May 02, 2006 01:01
What a coincidence! My professor was talking about how a lot of business ventures are more dependent on luck than anything else. His lecture was so close to the message of Matchpoint, that I felt like it was deja vu. I've always been a firm believer in self-determination, however, our lives cannot be solely governed by ourselves as we are influenced by our surroundings. Are these influences determined by fate or luck? I don't really quite know the difference between the two words, but I do know that either can happen for better or for worse and that is the reason for human compassion.
I was also listening to "You're Beautiful" by James Blunt. I thought the song was about him pining over some stranger on a bus for no reason. He said on Oprah that it is actually about his thoughts on seeing his ex-girlfriend on a bus. This got me thinking about whether two people that have had a bad history can truly wish the best for each other and that if they do, does it even matter? Since both have given broken promises, I am not sure if you can even believe the person, much less believe in them. Promises taken so lightly and broken so easily nowadays, how can you believe someone? Probably one of the most meaningful instance of this is divorce. The divorce rate in the U.S. is estimated to be almost 50% and still growing. People who vow to "love, comfort, honor, and keep" their spouses end up in court to battle over superficial assets. Since I am not religious, I do not believe that God will in any way smite you if you break these promises, but I do believe that it is morally wrong. A friend actually believes that a person should be punished for getting a divorce because you are technically signing a contract. Now, I don't believe that I person should be punished per se, since no one would probably ever want to get married. However, I do believe that this argument is logical from a legal standpoint. For example, if you sign a contract to pay rent and pay it late, you are fined a large sum of money. So, why is it any different when someone signs a marriage document "til death due us part"? How is it that there are no consequences for hurting those who you love and cherish most, but when you accidentally hit a stranger with your car, you have to pay money to make up for the damage? I don't believe divorce is totally damaging, and in some cases (after careful consideration), it has been for the best. However, I do believe that marriage isn't something that anyone should throw away so carelessly and the casual attitude that our country takes towards this issue will have consequences to social infrastructure.