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Human decency, or lack thereof
Oct. 4th, 2011 10:41 amUgh, so tired. I've had such trouble sleeping! As a result, I set my alarm and FORCE myself to get up early, hopefully making myself tired enough to fall asleep the next night. It doesn't really work. o_O It's amazing how little sleep I can get by on, but that's completely NOT the point! Arghhhh.
Anyway, I've been really fucking disturbed by some websites I've been reading lately---just the amount of cyberbullying I've seen happening on them. I've seen certain people picked on and terrorized beyond belief. It's insane. And I'm not even talking about teenagers--I'm talking about people well into their 20s and even 30s. It's absolutely incredible. I'm speechless. I tried to teach my students as much as I could about cyberbullying last year. Also, Nika runs a company against cyberbullying. It's amazing. (Nika is also my hero, but that's a whole other story.) If any of us get through to at least ONE person, it's worth it (isn't that always the case?). But I don't understand why the simple idea of just being decent to fellow human beings is so hard for so many people to understand. Some people use the excuse that "it's just the internet" which doesn't even make sense. There's real people sitting behind the computers, no? What difference does it make whether you bully someone to their face or online? You're still saying horrible things and you're still making someone feel horrible. I don't understand why or how people can be so clueless. I know a lot of people go through fucked-up phases in their teen years (I -kind of- bullied a girl when I was in grade 7 and STILL feel horrible about it 18 years later), but I'm talking about adults here. It blows my mind! How can you be 25 fucking years old and think it's OK to tear someone apart because they dress in a way you don't like or because they're fat or because they have different political opinions from you? I don't get it. :/
Coincidentally, it's also bullying awareness month! Hmmm.
In other news (ugh, do I ever overuse that phrase!), Tali came over last night after we helped her out with her second night of auditions, so we had 2 Lost nights with her in a row! Awesome! We are well into season 3 now. THIS is when the show really picks up. I love watching it all over again, so much. And I love seeing her reactions to everything that happens! :)
Anyway, I've been really fucking disturbed by some websites I've been reading lately---just the amount of cyberbullying I've seen happening on them. I've seen certain people picked on and terrorized beyond belief. It's insane. And I'm not even talking about teenagers--I'm talking about people well into their 20s and even 30s. It's absolutely incredible. I'm speechless. I tried to teach my students as much as I could about cyberbullying last year. Also, Nika runs a company against cyberbullying. It's amazing. (Nika is also my hero, but that's a whole other story.) If any of us get through to at least ONE person, it's worth it (isn't that always the case?). But I don't understand why the simple idea of just being decent to fellow human beings is so hard for so many people to understand. Some people use the excuse that "it's just the internet" which doesn't even make sense. There's real people sitting behind the computers, no? What difference does it make whether you bully someone to their face or online? You're still saying horrible things and you're still making someone feel horrible. I don't understand why or how people can be so clueless. I know a lot of people go through fucked-up phases in their teen years (I -kind of- bullied a girl when I was in grade 7 and STILL feel horrible about it 18 years later), but I'm talking about adults here. It blows my mind! How can you be 25 fucking years old and think it's OK to tear someone apart because they dress in a way you don't like or because they're fat or because they have different political opinions from you? I don't get it. :/
Coincidentally, it's also bullying awareness month! Hmmm.
In other news (ugh, do I ever overuse that phrase!), Tali came over last night after we helped her out with her second night of auditions, so we had 2 Lost nights with her in a row! Awesome! We are well into season 3 now. THIS is when the show really picks up. I love watching it all over again, so much. And I love seeing her reactions to everything that happens! :)
