You're a real cynic you are.
It was meant to be a bit of an insult. It didn't insult me. No more than calling Hitler a Nazi would have been taken as an insult.
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Cynical and sceptical are just ways to look at the world. They are reasonably objective labels for the way I think about most things. I see it as not being a mug. I suspect people's motives are not what they profess them to be, I suspect their motives are also not what they themselves perceive them to be. I have often found it curious that certain words are coloured with positive and negative connotations. Words that should be neutral are in fact heavily coloured with perceptions to the point that the word can stand for the good or bad feeling that is usually attached to it.
BitternessSome people accuse me of being bitter and twisted. Cynical and sneering, belittling people who make a go of their lives. Fair comment. People always justify their actions and positions. Rich pop stars think the money they earn is rightfully theirs, that they have earned it by using their special talents. Well, they would think that, wouldn't they? People always believe what is convenient and life-affirming. Rich people think being rich is right and fair. Criminals think their victims deserve it. People who never work think the state has a duty to support them. Unmarried mothers think the state has a duty to support them. Soldier's wives think the soldier or the state should support them for ever. Christians believe they are right to believe without proof, the less proof the more pious they are. People who try and fail think they have been cheated. People who do not try think they are destined to fail. People who are insane think they are being persecuted. People who are crippled think this is our problem. Women who succeed because they are women believe they deserve to. Women who fail because they are women think they have been cheated. Rich people think poor people deserve to be poor because they are idle or stupid. Rich people think everybody could and would be rich if the poor worked as hard as they do. People who succeed because of their looks think this is fair. People who fail because of their looks think this is unfair. People who win the lottery believe they deserve the money. People who do not win the lottery believe they deserve to say how the money is spent. Rich people who do not play the lottery believe they they deserve to say how the money should be spent. |
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