My parents always told me, “It’s a dog-eat-dog world out there.” It took me years before I understood what that meant. And then I didn’t want to believe it. After all, in school we’re constantly taught the values of cooperation, trust, kindness, benevolence and compassion. But that quote is ringing more and more true every day.

News stories make clear that around the country, we increasingly laud and encourage despicable behaviors. Since when is murder the answer to a problem? People are idolizing and praising Luigi Mangione for his alleged murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. Someone even hung a banner off a bridge on Interstate 83 with the shooter’s slogan on it. Are we now teaching our children to solve our problems with violence?

Some of my own friends expressed elation at the failed assassination attempts of Donald Trump. So now we attempt to eliminate anyone we dislike or disagree with? The police officers and courts may soon be even busier than they already are.

We might as well adulate the Unabomber, Ted Kaczynski, who killed innocent people through his domestic terrorism. Oh, wait — turns out Mangione did just that. If any of your friends or relatives were victims or collateral damage of a targeted attack, I bet you’d have a different perspective on this mindset.

The Mangione case reminds me of the protesters and anti-Israel activists who venerated the actions of Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023, reveling in the slaughter of thousands of innocent young adults and children. Where is our sense of humanity?

Now, Missouri state Senator-elect David Gregory is proposing a bill that would reward a $1,000 bounty to those who report undocumented immigrants in the state. I know I’m not the only one who sees parallels between this proposal and the practices that went on in Nazi Germany. This approach to the issue of illegal immigration encourages discord between community members and shows absolutely no compassion or understanding. Are these the values we want to instill in our children? Is this the kind of society we want to live in, where we can’t trust or depend on anyone? Do we want our friends and neighbors to turn on each other?

And those migrants who are turned in and convicted, under the legislation, “would receive a prison sentence without eligibility for parole or probation.” Why don’t we just send them off to Siberia to rot in prison as Russia does to its political dissidents? Why don’t we cut off someone’s hand if they attempt to steal? Does the punishment fit the crime? Is this really how we plan to treat people, mostly innocents who are fleeing in an attempt to have a better life?

In another story from last month, Baltimore Police arrested a man in connection with a deadly shooting, triggered by a verbal dispute, on a Maryland Transit Administration bus in November. We complain about gangs and gang violence in Baltimore, but this shooting was striking in its casual violence, showing that citizens will resort to murder over an argument on a city bus.

Then there’s the recent case of a man who shot someone at his child’s one-year birthday party at Harford Mall. These stories make me think twice about taking public transportation or going shopping at the mall. Now, I no longer want to sit in a movie theatre. Who knows who’s carrying a gun and might get irate when someone else blocks the screen or answers a cell phone during a movie showing.

Every so often I see a glimmer of hope by witnessing a random act of kindness. Last week a kind lady at the post office opened the door for me without any prompting as I carried in a very heavy box. I wanted to hug her. It showed me that civility and kindness do exist despite what we hear on the news. Let’s also remember the thousands of employees, volunteers, caregivers and unsung heroes around the nation who work hard every day to make the world a better place.

So in this new year, let’s please reject violence and remember courtesy, politeness, kindness and goodwill toward men. Happy 2025!

Diane Gensler (dianebgensler@gmail.com) lives in Baltimore and is the author of “Forgive Us Our Trespasses: A Memoir of a Jewish Teacher in a Catholic School.”