We rant about "Them"

We are in a COVID-19 pandemic. In our area, we were instructed to practice social distancing. Pretty soon schools, restaurants, churches, and sporting events were shut down. When things started to get real here with government emergency announcements and mandatory quarantines happening, this was an unprecedented situation. Many of us felt anxious about the uncertainty. And a lot of people went panic shopping. Now there's no toilet paper on store shelves. Soap is in short supply. Food is picked over. It's hard to find feminine hygiene products and baby wipes in stores. Don't even think about buying cold/flu remedies or hand sanitizer.

Now people all over social media are belittling those who went on a pre-quarantine shopping spree. 

Everyone who went to the store that week will claim that they only went for their "normal" grocery shopping. Which might be true. But it seems that the majority of us bought at least a few extra items, and some bought a lot more than normal. 

Plenty of people are now ranting about the selfishness and foolishness of those who ran to the store to stock up on supplies, particularly anyone who bought toilet paper. But it is never ourselves who are the culprits. We place the blame on those people who overreacted. 

Now, I'm not saying it's wise to go to the store and buy out all the insert product name here. It seems a little selfish at face value. 

BUT I am here to say I think we need to slow down our judgment, show a little love, and give these people a break. When we rant on social media about how stupid all those people are, we don't really consider the individuals we are talking about. We assume we are referring to strangers - the stupid ones. But think about it...do you not generally post to an audience of your friends?? Maybe the thoughtless idiot you are referring to is actually your close friend, neighbor, or family member, who ran to the store in a whirlwind of emotions and now sees - and takes to heart - all of your vicious posts. Now that you've expressed clear disdain for their actions, they might now feel self conscious talking to you, knowing full well that you think so little of them - or you would think less of them if you knew their dirty little secret...that they bought three cases of bottled water at Costco that day. Will your friends feel dishonest as they guiltily "like" and "haha" your memes in an attempt to conceal their offense? As you point fingers at the ambiguous "them", without realizing it or intending it, you have burnt a bridge. You are no longer a safe person they can talk to because you have already judged and given your verdict. 

We should give people the benefit of the doubt, especially in a time when we may feel isolated and need each other's support. I'm suggesting that stress and anxiety - an emotional state - led to over-purchasing in many cases. It was probably not out of selfishness or disregard for others. We don't need to publicly pass judgment and continue to add feelings of guilt and shame on top of the distress that led to the panic shopping in the first place.

We are all coping with this situation in different ways. Some with denial, some with fear, some with anger, some with posting an endless supply of memes...and some with shopping and stocking up. We feel how we feel. We act how we act. We cope how we cope. Let's not keep blowing up about how people chose to cope in that moment. They may already regret their rash behavior. You don't need to now rub it in their face. Hopefully, we are all a little wiser about keeping some extra supplies at home, just in case. 

Furthermore, just think...when you need some TP in the near future and your panicky friends have an arsenal of it, do you think they are going to want to 'fess up to you and share? Probably not. They'll be too ashamed. These friends of yours will have hoards of supplies in the basement that they now feel too embarrassed to reveal. 

Let's be a little kinder. If we feel the need to offer a friendly reminder to our acquaintances through social media, please, let's be gentle about it. It is probably our friends we are posting about.