It seems to me that aspects of our population have become a bit unstable and violent. We hear calls for revolution and regular hatred for those we disagree rather than discussion and debate. At times this is manifest in ignorant reaction to life situations, at others as a lashing about in blind, violent, threat: "The FBI says it is investigating death threats made against the family of US army Sergeant and former POW Bowe Bergdahl. The case of Sgt Bergdahl has created strong reactions in the United States where former comrades have labelled him a deserter. A welcome home celebration was cancelled last week amid hundreds of angry threats to officials in his hometown and to his family, with some social media posts calling for him to be shot. The FBI says it is taking "each threat seriously". His parents have not been seen in public since his release was announced. Bob Bergdahl, the sergeant's father, has received emailed death threats, according to an Idaho police chief. Sgt Bergdahl - the only US soldier held by the Taliban after being captured in Afghanistan - was freed on May 31 in exchange for five senior Taliban militants detained at Guantanamo Bay in a deal brokered by Qatar. He is being treated in a US medical facility in Germany, and a date has not been set for his return to the US." My question is simple...Is our society sick?
No the world has always been a violent place. We just now have better ways of disseminating information which makes it seem like things are worse. At least right now we do not see rampaging hordes of barbarians bunring whole cities to the ground, killing all the men, and then enslaving all the women and children.
We have millions refusing to work and Rep. Pelosi brags that the left is freeing people from the drudgery of having to work. Yes, I think socialism is an illness and the infection has taken hold. All the leftists physicians want to do is bleed the patient.
I agree the post is an example of the sickness but not the content. I think people making the death threats are as stupid as President Obama was when he said he was going to bankrupt the coal industry. Desertion in war does tend to irritate some people and for some their reactions are unacceptable. But, does it indicate the entire nation is sick. No. The liberals and their agenda come closer to indicating the nation is sick. Well, that and reality TV.
I blame the media to a large extent. We use to have honorable and responsible reporting. Now it seems every News outlet is like the National Enquirer. When all you report is the wackos, the cruel, and the disgusting that's exactly what you will get back.
idont beleive anybody would question the notion that america is a sick society. we can all agree on that.
Yes we are a sick society, but either we combat the human condition with neurosis or we move to Africa, pick up a rock or machete or jawbone and start doing as we feel.
No but there are a lot of stupid people. My bet is the majority of the death threat mails sent to the family are from right wing nerds who play violent video games and with a passion for firearms.
I think there have always been a large number of wackos who had extreme opinions on things. Today is different only in the sense that we have a lot more access to each other now. A death threat in the mail used to be a serious issue because peoples home addresses were very private and the person writing it could very conceivably carry out the threat. Now days anyone with just a little IT training can most likely find a way to track down peoples email and facebook accounts. What might have been easily dismissed as drunken banter that never went any farther than mouthing off in a local bar ends up in peoples emails. Most people who exist in the public sector, even the farthest fringes of it, have experience with people sending threatening and insulting emails. I remember a local priest getting an average of twenty hate emails (some containing threats of violence) a day after she expressed support for Gene Robinsons election to bishop. So its not all just national high profile people that are targeted. The sick have always been here, technology has just given them a device to spread the ugliness in their brains to more than just their own friends and families.
dude. stupid poll options, but I appreciate you at least adding an 'other', as silly as it is. You're first three are effectually all yeses. No, the US isn't a sick society. A society isn't measured by a snapshot involving a dozen people, that's absolutely absurd.
Sickness is relative, not everybody agrees on what is " sick " and what is not. You can however judge the stupidity of people, because being stupid means do harm to others ( and themselves ) without necessity. My opinion is mixed, but those who wrote the death threat mails must be very very stupid people indeed, i don't know if such cruelty is even acceptable in a civilized country.
I don't know whether the question can even be answered properly unless a definition of Sick is given in context of the question
Your perception is an illusion based on the increased speed and availability of information. In reality, virtually every societal metric is at, or very near, all time lows. Murder rate, violent crime rate, non-violent crime rate, high school dropout rate, teenage pregnancy rate, STD infections, you name it. All at or near all time historical lows. Why, then, does it feel like that's not the case? Technology. 20 years ago if one student shot another student at a high school in Oregon, unless you live in Oregon, you probably never would have heard about it. Now, because of breaking news alerts, the entire country knows about it 20 minutes after it happens and Facebook and Twitter erupt into thousands and thousands of discussions and debates. Because you are aware of things that in the past you were not, it "feels like" things are out of control. They're not.
..and we have millions born 'on the dole' with silver spoons in their collective mouths, and millions more leading monopolistic corporations whose sole interest in life is to 'make as much profit as possible, by any means available', and DO exactly that daily. All the rightist doctors want to do is bill for MORE before they bleed the patient (the working stiff) dry.