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責任転嫁
責任転嫁
先月、コロラド州コロンバイン高校で
生徒12人と教師1人を銃殺した後、
犯人である2人の高校生自殺した。
なぜ高校生がそのような残虐行為を走ったのか
いろいろと推測がなされているが、
一番の原因を見失ってはいけない、と筆者は言う。
Passing the Buck
By SCOTT T. HARDS
As I write these words, America and the world are still recovering from the
shock of the senseless slaughter in Littleton, Colo., that took the lives of
12 innocent students. While most of the debate about the tragedy has centered
on gun laws and how two kids could get a hold of so much firepower, many
have struggled to answer the question "why?" What could have possibly
inspired two so young to do something so horrible?
Some think they have found the answer. The Colorado killings were,
unfortunately, not the first time a student has taken a gun into school and
slain classmates.
The family of a boy who killed several others last year thinks video games
are the problem, and has filed suit against Sony and several other firms
claiming that the games' violent content is what turned the boy into a
murdering monster.
If my child had been one of the boy's victims, the filing of such a
lawsuit would have caused my blood to boil. To me, such an action represents
the ultimate denial of responsibility.
While there's no denying that violent video games may have played some
kind of role, their impact on the boy's life and personality are trivial compared to that of the parents who raised him. It is they who must accept
responsibility for their failure to bring up a boy who had even a remote
understanding of the value of human life — not video game makers, not gun
manufacturers. But perhaps this reality is too heavy for them to bear, and
they seek to shift responsibility away from themselves, to "pass the
buck" as we say.
Frankly, if there are any lawsuits to be filed from incidents like this,
they should be filed by the victims against the parents of the boy
responsible, charging them with failing to fulfill their duty to
properly educate and supervise their child.
Americans seem to be good at passing the buck, or at least that's what
recent newspaper stories suggest. One doesn't have to wait long to see a
story in the media about Americans and how they continue to grow fatter
every year. Experts say now that nearly half of Americans are over their
recommended weight, and nearly one-third are medically obese. I even read
recently about how some movie theaters in the United States are starting to
install special wide seating to accommodate those folks whose bottoms won't fit into the standard 18-inch (45.72-cm) chairs!
However, despite the fact that Americans are, by far, heavier than any
other nation's people, there is no shortage of excuses from the obese as to
how they got into their current condition. "My family is big-boned." "I
have slow metabolism." "I don't have time to exercise." It's hard to find
someone who will confess honestly, "I'm fat because I eat too much."
People are not even willing to take responsibility for what they put in their
own mouths.
Being able to accept responsibility for one's own actions and failures is a
key part of being what's usually referred to as "mature." By that
standard, it seems that U.S. society as a whole still has a lot of growing up
to do. Until we learn to say, "The buck stops here," we'll keep getting
fatter, keep killing kids, and keep on perpetuating a host of other
societal ills because we refuse to recognize their real cause — ourselves.
As I write these words, America and the world are still recovering from the
shock of the senseless slaughter in Littleton, Colo., that took the lives of
12 innocent students. While most of the debate about the tragedy has centered
on gun laws and how two kids could get a hold of so much firepower, many
have struggled to answer the question "why?" What could have possibly
inspired two so young to do something so horrible?
Some think they have found the answer. The Colorado killings were,
unfortunately, not the first time a student has taken a gun into school and
slain classmates.
The family of a boy who killed several others last year thinks video games
are the problem, and has filed suit against Sony and several other firms
claiming that the games' violent content is what turned the boy into a
murdering monster.
If my child had been one of the boy's victims, the filing of such a
lawsuit would have caused my blood to boil. To me, such an action represents
the ultimate denial of responsibility.
While there's no denying that violent video games may have played some
kind of role, their impact on the boy's life and personality are trivial compared to that of the parents who raised him. It is they who must accept
responsibility for their failure to bring up a boy who had even a remote
understanding of the value of human life — not video game makers, not gun
manufacturers. But perhaps this reality is too heavy for them to bear, and
they seek to shift responsibility away from themselves, to "pass the
buck" as we say.
