Some of my colleagues are having a discussion about judgement. The gist of the conversation is that "you can't judge a book by its cover". That we should "accept" everybody.

I called bullshit.

I believe we have just as much right to shun people based on how they look as they have the right to look unusual. We don't have the right shoot them, mock them, bully them, etc, but I do think we have a right to make a judgement and act accordingly so long as it does not infringe on someone else's basic rights.

Example: Young black man in baggy pants with a chain and dreads walks into a convenience store. The clerk makes a mental note on where his gun is.

Bad thing? I don't think so. If he had aimed it at the kid and asked him to leave, that would cross a line, but he never infringed on him in any way, so how is this inappropriate?

Next example: Goth teenagers are sitting together on the subway. The only available seat is right next to them. You choose to stand at the other end of the car.

Bad thing? I don't think so. You haven't harmed them in any way, and if thier "feelings are hurt" by your choice then perhaps they should rethink how they look and take responsibility for how people will react to that.

Third: A middle aged man in a turban, an active duty Canadian Forces guy in an officer's uniform and homeless man are sitting on a bench. Who is the criminal?

We don't know. But if we don't want to hang out with any one of them for a latte we should have that right. We should have the right to not invite blacks to our private parties if we are bigots, but we should NOT have the right to not hire them if they are well qualified. We should have the right to exclude men from our ladies only parties but we don't have the right to refuse to serve them in a restaurant because they are wearing pink shirts. Nobody should have the right to assault someone else physically or verbally, but to avoid them and not make conversation beyond being polite is not necessarily wrong.

Im just pissed about this. The other group seems to honestly believe we have an obligation to treat everyone equally all the time. I believe  choosing who you accept into your world based on how they look, so long as it doesn't infringe on thier basic human rights, should be a basic human right. 

I say there is such thing as being TOO LIBERAL.

/rant