2005-08-31 - 7:45 a.m.
Loot This!
It's not a revelation, and it's not a new thing, but Damn, people are nasty. I think the natural inclination of most human beings must be towards meanness, judging by how people behave in stressful situations; an argument on line that degenerates into a screaming match, or looters flocking to a destroyed city. Most of the time, if you insult someone or do something nasty, you're liable to get your nose punched, so most people don't do it. Some people get sneaky and claim innocence when caught, some people are just assholes, but the majority learn to deal, and learn pretty early on that if you insult someone or do something nasty, you'll get your nose punched. Most people I know don't care for having their nose punched. There are a lot of nerve endings up there, and getting your nose punched *hurts*. One of the best examples of what people are really like comes from the myriad discussion forums on the 'net. In cyberspace, you're not face to face with the person you're "communicating" with, so people feel free to show their true colours. ...And most people's true colours seem to be a rather unappealing shade of brown. Since they're probably not going to get punished, they feel free to say all the obscene things that come into their heads to anyone who disagrees with them. How well would you behave if there were little or no consequence for your actions? We'd all like to believe that we'd do the right thing anyway, but for every person who does the right thing, it seems there's a person who will do the opposite. (The majority will sort of mill around aimlessly, I think. Most people are happier with some sort of guidance, which explains the popularity of scary people like Pat Robertson.) The funny thing is, the looters would be incensed if someone looted from *them*; society's rules should apply to everyone else, but I'll just take this 100" flat screen HD TV, thanks. Pay you? Sure - here's a credit card I stole from someone's wallet. (In the same way, screaming arguers on the 'net are offended and shocked when someone replies to them in kind; those who dish it out often can't take it.) There's not that big a leap from thinking it's okay to call someone a really really bad word because they disagree with your point of view to thinking it's okay to take a TV from a shop because you've always wanted one. Both actions stem from a lack of control. We are beasts; we walk on two legs, and we talk a good game, but the impulse to be beast-like still lurks under the surface. Every time we do what we want instead of what's right, we allow the beast to control us. Don't be beastly. I'm just sayin'.
Dorsal - Ventral
Funnier than me: James Lileks disclaimer!
all words copyright Laura Mellin 2000-2005
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