The Sriracha to Denton campaign is a cute idea and a great way to gain social media love, but did anyone actually think it through?
Denton has some of the worst air quality in the state of Texas. I didn't have any respiratory issues until I moved there, and lo and behold, I moved just forty miles away and my need for daily respiratory medication has ceased. Also gone is my recurring upper respiratory infections. (Although, I have only been gone only a few months, so honestly this may still be up in the air.) I love the City, just not the air.
And for a county like Los Angeles, which is not known for taking a tough stand on air pollution, to decide that the complaints of ear, nose, and throat irritation are too much is really saying something.
Showing posts with label I'm a blow hard. Show all posts
Showing posts with label I'm a blow hard. Show all posts
Friday, December 13, 2013
Friday, December 6, 2013
It's not cute, it's not funny and it doesn't make you a better person.
There's a Denton Twitter account that posts pictures of all the people being arrested in town. I won't link to it because it's pretty easy to find, but this shit can be highly entertaining. People often retweet particularly hideous mugshots with mean comments. It's all in good fun.
Over a beer the other day, a lovely friend reminded me that these are people on their worst day, and I am laughing at them. This made me feel like a complete mean girl piece of shit. He was right; I'm getting pleasure out of someone else's misery. He also added that this could easily be any one of us if caught on the wrong day; let a speeding ticket lapse, look sideways at a cop, or be suspicious looking and your ass is in the pokey. And a thing that he didn't remind me, but needs reiterating is that these people HAVE NOT BEEN CONVICTED OF A CRIME. They have just been arrested.
Most recently, one of my friends on Facebook posted that when she is having a bad day, she feels better knowing that she is not *insert name of notoriously always in the hoosegow for a variety of reasons lady.* I almost called her out, but I know that Facebook isn't the place for that. I know that, like me, she probably didn't think of this as mean, but in good fun.
It's weird, because I have to balance my belief as a librarian that information should be open, with my equally held belief that people have a right to privacy and this one is a tough one. I know that from now on, I am going to act with more empathy and not ridicule those that are in one of the worst moments of their life.
I do want to thank my friend for calling me out on this behavior. It wasn't good to hear, but I know that it will make me a better person in the long run. I encourage any one of my other friends who sees my shitty behavior to call me out as well.
It's not cute, it's not funny and it doesn't make you a better person.
Over a beer the other day, a lovely friend reminded me that these are people on their worst day, and I am laughing at them. This made me feel like a complete mean girl piece of shit. He was right; I'm getting pleasure out of someone else's misery. He also added that this could easily be any one of us if caught on the wrong day; let a speeding ticket lapse, look sideways at a cop, or be suspicious looking and your ass is in the pokey. And a thing that he didn't remind me, but needs reiterating is that these people HAVE NOT BEEN CONVICTED OF A CRIME. They have just been arrested.
Most recently, one of my friends on Facebook posted that when she is having a bad day, she feels better knowing that she is not *insert name of notoriously always in the hoosegow for a variety of reasons lady.* I almost called her out, but I know that Facebook isn't the place for that. I know that, like me, she probably didn't think of this as mean, but in good fun.
It's weird, because I have to balance my belief as a librarian that information should be open, with my equally held belief that people have a right to privacy and this one is a tough one. I know that from now on, I am going to act with more empathy and not ridicule those that are in one of the worst moments of their life.
I do want to thank my friend for calling me out on this behavior. It wasn't good to hear, but I know that it will make me a better person in the long run. I encourage any one of my other friends who sees my shitty behavior to call me out as well.
It's not cute, it's not funny and it doesn't make you a better person.
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