Gall-Tripping

One thing that I am trippin' over today is the absolute gall of some people in the face of absolute and total wrongness.

I will not recount the details of the specific situations in order to protect the acting parties, as well as myself (I just read this article about blogging, identified and anonymously, getting people into professional and sometimes legal trouble).

Suffice to say that I am almost impressed, to the point of seething rage, at some people's commitment to their utter wrongness. Of course I learned long ago and mention often, that people do not usually act in a way that they think is "wrong". In fact, people usually think they're "right". On the off chance that people do think they're wrong, they have usually justified the action due to some other more important circumstance (which they are usually wiling to explain to you ad nauseam). Generally, you, the reader, couldn't possibly understand because some children were in a burning building or someone was dying that x, y and z happened. Now that I think about it, this also leads to a discussion on most people's desire to be understood, frankly the purpose of rhetoric, especially when a subsequent action is involved. But I'll save the communications lecture for another post.

It brings me back to the question I usually have to scream to the universe about once per week: Do assholes know that they're assholes? I know I'm an asshole; I just wonder if others are so self aware. I mean, I wish I could tell you some of garbage I have heard today. Although I suppose, if you're going to be wrong, you might as well go the whole way down the aisle and have "the gall" as well. No point in doing it unless you're going to do it right. The cliche of adding insult to injury comes to mind. The idea of it always cracks me up. I imagine a one person breaking another person's leg and then, in the pause before they turn to leave, spitting on the victim. The offender stands over the now bleeding and spitty victim and looks on with indifference, allowing the victim to realize that s/he has now had insult added to injury.

I mean, the absolute nerve of people sometimes. Can you think of a time when you have exhibited complete gall in the face of total wrongness? What was your excuse? How did you justify your behavior? Did you get punched in the mouth?

Don't worry, you're secret's safe with me. LOL