Doing My Homework

Is anger enough?  Does anger prove that I am on the right side? Or is it the easy way out?

I would argue that anger is just another tool that assures me I am not on the wrong side but doesn't require any more of me than that. A "sort of" let me prove how strongly I feel about this situation.

I have disabled my Twitter and Facebook for a number of reasons but one of them being that I found that social media was, for one reason or another, just fomenting my inner rage and not encouraging effective discourse, furthering educating myself and helping me to learn to listen to others with an open mind. Rather it has a habit of telling me what I already believe to be true and that any thinking person will have the same opinion.

I'm no expert. In fact, quite the opposite but I am trying. I found that Dr. Robin DiAngelo has many good points about being white in a country where systemic racism is the status quo and how that affects how we, yes all of us, populate our version of reality.


What I do know for sure is that there is enough anger to go around and when I cement my views in a foundation of anger it closes the communication options to one.....mine. That's never good place to be. 

I'm no expert but I will continue to try.

Comments

  1. Marie SmithJune 11, 2020 at 9:41 AM

    I will look up that lecture. The effort is important as I see it.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Margaret (Peggy or Peg too)June 11, 2020 at 10:14 AM

    You're making me feel bad about myself. :-)
    I don't think living in a place of anger is every good. I try but it's so so hard.
    That is why I walked away from twitter and FB. I can't match wits with those that are unarmed so no sense in trying after a while or making myself angry. I spoke to an old friend last night. She and her husband knew I worked for Obama's campagian and they loved Bush so I knew not to bring up politics. She brought it up. I said, I have to say I am happily surprised. (she despises trump and all he stands for) She said, "Peg I may be republican but I am not dumb." Then we had a nice discussion. It was so refreshing I can't even begin to tell you. Would I have felt the same had she said she loved him? Hmm...I know for a fact I would have asked her to tell me why because I am dead serious to the answer to that.Not as confrontational, but to know the answer to see why? I can't fathom so I want to know the why you know?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Linda devJune 11, 2020 at 10:17 AM

      That’s exactly what Tommy says. He wants a yard sign. But I don’t do political activism by bumper sticker or yard signs. Plus I don’t want anyone thinking that I am a republican.

      I understand about not wanting to know the why!!!!! It’s hard.

      Delete
  3. JeanieJune 11, 2020 at 10:19 AM

    Social media isn't helping, that's for sure. I keep remembering the song "No one is Alone" from Into the Woods. "Someone is on your side, someone else is not. While you're seeing our side, maybe you forgot -- they are not alone." That's what social media reminds me. And it's scary.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Linda devJune 11, 2020 at 10:41 AM

      So much but I am trying to stay in my sacred place.

      Delete
  4. SabineJune 11, 2020 at 11:37 AM

    Social media can be a trap. I got out of fb because of the politics behind it and the way zuckerberg acted when questioned about it.
    But I use twitter to stay on top of what climate scientists are up to, what virologists are publishing about the covid pandemic, some local news and a mix of activists, journalists and bloggers/friends and it's a good source of information. If you check who you follow and are selective about your input you can ride the algorithm to your advantage.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. LindaJune 11, 2020 at 1:57 PM

      Zuckerberg was a big reason why. Way too much power, influence and information in the hands of a unknown actor. Our lawmakers should have done something about our privacy, and our ability to control it, long ago.

      Delete
  5. BillJune 11, 2020 at 1:11 PM

    I left FB almost 4 years ago. I got sick and tired of people saying and sharing the same old stuff. I would get angry at people's comments and they seemed so shallow. You couldn't have a conversation if you didn't share the same views. It got tiresome talking the same conversation over and over so I left. Don't miss it a bit and am much more happier. The same with my wife, she has less patience for stupidity.

    ReplyDelete
  6. anne marie in phillyJune 11, 2020 at 3:12 PM

    twit & bacefook suck ass. NO ONE needs them. I've never had an account on either and I never will.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Debra She Who SeeksJune 11, 2020 at 3:31 PM

    It's constructive to channel anger into action. It's what fuels every activist but it defuses "personal" anger because that will just burn you out after a while.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

What do you have to say about that?

Popular posts from this blog

Private Eye

Image
We pass by the house frequently since it sits on a busy thoroughfare. We know to look every time we pass and guess what will we see. Will it be the two Dalmatians, sitting on the couch that backs up to the giant panel window, waiting for their human to come home? Or will it be their human, sitting slightly to the right of middle (allowing for a better view of the giant mounted tv across the room) of the said couch. They are never there at the same time. It’s one or the other. One sleepless night, when my body was willing but my brain was not, I did a little sleuthing. It’s amazing what you can find out about a complete stranger.   His name is Gary and, from what I can tell, he’s never been married. He has worked his way up in a air duct company. He’s now the senior VP but it’s a small company and he still goes out on jobs, judging from  the reviews on Yelp. I know he has two siblings and that their father passed away in 2018. His memorial was held in a Buddhist temple and Gary sr. soun
Read more

Go!

Image
 Vai. E, se der medo, vai con medo mesmo. When one is raised in an angry family, it’s not enough to say I don’t want to be angry. You must learn how to do it differently. That’s no easy task. If judgment and self hatred became a way of life, a new way to live has to be taught. There are many ways to do it. Reading, writing, sharing, practicing all help the change. Counseling, psychoanalysis, religion, meditation, gratitude, have the ability to transform but I needed to see it in action, it needed to be more tangible, visual, accessible. I needed to understand the possibilities. There is a YouTube channel that I watch over and over again in order to absorb how to live more fully, more open and from the heart. One of the first episodes that I stumbled on is this…. The channel is Reflections of Life and through it we get to meet people who are doing life a little differently, often more soul based. People who are living life, healing wounds and finding what is truly important.  It can be
Read more

Let's Be Perfectly Clear

I would like your input on this letter I am considering sending out. Darryl, I once considered you, if not a friend, a very friendly acquaintance. Our daughters are the same age. I am sure that your daughter is as special to you as mine is to me. McKenna is 21 years old and starting out her life with some tough situations. SHE IS NOT AN OBJECT. She is a person who has her ups and downs, her struggles and triumphs. She has, in the past year, completely alone, had to make scary medical decisions for her mentally ill, addicted father. She has had to watch as the man who was an amazing father slowly turn into a shell of a man who has little to give and much to take. Whether purposefully or accidentally, you have added to her already difficult year. I wonder…would you appreciate my ex-husband leering and making inappropriate comments to your daughter over the course of a long evening? Think about that for a moment!  What were you hoping to achieve with your behavior? Whether
Read more