Judgment

This week I noticed a lot of judgment. A few days ago, this article was published in an online university newspaper. I came across the article by coincidence, as neither I nor anyone I know has tattoos. It is an opinion column harshly judging any woman who would choose to tattoo her body. The argumentation behind the writer's opinion is rather weak. Basically, there is no argumentation. According to Khoury, a woman is supposed to have class, by going to the mall and getting her nails done and wearing high heels, and according to her, tattooed woman are classless by definition. That's a lot of judgment.

Not surprisingly, a lot of people were offended by this opinion column. What did surprise me was the large amount of hate mail sent to Khoury, calling her "Stupid Cow" or "Fat and ugly". A day after the original article, Khoury wrote a response called The Day I Met the Internet. After reading the response, I understood her. I still do not agree with what she said, but that could have been me, enthousiasticly writing an opinion piece without thinking it through. Which is why I'm happy to stay anonymous while blogging. Still, it's a reminder. Medicine is a sensitive topic and I need to be very careful in not sharing any sensitive information.

The second article about judgment is a little more medicine-related. It is a blog post from the perspective of a sick girl's mother. She has written before about doctor experiences, which were often negative in terms of attention and respect - those are supposed to be bullet points at any doctor's priority list. After reading some doctor blogs, she comes to a few conclusions. Most of them have to do with judgment. It sounds all too familiar. I judge people too. I sometimes catch myself judging classmates and now that I think of it, I judge patients, too. I judge the patient who complains of bloating but always asks for a third portion during dinner. I judge the patient who pities herself and does nothing to make her life better. I guess it's human, and I try to hide any preconceptions. But still.

Do you recognize being judgmental? Do you think it harms anyone and if not, why not?