I Hate Everyday Jackasses More Than The Real Bad People In The World

[flockoff]

So alternating between the pet peeves thread in this section and the thread about the mom who ran over her would be carjacker with her minivan in off topic made me think about this. Just want to know if anyone else thinks about this or if I'm in a minority.

 

I personally tend to get a lot more worked up over people who just commit the kind of misdemeanor level crimes and jackassery that we're all likely to be victims of at some point than when I hear about some monster in the news who went nuts and murdered his family or kept children as sex slaves in his basement. Or even something more common like convenience store robbers or carjackers.

 

It's not that I actually think the jackasses are worse, of course. I recognize on an intellectual level that the monsters have done much worse and should face more serious consequences. But that visceral reaction I'm supposed to have, that "there's a special place in hell for this guy!!" instead honestly goes to drivers who honk their horn too much and people who write computer viruses. At least those are the feelings I don't show.

 

I'm sure the main reason is that I'm more likely to be victimized by everyday jackasses than by the next Jeffrey Dahmer. More than likely I will live a full life without ever being or personally knowing the victim of a heinous crime. Maybe if that did happen it would change me? I don't know. But I'm desensitized because I hear these horrible stories in the news and I know the victim is in all likelihood never going to be me or someone I know.

 

And the other factor is that monsters appear to be so far removed from me in what I might actually do or relate to. I can accept that the kid playing mailbox baseball or the cell phone jerk ruining the movie could be an otherwise normal functioning person who should know better. But a monster is almost easier to forgive in a sense because I just think, "who even wants to know what fucked up story went into that?". They're just bad people and that's what they do.

 

I don't know if anyone else saw the youtube video the Amazing Athiest did about this about a year ago, but yeah, that's partly where I got this idea. He caught more of a backlash in the comments than I would have expected, so maybe this is less common than I thought. I think I've always felt like this, though.

[RankStranger]

You'd hate me in meat-space.  I never put away the shopping cart if the thingy is more than 30 feet away.

[buffettphan]

Yeah, I agree with you.  I don't worry too much that some serial killer or rapist is gonna get me.  But those annoying everyday jackasses -- well, there's no escape from them and you have to deal with them somehow or another.

[Vigile]

Not saying I have this mastered or anything, but there's a pretty good video that broaches this subject from a philosophical point of view. IMO, it makes a lot of sense and if taken to heart can have a significant calming effect with regard to everyday assholes:

 

[ExXex]

I get why you feel that way but nah, I find it easier to excuse people who are unthinking to me in person or chew too loudly or whatever because I like to think the best of people and think that maybe sometimes I have off days and chew too loudly and hope it doesn't ruin people's entire days because of it. But reading about the things people do in the news makes me pretty angry and sad, especially when it involves child abuse.

But y'know, that's just the way I'm wired, I don't think being impotently angry about all the world's bad people is a particularly fruitful thing to do.

[buffettphan]

Not saying I have this mastered or anything, but there's a pretty good video that broaches this subject from a philosophical point of view. IMO, it makes a lot of sense and if taken to heart can have a significant calming effect with regard to everyday assholes:

 

 

 

That was a great video, Vigile.  Thanks for posting it.  I've never considered myself an optimist so I don't have high hopes about most people most of the time.  But I don't think I'm a pessimist either, as my DH accuses me.  I tell him I'm realistic and pragmatic and I like to be prepared ... for the worst!   Most annoyances and pesky people generally just amuse and entertain me.*

 

*Except for those people who leave dirty dishes in the sink!  lol 

 

(ETA *)

[Vigile]

Could be some don't like your particular humor? Nothing personal, but I find a lot of things funny and laugh most every day, but I don't particularly find your humor funny. To each his own.

[Fweethawt]

Not saying I have this mastered or anything, but there's a pretty good video that broaches this subject from a philosophical point of view. IMO, it makes a lot of sense and if taken to heart can have a significant calming effect with regard to everyday assholeso

Three Minute Therapy: Change Your Thinking, Change Your Life by Michael R. Edelstein covers this exact philosophy and shows how it can be applied to many things besides just anger. Once you learn the simple steps of this process, it doesn't even take three minutes to overcome most negative feelings. You can read some of the chapters for free on Google.

 

Here's a description from Amazon...

 

Three Minute Therapy can help to change your life for the better. You will find yourself looking at life in a different way. Your emotional troubles will seem less mysterious and less powerful. If you take the trouble to learn the techniques explained in Three Minute Therapy, think about them, and apply them to your problems, you will be able to tackle difficulties that may have seemed impossible. Some of your worst fears and anxieties can diminish or dissolve away, and you will become more effective at pursuing your chosen life goals. The techniques used in Three Minute Therapy show you, clearly and simply, how you needlessly upset yourself, and it gives you many thinking, feeling, and action methods of reducing your disturbances while still retaining your main goals, values, and preferences. Three Minute Therapy can add years of healthier and happier living to your life

[OpheliaGinger]

You'd hate me in meat-space.  I never put away the shopping cart if the thingy is more than 30 feet away.

 

I make an effort to park close to the cart receptacle and always put the cart away, even in the hottest Southern heat while wearing all black.

 

I mostly hate inconsiderate people who think they are the only ones in the world, and those who refuse to turn on their blinkers for anything.