so do something about it

I got the following comment to my post earlier this week about people not giving up their seat on the metro:

Isn't it kind of hypocritical to complain via a blog about the ineptitude of others who may not know any better rather than attempting to change someone's outlook on life by asking them to give up their seat? Don't you think your day might be a bit more peaceful knowing you at least tried?

My short answer is: no, it is not hypocritical.

Hipocracy, according to the American Heritage Dictionary, is "[t]he practice of professing beliefs, feelings, or virtues that one does not hold or possess"

I don't think my bitching and moaning about people not exhibiting common courtesy is hypocritical because I don’t tell them to get up. I don't think me telling someone to get up is an example of courtesy. If there was a pregnant woman or elderly man or anyone who needed to sit down, and no one was getting up, then yes - I would ask someone to get up so that person could sit. But that is different than trying to teach the world manners.

My place in the world is not to go out and evangelize in people's face about what values they should have, or to try to directly change their behavior. That statement, is anything, could be considered hypocritical since I bitch about these things on a blog, but my purpose here is not (necessarily) to change anyone's behavior - I don't really have a central purpose. Hopefully people have laughed at my posts, but honestly only about 7 people in the whole world have ever visited my page more than once so who cares about that either?

At any rate, it simply is not plausible for me to spend every morning on the train asking all the 40 something men to stand up so a 20 or 30 something woman can sit down. Literally, I could spend my entire 40 minute commute doing it, and if I did, maybe after a year I would get sick of it - but I am pretty confident that I would not have changed anyone's behavior. Maybe I would, but maybe one of those people is among the 7 that revisit my blog and they will change anyway.

Maybe if I gave a ten spot to every homeless person I saw begging for money outside Union Station one of them would do some good with it, but that also is not a practicable approach. Call me jaded - call me a dick. The fact is that the world doesn't work right, and I do what I can to make it work better, and micromanaging people's commute is not one of those things.

Regardless, thanks for dropping by and leaving your thoughts. In case you are one of the 7 return customers, feel free to tell me I am full of it.