This attitude was displayed last night on a Facebook post. A friend of mine had posted a picture of Martin Luther King commemorating his birthday. This innocent act by her is what made someone decide to rant to her. I rarely get involved in debates on Facebook, but this one struck a chord in me and I had to say something.
This person was claiming that major moments in our past history should not keep being brought up. He was referring to things like slavery, Holocaust, Pearl Harbor, etc. They were not relevant to him, for he wasn’t around for them. He was not responsible for them, he said. They are not his problem and he makes no apologies for the atrocities that happened. He did admit that they were horrible things, but irrelevant to him and he gets tired of hearing about them. That attitude just stirred something inside me that couldn’t stay quiet.
As I was replying back to him, I couldn’t help but think how this attitude explains a lot of the world’s problems today! If it isn’t something that personally affects me, it doesn’t matter! I don’t have time to be bothered with other things. This belief is so wrong!
It is not all about you is what I want to scream at some people. The problem is even if I do scream that, they don’t really hear. They don’t get it! That was made obvious by his response back to me. I didn’t bother to reply back again.I had expressed my viewpoint, no more needed to be said. I am not one that loves to debate. A exception to that rule is if you are talking about a humorous, battle of wits debate. Those debates I have more chance of winning and yes they are more fun.
What would you have said to him? Do you think events like slavery and the Holocaust should continue to be taught in schools? I will tell you how I responded, but first am interested in what you would say. Do you agree that this attitude explains a lot of this world’s problems? Maybe you take a different stance on what he said, if so please feel free to share that as well. Your opinion is important
Nuggets of Gold 
Slavery, the holocaust and so many other atrocities must never be forgotten for if we forget them, they have an increased chance of being repeated. They most certainly should be taught in schools to stress what a misguided society is capable of and, if school children are educated about war etc and the price that comes with a conflict regardless of whether it is between races, countries or political ideals, there would hopefully be a more compassionate, understanding and non-judgemental society heading towards adulthood. Ignorance has never resolved a problem yet!
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Totally agree with you and the last line says it all. Thanks for sharing!
I did mention exactly what you said about history not repeating itself in my response to him. But like I said in my post, he really didn’t “hear” anything I said.
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“There’s none so blind as those who do not wish to see, and none so deaf as those who do not want to hear.”
One can only hope that “your individual” was too young to realize the irresponsibility of his/her position, and that maturity over time will change their perspectives on such issues.
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I don’t think I could say this better. You can’t stick you head in the sand. He doesn’t have to feel personally responsible but he needs to understand how these things happen.
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Exactly! Thanks for commenting.
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absolutely these important things should be taught! I probably would just ignore the rant on FB – as you found out – typically not worth it!
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As my family and friends can attest to there are times that it is too hard to bite my tongue.
Sometimes that can be a good thing and sometimes it gets me In trouble. 🙂
This time it didn’t seem to make a difference but who knows maybe sometime my words will sink into his brain.
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Sadly, this is some of the fallout from our messed-up politics. There has been so much name-calling with exaggerated historical comparisons such as to Nazis, Klansmen, etc., that now we have a significant number of white guys who react with extreme defensiveness when they see any reference to the civil rights era or to historical evils. They feel like they’re about to be unfairly blamed for something.
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You make a good point about being on the defense.
Yes po!itics definitely have not helped at all.
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It’s scary to think that people can think this way. It’s scarier that I sort of see where it comes from. As someone noted above, with all the name calling and show of politics these days, the real gravity of history is lost. Instead it’s replaced with ignorance and worse, apathy.
I think you were right to say something. Whether it comes naturally or not, we all need to say something when things bother us in some way. Maybe he’ll change his mind, maybe he won’t. But maybe someone else will see your comment and pay it forward (the position or act of speaking up).
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You are right ,it is scary.. Thanks for your words.
Interesting that you mentioned apathy. My 15 year old showed me the lyrics of a song about apathy. It stirred my heart.Made me sad that my 15 year old knew about the apathy of this world. For after the song we talked about how sad it is at how trus the song was. My 15 yr old understands the sadness and danger of apathy ,but obviously not the adult who was ranting on Facebook.
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May those who have suffered unfairly never be forgotten! Unfortunately, it’s not just history; there are atrocities being committed even in our modern era. So sad.
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“Those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it.” No, those subjects aren’t fun, and they force us to look within ourselves as well as the climate of world. I do wish more people would care about things that have happened or are happening to others.
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I wish the same! What a better world this would be if more people would care!
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I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to virtually bite my tongue when someone says something idiotic on Facebook. But there are times i, like you did, just have to say my piece and let it go. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, and some people just like to start trouble, but the lack of common sense, logic, and core values in today’s world baffle me.
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