Today I wanted to share my thoughts and observations on things that have caught my attention this week.  All these things, whether in the news or around me, have made me pause and think.  Maybe others were struck by some of these issues as well.

1.  One thing I heard that shocked me was that the Today show this week chose not to air the 9/11 moment of silence ceremony and opted instead to discuss Kris Jenner‘s breast implants.  I found that shocking and really disheartening.  I’m not a fan of some of these reality shows (excluding the ones that are talent competitions) because I don’t see why following these people around is so fascinating that we pay them millions.  I still prefer watching people with talent or something inspired by creativity.  So maybe I’m more sensitive to this issue.  However, this was a critical day in our history and its anniversary deserves some respect.  Therefore, I think it was really pathetic that a frivolous discussion with a reality star trumped 9/11 memorial coverage.

2. Another thing I noticed was how people are treated differently based on appearance.  I mean I’ve always felt that the pretty people of the world are afforded more courtesies.  They seem to get more pleasant reactions from people and people often will go the extra step to help them out.  Yet what shocked me this week was that I saw a Kindergarten aged girl being treated differently because she is tall and big for her age.  She is a cute girl but she is taller than some of the second grade kids.  Her behavior of course is that of a 5-6 year old child but people seem to expect more mature behavior because of her appearance.  They seemed more put off by her immaturity and way of speaking than the other kids her age.  I actually found myself reacting that way too until I consciously reminded myself that she is only in Kindergarten.  Why is it that our minds play tricks on us like that?  Despite what we know, we seem to react on what we see.

3. The other hot topic that really got to me was the murder of 4 Americans, including our Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens, in Libya.  It was awful senseless violence by cowards.  The supposed reason for the murder was a movie made by an American that depicts the Muslim prophet in a bad light.  This movie has upset most of the Muslim community since it is disrespectful to show their prophet and especially with the lies shown in the movie.  This apparently incited many in the Middle East to protest and show more hatred towards the USA.  Protesting is acceptable but the violence is completely unacceptable and should be controlled by the leaders of those countries.  After all, those murdered were diplomats who try to promote peace and understanding between countries.  Sadly there are too many people who think violence and murder are an appropriate response to their anger.

I also feel that the maker of this controversial movie “Innocence of Muslims” was wrong.  I believe in free speech but I think that comes with some responsibility. I mean we should be allowed to say or show controversial things if there is some basis in fact or if we think it can help in some way.  However, just saying and showing things that are hateful and malicious is not right.  It is just gossiping taken to an extreme.  Look at all that resulted.  I’m not saying that this movie creator was directly responsible for the murders but he did know that he would anger and hurt a lot of people and obviously didn’t care.  He was also a coward who used a pseudonym and put this hateful material out there and is now hiding for his safety.  There is still absolutely no justification for what those murderers did.  But I do wish people weren’t so hateful with their thoughts or opinions.  Why can’t we all just get along???