The Tipping Point

my mind moves in so many directions. one second i'm thinking about the word 'captive' and in certain contexts it seems like a kind word, but in other contexts it seems cruel and heartless. then in the next second, i'm thinking about this beautiful adventure and what my needs are compared to my wants. then the next second, i'm wondering if a riend of mine has delivered her son yet. in an attempt to calm my mind and focus my thoughts, i'm making this post.

shottie asked me to make a list of what i need for this beautiful adventure. since i'm not sure what i need, i'll be working on that list over the next couple of days and posting it somewhere on this blog.

last year i read the book, the tipping point by malcolm gladwell. it's an interesting little book which continues to plague my mind from time to time. tonight is one of those nights. the following is a excerpt:

In one experiment, for example, Latane and Darley had a student alone in a room stage an epileptic fit. When there was just one person next door, listening, that person rushed to the student's aid 85 percent of the time. But when subjects thought that there were four others also overhearing the seizure, they came to the student's aid only 31 percent of the time. In another experiment, people who saw smoke seeping out from under a doorway would report it 75 percent of the time when they were on their own, but the incident would be reported only 38 percent of the time when they were in a group. When people are in a group, in other words, responsibility for acting is diffused. They assume that someone else will make the call, or they assume that because no one else is acting, the apparent problem — the seizure-like sounds from the other room, the smoke from the door — isn't really a problem. In the case of Kitty Genovese, then, social psychologists like Latane and Darley argue, the lesson is not that no one called despite the fact that thirty-eight people heard her scream; it's that no one called because thirty-eight people heard her scream. Ironically, had she been attacked on a lonely street with just one witness, she might have lived.

i find it so interesting that when more people are present in a time of need, less people respond. it's sad that there is much truth to this quote, "the lesson is not that no one called despite the fact that thirty-eight people heard her scream; it's that no one called because thirty-eight people heard her scream."

with that being said, i'm going to make it as clear as i can what my needs are, in hope that someONE will respond. this will be made available thru the list which will be posted somewhere on this blog in a day or so. i want to take some time to figure out what i need, and make the list very specific. rick warren says, 'Nothing becomes dynamic until it becomes specific.' that's another line that has stuck with me for several years.

stumbled upon an interesting blog post. take a look here. 'I wonder what could happen if all of us who are the people of The United Methodist Church committed ourselves to do whatever is within our power to put an end to malaria.' it could be revolutionary!