I'm going to make a concerted effort to follow this rule: "Don’t knock it until you try it". If you think about it, this rule is huge and really important to all facets of life. Essentially it means that you really shouldn’t have an opinion on something that you’ve never done before. You have to "walk a mile in my shoes" first.
Think of how much better the world would be if we all followed this rule religiously. First off the Abortion debate would not be a debate anymore. Only women who had had one, or who were contemplating one could have an opinion on the matter. Same goes for the war on drugs. Nobody could be anti-drug unless they had tried the drugs they were rallying against. Same for religion, if you aren't of a certain religion you can only have a comment on it if you had been of that religion (atheism counts too) in the past.
Just think about it for a minute. Lets go back to the drug thing. Say there is a guy you see on the street who is a crack head. They wake up, look for money, maybe steal it, maybe sell their body, they get their crack, find a crack house, smoke up and then tune out for a few hours until its time to smoke again. Now, can you honestly say that your life is better than theirs? I've never done crack but I bet that it is an amazing way to tune out of "normal" society. Who’s to say that these people when they are on the drug aren't connecting with the universe in some spiritual way that you and I aren't aware of? I would imagine the argument would work even better if we were to apply it to pot or heroin or something...
The point is that we can’t judge people without knowing what their life is like. We can't judge experiences or beliefs unless we are in the same situation as those we are judging. I have friends who love the gym and look at me funny when I say I like to sit home after work and watch TV all evening. Who is right? Both of us? To each his own right?
Don’t knock it until you try it!
3 comments:
Well, that's what I'm getting at. There's no way we can really comment fairly on the crack lifestyle having not lived it..For those who live it, they may actually find it fully satiating...
(a) this theory is all good when people's behaviours don't affect others. but when I have to pay taxes to keep crackheads alive (welfare, etc.), then I think I have a right to have an opinion about them. or, to take a more extreme example, I don't have to try murder to say that it's wrong and should be punished.
(b) I think it's totally legitimate to have an opinion about something you've never tried - it's our right, and our obligation, as creatures of logic to make educated projections onto things we've never tried, based on past experience/knowledge and logical analysis. as long as we're aware on what our opinions are based and keep an open mind, I think it's totally legitimate, and even "fair" to use your word, to have an opinion on something that's not based on firsthand experience.
back to work...
Not sure I agree with you.
a) I already don't agree with having to pay taxes to support anyone. I believe in paying taxes only to fund large projects that on a local level could never be accomplished (space exploration, medical research, public works, etc.) so that part of your argument doesn't apply to my sensabilities. As for murder, I would say that I disagree as well. You have no way of really knowing on an individual case weather it was justifed or not. It is a law so I agree that in that case we have to be opposed to breaking the law but on moral grounds I really don't have an opinion.
b) Opinions are fine to have. I have all kinds of opinions, but I am staunchly opposed to having my opinion become more than that. I don't agree that personal opinions should be forced upon others (or turned into law) unless they have been proved to be valid by experience.
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