Friday 13 February 2015

The notion of not judging somebody

The whole Christian notion of not judging somebody is quite frankly one of the most ridiculous philosophies one can adopt in life. The Bible is filled with verses which warn us against judging someone lest we be judged too.

"Luke 6:37 Do not judge, and you will not be judged; and do not condemn, and you will not be condemned; pardon, and you will be pardoned."

"Matthew 7:1 Do not judge so that you will not be judged. For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you..."

What does it mean to 'judge' somebody? It means to form an impression or opinion after observation of a person's behaviour. If I was having a conversation, and using cuss words in every other sentence, I think it's fair if you judged me to be a pretty uncouth fellow. If I was morbidly obese with layers of fat spilling out of the top of my trousers and from under my chin, I think it's fair I was judged to be a lazy, inactive sloth with no regard for my fitness.

It is only human nature to judge somebody and to instruct one to behave otherwise is unnatural and abnormal. The lesson that should be taught is to NOT treat a person differently despite whatever judgement or impression you may have made or formed of a person.

Tuesday 13 January 2015

5 Useful Tips To Behaving Like An Obedient Social Media Sheep

1. Jump on every social media platform

Yep, it doesn't matter if your existing platforms are serving you well enough. We're aware that you can update your statuses sufficiently well enough on Facebook. We understand you can already upload pictures on it with efficiency. We can see you've comfortably settled and established a circle of friends on it. That's no excuse to not jump on the Twitter, Instagram and Google+ bandwagon!

Why use it? Because everyone else does! Duh!

2. Abuse the 'Like' button

It's there for a reason. Anything (and by God I do mean ANYTHING) that remotely resonates with the adjectives 'funny' or 'cute' is just begging you to ram the 'Like' button into oblivion. It costs you nothing and you're not being social on social media if you're not mashing the 'Like' buttons. Do it, nimrod.


3. While you're at it, ill-treat the 'Share' button too

Did you think Mark Zuckerberg gave you the share button so you could practice selective sharing of videos or posts that you genuinely found funny? No, it's so you can robotically share-click and propel every damn thing in sight on your news feed into your friend's news feeds, just so they can follow suit and do the same to THEIR friends!

4. Keep us informed of your choice of meals

We don't care if it's Escargot Bourguignonne from that French restaurant up at Dempsey Hill, steamed chicken rice from the hawker centre across the road or bread and margarine from your cosy kitchen. Snap a picture, insert some emoticons, throw in at least 5 hashtags with every update. You'll find that at the same time this really relieves our insecurity levels as the 'Likes' begin streaming in from fellow social media sheep.


5. Click on and share every article that is begins titled '[Insert psychologically satisfying numeral] ways to'

Articles that begin with '[Insert psychologically satisfying numeral] ways to' deserve every shred of recognition it can get. The reason is plain to see. These articles often are well-deserving pulitzer-prize-worthy journalism and is of the utmost importance that everyone on the internet gets to read them as soon as it gets up on Thought Catalog or Buzzfeed.

How else would I have known how to lead my life if I didn't come across that '10 Ways Your Life Can Be Easier' write-up or to go on a date without the '69 Ways You Can Increase Your Chances On A Date' feature?





Thursday 8 May 2014

Birthdays and the purpose of celebrating it

Why do we celebrate birthdays?

The definition of 'celebrate' on dictionary.com: 1. to observe (a day) or commemorate (an event) with ceremonies or festivities Is a celebration not reserved for an occasion or a milestone that has a cause worthy of celebrating?

Perhaps something that you earned or achieved on your own merit? For example, a job promotion, a marriage, winning a competition? What do we accomplish on the day we are birthed? Absolutely nothing... unless you consider living and breathing an achievement, in that case we would have to be throwing parties on a daily basis.

Thinking about it, doesn't it make more sense that your parents celebrate your birthday? After all, they were the ones who painstakingly spent 9 months bringing you into existence.

When I love somebody, be it my partner in a relationship or a family member, I do little things on a daily basis that makes their lives easier. Is that not the most obvious way to show love, care and concern? Is it necessary to get together and have a fancy dinner at an overpriced restaurant so the birthday boy or girl can be made into the center of attention to remind him or her that she is loved by her friends and family? Is it necessary to do it because everyone else does it?

Are birthday celebrations the most perfect example of human beings following mindless traditions and celebrating a day because everyone else does it?