Paying Attention by Shocking People

We stay in a world where people are constantly busy making an attempt to earn money to be able to improve their requirements of living. It’s like a rat race where we are caught up in all that we do without taking time to see and feel our surroundings. Human beings are very egocentric creatures that think only about themselves. It is often stated that find and understand true love one wishes to have experienced a heartbreak and for one to be able to succeed in what they do they need to have experienced failure in their lives. Therefore it becomes extremely challenging to get the attention of a person who is not fascinated or affected by what you want them to be aware about. It leads me to agree with the statement that you need to shock people into paying attention.

It becomes extremely difficult to get the attention of a person for them to be able to understand the message. Paying attention to a subject matter means being completely involved in the matter and not just seeing something and storing it at the back of your mind saying that you will deal with it later. It often requires stimuli for one to pay close attention and to commit themselves to something. People, therefore, need to be shocked to pay attention to something.

Environmentalists have been forever trying to make people understand the need to conserve the environment in which we live in. They have sought many ways to be able to convey their messages such as demonstration yet people have not been interested in their views. Governments have not been keen on the legislation that they pass which have led to degradation of the environment to pursue their developmental needs. However, once the environment began to respond to our unhealthy practices is when people started to pay close attention? Nature shocked us through certain natural activities such as global warming, desertification, climate change, and changes in the patterns of the seasons, hurricanes and tornadoes. It is only until nature reacted to our actions that people and governments began to pay close attention to what environmentalist had been saying. People have started adopting ways in which carbon fuels emissions can be reduced on the planet. They have adapted to the use of renewable energy sources and other means of environmental conservation to be able to save the environment in which they live in.

Racism has been a challenge that existed in the world for a long period. The black American people have particularly been on the receiving end of racial injustices in America since the colonial error (Lee, Georgina). Black people have been discriminated due to the color of their skin with most white people believing that they are superior because of the color of their skin color. This has been a problem that minorities have lived with, and those people who it does not affect have not been interested and aware of it. However, there has been a rise in the killings of black American males by police and other people and a rise in demonstrations and movements such as black lives matter that seeks to address racism. The black American male has always been stereotyped as been very violent and therefore a belief that one needs to protect themselves in their presence. The killings have however shocked people into realizing that racism is a problem that needs to be dealt with so that people can live together and not be discriminated by the color of their skin.

Many people are aware that they need to adopt a healthy lifestyle. A healthy lifestyle is instrumental as it helps to curb against lifestyle diseases that sometimes tend to come up in old age. People are aware that they need to eat a balanced diet and exercise to maintain a healthy lifestyle. However, the majority of the people do not maintain a healthy lifestyle; they wait until they are shocked by diseases that they start to check what they eat, some even wait until they become obese that they start to check on their weight.

Some of the governments are very reluctant in ensuring that their countries are safe. They do not adopt proper security features in their countries, in incidents of terrorism however they are shocked, and they start to ensure that they take the necessary precautions to ensure the safety of their citizens. People who view terrorist activities on television in the news, often are not alarmed by what is truly happening on the ground. When they see the mass execution of people, it affects them but only for a short period. When terrorist attack their countries own countries, and people whom they know are killed that is when they start to pay close attention to the security threats in their own countries ensuring that the government adopts policies and regulations that can protect them.

People need to pay close attention to what is happening around them. We should not turn a blind eye to things that we deem not beneficial to us or that are not affecting us. The most important foundations of humanity such as caring for other people needs to be restored. Paying attention to something without being shocked is therefore very important and can prevent a lot of catastrophic events. People need to learn how to pay attention without necessarily being shocked.

Work Cited

“Causes, Effects and Solutions to Environmental Pollution | Earth Eclipse.” Earth Eclipse, 2017, https://www.eartheclipse.com/environment/causes-effects-solutions-to-environmental-pollution.html

“The Nature of Modern Terrorism.” Huffpost, 2017, https://www.huffingtonpost.com/jonathan-r-white/confusion-about-boston_b_3128995.html

Chomistek, A. K., S. E. Chiuve, and A. H. Eliassen. “Already in young women, healthy lifestyle pays off for long-term health benefits.” J Am Coll Cardiol 65.1 (2015): 43-51.

Lee, Georgina. “How Many Americans Think Racism Is Not A Problem In The US Today? Four Graphs That Explore Race in America.” Channel 4 News, 2017, https://www.channel4.com/news/factcheck/how-many-americans-dont-believe-racism-is-a-problem-in-the-us-four-graphs-that-explore-race-in-america