Frankly, if there are any lawsuits to be filed from incidents like this,
they should be filed by the victims against the parents of the boy
responsible, charging them with failing to fulfill their duty to
properly educate and supervise their child.
Americans seem to be good at passing the buck, or at least that's what
recent newspaper stories suggest. One doesn't have to wait long to see a
story in the media about Americans and how they continue to grow fatter
every year. Experts say now that nearly half of Americans are over their
recommended weight, and nearly one-third are medically obese. I even read
recently about how some movie theaters in the United States are starting to
install special wide seating to accommodate those folks whose bottoms won't fit into the standard 18-inch (45.72-cm) chairs!
However, despite the fact that Americans are, by far, heavier than any
other nation's people, there is no shortage of excuses from the obese as to
how they got into their current condition. "My family is big-boned." "I
have slow metabolism." "I don't have time to exercise." It's hard to find
someone who will confess honestly, "I'm fat because I eat too much."
People are not even willing to take responsibility for what they put in their
own mouths.
Being able to accept responsibility for one's own actions and failures is a
key part of being what's usually referred to as "mature." By that
standard, it seems that U.S. society as a whole still has a lot of growing up
to do. Until we learn to say, "The buck stops here," we'll keep getting
fatter, keep killing kids, and keep on perpetuating a host of other
societal ills because we refuse to recognize their real cause — ourselves.
Shukan ST: May 14, 1999
(C) All rights reserved
- senseless slaughter
- 無意味な殺りく
- get a hold of 〜
- 〜 を手に入れる
- firepower
- 武器
- have struggled
- 苦心してきた
- (have)inspired 〜 to 〜
- 〜 を刺激して 〜 させた
- (has)slain
- 殺害した
- has filed suit against 〜
- 〜 を告訴した
- claiming that 〜
- 〜 だと主張して
- violent content
- 暴力的な内容
- what turned 〜 into 〜
- 〜 を 〜 に変えたもの
- victims
- 犠牲者
- filing of such a lawsuit
- そのような訴訟
- would have caused my blood to boil
- 私を憤激させただろう
- represents
- 示す
- ultimate denial
- まったくの否認
- there's no denying that 〜
- 〜 であることは否定できない
- may have played some kind of role
- なんらかの役割を果たしたかもしれない(事件の一因となったかもしれない)
- trivial
- ほんのささいなこと
- bring up
- 育てる
- 〜 who had even a remote understanding of 〜
- 〜 に対する理解をほんの少しでも持ち合わせている 〜
- gun manufacturers
- 銃器製造会社
- bear
- 耐える
- shift 〜 away from 〜
- 〜 を 〜 以外のものに転嫁する
- charging 〜 with 〜
- 〜 に 〜 の責任を負わせる
- fulfill their duty
- 義務を果たす
- supervise
- 監督する
- One doesn't have to wait long to see 〜 in 〜
- 〜 には 〜 があふれている。
- Experts
- 専門家
- recommended weight
- 理想体重
- medically obese
- 医学的に見て肥満体である
- install
- 設置する
- accomodate
- 収容する
- folks
- 人々
- bottoms
- お尻
- by far
- 断然
- there is no shortage of excuses from the obese
- 肥満者による言い訳は後を絶たない
- as to 〜
- 〜 に関して
- how they into their current condition
- どのようにして今の状態(肥満体)になったのか
- big-boned
- 骨太の
- metabolism
- 新陳代謝
- confess
- 認める
- (what's)referred to as 〜
- 〜 と呼ばれていること
- mature
- 成熟した、大人の
- has a lot of growing up to do
- もっと成長しなければならない
- keep on perpetuating 〜
- 〜 をいつまでも続ける
- a host of 〜
- 多数の 〜
- societal ills
- 社会の不幸