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When provoked, be reserved. No one wins when confrontation escalates [1]

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Date: 2023-10-12  

“That was dumb!” “What planet are you from?” “Did anyone ever tell you you’re an idiot?!” We’ve all heard and/or said these or sentiments like them.

Do you ever stop to think about why it is that we at times stoop to such a low, if not the lowest, level of social discourse? My sense is that we engage in this practice because, when we do, we are seeking validation from another.

But, sometimes when we voice such sentiments we run the risk of getting or causing blowback.

Imagine you’re driving your car and another driver cuts you off. You’re reaction may be to flip that person off or yell at the top of your lungs: “You idiot!!”

Depending on the situation and additional factors, such an outburst could lead to road rage.

Which reminds me of the time when I was driving and I saw two other cars race past. It was obvious it was a case of road rage. I saw the two participants pull into a parking lot, and noticed one had stormed out of their car heading straight for the other, and that’s all I could see as I drove off. I can’t say whether the confrontation escalated beyond that. What I hope is that cooler heads prevailed.

My thinking is the whole thing could have been avoided had one or both of the participants not egged the other on, so to speak, which is I’m sure exactly what prompted the situation in the first place.

And, I know oftentimes the temptation is to want to engage if for no other reason than to demonstrate one’s desire to show off their superiority to the other in the warring faction and/or to a disinterested bystander. Which, for the party that comes out on top, is an ego-stroker or booster.

In my way of thinking, when provoked, it’s best to just let it roll off one’s shoulders or, in other words, just let it go.

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