Yesterday LA posted about empathy and included the following line.
Someone asked me how I can continue to blog while the situation in the Ukraine is going on. They thought I didn’t care, that I lacked empathy…
LA
Today, I read the following in the Washington Post in the op-ed piece The War in Ukraine Doesn’t Need Your Likes.
Apparently, people find it impossible to take things seriously even when the times demand it.
Christine Emba, Washington Post
I get it. I don’t completey disagree with the premise of the op-ed.
Too many people use the war and other new stories as a desperate attempt to get likes on social media. Politicians use it to get press and votes. Businesses get press for dumping out the vodka and changing drink names. Meanwhile, most of us do nothing that actually helps.
I do have issues with the premise of the two quotes, though.
Me blogging and posting dumb stuff on social media does not equal me not caring about what is going on in the world. For some of us, writing and humor are ways we cope.
It does no one any good if I stop writing my dumb little blog.
It doesn’t help anyone if I stop posting stupid stuff on social media.
I won’t stop the war by not watching TV and sports.
When I turned off the news during the lockdown and started watching The Partridge Family on a random channel it didn’t mean I didn’t take things seriously. It meant I needed a break fot my mental health.
None of this equals not taking things seriously.
Yes, the war in Ukraine is bad, Yes, the people of Ukraine need help. Yes, many of us could do more. We all get that.
Lecturing us for also living life, writing, and laughing does no one any good.
The World's Common Tater 
I’m actually seeking out lighter distractions. That doesn’t mean that either those distractions or my enjoyment of them implies not caring about the state of the world in general and the war in particular. There are so many negative things going on that I’ve finally decided that I must be suffering a mild depression, or as a therapist long ago described it, a “rational” depression. Why should my (and your) way of dealing with this kind of thing say anything other than I need a break from all the awful in the world?
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It shouldn’t. People just like to judge. I guess it makes them feel better .
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You know I agree wholeheartedly. As someone pointed out yesterday…wasn’t that the premise of Keep calm and carry on?
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It is. I wonder when we stopped thinking that
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Right?
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Agreed. It seems you just can’t get away from depressing news. It’s nice to have a distraction. Doesn’t mean we don’t care.
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I 100% agree. Sometimes we need a break and our blogs are our coping mechanisms.
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There seems to be a presumption that if you don’t loudly & publicly announce your concern or support, then it’s not happening. I find that offensive, but there’s a whole lot of it about in these social media times.
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The main one I keep seeing on social media is the one telling people they are selfish if they complain about gas prices
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Oh that’s appalling. People really don’t stop to think before speaking (or typing).
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