Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Didactic District: Class Warfare

Recent events have forced my hand.  I feel compelled to remind you all to stop judging strangers based on their appearance.

You, discerning and dear reader, have an eye for dressing well.  However, like everyone else on the planet, you do not have an eye for the reasons other people do not dress well.  The kid wearing the square-toe slip-on loafers does not deserve to be publicly shamed for wearing them.  For all you know, ze is eating ramen noodles for every meal to save up dosh to buy a pair of John Lobbs and is two days away from success.  Or ze is caring for an ailing family member and simply cannot afford to buy anything new because of mounting medical expenses.

If you see people dressed slovenly, you can do many things, like
1) blog about how to dress otherwise,
2) dress otherwise to lead by example,
3) offer judgment-free advice to your friends and strangers, when they ask for it,
4) compliment people whose apparel you appreciate,

and so on.

Dapper District's Social Justice Committee, which comprises me, will not tolerate muttered derision, much less open mockery, of people whom you do not know.  There are simply too many variables for you to even make an educated guess about whether you are observing laziness or desperation or a medical condition, so just don't do it.

All previous posts not in keeping with this attitude of siblingly love are hereby rescinded, and the DDSJC admonishes itself for such misbehavior.

2 comments:

  1. I loved the "ramen noodles" reference.  I could almost hear the advertisement in my mind.  Judge not, lest you be judged.

    Regards  —  Cliff

    ReplyDelete
  2. An excellent six-word distillation of what I spent far more words trying to communicate.

    ReplyDelete

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