I've waited to state any opinion on the situation in Ferguson because it's really sad, and a very touchy subject.
One thing is for sure, violence is never the answer. To those who believed that the young man shot was innocent, the very thing you are protesting, is the very same act you're now committing. To those who believe that the shooting was justified, you can't go around just shooting people to be shooting people. Regardless, everyone has an opinion on the matter, and you have a right to that opinion.
We live in a country that has a judicial system that takes an extreme amount of time to work properly. I think part of the reason that it takes so long to work is because there's so many foolish lawsuits that backlog the system, therefore it runs extremely slow. But, another part of that reason is that there MUST be a thorough investigation of the events so that justice can be served properly. The most important part of justice, is that it is given in a fair manner. The only way to do that is with an intense investigation into the events of that matter.
I realize that many people believe that the officer shot without cause, and if that's the case, the investigation will prove that, and no doubt justice on that officer will be served. It's 2014 and there have been sufficient cases to prove that no one is above that law. Even those in law enforcement that make bad choices, face the same consequences as everyone else.
I also realize that there are many who believe that the shooting was justified, and if that's the case, the investigation will prove that. But, no matter what, the activities going on in Ferguson should make every American citizen sad, not angry.
It's so sad because this event has proven that there is still a strong racial divide in this country, and for the life of me, I just don't understand it. I believe that every person is created equal and should be treated as such. But, when we start "grouping" people together based on race, sex, religion, career field, etc., we set up barriers that divide us. Now, many people have an extreme problem with law enforcement because of this event, and now they are not able to properly perform their duties, and it results in lawlessness. Many people now have a problem with race, and it's evidenced in many of the responses I've seen on social media. And the biggest problem in Ferguson now, is that these two "groups" have been divided against each other, and nothing can be accomplished with such great division.
If we were to quit "grouping" people together, and embrace everyone, we would be much farther ahead. It doesn't mean that we agree or that we even share the same beliefs, but it means that we choose not to be a divided nation. The officer who fired the shot is on leave, which is standard policy in any law enforcement use of force, so, that person, not group, is awaiting the results of an independent investigation. The community who has felt such a lose, wants answers, and those answers are in the work, but it takes time. I would hope that any family, friends, or community that suffers a lose as the community of Ferguson did, would demand answers. Especially if there is evidence that will show that it was not a proper use of force. We must be patient though.
I want to know exactly what happened that day that cost a young man his life. I don't care if he was white, black, tan, albino, purple, yellow, polka dot, etc., I want to know if there was cause to use this type of force. If there wasn't, I fully expect our judicial system to render justice to him for the crime he committed. If the evidence shows that this type of force was warranted, I want this officer to be able to move on with his life and continue performing the duties he swore an oath to uphold.
But, with all the division, no one can do any of that, and at the end of the day, regardless of anything, a family lost their loved one suddenly. They are grieving, as any family would do. The sting of death isn't different for one race or the other. It isn't any different for any religion or another. When someone we love, regardless of imperfections, because we all have them, it hurts. And I've learned through the years that people who hurt, hurt people. It's a common human response.
If I were the family of the young man, I would not want his life to be remembered with the events that are going on in Ferguson right now. I would choose to remember the good parts of his life, which from what I've read, there were many. Those protesting with riots, fighting, looting, illegal activities, shame on you. Do you sincerely think this is what he would want his life to be remembered by? Why not advocate for some kind of youth organization that will leave a positive impact on the community you live in, which will in turn, eternally memorialize this young mans life?
Now that all this division has been brought into the equation, every mistake that this young man made in his life will be on display for the world to see. And I'm not condemning him, because as previously stated, we have all made mistakes in our life that we aren't proud of. The good of his life will be forgotten because of how society has reacted to this death.
How sad to think that a person who was loved so much will be remembered by what the world has witnessed in August 2014.
Sunday, August 17, 2014
Tuesday, August 12, 2014
Life
I haven't blogged about anything in a while, and thought I'd take a few minutes this evening to just jot down some things on my mind. I know that with the death of Robin Williams yesterday, my mind immediately goes to depression. In November 2011, following the death of Don Harmon, I blogged about depression and had an overwhelming response of messages. I was amazed at how many people actually read the blog, but more amazed at some of the things that people shared with me.
