A friend who is a student McNeil’s forwarded this to me. It came from a recent newsletter. They thought it was very strange to read. especially after several senior students have left him over the past couple years. Is this possible damage control before something comes public? Anybody know why he would publish this? I remember reading an article about one of his teachers on another forum who used to say"“The truth will hurt any man, whereas a lie will not.”
WE ARE HUMAN AND NOT PERFECT
By: James W. McNeil
Recently there have been many stories in the news about a young college student in NJ, who committed suicide after being cyber-bullied when a ****sexual encounter in his dorm room was secretly recorded by fellow students and then broadcasted
with insensitive comments online. The case has prompted much discussion on issues of tolerance, privacy rights and bullying. So many lives have been destroyed in
the wake of this tragedy. A young man took his own life; his family is
grieving. The two accused students are now suffering the consequences
of their poor judgment and their families are suffering too. Many innocent
people have been hurt because two young people made a
stupid mistake with dire consequences. The lawyers for these students
are urging everyone “to learn all the facts before rushing to judgment”
and released the following statement: “This is a tragic situation.
But this tragedy has also unfairly led to rampant speculation and misinformation,
which threaten to overwhelm the actual facts of the matter.”
Sometimes people make a mistake and act, not out of horrible intent, but
out of ignorance or stupidity. Many young people have made mistakes
that they will not repeat again. It is a part of life and growing up. Yet,
sometimes people may get hurt from our practical jokes or bad mistakes.
Maybe you said something you regret and hurt someone’s feelings, or
took something that was not yours, drank too much, or caused harm
physically or emotionally to someone else. Maybe you let your guard
down and you, or the both of you , made a mistake and your reputation
and respect was lost forever. The respect that many of us work hard to
gain can be lost in one instant.
So, how do we make it right? Do we learn from our mistakes and
can they be corrected? Is “I am sorry” enough? Not always.
Sometimes a mistake can be forgiven and other times it is unforgivable.
We may look back and wonder how it happened and why
– replaying the event: what went wrong, why didn’t we do this or
that? Sometimes you will never find the answer. And sometimes
things are not as they appear. There are two sides to every
story. The problem is that many times the other person
does not want to hear the other side.
The world is not perfect and we are not perfect. No man, woman,
or child on the face of this earth is perfect. We all will make a mistake
at one time or another in our lifetime. Some may go to jail. Some
reputations will be tainted forever. Some will be forgiven in the eyes
of others and some will never be. Some will be wrongly accused and
will pay a price. Many famous men and women throughout the world
have been caught doing something they should not have been
doing, even if it happened in their early years. We have kings and
queens, presidents, famous sports players, movie stars, government
officials, teachers, coaches, college students, men and women
from all walks of life who have made or will make a mistake or be
caught doing something others deem wrong - and it may be.
Of course, there is always someone out there watching for those
mistakes and those who will tell the world to hurt you, or even tell
a lie to make their story sound believable, no matter who it hurts.
Yes, justice may bring out the truth in a trial, but still his or her
reputation will still be tainted, even after found innocent. In
many cases the liar will walk away free and still be believed
by some. There are many good men and
women in jail today because they made a wrong decision.
Friendships can be ruined because of a mistake and marriages
broken because of a certain decision. The news media
is always looking for gossip or excitement. They care very little
who they hurt. They do it for a story, to sell books, newspapers,
or television shows.
This is especially applicable to martial artists. We have been
given knowledge and skills that the average person does not
have. This brings a responsibility to use our skills most carefully.
Our skills are not toys that can be used for playthings. Our
teachers, going all the way back to the founders of our styles,
showed faith and confidence in us as students when they taught
us.
We have an obligation to perfect our skills and use them to develop
ourselves as responsible adults and pass on our knowledge
to those who understand and appreciate this opportunity.
In this way, we can contribute to the development of the human
race. We must all think before we act and take into consideration
the feelings of others. But if we do make a mistake, remember
there are always two sides to every story.
