This weekend, on my way home from church, I noticed a woman crossing the street in a wheelchair, scooting herself backward across the road using her foot. My first inclination was to think she must be lazy. I’ve seen people bigger than she was walking just fine without using a wheelchair to get around. Didn’t she know she could lose some weight if she would just get on her feet? But immediately I had to check my thoughts. I had no idea who she was or what she’s dealing with. Maybe she had some problem with her knees or hips hampering her ability to walk but still letting her use her feet in a wheelchair. Of course, that’s easy to say. Maybe I shouldn’t judge because she had a valid reason. Then again, what if she didn’t? What if my first conclusions were correct? I can start casting stones then, right?
The internet has become our stage where we parade the guilty and presumed guilty and throw our rotten tomatoes. As tolerant a society as ours has become, it’s as if we need an outlet for our moral outrage. We may argue over large issues still, like if a bad childhood or mental disease mitigates culpability of a heinous crime. But if there’s one thing people can agree on, if you cut someone off in traffic, take up two parking spaces, confuse “its” with “it’s,” or dress less than fashionably at Wal-Mart, you deserve all the bile and shame the public can muster. A blasting horn and a middle finger puts a bad driver in his place, but make sure you have a packet of cards saying “nice parking job, ***** face” handy, right next to your smart phone to capture and share socks with sandals and sloppy hairdos with the world. Shaming is a fulltime job. Note I didn’t include grammar violations. That’s my job.
The “People of Wal-Mart” trend amused me at first then really bothered me. Yes, there was a time when most of society dressed to a certain standard before leaving the house, but that trend fell to comfort and personal style. Now everyone gets to be paparazzi, snapping and uploading pictures in an instant of those deemed to have “failed.”
Now, here’s my dilemma. In a sense, I’m shaming the concept of shaming. I’m taking up righteous indignation against those who point out the faults in others. Am I trying to make myself feel better than others by pointing out this shortcoming? It’s hard to say. I’d like to think I’m trying to sharpen iron and not just point out the specks in others’ eyes, but that’s a fine line to walk. In my heart, I know I’ve felt “holier than thou,” maybe against welfare recipients or pot smokers. Maybe next time I shake my head or roll my eyes, I’ll remember to first ask myself, “Was it really that bad?” or even “Was it bad at all?”
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Don't cast a stone