"Them vs. Us"

I spent a lot of yesterday sitting on the couch watching a marathon of TLC's "My Big Fat American Gypsy Wedding." As I was watching, a lot of what the people on the show were talking about seemed to have a "them vs. us" feeling to it. They spent a lot of time complaining about how they are treated differently by the non- gypsies in their community. I can see where they were coming from, you could tell that there was animosity between the two groups. But at the same time, the gypsies sat there making stereotypical remarks about the non-gypsies.

And that got me thinking...

I feel like that a lot of groups have a "them vs. us" mentality. Seems like most religious groups (including Christians and Pagans), ethnic groups (black, white, Hispanic, etc.), and economic groups (rich, middle class, poor) act this way. They sit around and complain about how they are treated by others, but in the same breath insult or make stereotypical remarks about those they are complaining about. In the end, those remarks makes whatever point they are trying to make less credible.

I am not saying that I have never done this before. And now that I am reflecting on it, it is something I hope to change.

 But I think that as a society we need to change the way we talk and think about people that are different from us.

We need to realize that those we are talking about are human. Make logical, accurate remarks in a discussion about other groups. Make sure your behavior reflects well on yourself before you talk rudely about someone else. Explore other people's cultures and values before you act "high and mighty" about your's. You could be wrong. And that's okay.

I think that maybe if people were to act kinder and think before they speak, the world could be a nicer place to be.