When Your Own World Is A Mess...

[Fierce Critter]

Just that. Do you find it hard to care about world events like wars, famines, tragedies when you're just maintaining & struggling with your own life?

Do you think about that? Does it bother you?

[BrassFusion]

That's a tricky one to answer for someone like me because I'm naturally blase about world events that I can't control. I mean, they disappoint me or piss me off, but if there's nothing I can do, I can't dwell on it. Regardless of how my life's going.

[Fierce Critter]

That's me, too. Even before the depression. I was more concerned with putting dinner on the table than what Country #1 was doing to Country #2.

Sometimes that bothers me. That I don't care. That I'm only, barely, the least bit interested.

But my interest stems more from thoughts like, "well, I guess this is going to raise oil prices so I have to adjust the budget for higher gas prices to fill the tank" than, "oh, poor Country #2."

[Homicidalheathen]

Yes. But then I watch people struggling in another country and cannot help but think I am being a bit too soft. Actually sometimes it helps me gain a perspective at least for a few minutes to see others suffering more than me. Morbid, isn't it?

[jadnifer]

When I am feeling that way, things like that affect me more. I get too emotional over it. It's weird in a way, but just how I am.

[kellygrrrrrl]

I think A LOT about the world.

It saddens me very much.

It is hard to see light when there is so much evil, despare, hunger, abuse, war, death, disease, global warming, animal extinction, forrests going down, pollution, homelessness, ignorance, impatience, need I go on.....

When I look at these as a whole, it really put me into perspective.

When I feel down about my petty things that I can't control....I feel stupid and selfish actually.

How I feel about my surroundings, deeply affects how I feel about me and my life.

It makes me feel very lucky, blessed, fortunate.....etc...

What isn't much to us, is a lot to someone out there suffering far worse conditions than myself, or you, or them, or they.

There is someone if not millions of people in far worse of a situation than myself.

Really puts me into my place.

[Gauge]

sometimes i wonder if i care to much, cause i want to be able to make EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE better.

[jadnifer]

Seeing people that are less fortunate than myself, make me realize just how good I have it. Problems and all.

[Onyx]

I feel momentarily bad for them, but here lately I try to stay away from the news more than a couple times a week. I've got way too much on my plate to worry about things I can not change.

[torn asunder]

I feel momentarily bad for them, but here lately I try to stay away from the news more than a couple times a week. I've got way too much on my plate to worry about things I can not change.

exactly... i don't watch the news anymore, and i won't, until they start making more than 50% of it positive.

[Marblez]

exactly... i don't watch the news anymore, and i won't, until they start making more than 50% of it positive.

Who exactly is "they"?

Might you be referring to "us" as in our society? And if so...what are "we" (meaning "you") doing to better "us" so that "they" can report positive news?

[torn asunder]

drama sells - but nobody can tell me that there aren't good, positive stories about human compassion, triumph, and good will. problem is, negativity & drama sell easy, and there's an endless supply, so i don't see it ever changing. that, in essence, is why i couldn't give a shit about the media - any of it...

hell, i don't even know if that answered the fucken question!?

[jadnifer]

exactly... i don't watch the news anymore, and i won't, until they start making more than 50% of it positive.

i agree with this statement. I was so fed up with the fact that they werent putting anything positive on the news anymore. All it was was about crime, mistreatment, and stuff like that.

like he said in another post further down, there is a shitload of stories that they could air that are heartwarming and positive, the people in charge of what they show just decide not to.

[BrassFusion]

Look at it this way, guys:

If there was an armed robbery at the 7-11 across the street from you, and a puppy was rescued from a sinking pontoon boat off Lake St. Clair on the same day, which story would you be more pissed off about not hearing? Which story, if completely unaired, would you even write to the local news station in a rage about not having heard?

That said, there's a lot of good news, but there's also a lot of negative news, and the negative news, besides selling better, people feel the need to be updated on. To some degree it's personal preservation- if I hear that there's been a rash of armed robberies targetting 7-11s, I'd stop going to 7-11s for a while- and to some degree schadenfreude.

But do we really want our news shows wasting time on human interest stories? That's what talk shows are for. Or "good morning" shows. Or reality shows, for god's sake. It's the job of the media to tell us what we don't necessarily want to hear.

[Steven]

I tend to vaccilate depending on where I'm at with personal things at the time.

there is a great big world out there all around us.

there is also a great big world right there in front of us, with plenty of things to address on a daily basis, and even that from time to time is a challenge.

still, there is always something you can do.

feed somebody. help somebody. encourage somebody. give something away. call somebody. pray for somebody. write a letter. send an email. give blood. give advice. give someone a ride. listen to somebody's story.

the world is full of tragic things, yes. but its also full of you and me.

[creatureofthenyte]

If there is something going on in the world, and you have no control or influence over it, then why worry about it ?

[Homicidalheathen]

Sometimes I feel this way and go weeks without watching the news but then people say I am shallow and don't care or are not informed. I once went almost 2 yrs without knowing what was going on in the world in my early 20's because I was so anti advertising I refused to read anything but a book or listen to anything but tapes, yes tapes.....not Cd's, I am talking about in the 80's.

I didn't even know we had elected a new president once until I heard someone talking about it in line at the checkout. I honestly thought the polls were so rigged it didn't do any good to vote. I was a bit of a paranoid extremist.

If there is something going on in the world, and you have no control or influence over it, then why worry about it ?

[creatureofthenyte]

I watch the news, just to keep myself informed of whats goin on. I dont let myself become emotionally effected by it though because that would be an unneccessary use of emotional energy. I don't really pay attention to politics outside of the news because most politicians don't give a damn about anyone unless there's something in it for them. As long as me and the people I care about, are not negatively affected by whats goin on in the world, then its really none of my concern.

[JaneDead]

When I am feeling that way, things like that affect me more. I get too emotional over it. It's weird in a way, but just how I am.

i am this way as well.

when i am already down/depressed/stressed the world around me and family/friends issues get to me MORE than they would normally. then sometimes i do just feel completely overwhelmed and sort of shut down i guess ... i feel the pain of everyone.... then i feel nothing... or some shit like that

[Troy Spiral (13)]

I used to.

But i think more recently my defense mechanism is to worry only about everyone else and ignore my own problems.

[JaneDead]

I used to.

But i think more recently my defense mechanism is to worry only about everyone else and ignore my own problems.

i do that waaaay too much. i think i always have. it is easier to try to help someone else rather than help yourself i think. i always know what to tell someone they should do to fix something or know what to tell them to so they can figure it out themselves... but i am pretty lazy about doing anything in my own life. not always but with things that are really big or life changing or will make things hard for a long time.