Heart's all gone

Humans are selfish. I think that goes without saying. We all are and I would challenge you to argue otherwise. 

Sure we all have moments where we "give" to varying degrees. But more often than not, we take, take, take. 

I'm not talking about being selfish in regards to material things or possessions. I'm talking about being selfish in an emotional and psychological way. 

Now, let me preface this with the following: what I am about to say is something I have concluded based on my life experiences and the people that I have met. Am I generalizing based on those experiences? Yes. Do I realize that not every person falls into this generalization? Yes. 

I am still going to generalize for the sake of this read. 

When I say that people are selfish in an emotional manner, I am referring to the little games that people like to play with one another. More often than not, this sort of thing goes on in a playful manner and no harm is done.

But there is also a recurring theme of people intentionally toying with the emotions of others in a way that has no amount of good intention or nature. This is more commonly known as manipulation. So, why do we do it? Why do we manipulate people in our lives who we care about? Perhaps it is that we only pretend to care about them? Is it because we are strictly looking to obtain something from the person? Something like sympathy? A feeling of superiority? An advantage over the competition? A cookie from the cookie jar?

I don't know what it is. All I know is that it happens way too often. 

I'm not going to stand here (yes, I am standing as I smash this into my keyboard) and pretend that I am somehow innocent in all of this. I'm no saint. I do stupid things just like everyone else (don't try to fool yourself, this isn't a generalization, it is fact. EVERY SINGLE PERSON ON EARTH COMMITS UNINTELLIGENT ACTS OF SELFISH MANIPULATION EVERY DAY).

But seriously, humanity...what the hell? You know, if every person took it upon themselves to do ONE LESS manipulative thing on a daily basis, this world would be a lot more pleasant. There would be more smiles than scowls on the train because less people would be scheming about how to manipulate their boss into thinking they did a good job on that latest project, when really they just stole the Powerpoint off the Internet. There would be more polite exchanges on the street because more people would be less concerned with trying to figure out if that new guy or girl they are dating is just playing mind games with them.  

Think about it for a while. 

And then go ahead and call bullshit on me. For all you know, this might just be my attempt to manipulate you into being a better person...

Heart's All Gone by blink-182

Take off the gloves
We fell in love by the side of the road
This desert will break you down
The veins you cut
Your smoking tongue is the end of us all
But you only care about fame and fortune
Watching others torture
Casting your reflection
Grocery store perfection
This is the last time
Sent to the front line with dirty boots on the ground
You said, "I'll make this all mine."

You seemed so sweet at the start but the start's all wrong
You say you speak from your heart but your heart's all gone
Yeah, your heart's all gone

Blackjack and architect
Let's drink ourselves to death
The crimes of everyone
Passed down from father to son
Hopeless and destitute
Destroyed my gratitude
Your strongest lines of defense are all just self-inflicted wounds

You seemed so sweet at the start but the start's all wrong
You say you speak from your heart but your heart's all gone
You seemed so sweet at the start but the start's all wrong
You say you speak from your heart but your heart's all gone
Yeah, your heart's all gone...

You seemed so sweet at the start but the start's all wrong
You say you speak from your heart but your heart's all gone
You seemed so sweet at the start but the start's all wrong
You say you speak from your heart but your heart's all gone
Yeah, your heart's all gone