Don't Judge You? Just Watch Me.

"I'm not one to judge"..."She shouldn't judge other people"..."You have no right to judge me".

I hear these phrases all the time and I have to admit to being guilty of uttering variations of them myself. Yet as I've unwillingly entered my 40's , I find myself doing exactly that ...judging the choices people make.

Now before I am inundated with nasty comments about 'intolerance' and 'hypocrisy' let me make myself abundantly clear, I do not for one minute believe that it is ok to judge another person based on race, religion, sexual preference, level of education, or physical attributes (I'm sure I've missed some other important things but you get my drift), on the flip side however, I don't believe that we should be so non-judgmental that we blindly accept anyone or anything.

The ability and duty to judge the actions of others is what defines us as a civilized society. It is the very act of imposing our judgment on others that prevents all out anarchy on our streets. We're SUPPOSED to judge right from wrong; judgment from others ensures that the vast majority of us conform to societal norms.

Let me be as up front and honest as I can; if you decide to whale the tar out of your child in the parking lot of Walmart, steal a car, or leave your wife and two babies for some young thang you met at work, hell yes...I'm going to judge you.

Some would call me a hypocrite. To those I say this:

a hypocrite is someone who says something and does something else because they never believed what they said in the first place.

Though I myself have made choices in the past that others would judge as wrong, this should not exclude me from the right to judge when YOU make a choice that is ethically and morally bankrupt. I believe that we should honor our commitments and live up to our responsibilities, and I try everyday to live that belief.

So don't hide behind the old "you can't judge me" defense. I can, I should, and I will.