The many shades of Grey Jack Humphries

The epic battle between good and evil is often dramatized in literature, media, and even the news. The villain is dastardly and devious while the hero is made perfect by the end of the tale. This Light vs. Dark mentality oftentimes eliminates the middle ground that so many of occupy. In the real world nobody is perfect, just like nobody is purely evil. There are no dastardly villains for us not so perfect people to triumph over, and in the end what makes us view people as good or evil is our perception and lack of comprehension. 

Our perception of the world around us is the most valuable tool we have. No body can take away what we think and what we believe which is why our perception is also extremely dangerous. People have died because of how their actions have been perceived by other humans. For example take the murder of Trevon Martin a Florida teen killed in cold blood by the racist George Zimmerman. Or was it the drugged up aggressive Trevon Martin that attacked the protector of the neighborhood George Zimmerman. Our media spun the story one way, based on the perceived actions of George Zimmerman  and Trevon Martin. In the end though no one may know the full truth of this tragedy because there are two different tales that describe the incident. This goes to show that how events are perceived is just as important as the event its self.

 

Even more important though is understanding each other. If we knew why we do what we do, and who we are as human beings, all the violence, deception, and evil would be seen for what it truly was. Look at the Trevon Martin, George Zimmerman event again. If George Zimmerman knew Trevon Martin as a human being, he could have avoided his prejudice towards Trevon and conducted himself as a non-violent neighborhood watch member. And if Trevon had know George Zimmerman was a thourough neighborhood watch member who was just looking out for his community Trevon would have felt less threatened and could have acted accordingly. In knowing and understanding the motives and minds of the people around you, you eliminate the true evils of the world. You are able to deter ignorance and vanquish hate, because it is only possible to hate someone or something you don't understand. 

In being able to understand those around you, the knowledge that nobody is purely good, just as nobody is completely evil becomes evident. Even the worst criminals, and most hateful people in the world have some good in them. As well, even the most good doing people in the world have committed some level of ignorance,  or hate in their lives. The important thing to remember is that there are two sides to every coin, and that in completely accepting one, you end up knowing less about the other. This ignorance to the world around you is true evil, just as completely comprehending the world around us is truly good.