Sensitivity in society

A few months ago Nikko asked me to do a piece on how sensitive our society has become. I did some preliminary research on the subject and it appeared that it was in case the opposite, in general. Politeness and common decency has been encroached on from all sides. Take movies for example: On the silverscreen a prototypical bad guy would meet his rebuke with a good walloping and would limp off or wipe the blood from his mouth as he ran away, tail between his legs. I can't remember the last recent action movie that the villain did not meet his maker in the most grotesque fashion and disturbingly lacking in human dignity. Society has upped the ante. Videogames regularly push the envelope with displays of reckless murder and gratuitous violence that would incense even the most carefree parents.

Gambling, a pastime historically paired with prostitution that had been deemed illegal at one time in 49 of 50 states, has made a comeback into the popular consciousness, even so much that ESPN even televises events in primetime. Gambling is an addictive behavior, and has landed many people to lose their jobs, their families and ultimately their lives. There was a reason why gambling has been illegal for so long but now with legalization in certain markets, it is obvious that society has taken a giant leap backwards. Gambling satisfies an instant gratification, an animal instinct that man has grown to resist. It's sad to see the thrill of chance replace the vast forbearance of our rational predecessors.

Perhaps the worst of it is the gladiatorial events, which are cleverly hidden behind harmless-sounding titles such as Mixed Martial Arts or Ultimate Fighting that gives somewhat less of a picture than the barbarism these “sports” actually represent. I can’t imagine anything more sinister and damaging for young people to see than a defenseless fighter being pummeled with flush face punches until a referee actually has to break up the massacre. The act itself is repulsive to me, a grown man, but I cannot imagine how seeing this could either desensitize or scar a younger viewer. Some things are meant to be shocking, so when we see these things we can immediately recognize inhumanity. Putting these guys (and girls) in rings and making it into sport does nothing to diminish this barbarity in my eyes. It’s sad that so many people have to gratify a need for senseless violence. What is really stopping us from opening back up the Coliseum in Rome and arming these men with a sword or trident?

Pornography, which I think everyone would agree can be harmful to younger (and older) psyches, is available to anyone with internet access. It’s not that sex is unnatural (I would conversely argue that sexuality is repressed entirely too much in our society), however, pornography expresses sexuality in a negatively contrived, misogynistic and masochistic light, creating a false reality and altering perceptions on normal gender roles. These altered perceptions endanger relationships and become haunting reminders of a fabricated sexual identity that the viewer has no practical way to satisfy. For a younger viewer the results are potentially psychologically damaging. Obviously, one viewing of a regular porno film will not permanently damage anyone. But consider that constant exposure to potentially harmful images reinforces patterns that will be very difficult to break in the future.

Although I cannot disagree, we have become a society obsessed with political correctness and things that offend us, even if they don’t really offend us, but may offend someone else (i.e. Tiger Woods and his friend’s joke on lynching him to make it possible for others to win a tournament), we must really grasp how much influence potentially harmful media sources have on us, our kids and on our society before we can chastise the willingness to be incensed. We should be incensed, in the truest sense of the word, to gratuitous violence, lewdness, addiction, and the wave of inhumanity damaging our society but instead we focus on issues that cloud our integration and reinforce color barriers rather than promote color blindness and understanding.