Saturday, November 27, 2010

"J" is for Judging Others, Too Much I Think

People judge eachother everyday, we have all done it.  We've judged and we have been judged and judgement can come in all shapes and sizes.  There have been stories in the news about children being judged and bullied by their peers so badly that they are killing themselves.  Who is to blame?

Is it the bullied child for taking things too seriously, the bullies for being so cruel, the bus driver that ignores the bad behaviour on the bus, the school officials for not penalizing the bullies, the parents of the bullies for not teaching their children how to treat others or the parents of the bullied not teaching their children how to stick up for themselves or that nothing anyone can say or do to them should matter because they are good and kind and that they are loved?

Or is blaming anyone just judging people all over again?

Who do people think they are to be judging anyone anyway, why do they think they have that right?  Don't the old sayings "take a walk in someone else's shoes" or "those who live in glass houses shouldn't throw rocks" mean anything anymore?  Or for those of us that believe in God, why don't we follow the Golden Rule and "Treat others as we would like to be treated ourselves"?  Or like my Mom used to say "If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all"

There are so many more ways and places to judge people nowadays.  The social networks, forums and chat rooms run rampant with judgements.  People tearing eachothers clothes, looks, beliefs or ideas down seem almost common place in these days with so much technology.

Honestly I find it all depressing.  I think there are better things for us to do with our time and voices, more constructive things, more positive things.  So the next time you want to put someone down, think how you would feel if someone did it to you, touched on a vulnerability of yours, and stay in that unempowered moment for a few seconds and feel the weakness it provides.

There is a quote from an Unknown source that I find fitting for this topic:  "The tongue weighs practically nothing, but so few can hold it".  I urge you to be that someone that does.

Monday, November 8, 2010

"I" can't wait.......

This is going to be a different post than usual, but this topic has driven me nuts for years.

Other than a few "tweets" here and there, I have pretty much kept this to myself.  But the ugly truth is that:
"I can't stand Oprah and I can't WAIT for her to go off the air!"

I know this is probably not a really popular opinion as she has so many fans and viewers.  I may even catch some flack for writing this but don't particularly care.  If I can't speak my mind on my own blog, then where can I?  I learned that lesson from a very special person and friend of mine.  She says it like it is, and damn those that don't agree with it.  This one is for you, TL.

It's not that I don't think Oprah hasn't done any good in this world, because she has.  She built all of those house for families that lost everything in Katrina, she brought the world Dr. Phil, Dr. OZ and Nate, and is giving educations to girls in Africa who would never have had those opportunities otherwise.  It's not like I haven't given her a chance and tried to like her, because I have, I really have.  I have even tried to watch her show on a daily basis during my hospital stays.  But there are things that she does that make me want to pull my hair out, so I end up having to change the channel.

Sometimes when she asks guests questions, she cuts them off or interrupts them and they don't always look happy about it.  It's worse when after she asks the question, she herself answers it or quotes someone else's answer.  She has done that so much during one show that the show should have been all about her instead of the chosen topic for the day.

I have also found her to be hypocritical at times, such as her comments about never eating beef again, and then having a show a couple of years later about where you can find the "Best Burger".   People with food issues go on her show and delve down deep as to their reasons for their food addictions, break the cycle, do the work and lose the weight.  We know she has food issues, we know she was molested but she tells the world she has a thyroid problem.  It seems to me that is a crutch and that if she really wanted to she could break the cycle, do the work and lose the weight too.  She only wanted to have her face on her magazine because she didn't feel good about showing her whole body,  I thought that was really honest until I found out that her pictures of her face are air-brushed.  She goes on and on about being your "Authentic Self", but she doesn't stand behind it so why should her audience invest in it for themselves.

I hope in the last year that she is on the air that she can deal with her issues better and do the work, and really become her own "Authentic Self".