{"id":807,"date":"2015-11-21T10:40:10","date_gmt":"2015-11-21T17:40:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/journeyinstitute.org\/?p=807"},"modified":"2015-11-21T10:49:57","modified_gmt":"2015-11-21T17:49:57","slug":"all-or-nothing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/devjourneyinstitute.com\/ji\/index.php\/2015\/11\/21\/all-or-nothing\/","title":{"rendered":"All or Nothing"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"all-757447_1280\"<\/a><\/p>\n

One of the benefits of living in this \u2018connected\u2019 age is that we can all share our opinions and stories with more people (through social media) than ever before.\u00a0 In the wake of the terrorist attacks on Paris this has allowed for both in seemingly unprecedented fashion.<\/p>\n

Wonderful stories of hope have emerged.\u00a0 Stories of people banding together in peace.\u00a0 Stories, too, of those who are afraid or worried about what lies ahead.\u00a0 Opinions have been varied too; from those who willingly open their arms to refugees to those who fear such openness will lead to more violence and destruction.<\/p>\n

Memes are popping up comparing the world refugee crises from everything to the landing of Pilgrims in America, to Jews fleeing the Holocaust, and while we may not all agree on whether or not refugees should be allowed here or there I for one believe there is power in being able to communicate our thoughts and feelings.\u00a0 It may not change another\u2019s mind or opinion, still having open and honest discourse on the merits and pitfalls of ideas is far better than suppressing those ideas.\u00a0 There are many places across the globe where expressing your ideas is not allowed.\u00a0 We should all be thankful that we have the opportunity to do so.<\/p>\n

What prompted this post, however, is the vitriolic expressions, or perhaps better said, those who express their opinions or ideas as the only idea with merit.\u00a0 In some instances, opinions and ideas are expr\"Parisessed with hatred and anger, with accusatory and inflammatory intent.<\/p>\n

The one I could least understand was the notion that anyone who \u2018stood with Paris\u2019 did so without concern for the rest of the world that has, and in some cases continues, suffered terrorism.\u00a0 While I understand, to some extent, the notion of these posts, I must respectfully disagree with the premise.<\/p>\n

That premise being that one should not change your Facebook photo to include the flag of France for instance, because you did not change your image when x,y, or z atrocity happened to another country.<\/p>\n

In and of itself, that premise seems to make sense\u2026. at first.<\/p>\n

Upon reflection, however, there are challenges with this notion.\u00a0 The first being that if you did not change your Facebook image when an atrocity happens in another country it means you don\u2019t care about that atrocity.<\/p>\n

The fact is that whether we like it or not, the information that governs our lives in the world we now live in is driven by media, both social and main stream.\u00a0 That information, news, is often driven by forces beyond our control, meaning that what is given \u2018importance\u2019, or goes viral, or is simply reported honestly or dishonestly, is usually not something we have control over.\u00a0 This doesn\u2019t make it right or wrong, it simply is.\u00a0 As such, when x,y, or z country suffers a terrorist attack or natural disaster and does not get massive coverage is that our fault?\u00a0 Is it somehow a reflection of whether or now we care?\u00a0 Regardless, the fact remains that coverage, information, about a given event is limited, minimal, and often unsubstantiated.<\/p>\n

If we hear about it at all, it is in passing, with little to no actual detail.\u00a0 And yet this premise would ask that we choose a side and immediately change our Facebook photo or shout from the rooftops our outrage and disgust.<\/p>\n

The second challenge to this premise can perhaps better be explained by hearing news of a neighbor child or perhaps peer of our own children at school suffering from an incurable disease.\u00a0 Perhaps we hear that little Johnny down the street has Leukemia.\u00a0 We call his parents offering sympathy and support.\u00a0 We deliver meals to the hospital to help sustain the grieving family.\u00a0 We give to the fundraising efforts at church and school.\u00a0 We do what we can because we care.<\/p>\n

But what about the other children who are also dying?\u00a0 We hear about them occasionally on tv or social media.\u00a0 A trip to any local hospital will undoubtedly uncover hosts of illness-ridden children and their suffering families on any manner of disease from Lupus to Cancer to Cerebral Palsy and the list goes on.<\/p>\n

Is our indifference to these children, families, and disease mean we don\u2019t care?<\/p>\n

Of course not.<\/p>\n

And so it is that I challenge those who deride humanity\u2019s attempt to offer support and comfort to Paris during this tragedy.\u00a0 For those who simply wanted to bring attention to the suffering of other communities, countries, and people I say bravo.\u00a0 Yes, it is important that we recognize that people are suffering across the globe.\u00a0 For those, however, who would suggest that it is improper or inconsiderate to support the people of France (and the other 19 nations of those who suffered loss during this attack) simply because of all the other suffering I must protest.<\/p>\n

Any act of kindness, of support, of empathy is a good thing.\u00a0 Why on earth would you want to suppress it. \u00a0\u00a0As human beings could we do more?\u00a0 Absolutely.\u00a0 Let us, however, start where we can.\u00a0 Let us fan the flames of support and kindness wherever it may spark and encourage the people of the world to ban together against all hate, all crimes against humanity, all terrorism across the globe.<\/p>\n

There is no purpose in deriding those who simply want to show they care.\u00a0 It is possible for someone to care for the people of France and still care for others across the globe.\u00a0 One post I saw attempted to assert that the only reason people were coming to the aid of Parisians was because this atrocity was committed against \u2018white\u2019 people or a country that didn\u2019t have color.\u00a0 Apparently they did not bother to look at the list of people who were killed or injured in the attacks nor did they have an understanding of Europe, and Paris specifically, as a bastion of refugees from many parts of the world.\u00a0 America is not the only \u2018melting pot\u2019 country in the world.<\/p>\n

Let us support one another, not in lieu of supporting others, but in addition to.\u00a0 This never was, nor can ever be, and all or nothing proposition.\u00a0 Let our motto as human beings be to do what you can, where ever you can, however you can. \u00a0\u00a0Perhaps, instead of trying to be all things to all people, if we as individuals do all that we can for\u00a0the people we can reach, ultimately we will end up being our namesake: human kind.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

One of the benefits of living in this \u2018connected\u2019 age is that we can all share our opinions and stories with more people (through social media) than ever before.\u00a0 In the wake of the terrorist attacks on Paris this has allowed for both in seemingly unprecedented fashion. Wonderful stories of hope have emerged.\u00a0 Stories of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"builder_content":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/devjourneyinstitute.com\/ji\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/807"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/devjourneyinstitute.com\/ji\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/devjourneyinstitute.com\/ji\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devjourneyinstitute.com\/ji\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devjourneyinstitute.com\/ji\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=807"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/devjourneyinstitute.com\/ji\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/807\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":814,"href":"https:\/\/devjourneyinstitute.com\/ji\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/807\/revisions\/814"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/devjourneyinstitute.com\/ji\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=807"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devjourneyinstitute.com\/ji\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=807"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devjourneyinstitute.com\/ji\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=807"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}