The end of decency

VIEWPOINT

By RALPH HARDIN

Evening Times Editor

I didn’t do much hunting as a kid, but one time my Dad and a friend of his took me and my dad’s friend’s kid on a hunting trip. At one point we were all sitting by the campfire and my Dad and this guy were arguing about something. I think it might have been football, but I really don’t remember.

It got pretty heated and then my Dad says, “Well if you believe that, I’ve got some oceanfront property in Oklahoma to sell you!” The other guy snickered, then they both laughed and started talking about something else. They were, after all, just friends who happened to disagree about something.

We don’t get that any more. You can’t just see or hear someone else’s point of view, agree or disagree and move on. Nope, now it’s somehow your obligation to object to everything you don’t agree with. And it’s not just “I disagree!” or “Maybe, but here’s what I think…” Nowadays, it’s “You’re not only wrong, but you’re stupid for thinking that way!!!”

Sometimes, we’re just angry and we hate this thing or idea even if we don’t know why. We’ve just, as I suggest-

See VIEWPOINT, page A5 VIEWPOINT

From page A4

ed in the headline up there, decided we’re no longer going to be decent to each other.

We’ve completely given up on “you do your thing, and I’ll do my thing and we’ll all be happy.” The best (by which I mean worst) part is that thanks to social media we can now be ugly to each other in mass quantities and people can’t seem to get enough of it.

Welcome to the indecent world we live in. It’s only going to get worse.