I watched in horror as the waves headed menacingly and quickly to towns, washing away boats, people, cars. The only thing in my heart was a prayer for those lost and for those who survived. I did not think about anything else. My heart was and is with Japan, as are most of yours.
But not everyone had family who developed a moral compass within them and for them. Not everyone has class or even love for fellow human beings; empathy even. Not everyone has a brain either, as witnessed by the stunningly sheer ignorance, hatred and outright RACISM featured for the world to see at Ignorant and Online and Karma Japan.
I don't want to get into demographics too much. It would be easy to point out that the vast amount of racists and morons featured on the page are White, but that would be a disservice, because the same people raising hell against these imbeciles are as multicultural, and White, as those talking the shit. Sure, one may be able to put race in there, but I think that absolves the group as a whole. Believe me, this is a group effort at this level of ignorance.
This is what happens when we completely let anti-intellectualism rule the roost in this country. People from varying ages, MOST of them have NEVER been in WWII or even had parents involved in WWII, are saying this is for Pearl Harbor. That was almost 70 years ago. Further, the US totally handled that with TWO atomic bombs, one in Nagasaki and the other in Hiroshima. Many people today question the cruelty of that bomb, and some history indicates it was unnecessary. Regardless, stupidity irks me and I'm glad these people are being highlighted for the pigs that they are.
Don't even get me started on the morons talking about the murder of dolphins. Yes, I feel strongly about that as well. But at the end of the day, these are HUMAN beings. What kind of sick bastard justifies the drowning, crushing, death of a baby, of a kindergarten girl, of someone's mother, because SOME guy somewhere else, who is most likely alive, kills dolphins?
The recurring theme seems to be saying what one wants on Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, wherever. and then pulling the "joke" card or complaining about how PC we've all become and how much that sucks. The good news is we can see this scum come out of the darkened crevices they inhabit and put them on blast as witnessed on the sites above. As a society, we've come to believe that we can be cruel and prejudiced on Twitter and Facebook because while our avatar is present, we are still granted this perceived anonymity. This couldn't be further from the truth. And this is why these assholes have been exposed. People who wouldn't have the balls to say this to a Japanese person's face, have the courage of Superman when it comes to typing mindless drivel.
And what is up with this "I was just joking" excuse? A joke is something that makes people laugh, and feel good about themselves or certain circumstances. A joke doesn't even have to be "PC" (a term I loathe). There is no such thing as being PC. You're either a caring, intelligent person, or you're a dumb ass. I don't mean uptight (we joke about race in my house all the time). I mean, not being swine and thanking God or whoever for pain on a nation of people.
As Americans--and to be honest as a human collective--we've come to learn to blame the common man for the sins of those who wield the greatest amount of power. At the end of the day, these common folks in Japan--everyday people like you and I--back then and today aren't and weren't the problem. To blame them for Pearl Harbor and killing whales is shortsighted. But even so, I digress.
These very same people who are blaming innocent men, women and children for all kinds of lofty and perceived assaults on humans and animals, will be the first people to call foul should someone mention 9/11 as retribution for the numerous crimes this country has committed against other countries.
Regardless of my feelings for anyone that has ever slighted me, I'd be the first person to help them if I knew I could in the event of a disaster. Where has our sense of humanity gone, when people can say without fear or regard that the "fucking japs" deserved this kind of disaster?
It's easy because at the end of the day, Japan is still a country to people of color. The same sick strain that that showed up during Hurricane Katrina, wherein people said maybe it was good that it happened because it cleaned out several areas (read: the areas where the poor people of color/lower income people live), is evident here. Somehow, when disaster strikes people of color, it's funny and it's okay to make jokes, because they're lives somehow just aren't as worthy by virtue of their race, religion or culture.
As a woman of color, I know how easy it is for some minorities to adapt a sick mindset in order to be in with the majority in whatever country. All of a sudden, black folks who never gave a damn about Pearl Harbor care because it's the cool thing to do. Let's pile on another minority so we can see what it feels like to be on the top, right? Wrong. We are still a global family. I'm not about to pile on my brother and sister humans to feel what supremacy tastes like. And I'll be damned if I jump in to show some kind of sick, perverse patriotism. When we see a group of people as subhuman, it is easy to make cruel comments like these, and that's racism at work.
