The book is not meant to be simply quick and easy reading for entertainment. It purposely contains much detail, is meant to be informative, and seeks to fully expound, for the serious minded and concerned reader, a harmful social problem.
The author makes no claim to academic excellence; much less to what he sees as the over-sophistication of psychological theory. On the contrary, considering his background as a constantly assailed fine person he regards himself to be very fortunate indeed to have attained even one university level degree. Again, his prime purpose is to expose a serious problem in society. Clichés, colloquialisms, and slang are at times used because the writer believes they best describe some of the idiosyncrasies of the abusive people he is writing about and the satire of them in the everyday language of the people. Incidentally, many of these lower levels of speech are now beginning to appear in the latest dictionaries.
The book is written from the Christian perspective of the writer, in true to life narrative based on experiences and observations in several fields of life over a period of almost a lifetime. Places and people have been disguised for the usual reasons. Simple Latin names have been used for locations. Names of the fictitious characters of the book have been chosen for their meaning and coincide with their general character make-up. This was, more or less, a matter of convenience in finding suitable names, though it adds authenticity to the characters and the story. Some of the true to life stories have also been placed in either a fictional or a disguised setting.
The writer has no desire to harm any persons or organizations by this writing; only to bring to public awareness the gross abusiveness to fine, clean-cut, well charactered, often smart and exceptional people, by a very significant portion of society in all walks of life; to emphasize the magnitude and seriousness of the problem; to create awareness of how society generally is short-changed, crippled, made lame, by this strange phenomenon. In addition to establishing improved awareness to help curtail the problem, the writer also has a desire that ways be found to curb it legally, through litigation when necessary. Intentional infliction of emotional distress is illegal. So far, however, this law has generally been applied only to spousal and child abuse.
The fact is the victims of these abusive people presently have little or no way to protect themselves. It is hoped that public awareness, and where necessary and possible, a legal perspective on the matter, will expose the problem for what it is, a destruction, or attempt at such, of career, character, and personhood.
This book can be of interest to people in many occupations in life. Business, industry, government and education certainly can benefit from the understanding of how their organizations can be deeply affected, blocked and hindered, crippled, by the abusers and, as a result, have their better employees, customers or students damaged, stymied, or driven away. Hopefully too, the church will be motivated to take a much needed look within itself. Society generally, needs to be more aware of the problem.
Some traces and reflections of a previously written book, “THEY” Cripple Society Volume 1, will be found in this writing. Hopefully readers will be moved to read it as well. In the meantime this “THEY” Cripple Society Volume 2 covers what the writer believes to be the aspects of the problems that are the more damaging, and hopefully of serious interest to the North American scene.
Cleon E. Spencer
Chapter One
Collin Seldon and his wife Vita, with a spring in their usual rapid stride, and filled with joyous enthusiasm, once again walked up the city sidewalk, and took a right angled turn plus a few steps more to the glass doors of the Arts building of Quilibet University. As he often liked to do, Collin glanced upward at the impressive glass front of the several storied structure.
“Something majestic about its appearance,” he remarked to Vita.
“Quite a contrast to some of the traditional architecture and stone art work of some of the older buildings of the city,” she responded.
“Yea, but there is something about contemporary architecture that catches the eye with awesomeness.”
“I know what you mean.”
Collin liked coming here, and yet there was always that adverse factor that would put a damper on it if he would let it to any great extent. He would talk about that factor with his friend Owen Winslow when they meet here in the foyer of this building, in about twenty minutes, he figured as he looked at his watch. He had arrived a little early.
His wife departed for the library via an enclosed connecting passageway from the foyer to the separate library building next door, where she would await his return from the meeting. He then proceeded to the far end of the foyer to sit on one of the benches to await Owen’s arrival. They had met there many times during last semester.
Vita’s presence with him was mainly to accompany Collin in the socializing that usually took place at a nearby coffee shop after each meeting, but also to be with him on the long drive home after a sometimes very mind occupying meeting. Collin and Vita always shared one another’s burdens in a very compatible way.
As Collin proceeded down the spacious foyer, there were numerous people, students and staff, going here and there, criss-crossing the floor. Many were heading towards the elevators to go to classrooms on other floors. Some took the stairways, and some the passageway to the library, and of course some were on the way out the main doors, finished for the day.
Collin walked through the crowded foyer to near its end and, as planned, sat on a bench near the elevators where he would meet his friend and colleague, Owen Winslow. He was amused at the variety of reactions he received as he passed by the people in this one single space of earth. Most of them were preoccupied with their business of the evening and didn’t even notice Collin, or anyone much for that matter. Collin appreciated that. He preferred to be inconspicuous. But that wasn’t always possible for a person like Collin Seldon, not nearly always.
Some people in the foyer that evening looked at him and smiled, for which Collin was grateful and returned it. Others looked at him, and then as if in fright, looked quickly away. Collin knew that their problem with him was either shyness, or a sense of inferiority that had been triggered simply by Collin’s presence. Such people may or may not be a problem to him if he were to have any reason for interaction with them.
Still others looked at him with an instant sneer, or with some sort of negative facial expression such as a pushing up of the lower lip in contempt. The most emphatic of all were those who after spotting him, turned their head upward and away to the side with their nose high in the air-’with their nose out of joint’ as the familiar jest goes about such people. ‘I’m better than you,’ they were saying in effect.
Collin knew their problem with him. Among other things they hated him. He avoided such people as much as possible, for such hatred is often turned into either open or subtle hostile action towards people like Collin. In all probability such people would pose a serious problem to him if he had social, academic or business interaction with them. In some areas of North America, this problem is advanced to a destructive science, bringing destruction to innocent victims like Collin if they are not wise to its perpetrators.
Collin smiled to himself. Here he was in a university, taking a course in psychology, and yet even here little or nothing is formally known about this destructive problem and its drastic effects on society as a whole. Government, industry, commerce, education, the church, yes even this very university, all are damaged by this problem which can become vicious abuse, and yet it has never been publicly aired. In fact it is this very problem and the exploration of it in a support group that brought Collin here this evening. Owen Winslow is the facilitator of the support group.
And what is it about a person like Collin Seldon and the other members of the support group that brought on these symptoms this evening - these mild symptoms of a far greater problem. O vanity of vanities, if the world only knew, he mused, but society in general doesn’t know its full extent.
Collin, although approaching retirement age, still had a youthful and healthy appearance as he had over the years of