Outrage and Apathy

Trey Smith

The insidious nature of American Exceptionalism can best be illustrated by how far too many Americans view two similar events and yet have completely different reactions. In an article about the uneven cuts originating from the sequester, David Swanson notes,

Shooting children in a U.S. school is a crime. Dropping a missile on a foreign school is something more like law enforcement.

Let that sink in. In both instances, we are talking about the senseless deaths of innocent children. In both instances, we are talking about parents who sent their vibrant little ones off to school and only to return to collect a body bag. In both instances, we are talking about heinous acts that will scar families and communities for life.

One of these acts is deemed deplorable, while the other is deemed as little more than a part of "war". One of these acts generates compassion across the nation, while the other elicits little more than a collective yawn, if that much.

It is easy to understand why most non-Americans today view Americans with less than sympathetic eyes -- our sense of morality is skewed!