Yeah, okay, so I was thumbing through Facebook and came across George Takei's post about him inadvertently offending someone. WHAT THE HELL. Do people just sit around and wait to get offended by someone? Does it make us feel better to ride that specific high horse, just so we can kick the rodeo clowns as we go by? Do we not recognize that the clowns - the comedians - make us laugh by shoving the truth in our faces until we realize how ridiculous we are? Why must we take everything so SERIOUSLY???
Yesterday, I was listening to Mark Marron's podcast in which he interviewed Robin Williams in 2010. His introduction to the podcast was hard to listen to (you could hear his voice breaking as he spoke of Williams in life), but the interview was astonishing. Williams and Marron spoke about comedy, about the business, about the comedians who have died, about what motivates them to tell the jokes and do the impressions they do, about their philosophies about comedy, about drug and alcohol abuse, about depression and bitterness. My takeaway from this was that Williams was hurting, a twisted, frightened soul, who never let that fear translate itself into cruelty or selfishness.
And then I flip through the news this morning to see that Robin Williams' daughter Zelda had to quit social media because people were being cruel about her father committing suicide. What is WRONG with this world? What is wrong with PEOPLE? Why are we such shits?
It seems to me that there are three types of people on the internet:
1. People who work and communicate
2. People who lie in wait, ambushing innocent funny people by saying they're offended
3. Trolls
You know what? If you fall into 2 or 3, you can kiss my ass. Get off the internet and bug people IRL where you can actually get physically punched in the face, and stop hiding behind your computer screen, you fucking bullies. And if you don't think you fall into 2 or 3, if you keep telling yourself, "Well, this stuff DOES offend me! How can they be so insensitive to (fill in the blanks)???" or, "I was only joking, jeez, it's not that important," GUESS WHAT. You're a bully. Shove a hot poker up your ass a la Edward II.
Very few of us live past 100. Hell, few of us will live past 80. (I know I don't want to.) Do we really want to spend our time hurting other people, or making them feel less of a human being because they said something flippantly in passing? I know 2 and 3 seem like two opposite ends of the same spectrum. Balance, bitches. Let's treat each other how we would want to be treated, YES, just the way Jesus told us to, and CUT IT OUT ALREADY.
I shall sit back and wait for nothing to happen. Nothing ever changes.
In other news, the beans were excellent.
2 comments:
It's sad how mean and self-centered some people can be. Robin Williams was an amazingly gifted man who struggled with life and in the end just couldn't keep struggling. It's not his fault. It wasn't a selfish act. (I've seen that one more than once regarding Williams.) And thanks for expressing your anger so eloquently. You nailed it.
Glad about the beans.
Nancy
It is disheartening to hear the news of a celebrity sinking to the level of despair and depression that makes them think that their lives are over and drives them to commit suicide. Many comedians and actors have suffered through either clinical depression, addiction, or physical aliments that lead to suicidal tendencies such as Mr Williams having been diagnosed with Parkinson disease. The profession for the most part is a high pressure, starving artist way of life and only a few people are actually blessed to gain wide fame and acclaim. But like in many cases fame, money and adulation means nothing to someone who has hit the level that Mr. Williams did when he took his life. Much more needs to be done in this area on battling depression. To all of those who have criticized Robin Williams and others who have ended their lives, shame on you! To the rest of us who know and have known people who are depressed, let this be a reminder that we cannot be too supportive of our loved ones or people we care for if we want to keep them in our lives. Also remember that every moment we have on this earth is a gift because tomorrow may never come. So give your wife, husband, son, daughter, sister, brother and Mom and Dad that hug and kiss while you have the opportunity. For when they are gone, that opportunity is lost forever.
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