Writing through the Anger

There are times when venting and letting go of rational thought and behavior takes precedence over well-calculated reactions to unpleasant situations. After all, we are humans. The statement is valid for humans interacting with other humans.

We are moving rapidly into a world where such human frailties can be overcome by something made by humans keeping the human limitations in mind and attempting to overcome them. Not to say that we are making ourselves obsolete but more like pushing our boundaries of humanity with the help of some robust instructional self-evaluating helpers.

Imagine my shock when I was told to attend an anger management session for my little outburst at work. My view is no matter the human frailties, a low threshold for stupidity must always be appreciated, not many though share that same view. Hence here I am in a lobby of a swanky building, might I add with a futuristic layout on display, highlighted in bold letters on the brightest of backgrounds - 

Anger Therapy

 Here’s a little anecdote for anger management centers, knowing that your visitors are prone to little outbursts of exaggerated reactions, is it wise to make them wait and test their patience?

No sooner than the receptionist, too chirpy to handle people with anger issues pointed me towards the door and directed me to get in, I obliged and marched on in. To my shock there sat a lean arm with nuts and bolts with a large display attached at the face talking to me in a human voice, trying to make the whole scene seem more comfortable to me. Since when did a human interaction to comfort a fellow being got replaced by a set of pre defined statements and reactions.

As the question/answer session took a familiar pattern, the machine started drilling me for my responses based on my previous response rather than invoking new ones. I was sitting there semi concentrating on the finer details of the apparatus and formulating ways to dismantle it. Towards the end as the machine tried to wrap up the drive-through like the experience of a counseling session, it rated itself highly and provided an assessment for me to manage my anger and certify me as ready for work, the machine prompted a departing message - 

 Treat your co-workers more as peers/ humans.

The advanced systems still cannot define the stupidity threshold.