Larry Manzanares
Rice was arrested in a state of drunken belligerence; if this is true, then she too is to blame for her demise, not those charged with protecting us from belligerent drunks. But we’re becoming a nation of people who make bad decisions, then expect to be bailed out with no cost and no consequences - think of those guys they couldn’t rescue on Mount Hood last December. Are we supposed to feel sorry for people who decide it would be great fun to climb Mount Hood in December? And we’re becoming a nation of people who like to blame anyone and everyone except the responsible parties - think of all those gullible, misguided Americans who believe President Bush blew up the World Trade Center, or those who believe some nameless cabal of white people blew up the levees in New Orleans. Have we always been this stupid? Have we always been so unwilling to accept blame for our actions?
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Or those "gullible misguided Americans" who attacked a foreign country supposedly because it has WMDs. And when no WMDs were found, they started making up all sorts of other reasons - bringing "democracy" to the Middle East, Saddam was a bad dude who "gasses his own people", etc. In other words, no one takes responsibility for an unmitigated disaster.
"Have we always been this stupid? Have we always been so unwilling to accept blame for our actions?"
Good question, Jeff - but I think you probably don't like my example - just a hunch!
Posted by drew on July 2, 2007 03:19 PM
While I agree with your general premise, Jeff, I find the example about Ms Rice a bit harsh. Blame the victim.
She made a bad decision as young people do. She was in a car accident and it seems to me that the medical staff should be held responsible for not discovering her rather serious injuries that ended up killing her. The jail staff should have been aware that she had been in a car accident. Maybe next time they will not just brush off her pleas for help as the ravings of just another drunk.
It is not SHE herself blaming others. Her family feels that somebody should be held accountable. Had she not been in custody, she might have gotten the proper treatment and survived. Maybe she would make another poor decision. Young people usually do and often learn a lesson from it. She didn't deserve to die because she made a poor decision.
Manzanares situation is different. As a member of the court I'm sure that he was aware of how the stories of people who come before the court often show up in the news. I'm sure that he was aware that as a member of the court, his actions would perhaps draw even more scrutiny, as some of us expect a high standard of behavior from those who are a part of the system. He knew what he was doing.
However, both of those examples are not of people blaming others for THEIR OWN actions, as they both are no longer living. In these cases, it is their families making the case.
Perhaps some other examples would have better served your point.
In anyones death there will be blame. I've seen it on the news, friends, and family. Even friends of friends. It's the regret of a loss. The coulda, shoulda, woulda.
Yes..even Clinton got the blame for 9-11.
Seems like everything that goes wrong someone is to blame. (or accused).
Good letter.