Ignorance Isn’t Always Bliss
The assimilation of the internet into the daily lives of the vast population of the world affords the ability to explore the truths about our fellow human beings. We have, literally, at our fingertips the ability to learn and understand cultures which are not our own. So why is there still so much ignorance and hatred masquerading as intelligent personage?
On Thursday November 5, 2009, a mass shooting took place on an American military base on US soil. It has been said that this is the worst shooting at an American military installation in history. While no reports initially coming out of Fort Hood indicating any type of terrorist activity, people began posting on social networks (i.e.: Facebook, Twitter, etc.) that the shooter was Muslim and indicated it therefore had to be an act of terrorism.
Reports that I watched bespoke Maj. Nidal Malik had had several deployments and was working as a psychiatrist with many individuals returning from deployment with symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). However, even the experts can miss or even supress symptoms of PTSD in themselves.
Ignorance regarding other religions and cultures leads to untoward hatred. Ignorance regarding mental illness in general and PTSD specifically, leads to fear and ill-fated hatred. Hence, all roads lead to hatred.
In the 1958 film South Pacific, the song “You Have To Be Taught” was sung by sung by two of the primary leads. One an American, the other a Frenchman. they had both fallen in love with someone outside their upbringing. Trying to justify not following their hearts regarding love, the American and the American the Frenchman fell in love with discussed the hatred they were taught to have toward all those who are different from themselves and their American families.
I was raised more or less sheltered from the hatred in the outside world. However, I knew that my family was prejudiced against blacks and anyone not of the ‘christian’ faith. I was not overtly subjected to acts of hatred or even slurs, but I knew. I even found myself as an adult having similar ideation.
Two years ago I really began to look at myself deeper. I found myself calling people friend that had I known certain things about them before, I would not have gotten any closer to them than as an acquaintance. The internet allowed me to get to know people from different religions, cultures and political affiliations without the bias of knowing these things. I found that I get to know and enjoy people who are differnt from me.
The old cliche’ “nothing new under the sun” is so accurate it’s scary. Small minded people have been stiring up fear and hatred in otherwise intelligent people since the beginning of time. The problem today is the ease of information flowing out for our education. In other words, there is NO excuse for ignorant fear and hatred in societies today. I wonder if Maj. Malik’s name were Johnson or Greene, would people have been so fast to holler “terrorist”? Today, education is bliss ~~ ignorance is remiss.
This post was actually written 11/6/09, however, due to computer issues I was unable to publish it till now.
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