Silent Majority of apathy

T

TennVet

Member
A few years ago someone coined the phrase 'silent majority'. At the time I viewed it as a catchy sound byte. There is some truth to it though. The news tells us over and over again about the person being assaulted and no one helps. Even worse people pull out their phone so a video of the action can be posted, That same person won't lend the victim a hand or testify. Maybe when they were handing out brains, they thought it was for trains and jumped in line to get on the next one.
 

hollydolly said:
yep it's very sad, people are just not willing to help their fellow man any longer, much preferring to get entertainment from it.... which is why I was heartened the other day to see this....


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WOW I love that video. Even better is the fact that is shows good Samaritans of two age groups lending a hand to some elder citizens. It almost restores my faith in humanity. I hope that video goes viral.
 
The silent majority is an unspecified large group of people in a country or group who do not express their opinions publicly.

The term was popularized by U.S. President Richard Nixon in a televised address on November 3, 1969, in which he said, "And so tonight—to you, the great silent majority of my fellow Americans—I ask for your support."[2][3]

In this usage it referred to those Americans who did not join in the large demonstrations against the Vietnam War at the time, who did not join in the counterculture, and who did not participate in public discourse.

Nixon, along with many others, saw this group of Middle Americans as being overshadowed in the media by the more vocal minority.
 
Remember Kitty Genevese, it happened back in the sixties, she was stabbed to death while about one hundred people watched no one would come to her aid. The silent majority was a name coined by the Southern evangelicals Jerry Falwell I believe and Reagan's campaign.
 
RadishRose said:
The silent majority is an unspecified large group of people in a country or group who do not express their opinions publicly.

The term was popularized by U.S. President Richard Nixon in a televised address on November 3, 1969, in which he said, "And so tonight—to you, the great silent majority of my fellow Americans—I ask for your support."[2][3]

In this usage it referred to those Americans who did not join in the large demonstrations against the Vietnam War at the time, who did not join in the counterculture, and who did not participate in public discourse.

Nixon, along with many others, saw this group of Middle Americans as being overshadowed in the media by the more vocal minority.
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Okay, that was it.
 
Pinky said:
It's heartening to know there are others out there who will come to the aid of someone who is in trouble.
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Our next door neighbors moved in shortly before the man passed away. As spring came that year I mowed the adjoining portion of their backyard when I mowed ours. The lady told me I didn't need to do that, I think because she didn't want to feel obligated, which I understand. My response to her was simple, my Bible tells me that the men in the church are obligated to care for the widows and orphans in the congregation. She has aged since becoming our neighbor, but she still works in her yard and raises beautiful flowers. She now accepts my mowing without question.

I know this doesn't make me any kind of saint, Lord knows I'm far from that, I know also it has made us better friends. She is now comfortable asking for a hand when needed and that's good thing for her. She reminds me greatly of my own mother, and I get some comfort from that as well.
 
When I was working and I was walking to work, I slipped and fell. I had about three people just walk right pass me and not say anything at all...they were students from the college where I worked, I could tell. Finally, one young woman looking like she was on her way to work stopped and asked if I was ok. I was just flummoxed that three students just passed me by while I was on the ground and did not say anything. And nothing against students in general, because I have met such lovely and good hearted students at my college.
 
TennVet said:
Our next door neighbors moved in shortly before the man passed away. As spring came that year I mowed the adjoining portion of their backyard when I mowed ours. The lady told me I didn't need to do that, I think because she didn't want to feel obligated, which I understand. My response to her was simple, my Bible tells me that the men in the church are obligated to care for the widows and orphans in the congregation. She has aged since becoming our neighbor, but she still works in her yard and raises beautiful flowers. She now accepts my mowing without question.

I know this doesn't make me any kind of saint, Lord knows I'm far from that, I know also it has made us better friends. She is now comfortable asking for a hand when needed and that's good thing for her. She reminds me greatly of my own mother, and I get some comfort from that as well.
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beautiful story Tenn Vet - heart-warming - congrats I maybe you've coined a new phrase " the silent majority of apathy " and how many of us can really put up our hand and say "not me"? - no accusations just discussions friends!!
 
davey said:
beautiful story Tenn Vet - heart-warming - congrats I maybe you've coined a new phrase " the silent majority of apathy " and how many of us can really put up our hand and say "not me"? - no accusations just discussions friends!!
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She is a sweet lady, my wife and I both love her.
 
