Judge and Jury

Even though I still believe in the basic goodness of my fellow man, I do have occasion, now and then, to REALLY wonder what's going on in the hearts of some of them!

Our local t.v. station has a FaceBook page now where viewers can pop in to share their opinions on various news stories and "hot button" topics. One segment that definitely elicited some strong response recently was concerning a missing toddler whose body was eventually found, wrapped in a trash bag, at a land fill site. The child's stepfather, who had concocted a totally implausible tale about men knocking him out, kidnapping the baby, and leaving a ransom demand for $10,000, has so far been charged with child neglect and improper disposal of a body. We can assume that graver charges are yet to follow.

As awful as this story is, however, it's not the step father that I'm concerned about here. He is clearly a bad, bad man and, hopefully, will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law...but he is being dealt appropriately by the judicial system. No, the ones who are truly giving me pause are the folks who spilled their anger and disgust into cyberspace and on to the Face Book page!

Of course, everyone is shocked and dismayed by the man's alledged actions and hopes he will pay a penalty if convicted, but for some, that shock has morphed into something as ugly and shocking as the murder itself! I was stunned at the hatred that was spewed! Some writers suggested that the step-father be released on bail so that THEY could "save the state the money" and dispense "justice" themselves. I won't describe the various means to dispatch the man that were suggested, but suffice it to say, the Face Book contributors had some especially cruel, creative ideas in mind. These ideas were accompanied by venomous, hate filled, and violent condemnations of the suspected killer. It was clear that, if their wishes had been granted and the man released, there would have been another body in the landfill by night fall!

This was just one story to which I saw similar ugly responses. Time after time, lately, I've read postings by people who are quick to leap in with their pronouncements of guilt and their lurid visions of punishment. I've also been disturbed to see how often people exibit a grave lack of compassion, caring, and understanding towards others in need. I was stunned to read an on-going rant by dozens of people who took the t.v. station to task over the announcement that they wanted to do a short fund-raiser during a broadcast for relief to Haiti. How heart wrenching to realize that a surprizing number of my fellow citizens said they couldn't care less about dying children in another country as long as THEIR electric bill was too high! And don't even get me started about the ugly things that were said when the topic turned to opinions on gay Americans! Time after time, even the most benign talking point can draw folks out of the wood work who seem to feel they are personally obligated to set everyone straight and are quite aggitated when not everyone agrees!

Yes, of course, we are all entitled to an opinion and a position on any subject. We certainly have the right to discuss behaviors, attitudes, and incidents and lodge our like or dislike... BUT, when did it become acceptable to become both judge and jury of our neighbors and begin to pass sentence, especially upon people we don't even know? How did it come to the point that we feel comfortable in wading into a situation and informing the world that WE know best and WE have the answers and WE can insult, condemn, curse, and revile anyone who doesn't see things the same way we do?

One only has to turn on the television and watch any of the multitude of news talk shows to get a little understanding of where the population is getting some of it's inspiration from. Hosts shouting, pointing fingers into the camera, screaming "Pin Heads! Wingnuts! Worst person in the world! Idiots! Family haters! Baby Killers! Liars! Cheaters! Homophobes!" and on and on... Somehow, we're not watching news any more. We are watching a nightly indictment, based on a particular, polar point of view, aimed at making US as crazy, wild eyed, and out for blood as the owner of that particular 60 minutes thinks we should be.

Sadly, it seems to me that alot of people are starting to fall victim to this kind of hysteria. Something like the t.v. station's Face Book page lends itself to becoming the perfect outlet for folks like that. Things we might not have the nerve to say face-to-face become so much easier in the faceless, timeless space of the internet. Maybe we feel released from normal civility and the constraints of simple good taste when we don't have to look anyone in the eye as we pound them with our judgemental hammer and proclaim OUR verdict on them.

This, to me, is an upsetting trend. More and more, I am saddened to watch our society throw away our humanity in favor of our "right" to express our opinions, right or wrong, and to insist upon our own superiority as both judge and jury of the people around us in the world.

Woe be unto a people who disolve themselves from flesh and blood and caring heart into bits and bytes of anger, vidictiveness, and condemnation in the cyber world. The old saying used to be "Look before you leap." Maybe, in the 21st century, it should be changed to "Think before you text." Don't be so hasty...or so judgemental...before you point a finger...and click.