Saturday, May 15, 2004
GOOD OR BAD?
I've been thinking a lot about whether man is innately good or bad, selfish or giving.
I remember one striking thing I saw at an arcade once where two guys were playing Dance Dance Revolution. One guy was a typical nerdy Chinese guy with glasses and the other was the typical hip-hop African-American guy dressed in Fubu and baggy jeans. It was amazing to see the camaraderie between the two, as they had mutual respect for one another, even though they were approaching the game from such different ways. And I always think about how outdoor pick-up basketball always brings all these different people from different backgrounds together. And they're not only nice to each other, but they're almost overly nice -- helping people up, slapping hands, saying "nice shot", etc.
But then, you look at what our troops have done to their detainees in Iraq, and you really have to wonder whether we as the human race are really all that good. It seems that if given power, we humans always end up flaunting it over other people.
Whether it be humiliating prisoners or developing road rage and cutting people off in your nicer, faster car, it appears we are nothing but bad, selfish individuals looking out for #1: ourselves.
I've been thinking a lot about whether man is innately good or bad, selfish or giving.
I remember one striking thing I saw at an arcade once where two guys were playing Dance Dance Revolution. One guy was a typical nerdy Chinese guy with glasses and the other was the typical hip-hop African-American guy dressed in Fubu and baggy jeans. It was amazing to see the camaraderie between the two, as they had mutual respect for one another, even though they were approaching the game from such different ways. And I always think about how outdoor pick-up basketball always brings all these different people from different backgrounds together. And they're not only nice to each other, but they're almost overly nice -- helping people up, slapping hands, saying "nice shot", etc.
But then, you look at what our troops have done to their detainees in Iraq, and you really have to wonder whether we as the human race are really all that good. It seems that if given power, we humans always end up flaunting it over other people.
Whether it be humiliating prisoners or developing road rage and cutting people off in your nicer, faster car, it appears we are nothing but bad, selfish individuals looking out for #1: ourselves.
"So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God's law; but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war ... What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God -- through Jesus Christ our Lord!" -- Romans 7:21-25a
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