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Which is the world's greatest hypocrisy practiced by people??
The billions of the world definitely live in some form of misconception between the personal point of view and the social point of view. The conflict of interests between the mind and the heart has been one of the axioms of a society that has a capacity to adjust, improve and adapt. People is general are hypocritical about so many things. There are some things that the heart just wants to believe without an damn reason, a believe that can strongly against a social will. Provide any such thought that you believe people are largely hypocritical about.
Thomas Pisarchick 10+
Debra Smith 200+
Krisztián Pintér 200+
Salim Solaiman 50+
Krisztián Pintér 200+
my association here is being "green". everyone is green. green is the new hype. everyone is green when it comes to filling in questionnaires. but nobody is willing to sacrifice the tiniest bit of wealth for it.
Tim Colgan 50+
Debra Smith 200+
clay blasdel
James Walker 30+
You ask: What is the biggest hypocrisy?
I would like to ask: What is a hypocrisy?
For example, I think there are some things that immoral but expedient, eg: War, Abortion, Tax.
I'm just wondering if I actually believe in hypocrisy as a concept.....
Debra Smith 200+
James Walker 30+
It's not an opinion... it's an honest question to myself that I'm not sure about. I can think of some things I have an absolute moral stand on, but happy to see happen as expedient. Abortion's a great example. Killing in self-defence, maybe. Going to War is I guess a subset of that? Paying taxes is an immorality imposed by the Government (because I'm forced to do so, I don't freely contract), but I don't really lose any sleep about it as it's in reality a fairly easy and expedient way to run things.
So, I just wonder if hypocrisy is a very useful concept?
Don't know really.... Aren't there things Debra that you think are bad, but sometimes do them anyway?
I don't think it's a scary onion, it's that I'm honest, and good at debating ;)
Debra Smith 200+
James Walker 30+
Ok, I don't think you answered - do you think tax, war and abortion are right, wrong, immoral or expedient, or it depends?
You see, I must admit to not being sure about these things... I do think they all seem immoral, but I'm not (always) against them. For hypocrisy to exist, one has to be very sure of what's right/wrong, preach that, and then do something different. In your life Debra, aren't there similar examples?
Debra Smith 200+
Abortion: I am deeply grateful that every pregancy I experienced was with the man I loved and the father of my kids. I am grateful that I never faced the agonizing circumstances many women do.
War- I prayed every pregancy that my kids would never experience war and now I don't want any one else's kids to experience it either.
I pay every bit of my taxes (I do have an accountant to make sure they are my taxes) because I live in an amazing country where I think I get my money's worth.
That, James, is how you answer the question someone asks you in plain language without debating tactics.
James Walker 30+
Debra Smith 200+
I have a real reservation about debating tactics because they are designed to steer people to your conclusion rather than arrive at consensus.
I did not say that abortion or war are expedient. I think that they are choices that people in extremis resort to and whether they prove to be expedient is entirely determined by the consequences of those choices. Many times they are the opposite of expedient.
Please define immoral. I think it may be a challenge.
James Walker 30+
You're absolutely right, I do find it hard to define Immoral.
Let's take abortion, now you mention it, I do find it hard to define exactly why I find it immoral, but I find it kinda ugly and unpleasant (all that chopping up and sucking out. Urgh!).
And, like you say, maybe it's even harder to use the word Expedient, when we can't judge what the outcomes will be (whether War, Tax, or Abortion).
But you know, I think we're really agreeing here.... We think these things are bad (immoral or whatever) but we don't always think they're bad things to do. They're horrible choices often made by good people. All the more reason why I am wondering how useful a concept is to use the word "hypocrisy". A young women, might have strong views against abortion, but nevertheless be squeezed terrible personal circumstances to go ahead with the termination. I don't think that this makes her a 'hypocrite"... that seems harsh, and unhelpful a concept to civil living. So, not sure I agree with hypocrisy as a concept, life is all about tough choices.
Debra Smith 200+
People making decisions in extremis are seldom hypocritical.
