Brwned
Have you ever been in love before?
- Joined
- Apr 18, 2008
- Messages
- 51,009
I honestly dunno how people are handling it in other countries, i would guess that it isn't just UK people who are acting like spoilt brats but i don't live in those countries so I won't coment.
Also, I don't just blame the UK government I think the people of the UK need to take and equal (if not the majority of the blame) people are demanding the relaxing for xmas it's very clear that even if the government didn't allow it then a majority of people would just ignore the rules anyway.
Some people need to see people to cope. Other people need to ridicule others to cope. We're all humans after all. Deeply flawed and far more comfortable judging other people's flaws than our own.
Personally I'm surprised how many people can't empathise with others' need for basic human connection. Something we're literally biologically programmed to do. Either lockdown has made people lose touch with their own sense of humanity or it's just been an ideal time for sociopaths to advocate for their worldview.
In any case, it's worth recognising that we don't all live in the same world. We haven't all spent the last 6 months with the missus, living a comfortable life. 8.2m people lived alone in the UK last year. Many of whom are old, and more than a few widows / widowers. My granny has been alone for over a decade now, out in the countryside, miles away from anyone in her family. There is a very real chance this will be her last christmas, as she's gotten significantly worse this year - perhaps partly due to lockdown, but also simply because she's nearing 90. She understands the risks. She doesn't fit very neatly into your archetype of spoilt brats who just want a bit of a party, unfortunately. Millions don't. In the UK and elsewhere. It's not a reflection of the decline of society but just a reflection of society.
We are social beings, and it has been a fundamental part of not just this "selfish" culture you have been brought into, but basically all cultures we've ever known. I get the impression you want to rip apart that culture or tear off those blots in the framework that allow these awful creatures to behave so irrationally. You just want them to do the "right" thing. It's a bit like the Christian missionaries in Tasmania in the 19th century. They wanted those barbaric creatures to distance themselves from their terrible rituals and follow the enlightened path. Eventually when all elements of their culture were outlawed, ridiculed or hidden away, they sort of lost the will to live. Some stopped having children, some committed suicide. Their culture - regardless of what others' thought of it - gave them a reason to be. It was also the primary way they accumulated enough resources to live healthy lives.
That clearly isn't the situation we're in here, but I'd suggest there are some echoes. Mainly in the complete lack of empathy for how others live and what value they get from living that way, and a complete disregard for the consequences of not even attempting to empathise. If they don't live according to our values then they're not living right. Getting people to give up their reason to be is not a question of willpower.
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