LoveTulips said:
When I was working and I was walking to work, I slipped and fell. I had about three people just walk right pass me and not say anything at all...they were students from the college where I worked, I could tell. Finally, one young woman looking like she was on her way to work stopped and asked if I was ok. I was just flummoxed that three students just passed me by while I was on the ground and did not say anything. And nothing against students in general, because I have met such lovely and good hearted students at my college.
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I've been receiving my healthcare for 10+ years at the VA. I am still getting excellent quality care and I appreciate it. Even though there are some on going issues that I am being treated for I felt that I am capable of giving something back. I have completed the application process that is pretty detailed to include a background check. I volunteer at the nearest VA Medical Center, when a fellow vet has a question or maybe just that look in their eye that says they have a question or need a hand, I have the opportunity to offer some help.

I'm not going to change the world with my small effort, but I remember the when I first visited that facility, with all its departments and people going every which way, I received an offer of help and it meant a lot to me. Sometimes it's just pushing a wheel chair, picking up and returning a dropped item, and the thing I enjoy most walking with to get to their next appointment when it is just a little confusing to simply offer directions, We talk and in that moment we connect, hopefully it helps that Vet, I know it helps this one.
 
TheOtherRick said:
Remember Kitty Genevese, it happened back in the sixties, she was stabbed to death while about one hundred people watched no one would come to her aid. The silent majority was a name coined by the Southern evangelicals Jerry Falwell I believe and Reagan's campaign.
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No one came to her aid because it was late at night in nyc. Many people opened their windows and everyone assumed someone else called the police because it happened outside of a large apartment building.

They interviewed people later to find out what happened. It was such a sad commentary on human behavior that it was written up in my social work textbook.
 
We love the town we live in! Obviously we were old, in our 70's then. So one day a few years ago we took our mobility scooters around the corner to look at a mobile home that our son might have been interested in buying.His scooter died so he he figured he could attach a rope to my scooter and pull him home. Bad idea, blew a fuse in my scooter and it appeared dead too. So there we were pushing the scooters home (pushing scooters is hard work) and it was just around the corner (a long block).At least 6 people stopped to see if we needed help. Now you know why we love this small town! Now we are in our 80's and have been helped by many wonderful people!
 
I think seeing and hearing awful atrocities on TV day after day desensitizes people after awhile. Everyone is just trying to survive this world and many just don't seem to care anymore.

There still are those who care and help others. I saw a news story yesterday where a stranger ran into a burning house and didn't give up trying to find a little baby. He brought the baby out alive. That's a good Samaritan.
 
The term "the Silent Majority" was coined by Nixon. Maybe the OP didn't know this because he was in Vietnam (thank you for your service), but that's where it came from.

If you ever visit the Nixon Museum in Yorba Linda, CA, you'll see some of the millions of letters the White House got after Nixon made that speech asking for Americans who supported the Vietnam War to let him and Congress know about it.
Silent majority - Wikipedia
President Nixon calls on the “silent majority” | November 3, 1969 | HISTORY

That was in 1969, and the NY Times and Washington Post had not yet done any stories on the Pentagon Papers or Watergate because those events (the leak of the Papers) had not happened yet. Pentagon Papers - Wikipedia
Watergate scandal - Wikipedia

The term "Silent Majority" is now actually rather derided by pundits because after the Pentagon Papers were leaked and the public could read about the generalized incompetence of how Vietnam was fought, many people see Nixon's term as the political manipulation of the naive public.

It's not the people's fault they didn't know. If the government is not transparent, how can we know?

This lack of knowledge is why I am SO critical of our major press resources. Like I said the other day, the online scams stealing BILLIONS from unwitting Americans should be front page stories.

They are not. Not in my region anyway. Were it not for Dr. Phil (which is now off the air in my region) and AARP Magazine, I would never have heard so much about these scams from my local news and newspapers.

Now, if you mean, OP, that a Silent Majority is against the recent college protests, IDK. I think I the public would need to be polled on that.

However, I do think the main issue bothering most people now is inflation. I don't think older people, non-college students, are as concerned with the Hamas-Israel War as they are with affording groceries, rent and to fix the car. Car repair costs have gone through the roof.
 
Silent majority - Wikipedia
The silent majority is an unspecified large group of people in a country or group who do not express their opinions publicly.
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Silent Generation - Wikipedia
The Silent Generation, also known as the Traditionalist Generation, is the Western demographic cohort following the Greatest Generation and preceding the baby boomers. The generation is generally defined as people born from 1928 to 1945.
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Very different things. The Silent Generation has never been a majority.
 
I used to think most people didn't care about others. I use a wheelchair, and almost every time I'm in the grocery store, people come up, and ask if I need help. Some won't take no for an answer, a guy insisted to keep loading bags into my trunk, after I repeated told him, "no, thanks". Then you do have jackasses. Hey, we're human, it comes with the territory.
 

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