It is the man in a business suit who makes a decision based on expediency who is, in my mind, hypocritical.
James Walker 30+
My suit wearing acquaintances don't always behave as I'd like, but I don't think they're hypocrites... they normally are pretty brazen about what they do! Eg: They're pretty open that they're buying a company to close down the factories and turn them into Yuppie apartments or whatever. I'd say the business community were the least hypocritical in that they normally call their shots before holding the cue....
I guess, the closest I come to finding real hypocrisy is in church leaders, who preach one thing and do another. I might have opinions and morals that I go against (Abortion, Adultery, Paying Taxes, whatever etc...) if I'm in a tight corner, but I am not setting myself up in my job to be an exemplar of moral values. So, although I find the whole hypocrisy thing difficult to understand as a concept because I think we have tough lives and tough choices every day, maybe there are some examples of Religious leaders or Politicians who are closest to being examples of this idea of hypocrites???
Tony Sanchez
Debra Smith 200+
There are too many examples to list here.
James Walker 30+
Some guys at a Pharma company said we don't experiment on kids, when actually they were.
That's lying isn't it?
Still don't find it easy to call that hypocrisy.
If they criticised other people for doing it, that would be hypocrisy I guess. If they said, we here at GlobalPharma don't experiment on kids unlike those bastards down at BigPharma, and then it turned out GlobalPharma were doing exactly the same, I guess that's hypocrisy? But it requires them first to lie (that they're not doing it), so strikes me that more like lies?
Can you have hypocrisy (still don't think I believe in it) without a lie?
What's worse, a lie or hypocrisy (still don't think it exists)?
I can be a woman completely against abortion, have an abortion and not lie about it, and that is not hypocrisy, it's making a tough choice.
I suppose I am beginning to firm up on the idea that there is no such thing as hypocrisy, just that we live tough lives with difficult choices, and I am sympathetic to human frailties (so long as someone doesn't really really make a big deal out of being virtuous, and then surprising you. Say like if the Pope turned out to have a mistress or have been secret Nazi or whatever).
Debra Smith 200+
My point was, though that they do present themselves as being upstanding and pro health when they are willing to do heinous acts to make a profit.
Julie Ann 10+
The second example, academics will berate their students for academic dishonesty. Yet, they themselves are engaged in even more egregious offenses of academic dishonesty in research and publication. Is that hypocrisy?
The common thread is that they can do this with impunity - there is no need to be accountable to anyone. What do you think?
James Walker 30+
Yes, broadly agree with the first... this is approaching hypocrisy. If leaders are saying: no booze, no sex outside of marriage, no dancing, and then throw parties with booze, hookers and a disco. (Sound great btw). I do agree that just about the only hypocrisy I can think of is Religious and Political leaders saying to do one thing (and indeed sanctioning punishment for not) and doing another. For most people though, I just think it's a case of human frailty.
Wasn't there a US politician recently, quite anti-guy in his pronouncements, but caught having sex with a guy in an airport toilet? I can't remember the details, but that's maybe more that a. he is a product of a political system that is unfavourable to homosexualists, b. he has personal feelings and frailties like the rest of us. Some might say he was a hypocrite for being anti-gay in public and yet getting a blow-job from a chap in the stalls, but I think a bit harsh... just hard to be a gay politician. Honestly, not sure really about hypocrisy (it seems such a harsh and shouty word) versus just accepting lives are difficult, we all lie a bit, we all have tough choices...
Julie Ann 10+
James Walker 30+
Ok, yes, I do literally agree with you. This is best example I can think of that validates the word hypocrisy.
But... being a super-nice guy, I wonder about the words "dishonest, immoral, corrupt etc", just seems a but harsh. I know lots of occasions when my own behaviour has fallen short of what I would have expected of myself. Yep, so we all have poor judgement sometime, but I guess have the luxury of not setting myself out (yet, hahaha!) as a Religious or Political leader setting out my (generally bad) behaviour as an exemplar for others.
Julie Ann 10+
Debra Smith 200+