Week Eleven

               This week in the discussion post, I related a story about KKK activity that occurred on my campus. I had nearly forgotten about that incident until I read the chapter and that story came to mind. The “Culture of Distraction” that Loeb shares in this chapter is so evident to me after reading the chapter. One thing that I really like about technology these days is the easy and immediate access. At the same time though, the easy access can prove to be such a major distraction. For example, I am on my cell phone so much throughout the day. I can get on Facebook, check my e-mail, text friends, etc. At the same time, I can use my cell phone to keep abreast of current events and news. I rarely chose to do this. I often chose to allow so many different things to distract me from what is going on in the world. This past weekend I attempted to drive back to my undergraduate institution for an annual event that hosted by a student group on my campus. From Memphis to Normal, Il it is about a six hour drive. About two hours into the drive, I realized how immensely bored I was in the car by myself. My radio began losing its signal and I had nothing to occupy my time. I think that those six hours of driving was the longest amount of time I had spent by myself in several months. I text a friend later that night and I shared with him that I hated not having anything to distract me while I was driving. As we talked about it, he shared an idea with me that I felt was really true. He shared with me that he thinks people often times find different ways to distract themselves because they don’t want to spend alone time with themselves. TV, computers, games, cell phones, etc. serve as a distraction from dealing with the major issues in their lives that they want to avoid. I realized how true that was. In our society, it is very easy to become distracted. Reality TV, movies, books, Facebook, Twitter, etc. all become an easy escape. I realize that I log into Facebook several times a day to read other people’s status and engage myself in their drama so I won’t have to deal with my own personal issues. Watching reality TV or stay abreast of the latest drama in a celebrity’s life is far more interesting than dealing with the issues in my own community. I thought that this chapter was very enlightening for me because I was able to see how I allow distractions in my life to limit my ability to make changes in my personal community. As Loeb shared, it is so much easier to deal with the superficial. Dealing with the real issues forces you to take a good look at yourself and the role that you play in problem or the role you can potentially play in the solution.