Ray Rice et al

Ray Rice et al:

Let me first start out by saying that with Ravens releasing him from their squad and the NFL suspending him indefinitely after the release of the elevator video, a clear statement has been sent. This kind of completely unacceptable behavior will finally, at least in this league, at this level of professional sports, will no longer be tolerated in any way shape or form without severe consequences.

In the coming days, and rightly so, many people will speak up and condemn these kinds of action against women. But I would hope that this kind of abuse would be condemned against all beings. Some child abuse, male, and female,  including animal abuse, and even racial abuse, from both sides, needs to be brought out in the open and discussed. Fingers will be pointed at this person or that organization for what they did or didn’t do. And the momentum gained, and possible lessons learned, will be stunted.

In Rochester N.Y. a young policeman was gunned down by a person who had just been released from prison two weeks ago. He leaves a wife, a young son, and a 3 month old baby. Instead of concentrating on the racial aspects as the cause and effect of this terrible tragedy, we should be discussing why we are producing, as a society, the kind of person who feels, not necessarily thinks, when in trouble that a solution is to take another person’s life? What has happened to them on their own personal journey to allow them the mindset that this kind of behavior is an alternative?

These acts of senseless violence have been occurring through time, I am well aware of that. But the increase in their propensity and extremism must be examined closely so that not only can a meaningful dialogue take place as to the root cause of these acts, but a plan, starting with parents and children to honor the sanctity of human life and to reintroduce the feeling of community for, by, and to each other.

And that people brings me to my point. In this day and age, with the me first, and the haves and haves not, tension has become a daily fixture in our lives. Whether it be driving down the road, fans “getting into it” at a sporting event, or our politicians and leaders modeling  a confrontational approach to life’s problems, angst and its long term devastating effect on people has come to the forefront of our society. Not telling the truth, or telling a lie you know to be a lie has become accepted in many circles. And then, a person sees this and repeats this negative behavior because they feel righteous indignation or justifiable entitlement and the problem intensifies.

Yes, here is a root cause of our problems. Escalation. When an irrational behavior is performed, do people really think that the behavior will curtail all by itself? On the contrary, it gets worse, because it is irrational and has no fundamentally sound base. It becomes like a snowball that turns into an avalanche encompassing all within it.

 The ability to share, sacrifice, and feel contentment has been replaced by criticism, stretching of the truth, entitlement, and  lack of acceptance, and not listening with an open mind, to contrary points of view.

How did it get this way? Why? How do we stop this version of the “Tsunami?” I certainly do not want to state that I have all the answers. Actually, I have way more questions. What I do want to say today is that as long as that kind of behavior exists, and it has existed in this way in one form shape or another, the time has come for a simple stand against it. I do not want to over simplify my suggestion or the problem at hand. But as the Chinese say, “A 1,000 mile journey begins with one step.” So too does my solution.

Simple manners. Opening the door and holding it for someone and putting on your directional when you are going to turn. Saying “please and thank you” ramps down the tension and angst. We want to calm people down. It is something we all can do. Be appreciative. A person can never be happy with what they want until they are thankful for what they have.

Thank you. I appreciate very much you taking the time to read this.