reflected on my misanthropy that has been growing as of late. I'll be frank - I am a cynic. I don't much like people, you see. I was not always like this, however. I used to be an idealist. I used to think highly of others. I thought that people always had some good in them, no matter how rotten their deeds may appear on the outside. I envisioned a world wherein people could break down the barriers of race, religion, sex, and other differences, uniting in a single anthem that resounds to the beat of the human race.
And then I really saw the world.
It's not a charming place. Far from it. I see suffering everywhere. On the face of everyone I meet is an untold story of despair etched so deep that the only way out of it is to cover it with a smile. To make some sense of the chaos, we cling to each other, which makes the suffering that much greater when we lose someone close.
And yet we contradict this by creating wars and oppressing others, for all sorts of nonsensical reasons. We shed the blood of our brothers, we force our eyes shut to the millions starving every single day, we shut out the sounds of those begging for a morsel of bread. And we have the audacity to hail ourselves as the golden child of evolution. Laughable.
I turn on the news and I see the horrible deeds that people do to one another. There are instances where people witness a girl being raped right in front of them and they do nothing. Some see a limping dog trying to cross the street and they just walk by as they continue talking on their cellphones. Others yet see people being driven out of their homes and all they do is shake their head, post a status on Facebook about how unjust the world is, and then go watch cat videos on YouTube.
What's worse is that many of us do cry out for change. We want to create a better world where no one has to suffer, where no one has less than the other. And while we march in the streets proclaiming "Change!" we march past a homeless person, we march past starving animals, too absorbed in self-righteousness to notice any of it. And too often do these proponents of change stand up for all the wrong causes. I'm sorry, but charities for starving gay erotic artists (yes that is a real thing) is not a valid cause, at least not in a world where there are much more pressing issues at hand. How about a simple charity to help homeless people earn active income? Or one that helps stray animals find a safe home?
When I voice my opinions, I am often met with condescension and insults. People would rather watch rich housewives bitch at one another as opposed to a programme that raises awareness on critical issues. They do not want to look at the ugliness of the world, so they choose as little of it to view as possible. Just because you don't want to look at children being subjected to starvation, rape, or slave labor does not mean it is not happening. And if you do happen to see such things, thanking "god" that you live a good life is not the way to go either.
And yet, there are too many that do behave this way. Too many would rather look at the world through rosy lenses. And it is precisely because of this reason that I have little, very little, hope, in my fellow man.
