November 21, 2015 by David K. Sutton
The World Didn’t Change With The Paris Attacks. You Did.
Do people realize the world didn’t change on 11/13/2015? Do people realize the world didn’t change on 9/11/2001?
Suddenly, all we can talk about is terrorism. Never mind that terrorism exists every day for innocent people in the Middle East. But yet, when privileged people in the West experience terrorism, everybody must acknowledge it, complete with pre-game ceremonies, and Facebook profile pictures. It’s almost as if we are saying Parisian lives, or American lives are more important than say, Syrian lives. Of course, if we are denying Syrian refugees entry into our country, after an 18-24 month vetting process, that must be what we are saying.
Now, if you believe your myopic view of the world, one that was briefly expanded, only to later contract, qualifies as world-changing, then fine, I guess (in your myopic view), the world really did change on each of those dates.
But, understand this: On 11/12/2015 and on 9/10/2001, the same threats existed, you just didn’t know about them, or you were preoccupied by other thoughts. But then, suddenly the events of those two days happened, and your focus shifted, and suddenly the brown person from the Middle East was your primary concern, if not your enemy. And of course that dictated borders closed, an end to civility, and the death of empathy. And ultimately if this means the people who were already sent packing are sent packing again, so be it, because, well…fear, and I need to feel safe, and I can’t identify with the “other.” In other words: Fuck ’em.
