Rein on All Fronts
Yesterday, Weng Sor allegedly mowed down at least 8 people while driving on and off roads -even on Brooklyn sidewalks and crashing into a moped! It appears this road rage demon was out to kill, even saying at the time of his arrest, that he 'only ran over bad people - not good people.'
This was reminiscent of the Grand Theft Auto video game, except Sor was not a player and this was no game. It resulted in the death of one individual so far and nine injuries.
According to family members, Sor had a troubling history of violence and mental illness. Daryl Singer, Sor's brother-in-law told The Post.
that Sor's bizarre behavior dates back years.
"He just doesn't take his meds for his problem, and he starts talking weird stuff - church and God and Satan and everyone's going to get killed pretty soon."
"His mother's telling him, 'Stop it,' and he just rambles on."
https://ny.post.com/2023/02/13/
hes-crazy-family-of-crazed-nyc-u-haul-driver-weng-sor-speaks-out/
Peter Moscos on Twitter wrote:
"His son and his brother-in-law calls him crazy and violent. He knifed his brother. He's suicidal and living in a van."
In part because of Singer's quote:
"He starts talking weird stuff - church and God and Satan and everyone's going to get killed pretty soon."
I started to wonder, if there's any kind of link between this suicidal driver and end times eschatology.
You never attended Sunday school? Eschatology is the study of what Scripture teaches about the end times.
While I'm only speculating here, let me be clear that, I'm not blaming Christians. Like 99.999% of Christians (even if they are believers in end times) are NOT driving around, running over people in Brooklyn!
But would any A+ State Farm insured evangelical driver views overlap even slightly with Singer's quote, describing his brother-in-law?
Well according to a 2022 PEW survey, about four-in-ten U.S. adults believe humanity is 'living in the end times'
Spoiler Alert, I'm not one of the four.
I found a gripping article by Molly Olmstead in Slate.com 'Why Growing Parts of the Christian Right Are Convinced It's the Apocalypse'
Olmstead mentioned Zack Hunt, a Christian nonfiction writer/author of 'Unraptured: How End Times Gets Theology Wrong, of MAGA politics'
"That whole dynamic has been increasingly portrayed as this battle between light and dark..."
That has always been the context of end-times theology... So from Nov. 4, 2020, that battle has intensified. "The language you hear coming out of right-wing media is it's a battle of good versus evil. That's a ripe and fertile ground for end-times theology." said Hunt.
I read a posted comment from a political red Republican. Her words horrifying accurate to some of my conservative friends mirror this feeling of disempowerment and dare I say, a feeling of under threat. She's not in New Mexico but posted of her state's Attorney General's 30 minute slide show presentation, "They named everyone under the sun who's a patriot, as a potential domestic violent extremist. First they need to label (and) lynch all of us and then they will start their genocide."
Her words, not mine.
Heavy huh? I hope they took her car keys away before she plays Grand Theft Auto 2.0
Seriously though, if you're a hard working, intelligent individual, feeling oppressed what can you do?
Some suggestions are learn to take a break from:
-Social media ( You're probably temporary 🚫 on Facebook anyway). 😅
-TV., especially from talking heads commentators. Go a week without seeing MSNBC Rachel Maddow or FOX's Tucker Carlson. Remember they usually get paid to start up controversy anyway.
To restore and gain a sense of peace replace by:
-Listening to soothing music.
-Get outdoors for short walks.
-Get centered by reading religious texts.
-Volunteer to help others.
-Become inspired by reading about bridge builders and peacemakers.
-Practice deep breathing exercises.
Without using these, its easy to fall down that rabbit hole of cynicism.
Furthermore make a list of the things you have to be grateful/thankful for. Review daily. There's a saying, "It's hard to be hateful when you're greatful."
Try these tips for a couple weeks. If you're not calmer you can always go back to yelling at the TV.
Finally don't get behind the wheel when you're feeling aggravated, under assault or just plain violent. Our life is not a video game.