"You Are What's Wrong With America."

It's always a mistake to scroll down to the comments section of any Instagram or Youtube video. Manners don't exist on the internet. Or if they do, they are wasted on the uncouth.

"You are what's wrong with America."

I've been seeing this statement a lot. Like today, when someone asked, "Who is that?" on Instragram under a pic of NDGT.

A woman wrote the correct answer: "That's Neil DeGrasse Tyson. And YOU are what's wrong with America."

I flinched reading the second part.

It's the online equivalent of pouring gasoline over a stranger and lighting a match for asking a question. All in the name of a supposed better world. That's what they'll claim of course. They won't admit that it was a quick snack to feed their damn ego.

Sigh. Let's review that car crash, shall we?

The responder is making several unfounded assumptions about the asker.

1. That they had a chance to be educated.
2. That they're American. Lady could have been from Brazil. How did she know otherwise?
3. That the curious person wouldn't be demoralized and refuse to ask a question the next time they don't know something.
4. That the person wasn't depressed. She could've been barely holding on. A text message away from killing herself.

If she thought about these things, would she have been as quick to type that response? Doubt it.

I had to dig deep inside myself ,stick my hand through that hot liquid anger, and find that small kernel of empathy for the person who responded.

Blame.

That's all she wanted to do. She could have just answered the question and been decent about it. The asker asking risked vulnerability by asking the question in the first place.

Why would you mock that?
Why would you look down on that, and worse, scorn her ignorance? Who the hell is that helping in the end? You just made her feel ashamed just to feel good about yourself. So you know who some guy is, lah-di-dah. That doesn't mean you're better than anyone.

Yes, Ghandi and Michael had it right: "If you want to change the world, take a look at yourself."

That woman needs a mirror.  Hell, we all do.

We need to do better. It is harder to be kind. I know this because I used to be just like her. I was quick to insult, quick to judge, quick to hate.

Did it make the world a better place? NO. Of course not.

Be kind to each other. Just try for some basic decency at the very least.

We're all barely holding on as it is.