What in the world is wrong with people?
Anybody else feel like they’ve asked that question a lot more often than usual recently?
Honestly, it's as if people have lost all common sense.
Here’s my latest example...
My sister and I were doing some grocery shopping. While packing the car, there was a vehicle parked beside me and a pickup behind me waiting to pull out into the main thoroughfare.
We could see the car starting to back up. We both started calling out: “Hey, hey, stop! Whoa!”
The lady just kept reversing until she collided with the truck.
Four people ran over to assess the damage. There really wasn’t any we could see. That, however, is not the point.
Guess who didn’t jump out to check? The driver who caused the collision.
Nope, she sat in her car doing nothing.
She didn’t even get out to check if her vehicle was damaged.
My sister knocked on her window and said: “You know you hit that truck, right?”
The reply was: “Well, I thought he was moving out of the way.”
“Well, you hit him. You should get out and speak to the man.”
And then came this statement: “What do you want me to say?”
We were stunned into silence.
What should she say?!
I could think of a few things I wanted to say to her!
“How about I am so sorry for running into you. I hope you and your passenger are OK. I hope your truck isn’t damaged. I hope I didn’t ruin your day. I apologize for not paying attention.”
Days later, I am still in disbelief that this person took no personal responsibility for their actions.
That, my friends, in a nutshell is what is wrong with the world today.
In a broader sense, I am seeing far too many incidents of people so self-absorbed they can’t be bothered doing the right thing.
I’m not sure if it has been the two years of isolation that has made people turn inward instead of outward, but something happened.
I suppose the selfishness and “me” mentality has always been there — we’ve all fallen victim to it — but for some reason it seems much more pervasive in recent months.
My entire life, I just assumed everyone was raised the same way by parents who taught right and wrong, a work ethic, responsibility, and concern for others.
Now, I realize if you had role models who instilled goodness in you, you may be the minority.
How did we go in just a few decades from young men and women who were willing to lay down their life for their country to where we are now?
There are times I feel so disillusioned and disgusted I wonder if our war veterans ever wonder why they bothered.
That’s terribly cynical, I know.
We are living in an age where a certain percentage of the population can’t even wear a mask or get a shot to protect their community from a global health crises.
Until COVID-19 impacts them or their family, they just don’t seem to care. How sad is that?
But, that is where we are. I truly fear where we are headed.
What’s that old saying? “Do the right thing even when nobody is watching.”
Somebody is always watching — even in a small-town parking lot.