Even though it has been almost 3 years since I wrote that blogged, I don't think the message can ever be overstated in regard to mental illness. For some reason, especially in the United States, we look at people with a mental illness, such as depression, as people who must be sad, had something bad happen in their life, or are just simply "broken in the head". That is the farthest thing from being accurate. We are so quick to judge people about something we don't have a true knowledge of. Just a few days ago when Tony Stewart was involved in an incident on the race track, immediately people began stating that this happened or that happened, and did so with no knowledge of all the events of that incident. I don't follow racing, but I was so amazed at how quick people were to jump to conclusion and to try and state what was going on in Tony Stewart's mind at the time it occurred. The only person who knows what was going on in Tony Stewart's mind is Tony Stewart.
People who have never experienced a mental illness jump to conclusions about those who have, and have no idea of what is going on in that person's mind. Robin Williams was a person who seemed to have everything that anyone could want. He had fame, fortune, fans, family, absolutely everything that we all think should make us happy in life. And in all reality they should. But happiness goes well beyond physical and tangible things. To see him on the screen or doing an interview, you would think he must be the happiest guy in the world. He gets paid huge amounts of money to simply make people laugh, and he's great at what he does, what more is there. Obviously there is much more.
On the inside, Robin Williams was fighting battles that none of us know about. I realize many will say that his problem was alcohol and drugs, and I'm sure that at certain times in his life, that was his problem, but he was battling more than what met the eye. He was battling with mental illness. I don't care who you are, how much money you have, how many friends you have, mental illness is just like any other illness, anyone can have it. Cancer, flu, a cold, diabetes, these are all things that any single one of us on this planet can get, regardless of all the things we do to keep from getting the disease. Mental illness is that way. It's not something that you bring on yourself, something you go and try to contract, it just sets in and you've got it.
Those who have never battled mental illness can not truly understand what the feeling is like. When you battle with this disease, your perception of life in general is so very skewed, and you don't see things like the rest of the world does. I wondered in my mind Sunday night/Monday morning, what must have been going through Robin Williams mind. How sad, depressed, alone, and unloved he must have felt. How can it seem so bad that taking your own life is the only way you feel that you can relieve yourself of the hurt and pain that you're feeling. It's hard to understand how anyone, let alone someone who has everything that money can buy, can feel that terrible about life and the future, but many, many people who battle with mental illness have felt that way.
Soon after his death was announced, everyone started chiming in about why he did it, how he brought it on himself with the lifestyle that he lived, how he doomed his soul to hell by taking his own life, and the fact of the matter is, none of us are, or should, qualified to even remotely discuss those things. He made bad choices in his life, so have I. On the outside he seemed just fine, so do multitudes who battle with this disease. He had everything, we all have much more than we deserve. What not a single one of us can see is what was truly going on in his mind.
After all that rambling, I guess I'm just going back to the statement I made almost 3 years ago. We all need each other. We all need to feel loved. We all have our struggles and things we battle with, all of us. So, instead of us judging each other, why not reach out to be there for people. When you see someone that's down, give em a hug, send them a card, give em a call, let them know they aren't alone. Let them know that people do care. Let them know that there is help out there, and help them find it! Quit the judging and condemning and start loving.
I want to go back to one thing, and that's the religious aspect of suicide. I have never attended a bible college in my life, and make absolutely no claim to knowing much about the Bible, other than what God has shown me. I know that many in the Christian world, which I have seen post about it already, will say that suicide is a one way ticket to hell. And they may be absolutely right, but none of us are in a position to judge, or even try and determine, where someone will spend eternity. I think about the very day that Jesus was being crucified on the cross for all the sin of mankind. On either side of him were two thieves. They were both convicted criminals and were paying the price for breaking the law. One looked over to Jesus and said, if you really are who you say you are, you'd bring yourself off that cross. On the other side of Jesus, the thief, who was as guilty as the other one, looks to Jesus and says, you truly are the Son of God. Jesus didn't look at him and say, well, it's to late, you're out of luck. Jesus did what Jesus always did, he looked at that man with compassion and said, today you'll be with me in paradise. At that moment, Jesus wasn't looking at a thief, He was looking at a lost and hurting soul that needed help and hope. I don't know what went on between God and Robin Williams in those hours before he died. I don't know that Robin Williams even believed in God. But, I do know that God loved Robin Williams. And I know that if the blood of Jesus atoned for the sin of a dying thief, I know that the blood of Jesus can atone for the sin of anyone, at anytime, who calls on His name. If we want to show the love of Christ to people who are hurting, we need to do what Jesus did, and have compassion on hurting souls.
If you're battling a mental illness, get help, it's out there! Reach out for someone, and I have faith in humanity, in spite of all of our differences and disagreements, I know that someone will be there to help you!
