Help me out here: do people really feel so confident with their choices in life that they can put others down and not worry that the same can be done of them?
I recently read a Facebook status that questioned a parent's supervision of their child. The comments following were so vicious, that although I didn't agree with the parent's choice as I read it to be, I found myself wanting to defend the parent. What really baffled me was that the people commenting didn't seem concerned that the tables could be turned - that someone could so harshly judge a situation they handled and with only partial information. Ok, now I'm judging those who made the comments.
I have definitely done my share of gossiping, putting others down and not gathering all the facts before making a judgment call. I realize this and I seriously want to improve in this area. I also really do acknowledge that people can see me do something and make a snap judgment, but if they were to talk with me and find out why I made the choice I did, they might make a different call.
Where does this need to judge others so harshly come from? Do these judgments we make keep us from trying to understand people? Does putting another person down make us feel better about the choices we're making?
*I am also working on not ending sentences with prepositions, as I've done above, but sometimes it just sounds better to end a sentence with a preposition.
I know what you mean Heather - people are so rude and have so little regard for other's feelings sometimes. It's something I have difficulty understanding - so much negativity. I even read an article online and people comment in the RUDEST ways possible. So weird to me.
ReplyDeleteI can honestly say that I'm not much of a gossip about other people - I simply try to avoid it. My mom (and my stepmom) are both a bit too gossipy and because of it, I have a bad taste in my mouth about it. I DO talk about people when they aren't around (everyone does) but I try my hardest not to say negative things about them.
No, no, my biggest judgemental problem is all in my mind. I don't say out loud rude things about people, but I am JUST as guilty as ANYONE of judging others. I wouldn't say something rude behind a person's back or to their face, but my own mind might be whirring. And I HATE that about myself. I just make snap judgements about people and I wish I didn't. I am not even sure how to answer your question - why do we do this? I have no idea. The best I can do is try to put myself in the other person's shoes or think of a reason for why they are doing what they are doing. It makes it better for me and helps me to get over my own judgemental nature.