IMPULSE DRIVEN SOCIETY

We have many times heard people say something like “I had an impulse to do it!” or “I couldn’t control a sudden impulse...” or something like this. Sometimes, people even say something like: “He or She is an impulsive person” or “... acts impulsively”. So, how good is it to let our impulses make us react or do things? Well, the answer may actually be too obvious to many who are reading this now. A lot of times, it’s frequent to hear that people regret once they have acted under an impulse; though, every so often others may say that doing so was not that regrettable at all. This last group thinks that it was a pleasant experience in their lives to have followed a sudden impulse.

So, again, is it wise to act impulsively? When are people more prone to do it? What are the results/consequences of it? Is it not this impulsive behaviour to which we normally claim responsibility for misfortune, accidents, or even crime? And, how possible is it to (and when can we) control our impulses? We may have a variety of answers to these questions. However, I can see that some people end up cheating on their couples, having sexual intercourse with someone they have just met, beating and hitting others, disrespecting the authorities, causing damage to themselves, crashing, looking ridiculous, and doing crazy things; all this, under the effect of an impulse or an impulsive life. And, it seems to be that society has always had some “helpers” to make us act by certain kind of impulses, those being alcohol, drugs, and some others like several soup operas, many Hollywood films, and a lot of computer games and stuff from the Internet. Of course, a lot of justifications (or excuses) are normally presented in order to, perhaps, convince our minds that “it’s the ‘normal’ life” and we had no choice and so let our conscious at ease. On the other side of the spectrum, I can also see that there are times when acting on an impulse may save the life of a person, open the door of a great opportunity, give us the chance to stick up for a weak one, attract the attention of someone you are in love with, and do good deeds. Consequently, I see the need to keep a sound, wise and upright mind in order to be ready for a fair impulse control.

In the Bible, Ephesians 5:15 says: "Be very careful, then, how live-not as unwise but as wise" I think this may be the factor of our impulses. What do you reckon?