News
Guest Comment: On judging others
By June Wortman
Jesus said “Blessed are the peacemakers...”
Up on La Canada in Sahuarita is the PEACE Lutheran Church.
Why then do demonstrators for peace, preserving the Constitution and impeachment get called by those in passing cars “traitors, seditious, bitches, whores, pin-up-girls of Osama bin Laden, slime” and other names?
Do they make the same comments to the PEACE Lutheran Church?
Why are those who write letters to the newspapers supporting similar goals to ours, referred to in many of the same terms, but also as stupid, liars, and other such slurs on their characters?
Who gives them the right to judge us? Who appointed them so? Do they have a certificate of purity?
It also seems that to criticize the president is called unpatriotic, disloyal, and all the other words mentioned above.
Whatever happened to this so-called “Christian” nation that so many feel so virtuous in slandering and attacking the character of people for peace, or anyone who disagrees with them?
Fortunately, the tide is turning. We demonstrators receive now 10 thumbs up, or honks of approval, or waves of encouragement. for every nasty. But I am still concerned about the numbers of people who feel so virtuous that they can judge others who are just standing up for peace. The same goes those who feel entitled to destroy yard signs supporting a political a candidate they dislike. They are not just calling names, but vandalizing, destroying property, and depriving the houseowner of his/her legal right to public speech.
And then there are the judges of infidelity, so rampant in the media, and so eagerly listened to by many. Their latest sad victim is John Edwards, whose career has supposedly been destroyed by his indiscretion. If so, we have lost a good public servant.
Google says the following presidents had been unfaithful: Garfield, Harding, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Eisenhower, Lyndon Johnson, Jack Kennedy and Bill Clinton.
If we had kicked out all those presidents because of unfaithfulness, we would have lost tremendous talent right from the start.
What people did sexually or otherwise in their private lives used to be considered a private matter, People were judged by what they did on the job. They were not subject to attempts to destroy their careers and character.
The same is true for homosexual behavior, which used to be considered private, and now is used to attempt to destroy careers. The media make hay with sexual spying, and political parties try to accomplish “gotcha!” on candidates they oppose.
It is time to stop all this destructive nonsense. Let people have their private lives and judge them on their records in office and work.
None of us are angels or gods. We should be entitled to have our private frailties remain private unless the behavior is brought to a court of law, such as domestic abuse, or fraud. Let the courts judge.
Because of this public airing of “dirty linen,” many worthy people are reluctant to try for election to public office for fear of having their human frailties revealed, and their families publicly humiliated and embarrassed. The damage to children whose parents are so publicly exposed must be enormous, not to mention the harm to the wives. The result is that we are deprived of the service to the country of people who are well qualified. Enough already!
Regardless of one’s religious affiliation, it is worth considering that Jesus did forgive the sinner, and showed mercy. He also tried to heal the sick and the sinner.
All of us, including the media, might try to be more kind and merciful when public figures, whom we want to believe are angels, are revealed as fallen and actually human like ourselves.
June Crouter Wortman was born in the Philippines, interned with her family under the Japanese three years in WWII. Came to Cleveland, Ohio, where she completed high school, college, and grad school in Clinical Social Work, at Mandel School at CWRU. Married to still practicing psychologist, Richard A. Wortman, Ph.D. Two grown children. Settled in Green Valley in 2000. Social activist in all causes for peace and social justice.
Up on La Canada in Sahuarita is the PEACE Lutheran Church.
Why then do demonstrators for peace, preserving the Constitution and impeachment get called by those in passing cars “traitors, seditious, bitches, whores, pin-up-girls of Osama bin Laden, slime” and other names?
Do they make the same comments to the PEACE Lutheran Church?
Why are those who write letters to the newspapers supporting similar goals to ours, referred to in many of the same terms, but also as stupid, liars, and other such slurs on their characters?
Who gives them the right to judge us? Who appointed them so? Do they have a certificate of purity?
It also seems that to criticize the president is called unpatriotic, disloyal, and all the other words mentioned above.
Whatever happened to this so-called “Christian” nation that so many feel so virtuous in slandering and attacking the character of people for peace, or anyone who disagrees with them?
Fortunately, the tide is turning. We demonstrators receive now 10 thumbs up, or honks of approval, or waves of encouragement. for every nasty. But I am still concerned about the numbers of people who feel so virtuous that they can judge others who are just standing up for peace. The same goes those who feel entitled to destroy yard signs supporting a political a candidate they dislike. They are not just calling names, but vandalizing, destroying property, and depriving the houseowner of his/her legal right to public speech.
And then there are the judges of infidelity, so rampant in the media, and so eagerly listened to by many. Their latest sad victim is John Edwards, whose career has supposedly been destroyed by his indiscretion. If so, we have lost a good public servant.
Google says the following presidents had been unfaithful: Garfield, Harding, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Eisenhower, Lyndon Johnson, Jack Kennedy and Bill Clinton.
If we had kicked out all those presidents because of unfaithfulness, we would have lost tremendous talent right from the start.
What people did sexually or otherwise in their private lives used to be considered a private matter, People were judged by what they did on the job. They were not subject to attempts to destroy their careers and character.
The same is true for homosexual behavior, which used to be considered private, and now is used to attempt to destroy careers. The media make hay with sexual spying, and political parties try to accomplish “gotcha!” on candidates they oppose.
It is time to stop all this destructive nonsense. Let people have their private lives and judge them on their records in office and work.
None of us are angels or gods. We should be entitled to have our private frailties remain private unless the behavior is brought to a court of law, such as domestic abuse, or fraud. Let the courts judge.
Because of this public airing of “dirty linen,” many worthy people are reluctant to try for election to public office for fear of having their human frailties revealed, and their families publicly humiliated and embarrassed. The damage to children whose parents are so publicly exposed must be enormous, not to mention the harm to the wives. The result is that we are deprived of the service to the country of people who are well qualified. Enough already!
Regardless of one’s religious affiliation, it is worth considering that Jesus did forgive the sinner, and showed mercy. He also tried to heal the sick and the sinner.
All of us, including the media, might try to be more kind and merciful when public figures, whom we want to believe are angels, are revealed as fallen and actually human like ourselves.
June Crouter Wortman was born in the Philippines, interned with her family under the Japanese three years in WWII. Came to Cleveland, Ohio, where she completed high school, college, and grad school in Clinical Social Work, at Mandel School at CWRU. Married to still practicing psychologist, Richard A. Wortman, Ph.D. Two grown children. Settled in Green Valley in 2000. Social activist in all causes for peace and social justice.
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