When I was a kid, some, but not all, of the daily news, might sound like this:
COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) -- Danish police say a cow which broke loose during a cattle show has injured six people, including four children.Police in Odense say two of the children were taken to emergency rooms Friday after the incident. Police earlier had reported that the animal was a bull.Police say the cow stepped on an 11-month-old girl's head and on a 2-year-old girl's chest. The infant didn't sustain any serious injuries while the other girl suffered a perforated lung.
Fast-forward history today and it sounds more like:
A suicide bomber has struck a market in Iraq in a town near the Shia holy city of Karbala, killing at least 20 people.The so-called Islamic State (IS) group has said it carried out the attack in Musayyib.
Is there anything in this to explain why I have become an aging wuss, unwilling/unable to consume what is offered at least in part because what is offered is not accidental. No matter the reasoning, somehow the two stories, when conjoined, seemed to underscore my wuss-dom. 
I can relate. If required to do something about anything, well i just don't have any steam left. That sure makes it feel hopeless.
ReplyDeleteWhere I grew up to be a "wuss" was relevant in personal action only. Mostly it mean the fear to do something wrong.
ReplyDeleteIn the both cases cases above what could a reader an ocean away have done? So there's no wussiness involved at all. Period.
Do you really want to say a wuss would be the young farm hand at the show who froze after seeing the first child killed? The 19 year old erroneously left in charge who wishes s/he had the presence of mind but froze instead. Who could truly find fault in him or her. Cows are big and heavy, seeing a baby's bloody brains would make anyone's stomach do flips. Feeling bad in this situation is understandable, but does not merit the "wuss" prejorative.
In the second situation there are far, far too many variables to consider before saying a given person's action / reaction was "wussy."
For example, if one considered stopping the bomber, one might not only put his own life at risk but his families' as well.
If one were the bomber, motivated or forced to kill, anything less might have been "wussy." The only wuss here is a very messed up world.
Look at it this way if learning about other people's death gives you a feeling of helpless or anger you are not a bad person.
If you think about it, It might be best to have a chat with your inner teenaged self and your self esteem.