A Scary World

I was inspired by a post by Jasim and decided to share my two cents not only about trust, but about the general concept of safety and protection nowadays.

I think we are living in a materialistic world where people tend to be more selfish and greedy and less trustworthy and decent. As a result, it is not uncommon that the percentage of crimes is growing bigger by the day. When people tend to think of only themselves, the world turns into an ugly place. It is only natural for a person to put him/herself before others. However, it does not mean to deliberately step on the others because after all, we are living in a world with people who do affect us one way or another. You never know when you need a favor.

What I said above reminds me of the Virginia Tech Massacre, because shortly after it took place my university decided to make changes to the security system. They increased the number of police officers and police cars that roam the campus, they added extra cameras, they started to send students e-mail alrets whenever a crime occurs either on or off campus. We get a detailed report about the suspects and the weapons in addition to pictures … etc. It is a nice thing indeed to see that they are making a recognizable effort to ensure the security of the students and the campus. Yet at the same time it makes me feel sad inside that the world is becoming more scary and anything -literally- can happen to any of us.

Taking a brief look at myself; I noticed that I have become an extremely cautious person. All the things I saw in movies can definitely apply in real life. They are no longer classified as ‘imaginary’ things that would not ever happen. I always make sure to lock the doors even in daylight, I walk while looking in all directions to be aware of my surroundings, I check the area around me when I am about to get in or out of the car. And with the recent campus shootings, I sometimes even find myself wondering about what I would do if I faced the same situation and preparing and plotting in my head.

Am I overreacting? All the things I mentioned above were at some point part of a certain crime in history. I do not think I am overreacting, I just wish we lived in a more peaceful world. 

Maybe it is just part of growing up and opening my eyes wide to see things I have not seen before, or it simply may be that we are living in bad times!