Real Change News | Rev. Lang: Basic questions

March 17, 2010
Vol: 17 No: 12

Rev. Rich Lang

Rev. Lang: Basic questions

by: Rev. Rich Lang

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There are times when I get it right, and times when I get it wrong. In last week’s column I got it right when I talked about the real war being the class war. I got it right when I talked about the obese war budget and the amorality of the filthy rich. But I got it wrong when I talked about the moral numbness of the security guards who did not intervene while the girl was being beaten in the bus terminal.

A reader took me to task – rightly. The reader said that the guards were in a no-win situation. If they got involved they would be fired, but what they didn’t know is by not getting involved they were also fired. Who are these guards? Well, one thing we know is that they are not abundantly paid, well trained security assets whose next promotion will be the Secret Service. The guards are just basic folk who needed jobs.

I can get all righteous and bellow out that basic human decency requires people to intervene and damn the consequences. But would I be so confident if I got slop for pay, and few prospects for better pay elsewhere? Would I be so confident if I had mouths to feed at home, and was desperately trying to pay the rent and keep the bills paid? Would I be so confident if I didn’t have surplus to fall back on if I were fired?

The reader took me to task for holding the wrong people accountable. It was a system failure but I singled out a couple individuals who have now become the scapegoats, and today are searching for exceedingly difficult to find employment. I got it wrong, and I owe those guards an apology. I got it wrong to use their double-bind situation as an analogy of moral failure.

The reader went further and talked about the similar double-bind of bus drivers. Even as some bus lines become dangerous to ride, and even though sometimes riders break rules and act carelessly towards others, even then the bus driver knows that if they get out of their seat to intervene, their fate will be the same as those guards. And so the reader challenged me with basic moral questions: “What would you counsel them to do when trouble is brewing? Do the right thing and wade in, knowing their jobs and pensions are on the line?”

The bottom line is that we have a Metro-system question, a political question, and yes an economic question. And we have social questions of violence and why the incident even happened in the first place. We have questions about civility and personal character. All of these are basic questions. And there’s nothing like basic questions to knock me right off that holy high horse I often ride. I got it wrong.

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