Victim porn, the latest addiction

In an interview this week on ABC's Nightline, Jesse James claimed he was physically abused as a child. So, is that supposed to distract us from the fact that he's a lying, cheating bastard? This sickens me. We have become a culture that glorifies victimhood, not taking any responsibility for our actions. 

I cheated on you = I was abused as a child, I have no boundaries. 

I'm an addict = I come from a broken home.

I'm a raging narcissist = I wasn't adequately loved as a child. 

I beat the crap out of someone = I was never taught to accept myself.

I could justify being a complete bitch to everyone I meet because on a Tuesday in 1978, I was spanked by my mother for misbehaving, which now qualifies as "physical abuse", and I never quite got over it.

You get the general idea... Whatever happened to: I cheated because I'm a selfish f*ck. Yeah, we'll hate you for a while, then we'll get over it. But this whiny, poor me, victim bullshit has got to stop. If you have issues, go to therapy, do some volunteer work, get over it. Stop defining your identity and your every action by some transgression you may have suffered years ago. 

There's a new kind of porn out there that's just as addictive as the sexual kind: it's called victim porn. You know what happens when you play the victim? You give your personal power away to someone else. You let someone other than you control your thoughts,  emotions and actions. Is that what you really want? 

Using victim porn to slither your way out of an embarrassing situation just makes you more of an asshole. Fess up. Face the music.  It'll only hurt for a bit, and then it'll pass. We'll be on to the next scandal before you know it.