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We all like to talk about the moments and people that bring out the best in folks.
Those are the times when humans are lifting each other up, and we really shine.
There are two sides to every coin, of course, and there are just as many (if not more) instances that can quickly bring out the very worst that human beings have to offer – and 16 of those moments are listed below.
16. It can go to your head.
Power.
See it all the time in the military.
Just because someone is placed in a position of power doesn’t mean they’re going to be a good leader.
15. A horrible attitude.
People get real stupid when it comes to their kids. The “my baby can do no wrong” attitude when your child is f*cking sh%t needs to stop.
This is the worst, my family is friends with a group of families who’ve known each other for a while. We went to one of their birthdays and the youngest kid ran up and licked the birthday cake???
He was also overall being a little sh%t and everyone was laughing and all like “haha, that’s just his personality!” I got so pissed I wanted to leave.
14. Strike a balance.
Lack of control in ones life can lead to lashing out at partners/family/friends.
It can cause depression and a whole host of problems if you feel you have little to no control of the things in your life.
13. Even if it’s not worth it.
Scarcity.
Ugh. This 100%. It’s bad enough with concert ticket resellers but the scumbags will do it with anything. There’s a new Lego Bonsai Tree set my girlfriend wants and its her birthday soon.
It’s sold out. Everywhere. But there are 100s of them on eBay at inflated prices.
The top one has ’19 sold’ on it.
12. No consequences.
Anonymity. Putting a mask on, being on the internet, or otherwise concealing one’s identity. People do some very f*cked up things when they know they won’t be held accountable.
This reminds me of when Instagram introduced the Questions Sticker to the Stories part of the app in 2018. People thought they could ask questions anonymously, but the app shows you who asked the question.
I’d like to think that hundreds of friendships were broken that week when the feature was implemented.
11. We’re still tribal in our genes.
Not being accepted by other people. Social contact and validation is no different from food or water.
Yes, people can starve on validation too.
That’s why simple things like greeting strangers in the street, or always saying ‘thank you’ are so critically important.
10. Widen your circle.
Echo chambers.
It is easy to dehumanize people who are different than you when you never spend any time interacting with them.
9. Desperate times…
Desperation.
When I was a kid, prolly like grade 5-6, my mom thought it’d be a cool present to open a bank account for me with some money in it already. I was super excited to have my own card like a big kid.
My dad wasn’t in the best place at the time. My parents had divorced because he was going down a spiral of drug abuse, and my mom didn’t want me exposed to that. I saw him on weekends, but lived with my mom.
Fast forward to my birthday, and my mom put 100$ into my account, which was a HUGE amount for a kid. Went to make my first purchase, a game for my xbox360, card declined. Weird. Check my balance, -25$. Found out a week later my dad had stolen the money from my account to fuel his addiction.
He was usually the nicest, most caring, and funny guy out there. But when he got desperate, he’d do some really sh%tty things.
8. Right up there with power.
Money. The moment money is involved, a person’s true nature comes out, and most of the time it won’t be pretty.
This reminds me of all the people who lost their money due to lotteries because so many people thought they deserved some of it till the actual winner had nothing left.
7. You have to face it.
Unprocessed trauma from childhood. As someone that is struggling with mental health, I’m only now beginning to understand why I do a lot of what I do. When our needs for love and acceptance aren’t met, we seek out soothing behaviors that numb the pain.
It’s really easy to end up in midlife with no real idea what it means to be happy and feeling no connection to others. As you begin to work on your issues, you find that the soothing behaviors are no longer as soothing because you know why you’re doing it.
So, you’re stuck with the emptiness that you’ve always felt and no way to get out of the feeling.
6. All kinds.
Pain.
But at the same time it can bring out the strength you never thought you had, too.
This 100% it seems like pain can literally and figuratively make or break you. I have many people in my life with chronic pain. You’d be talking and they’d suddenly go quiet, or politely excuse themselves and later you find out they were in agony.
On the flip side, I’ve been waiting in the ER and heard people screaming and cursing at doctors for symptoms that the person I was with was feeling tenfold. Of course pain is subjective and all that, but definitely so is the response. I’m not as saying those that lash out in pain are nesseccarily bad either.I guess…
I just wonder what the threshold is? What would turn ME into a thrashing ball of pain and fury instead of the graceful martyr. Hope I never find out…
5. Especially this game.
League of Legends.
Something about that game makes people go ape-sh%t.
4. No love left.
Former Legal Assistant here.
I’m telling you, you don’t ever see the worst in someone until you’re in the middle of a nasty divorce fighting for custody of your children.
It’s horrendous how evil some people can be to someone they once loved.
3. We just want to chill, man.
Traffic, the after work rush home is the worst.
Everyone is tired, has generally had a bad day and will do anything just to get home and relax.
I-4 in Tampa is basically mad max fury road but with regular cars.
2. Backed into a corner.
Being challenged or “ganged up on.”
My mother will freak out whenever she feels like either of these happening to her and she starts screaming. At those points, it’s pretty much best to walk away and ignore her.
Though she likes to say I’m “running away” from her. I’m sorry, I didn’t realize that I needed to interact with your tantrum.
1. It’s hard to overcome.
Ego.
I definitely agree with these, and think that stress is really at the root of most of them.
What brings out the worst in you? Confessions in the comments!
