From the mouth of babes--speaking truth to power

Choices and the Fear of Being the Victim

When thinking about a historical moment usually a divided world does not come to mind. The decision we make becomes historical. Alford writes that we choice; however, "we have already made the choice a thousand times before in similar, less dramatic situations, even if we did not know it at the time" (70). It seems reasonable to access that since people make decisions based on past experiences our choice is already made. As we mature and experience more we might make better informed choices, but they all stem from our morals and those do not change. Our choices present a pattern for our beliefs and ideals which we continue to follow in all our choices. Alford states, "we have chosen by how we have lived our lives up until this point., Then our lives choose for us" (70). All the past choices we have made we have made based off of our morals so when we are presented with a more dramatic dilemma our choice is already made. Our actions throughout our life become the basis for our choice yet now the decision is made unconsciously. It's as if all the decisions we have mold our think tank and it goes off of past decisions.

As Alford talked about siding with the aggressor, the reason behind it struck me as simple, but one I had not thought of. He says, "We don't help because we are terrified of helplessness, a terror that our competitive culture does little to assuage. Perhaps it is fear of being substituted for the victim that leads so many to side with the aggressor..." (71). I believe that most people in our society are afraid of becoming a victim. It has a negative connotation. When one thinks of a victim, you think of someone who is weak and vulnerable. Nobody in our society wants to be percieved this way. Since our society looks down on victims I believe this is why we do whatever it takes not to become one. Whistleblowers, on the other hand, are becoming the victim. They stand up for the others and instead of the others becoming the victim, the whistleblower takes the heat. The whistleblowers act of becoming the scapegoat establishes his status as a victim. The whistleblower is subjected to losses such as his job, career, home, and family, attributed by the organization. The losses inflicted on the whistleblower by the organization make him the victim. In the first part of the quote, I personally relate to Alford when he says we are terrified of helplessness. A couple months ago my friends grandpa got diagnosed with cancer. I see her grandpa often and look up to him. He works down at my barn fixing small things for my friend. When he came down one day, I noticed that something had changed. His face had lost the color it once had and he seemed in pain. He has choosen not to have chemo and I could see in his eyes that he had already accepted defeat. As I noticed all this I just wanted to leave. I didn't want to accept the helplessness of this man and I myself did not want to feel helpless. I think the two go hand in hand; not only are we afraid of helplessness but we are afraid of being helpless. I didn't know what to say to her grandpa because I felt I didn't have anything to say that would be insightful about what he was going through. I couldn't relate to his experience or his decision and that made me terrified because I was helpless

choiceless choice is important

choiceless choice is an integral part of what makes a whistleblower because without it, the one blowing the whistle might not have the ability to stand behind the decsion they make. In Whistleblowers, Alford interviews one whistleblower by the name of Bower, who concludes, "Im glad i didnt have a choice. I dont think i could live with myself if i thought i chose all this." (42) Choiceless choice is essential to the keeping of a whistleblowers own sanity it seems, and without it i can see that whistleblowing might not occur nearly as much, or that is would not occur at all. they need this assurance to stand behind their actions.

Jill Bolte Taylor's Stroke of Insight

In Precarious Life, Butler emphasises the tension and contradiction that humans face. She proclaims that this tension is killing. Quoting Levinas, Butler writes, "the face of the other in its precariousness and defenselessness, is for me at once the temptation to kill and the call to peace, the 'You shall not kill'" (pg 134). One reason explaining as to why people would do this according to Butler is vulnerability. However, I do believe that some people find others weaknesses and vulnerabilites, I do not think that humans have a temptation to kill. It is not as if when we find out someones vulnerability we seek to eliminate them completely. People do use others vulnerabilities to get ahead of others. An example would be someone witnessing a crime. If the person who has committed a crime establishes that the other person is a "weak" individual, the person who has committed the crime may be able to threaten the person who witnessed the crime into not going to the authorites. Butler goes on to say that the face that prompts the reaction to kill is also the one that makes us refrain from killing. The face she writes, "at once tempts me with murder and prohibits me fromacting upon it..." (135) It is easy for humans to make such choices such as killing when they do not have to look at that person directly. Out of sight out of mind relating to unethical feelings relate. Once you have to look at a person, killing does not seem like the right solution, since that person is like you. When we are looking at someone and they acknowledge us we can relate to them and feel their suffering. The story of the soldier not killing his enemy when he runs into him is an example of this. Soldiers are faced with this dilema everyday. It is a lot easier for a human to kill and not see their target. Looking someone in the face gives that person an identity; therefore, changing our perceptions about them and our ability to do wrong against them.