God is in the details.
So is a heart attack.
We’re awash in up-to-the-micro-second minutiae and constantly being asked how we feel about every goddamn bit of it.
Here’s a secret…
We don’t have to immediately react to every goddamn thing.
Unless we can have immediate effect on an event or an issue - like say, a pot boiling over or taking a photo of your cat wearing glasses (very funny but usually brief) - we don’t have to react immediately at all.
We can take time to process and then act accordingly.
We have been trained by social media to react to everything with sounds, animations and cute little images.
Click Like.
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We’ve come to the mistaken belief that we have to do it all the time.
Online and off.
We do not.
*Editor who pays mortgage’s note: Fix this.
Except, of course, with my content. Then you should click Like and share it.
*Editor who pays mortgage’s note: That’s better.
Many less-than-stellar people have realized that we have been trained by social media to react to everything.
These crapulents have used this realization to keep us in an ever-present rage froth.
That’s not good and here’s why…
Enraged people miss details.
Enraged people miss context.
Enraged people fall for hasty generalizations.
Special cases become the basis for general rules.
Enraged people, despite their best intentions, are stupid.
And it happens to all of us.
The unscrupulous know this and attempt to direct our rage into benefiting themselves.
Of course, this tactic is short-sighted.
Outrage is like a sugar-rush.
Brief and ends in tears.
You don’t need to react to everything.
If someone is presenting information to you and suggesting you should be outraged… maybe you should be, but maybe you should process the details and the context first.
Sometimes contentious issues can be solved by cooler heads.
I’ll leave you with my favourite example of this.
In 1996, women won the right to go topless in the province of Ontario.
This was good. Not only because of the boobs, but also because if dudes can take their shirts off, so should women be allowed to.
It was also a good life lesson for many.
The boobs you get may not alway be the boobs you want.
Not everyone was happy about this ruling though.
So the provincial government allowed municipalities to allow or forbid topless women in their city’s parks and public spaces.
Our city council was in a tizzy.
Some staunchly in favour, others firmly against.
A wise councillor of the name, Harry Nesbitt, who was an elderly former farmer and more than familiar with life’s challenges, grew sick of the division and outrage in the council chambers and addressed them with this gem of an observation…
“By winter, this whole issue will be dead.”
Indeed.
Usually the things we get outraged about, don’t get resolve because we’re outraged.
Our outrage is futile and only serves to make things worse.
Like trying to put out a fire with gasoline because gasoline is wet.
Sometimes the things that have us outraged don’t merit it.
Sometimes we realize that we’re getting upset over things that don’t really affect our ability to live happy lives.
Sometimes cooler nipples prevail.
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Remember… we’re doing live shows!
TUESDAY, SEPT 26 - Calgary, AB
THURSDAY, SEPT 28 - Winnipeg, MB
SATURDAY, OCT 7 - Ottawa, ON
Tickets and more info here: Stupidpocalypse.com
Just what I needed to hear....thank you
"Crapulents" - must find a way to use this. Also, thanks for the mention of Harry Nesbitt. He was an amazing man and I'm besties with one of his daughters-in-law,to whom I have forwarded this message.