We don't do news here at Niagara's Watercooler. People always ask us why we don't do news, and we usually give some vague and wisecracking answer. The truth is that news is depressing, and we would rather not mix our attempts to make people smile, laugh, and cheer with the reality that is the world we live in. We prefer the world we have created to the real world, and yesterday we were reminded why we think that way.
I first want to say that my heart goes out to every victim in the Las Vegas massacre last night. To the families of those who had loved ones taken from them, I cannot imagine how horrible you feel and I can only offer my condolences from afar. To those who were injured, I sincerely hope that you recover from your injuries.
I woke up this morning to the usual nonsense on my Facebook feed, but I was shocked and disgusted to see two things. The first was that, after almost 60 people were killed and 600 were injured in a random attack last night, people still found the issue of kneeling football players to be of utmost importance. What is wrong with you people? Do kneeling football players really anger you more than the senseless loss of so many lives? Is your ego that bruised that you cannot put your petty issues to the side for one day and realize that the world, as you know it, is about to change?
The other thing I saw was news outlets (yes CNN, I am looking at you) glorifying murder yet again by posting the coward's picture, name, and part of its life story. We will, at some point, find out that this creature did this for attention and CNN, as well as a lot of people on Facebook, are more than happy to give it the attention it wants. Murder gets clicks, which means murder sells. So CNN uses that as an excuse to glorify murder whenever it happens, and no one ever says a word against it.
The Divided States of America is an easy target for terrorists of all kinds because the people of this country are incapable of coming together for the common good. I really don't care how much you love the president and hate Hillary Clinton. It angers me that you cannot see how insignificant all of that is compared to what is really going on. The more divided the country gets, the worse the general ambiance of the nation becomes. If you honestly think that this divided population will handle this Las Vegas tragedy in a rational and calm manner, then you are absolutely insane.
I invite all of the people who have taken the five or 10 minutes out of their days it takes to post how they are boycotting the NFL to take that much time to go out into their neighborhoods and get to know the people who live around them. Instead of being an opinionated idiot, how about shaking hands with a stranger and taking the time to become more involved in the world around you.
What will it take to get this country to stop with the nonsense and start listening to each other? Will it take the random killing of dozens of people in Las Vegas to get people to listen to each other? No, I guarantee this will only make things worse. This group will blame the guns, while that group will call the gun blamers "snowflakes." This group will hide behind their stained glass windows and offer thoughts and prayers, while the only religious groups actually doing anything are protesting the deaths of soldiers and telling young children that god hates homosexuals.
This is not the greatest country in the world. I am sorry to break that to you, but it is true. This country does not care about injustice, it does not want to listen to opposing points of view, and this country actually needs to be protected from itself more than from anyone else. You want to live in the greatest country in the world? Then care about what happens to every single person in your neighborhood. Use differences of opinion as starting points for productive conversations and not invitations to be a Neanderthal on the Internet. Stop hiding behind thoughts and prayers and go out and actually do something to make this country a better place.
This is not the first time someone went to a tall building and shot at the people below. But it is the first time someone opened fire on an open-air concert in Las Vegas from one of the luxurious Las Vegas casinos. If you think that you will wake up tomorrow and this will just go away, you are out of your mind. Each little faction in this country will use this event as a way to try and push their own agenda on everyone else. Instead of being a point where the country comes together, this will only make things worse.
People have died. Innocent people. What more does it take for everyone in this country to stop the petty nonsense and get down to trying to fix what is obviously broken? What will it take for everyone to realize that their views are not more important than any other person's views and that compromise for the sake of the greater good is what we really need?
What will it take? How many more have to die?
Thanks for reading...
George N Root III
