IS it not sad that we believe untruths, allowing them to make us so angry?
And is it not astonishing that it is so hard to regret becoming angry over a lie?
A week ago, in a neighbourhood Whatsapp group, someone posted a statement allegedly made by a politician.
The leader had purportedly spoken about the divisive effects of a type of school.
Another member of the Whatsapp group was immediately incensed by the remarks, and said voters who put that man into office deserved what they got (let me assure you, the neighbour’s words were filled with much harshness and haughtiness, but I cannot bring myself to repeat them here).
And so the conversation went on in this bitter manner, like a raging river foaming and smashing into this and that. For a few hours, anger was the currency freely exchanged.
Later in the day, someone pointed out that the statement by the politician was at least five years old and taken out of context. He said it was improper to make it seem as if the statement was made only recently.
No reflection and retraction followed. No contrition. No one said sorry for assuming and voicing the worst. Anger flowed unspent.
A day later, someone else posted a statement purportedly made by a another leader. He apparently called for a boycott of some 'sectors' of the economy.
At least two persons responded, speaking out in anger and applauding the statement.
However, one voice, sheeplike (as Boris Johnson put it in his meeting with President Trump), said perhaps it would be wise to check if those words did come from the lips of the leader.
But he was drowned out by deafening anger.
Does the wrathful virus exist only in a few groups?
No, it does not. You know this as well as I do.
Whether friend or faith groups, anger readily erupts in all of them. It seems not to matter that the anger is born of untruths.
There may be two reasons for this.
1. Most people have stopped thinking. I mean, really thinking. Dwelling in the shallows for too long, they cannot even begin to comprehend more than what they believe.
2. Too many blindly claim they want to protect rights --- their rights, their people's rights. But they care too little about others. They see much, but know much less.
Maybe Tan Sri Rafidah Aziz described it best in an interview with the NST. "I think we are losing our cohesiveness because in many among us, there will be one or two who don’t possess humanity and only think of themselves, not as Malaysians."
The anger stirs at the bottom, and foolish and feckless politicians amplify it. It becomes a vicious cycle, knowing not when, and how, to end.
The baseless rage is relentless, it comes and go with the tide. One day, its power will sweep us away to a fate not to our liking. Perhaps our doom. Now Isn't that sad?