Even though it has been almost 3 years since I wrote that blogged, I don't think the message can ever be overstated in regard to mental illness. For some reason, especially in the United States, we look at people with a mental illness, such as depression, as people who must be sad, had something bad happen in their life, or are just simply "broken in the head". That is the farthest thing from being accurate. We are so quick to judge people about something we don't have a true knowledge of. Just a few days ago when Tony Stewart was involved in an incident on the race track, immediately people began stating that this happened or that happened, and did so with no knowledge of all the events of that incident. I don't follow racing, but I was so amazed at how quick people were to jump to conclusion and to try and state what was going on in Tony Stewart's mind at the time it occurred. The only person who knows what was going on in Tony Stewart's mind is Tony Stewart.
People who have never experienced a mental illness jump to conclusions about those who have, and have no idea of what is going on in that person's mind. Robin Williams was a person who seemed to have everything that anyone could want. He had fame, fortune, fans, family, absolutely everything that we all think should make us happy in life. And in all reality they should. But happiness goes well beyond physical and tangible things. To see him on the screen or doing an interview, you would think he must be the happiest guy in the world. He gets paid huge amounts of money to simply make people laugh, and he's great at what he does, what more is there. Obviously there is much more.
On the inside, Robin Williams was fighting battles that none of us know about. I realize many will say that his problem was alcohol and drugs, and I'm sure that at certain times in his life, that was his problem, but he was battling more than what met the eye. He was battling with mental illness. I don't care who you are, how much money you have, how many friends you have, mental illness is just like any other illness, anyone can have it. Cancer, flu, a cold, diabetes, these are all things that any single one of us on this planet can get, regardless of all the things we do to keep from getting the disease. Mental illness is that way. It's not something that you bring on yourself, something you go and try to contract, it just sets in and you've got it.
Those who have never battled mental illness can not truly understand what the feeling is like. When you battle with this disease, your perception of life in general is so very skewed, and you don't see things like the rest of the world does. I wondered in my mind Sunday night/Monday morning, what must have been going through Robin Williams mind. How sad, depressed, alone, and unloved he must have felt. How can it seem so bad that taking your own life is the only way you feel that you can relieve yourself of the hurt and pain that you're feeling. It's hard to understand how anyone, let alone someone who has everything that money can buy, can feel that terrible about life and the future, but many, many people who battle with mental illness have felt that way.
Soon after his death was announced, everyone started chiming in about why he did it, how he brought it on himself with the lifestyle that he lived, how he doomed his soul to hell by taking his own life, and the fact of the matter is, none of us are, or should, qualified to even remotely discuss those things. He made bad choices in his life, so have I. On the outside he seemed just fine, so do multitudes who battle with this disease. He had everything, we all have much more than we deserve. What not a single one of us can see is what was truly going on in his mind.
After all that rambling, I guess I'm just going back to the statement I made almost 3 years ago. We all need each other. We all need to feel loved. We all have our struggles and things we battle with, all of us. So, instead of us judging each other, why not reach out to be there for people. When you see someone that's down, give em a hug, send them a card, give em a call, let them know they aren't alone. Let them know that people do care. Let them know that there is help out there, and help them find it! Quit the judging and condemning and start loving.
I want to go back to one thing, and that's the religious aspect of suicide. I have never attended a bible college in my life, and make absolutely no claim to knowing much about the Bible, other than what God has shown me. I know that many in the Christian world, which I have seen post about it already, will say that suicide is a one way ticket to hell. And they may be absolutely right, but none of us are in a position to judge, or even try and determine, where someone will spend eternity. I think about the very day that Jesus was being crucified on the cross for all the sin of mankind. On either side of him were two thieves. They were both convicted criminals and were paying the price for breaking the law. One looked over to Jesus and said, if you really are who you say you are, you'd bring yourself off that cross. On the other side of Jesus, the thief, who was as guilty as the other one, looks to Jesus and says, you truly are the Son of God. Jesus didn't look at him and say, well, it's to late, you're out of luck. Jesus did what Jesus always did, he looked at that man with compassion and said, today you'll be with me in paradise. At that moment, Jesus wasn't looking at a thief, He was looking at a lost and hurting soul that needed help and hope. I don't know what went on between God and Robin Williams in those hours before he died. I don't know that Robin Williams even believed in God. But, I do know that God loved Robin Williams. And I know that if the blood of Jesus atoned for the sin of a dying thief, I know that the blood of Jesus can atone for the sin of anyone, at anytime, who calls on His name. If we want to show the love of Christ to people who are hurting, we need to do what Jesus did, and have compassion on hurting souls.
If you're battling a mental illness, get help, it's out there! Reach out for someone, and I have faith in humanity, in spite of all of our differences and disagreements, I know that someone will be there to help you!
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