I doubt it. Really, I do. In today's society, the word scandal has taken on a whole different meaning. Today, scandals are things that society would rather sweep under the rug. Here's a few: teenage pregnancy; child abuse; underage sex; mental illness; suicide... need I continue? Hopefully not. You should all know that society thinks of these things as 'scandals'. Certainly, many of these situations aren't necessarily good, but they're not necessarily bad, either. Let me give you an example close to my heart.
A good friend of mine is going through a really tough time with depression at the moment. She felt alone and lost in her murky world. So, one night, she decided to end it. I won't tell you how, only that her brother found her and, fortunately, it didn't work. She thought that, perhaps, after her attempt, people would listen to her. But they didn't. Even the doctor at the hospital told her parents that it was just 'a plea for attention' but he did stress the need to get her help. She is getting help, but it's hard to tell if it's working. She hides how she's feeling so well. You'd think she was the happiest kid on the block. But she's not.
Now, what does that story have to do with scandal? Maybe if society wasn't so narrow minded then my friend would have been able to come clean about her depression earlier and wouldn't have had to resort to an attempt on her life to get help. Suicide is considered to be a scandal. People want all the juicy gossip and damn the grieving family and friends. Wake up! All your so called 'scandals' are nothing more than vicious gossip about events which are affecting other people's lives to a degree that your worst nightmares can't imagine. So, next time you want to hear all the juice about the sixteen year old girl who got pregnant, think: Is this going to affect my life? No. Is gossiping about this person going to affect their life? Yes.
Or, let me put it you simply: Would you want someone gossiping about your problems?
Australian Kiwi
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