Tag Archive for: human emotions

My Thoughts: Rifqa Bary

When I watch Rifqa Bary in the first few seconds of this video, her behavior changes from a happy “Hi” to this supposedly scared young girl. These two behaviors are very contradictory and my first red flag. It’s as if Rifqa didn’t notice the camera and when she did, she slinks down into an act.

When the reporter asks Rifqa what is going on, Rifqa’s demeanor changes again. Notice how she immediately looks down as she starts talking, “Well, ah…I’m a Christian and uh, my parents are Muslim, they’re extremely devout…”

Read moreNotice she shows no sign or indication of fear at all? She doesn’t show any signs or indication of stress either at this point. As a matter of fact, she continually flashes smiles throughout this video and even breaks down at one point in laughter when she says, “…I don’t know if you know about honor killing, but this faith, that the…you guys don’t understand…”.

When you are scared out of your mind that someone might kill you, you don’t smile. It’s a complete contradiction. Also, notice how when she talks and gets rolling, she isn’t scared at all as the man in the video first said? She rather seems to enjoy the attention at times.

When Rifqa says, as she buries her face in the man’s chest standing next to her, “They don’t understand”, her voice is indicative of a classic whine. There are no tears, and she is not crying, yet her shoulders shake as if she is. The actual act of crying would cause Rifqa body to shake, yet she isn’t crying. There are absolutely no tears whatsoever. One plus one doesn’t equal two here. Notice how Rifqa doesn’t want you to see her face when she pouts like this? Has she been called out on her “crying episodes” before?

In the middle of her crying, she breaks out into a laugh again when she says, “I can’t go back to Ohio.” She holds back laughter just after this as well.

Notice how she rambles on? When people are deathly afraid, they typically shut down. It’s not common for people to ramble in a state of true deep fear–especially fear that one’s life is stake. It’s notably odd here. I would agree that she is nervous here, but that could be for a variety other of reasons.

I find it fascinating that she put her beliefs on Facebook, if she truly believed such knowledge could cause her father to kill her. She was willing to go public on Facebook without fear of being killed? This again is a complete contradiction. And now she seems to think if she stays in Florida that she will be safe? If her father “has to kill her”, would she be safe anywhere?

I find it interesting how she says her father “was about to me beat me.” Obviously, he didn’t lay a hand on her, but it sure makes him sound bad doesn’t it?

Rifqa says, “I snuck out to Christian prayer meetings in fear of my life.” Does this make any sense? If she is afraid for her life, why would she do this now? Ironically, if you listen, Rifqa tells us her dad knew about her religious views for some time, because supposedly he enrolled her in “class after class after class” hoping to convert her back to Islam. When you realize her dad knew about this for some time, and Rifqa refused to respect her dad’s wishes, you have question, is this fear of religious persecution or a battle of the wills between a teenage daughter and her father? It’s obvious she knew her dad disapproved and she continued anyway. Where was her fear of being killed then? What caused her to change?

Notice how Rifqa’s behavior is very different as she tells us what I suspect are true facts about how she hitch-hiked to a bus station. Rifqa says, “I got a ticket to Florida because I had met them through a prayer (unintelligible) on Facebook…” [I’m curious, who bought that ticket– the Florida pastor?]Notice how Rifqa makes normal eye contact when she says that? When she gives these details, her demeanor changes a 180 degrees. That’s what makes her other behavior even more outstanding.

Look at her smile when she says, “Imagine the honor in killing me.”

I also noticed how when she says either they will kill her or send her to an asylum, when she says “asylum” the first time, she says it as a question. We can’t see her face, but it appears she is looking for confirmation from the man in front of her, who is being represented as an expert, if it is, in fact, an asylum. She then repeats the word “asylum” again as a statement. This suggests that her dad didn’t tell her this, it is these men in her life (standing beside her and in front of her now), who brought her to Florida, that likely introduced her to some aspects of this concept. That’s scary and indicative of brainwashing!

The reporter then says, “Do you really think this is true or just a threat?” Watch Rifqa smile and laugh nervously. Where is her fear?? Notice she doesn’t answer the question.

Rifqa starts her whine again, “I am one of hundreds.” She talks faster and tries to get more convincing, but she is lacking any emotional support to her claims. She continually laughs over and over again, and worse she keeps looking to this man off camera in front of her, who is supposedly knowledgeable on this for support. If she truly believed this, should wouldn’t need his affirmation, but she keeps visually seeking it.

I personally do not believe Rifqa is being sincere with us. I also question the motives of the people who are supposedly “helping her”. Regardless of all of this, I do think it is prudent an investigation take place to ensure all appropriate steps are taken as a precaution, because “honor killings” are real and do go on in the world, though it is rare in the U.S. (though have occured).

