Welcome to the Buddhist boot camp podcast.

Our intention is to awaken, enlighten, enrich, and inspire a simple and uncomplicated life.

Discover the benefits of mindful living with your host, Timber Hawkeye.

Scapegoating is when something doesn't go according to your plan or preference, but instead of

taking responsibility for the role you play in what happens, even if it's only a small

role, or maybe just accepting that life often unfolds at random, you point your finger at something

or someone else and think, it's their fault. All too often, scapegoating involves generalizations

condemning an entire group of people, a particular event, or singling out someone

specific to bear the blame for a situation they did not cause. Imagine you get to the movie

theater only to discover that all the seats are already sold out. So you get mad at everyone

inside who got their tickets ahead of time. You complain that the cinema

isn't large enough, and you convince yourself that if only traffic wasn't so bad on your way to the

theater, you would have made it on time. Or maybe you watch TV while your dinner is burning in the

oven, and then you blame the television show for distracting you.

We all do it.

We stub our toe and immediately look around for someone to blame for our frustration, even

when it's clearly nobody else's fault.

We blame the current political climate, the neighbor who just moved in, or the spouse,

who should have known better.

Scapegoating is irrational at best and dangerously toxic at its worst. Yet it is oddly comforting

and highly addictive. Buddhism invites us to try something far less convenient, but infinitely more

honest. The opposite of scapegoating is personal accountability.

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