Keller @ Large: No Good Deed Goes Unpunished
BOSTON (CBS) - It isn't clear who originated the phrase "no good deed goes unpunished," but whoever did had real insight into human nature.
This has never been more true than in today's litigious, internet-debased culture, where unjustified rancor and criticism are the coin of the realm.
Exhibit A in pop culture right now is Kevin Durant, the superb forward of the Golden State Warriors who was just named MVP of the NBA Finals.
You couldn't dream up a more exemplary person and role model than Durant. He is a devout Christian with a sterling reputation for treating everyone around him with kindness. He is a generous philanthropist, using his millions to help disaster victims and poor kids.
His 2014 speech accepting the league's Most Valuable Player award by recalling everything his single-parent mother did for him and his brother is a classic example of humility and love.
"You're the real MVP," he told her.
Durant was a beloved player in Oklahoma City, where he played for eight years. But because he chose to leave for Golden State when his contract expired, he's been subjected to a completely unfair barrage of vitriol, called a traitor and a greedy mercenary and much worse.
Meanwhile, we learned Monday that Durant will actually take a pay cut to stay with Golden State, because he is nothing like what his critics claim.
But he did make a mistake the other day, actually engaging on Twitter with some of the creeps who've been after him.
No, Kevin.
The only way to treat trolls is to deprive of them of what they crave – attention.
The same goes for all the bitter, jealous losers of our culture, for whom anyone else's success is an affront, and no good deed goes unpunished.