I hope for Rifqa’s sake, too, that she is simply crying wolf.

Obama in Italty Photo Interpretation

 

Photo Not Available

What is interesting about this expression of Obama is that I don’t believe there is one universal meaning for it. It’s a forced expression. It could represent several things.

I could see the following being applicable to this photo with Obama thinking any of the following:

  • “What do you think of this?”
  • “Check it out, pretty cool, eh?”
  • “Not bad”
  • “Not bad. I like it!”
  • “Wow. That’s pretty awesome.”
  • “Cool.”

I don’t think there is one right answer here.

I think for me, I would interpret the photo to mean, “Not bad. I like it!”. I see positive emotions and not negative emotions. As some of you pointed out in the comment section in the previous post, if there was disapproval, I suspect the eyebrows would be lowered, or perhaps there would be wrinkles on the forehead (more pronounced).

*Please note, I have not studied facial expressions. For me, I have an intuitive sense of understanding and I am not always good at breaking down the details as to why I feel what I feel.

The Fog of Emotions

Stressed Woman Holding Head

I have mentioned several times on my blog about how emotions can interfere with anyone’s ability to see the truth. If you are human, you are prone to this quagmire. I’ve written about it here and here.

I’ve always said that if I am emotionally involved in a situation, that is when my “lie-dar”, as I call it, jams up and becomes unreliable. Of course, that is nothing specific to me. It applies to every one of us.

Read moreIt is during these times, that I have become very aware to not trust myself. If I am emotional, I will defer judgement on just about anything until a later time when I feel I am in a logical frame of mind.

But what I didn’t know is that emotional turmoil can also impact our abilities longer term. Seven weeks ago, my life started on a roller coaster path, which has just recently subsided, and I am surprised at how it has affected me over these weeks, and it is still not yet resolved.

During the height of my emotions, naturally I couldn’t focus on things because I was distraught, but now that I have gotten myself back on track, I am still not able to see the truth with the clarity I once had. It’s like a flu, I suspect, and until I get myself back into a normal routine and find peace again, I am going to have be cautious.

I just never knew that our emotional well being could affect our judgment for such a duration of time. I understood minutes, hours and even days, but never weeks. This is the first upheaval in my life since I started blogging over four and a half years ago, and I am astounded at how it has impacted my clarity.

Where I used to be able to sit down and identify a truth teller in seconds to minutes, now I can’t. Sometimes I can’t do it for days. Other times, my clarity returns and I feel it is back, only to find the next day, it left again. It’s like a flu, that must run its course, and so I patiently wait.

I promise to only write when I have moments of clarity, but if I don’t respond to a request in a timely manner, you’ll know why–at least for the time being. My emotions aren’t settled back into place and they are still affecting my clarity. After all, I am human: Very human.

Rodriguez, Suleman and Captain Sully

I don’t think it is any surprise, I’m a people watcher. I love to watch people, and with that, I’ve learned a few things over the years that I thought I would share with you!

Read moreHave you ever considered that arrogant people tend to be deceptive more than the average person? That is not to say that all arrogant people lie, or all liars are arrogant. It is just one trait that instantly puts me on notice. Another trait that makes me cautious is a lack of compassion. People who are unable to feel for other people are more prone to lying. Without compassion, one has more potential to do harm. Paying close attention to this could save you from becoming another victim of deceit, or worse.

Arrogant people are pretentious and seem to have a superiority complex about them. I believe arrogance actually comes from feelings of insecurity. Arrogant people, deep down inside, don’t feel worthy, so they feign confidence, resulting in arrogance. Therefore, lying in these circumstances is not a far-fetched concept.

Look at Alex Rodriguez. When he confessed to using steroids a few weeks back, the arrogant and staunch man we saw in 2007 was suddenly gone. Now before us was a much more humbled man. The change is notable (though I would not call Rodriguez humble by any means).

Look at Nadya Suleman with her 14 children. She shows a total disregard for her entire family. Not only did she show no compassion for her children and their needs, she has put all her responsibilities on her aging mother. Worse, without any way to care for or support her children, she decided to have more. This shows a complete disregard and lack of compassion for anyone. With that, we know Suleman has a much higher propensity to be deceptive, or worse. As a general rule, Suleman is not someone I would trust.

On the flip side, however, confident people are self-assured. They know their strengths are solid and they have no need to over-inflate anything. Their confidence comes deep from within. Add to confidence, a sense of humility, and you have the opposite of arrogance. You have the traits of someone who is most likely going to be very trustworthy and moreover, compassionate. Think about Captain “Sully”, from U.S. Airways flight 1549. He is confident, self-assured, and exceptionally humble. He also demonstrated amazing compassion. Captain Sully, even before his heroic landing, is someone who I would have implicitly trusted.