A CLOSER LOOK

Since the onset of the 21^st Century, the world has rapidly evolved into a ‘Blameless Generation’.

Almost NO ONE accept blames, there is always something or someone more responsible for the problems than one’s self.

It’s so easy to blame others for our challenges isn’t it? It’s quite simple to point a finger at the offending party and push all anger towards that person or entity.

For instance:

• ·         Nigeria blames President Buhari for its current economic woes. In our usual creativity, we’ve even come up with slogans like ‘Buharinomics’, ‘Buhariology’, ‘Buharistic’  It’s quite simple to say “This old man is just clueless! See what he has done to the country!”  That’s a great conversation starter any day, anywhere. 

Ø  In reverse, the Federal Government blames ‘The People’. They’d say stuff like “Nigerians are so much in a hurry, be patient, let’s fight off all the corruption and then things will get better. It’s not easy to weed out all this corruption that PDP has…etc” That has become a well-used mode of defense for the Federal government.

• ·         The USA blames President Trump for its current issues (there is something happening every day now). During the elections (and still), there were so many ‘hate Trump’ slogans and phrases. Americans say “He’s like a child! An entertainer! What does he know about governance?! Nothing! He’s ruining our liberal freedom! Dividing us!”

Ø  In reverse, The Trump Administration defends itself and blames-The Liberal Americans, The Democrats, The ‘Lying Media’, Obama’s policies.  Trump Administration says “We are doing this for the American People, they don’t see that yet, we need to ‘weed out’ all the unnecessaries, flush out evil, make America great again, we need to become strong like before”

• ·         The UK blames the EU for BREXIT. If only the EU had done more in unifying member nations and listened to everyone’s concerns, especially about Immigrants, there wouldn’t have been anger and resentment which eventually forced the UK into the referendum that had them leaving.

Ø  In reverse, the EU blames the UK. “What are they feeling like? Who do they think they are? If they want to be a part of the EU, they have to follow all the rules and regulations just as every other country. In fact, it’s the UK’s fault that the EU now has this current rumblings in the interior”

• ·         Israel blames Palestine. Where do I start from? SO MANY YEARS of land battles and mis-communication. In reverse, Palestine blames Israel. It’s quite a lot of story, you’ll need to google this.

• ·         South Korea blames North Korea “The Kim jongs are just a bunch of narcissistic, egotistical buffoons. They keep trying our patience with their nonsense!” In reverse, North Korea blames South Korea and the rest of the world for…whatever comes to Kim Jong Un’s mind these days.

Let’s bring it to Individual level:

·         Children blame their parents- they should have set them up properly for life; prayed harder, invested well, sent them to better schools etc In reverse, parents blame the children- they have done all their best, this particular child has simply refused to make it in life.

·         A guy blames his ex-girlfriend- she is the reason he can never trust girls anymore, she was evil, she toyed with his heart, so therefore all girls are evil and he  has now mastered ‘the game’. Then, the ex-girlfriend blames her first boyfriend- he broke her heart when she was quite naïve in the field of relationships. She has since learned and has chosen to be ‘the breaker of hearts’ instead, there is no trustworthy guy.

·         Students blame the teacher- he/she doesn’t know how to teach, he’s the reason they keep failing exams, they don’t even know how to construct simple sentences any more. In reverse, the teacher blames the students –‘children of today’ are no longer interested in learning, they spend most of their time on social network sites and search the internet for ‘dirty things’. No matter what you teach them, it doesn’t stick, they all want to become music stars.

·         The Pastor blames the congregation –they’re no longer on fire for The Lord! That’s why there’s so much delay in their lives. Congregation blames the Pastor –He’s no longer on fire for The Lord! That’s why prayers are not being answered.

·         Friends blame each other –“It’s your fault!” “No, it’s your fault!”

·         A lot of people ask God –Why can’t You just terminate all the bad people so everyone else can live in peace. REALLY?!  (Think about it, to someone, you might be ‘the bad people’).

And the blame game continues. The drama of “it’s not me, it’s you” is becoming our favourite soap opera these days. Everywhere you turn, someone is accusing someone for all the mishap in his/her life or in the world in general.

Can we let go of this mindset? (maybe just for today, at least) and look inwards for a moment. Look at yourself, take a really close look.

Ø  What have YOU done to make the world a better place?

Ø  How have YOU positively influenced others?

Ø  What good advice did YOU give to someone that changed the person’s life?

Ø  How have YOU helped anyone?

Ø  What random act of kindness have YOU performed lately?

You might think these are small things, but it’s always the little things that matter. A tiny spark in the bush can grow into a forest fire. That little step can multiply into greater good being passed on from one person to the other until mindsets are changed. Parts make the whole not the other way round.

It’s time to get off the train of “It’s them, not me” and enter the space jet of “What can I do to make the world or my immediate environment a better place to live in?” Sometimes we need to step in front of the mirror and talk to the image there, instead of turning the mirror to face others and pointing fingers.

There is a saying- When you point a finger at others; three fingers point back to you. Try it, point a finger.

Take a closer look now, look inside. What do YOU see?