Are You Good Or Bad?

[Dr Dave]

I think of myself as Bad. I need to be on guard to prevent my evil side from showing through. Obviously, I am not always successful in this endeavor. Interestingly, my wife thinks of herself as Good. This may be why our marriage has been successful.

[cookie]

When I'm good I'm very very good but when I'm bad I'm better.
---Mae West

[patricia]

Also Mae West - "When choosing between two evils, I always like to try the one I've never tried before."
Wish I had her balls, figuratively speaking, of course.

But, I think that G K Chesterton said it best:
"The word good has many meanings. For example, if a man were to shoot his grandmother at a range of five hundred yards, I should call him a good shot, but not necessarily a good man."

[Tom Storer]

I think of myself as Good. That doesn't mean I'm not sometimes Bad.

[Squaredancecalling Steve]

As the Shangri-Las sang:

I hear he's bad.
Hmm, he's good bad, but he's not evil

[Ron Thorne]

Originally Posted by Tom Storer

I think of myself as Good. That doesn't mean I'm not sometimes Bad.

Yep.

[steve(thelil)]

I try to be good but I'm bad at it.

[Gary Sisco]

B-B-B-Bad to the bone.

[Jazzooo]

Good here. But flawed.

[clinthopson]

It's always relative in the eyes of the beholder.

[Dennis Gonzalez]

I'm a great kind of bad...but not evil, though sometimes I wish I were that too.

[Canuck Don]

Picture says it all...

[Tom Storer]

Hi, Don!

Personally, I think you're pretty Good.

[Canuck Don]

Originally Posted by Tom Storer

Hi, Don!

Personally, I think you're pretty Good.

Thanks Tom...ditto to you

[Lenny D.Guitarist]

I think of myself as God.

[Pete C]

I don't understand the terms.

[GoodSpeak]

I tend to play both sides off with equal grace a dignity.

[walto]

Lately I've noticed that when I'm by myself, if I think of something, I'll say it out loud for emphasis.

But I guess that probably makes me more nuts than good or bad.

[Dr Dave]

Originally Posted by walto

Lately I've noticed that when I'm by myself, if I think of something, I'll say it out loud for emphasis.

But I guess that probably makes me more nuts than good or bad.

My wife claims not to know what she's thinking until she says it aloud. I claim not to know what I'm thinking until I write it down. I'd guess we're all nuts.

[patricia]

I work myself loop-legged to be good, most of the time. But, sometimes my badness sneaks through and I think only of myself and my own pleasure.

Probably means that I suddenly realized that I'm not going to live forever and some naughty things are kind of fun.
Listening to and loving Jazz used to be considered slightly decadent. Times change and now I'm not sure what is considered decadent anymore. The search should be interesting.

[Dr Dave]

Originally Posted by Pete C

I don't understand the terms.

I'm willing to accommodate shades of gray, but I firmly believe everyone keeps a sort of moral barometer. Since you claim not to understand the terms, let me attempt to clarify: Do you believe that you are mostly virtuous and well-intentioned? Do you consider yourself trustworthy? Do you root for the triumph of good over evil, even if it's just 51%? Did you find the climax of "Chinatown" to be shocking or satisfying?

Etc.

[walto]

Listening to and loving Jazz used to be considered slightly decadent.

Wow, you've listened to jazz for pleasure? You really are awful! Next you'll be putting whipped cream on something.

[walto]

Originally Posted by Dr Dave

I'm willing to accommodate shades of gray, but I firmly believe everyone keeps a sort of moral barometer. Since you claim not to understand the terms, let me attempt to clarify: Do you believe that you are mostly virtuous and well-intentioned? Do you consider yourself trustworthy? Do you root for the triumph of good over evil, even if it's just 51%? Did you find the climax of "Chinatown" to be shocking or satisfying?

Etc.

I think my enjoyment of local teams going up in flames and the resulting suffering of their fans gives some hint where I'm at on this.

[patricia]

Originally Posted by walto

Wow, you've listened to jazz for pleasure? You really are awful! Next you'll be putting whipped cream on something.

I'm not ready for whipped cream yet, Walto.
I'm still working up to going alone to clubs in parts of town frequented by unsavoury characters after dark.

[Chris D]

I want to be bad, but I'm not good enough at it, so I guess I'm just mediocre.

[clinthopson]

Reminds me of the Sonny Stitrt cd "In Case You Forgot How Bad He Really Was."

It's good.

[tippy]

I had convinced myself for the longest time I was good but now I'm pretty sure I'm a terrible schmuck - not the terriblest but still pretty weak sauce. Live and learn.

[clinthopson]

Originally Posted by tippy

I had convinced myself for the longest time I was good but now I'm pretty sure I'm a terrible schmuck - not the terriblest but still pretty weak sauce. Live and learn.

Say it ain't so, Tip.

[Dr Dave]

Originally Posted by tippy

I had convinced myself for the longest time I was good but now I'm pretty sure I'm a terrible schmuck - not the terriblest but still pretty weak sauce. Live and learn.

I think most of us at least start out thinking we're on the side of the angels. In my case, it kinda crept up on me over the decades that this was not really the case for me. I don't think of myself as a terrible schmuck, but I do think somewhere I was bitten by the Imp of the Perverse. I'll do the wrong thing just to do it. Like Patricia, I sweat to be good. Unlike her, I don't think I'm being bad when I do something for my own pleasure. Quite the contrary. My problem is doing things I know I really ought not do--things that will bring displeasure not only to others but also to my self--and doing them anyway. I suppose you can call it "the human condition" and cover it with a napkin and ignore it, but it really truly sucks.

[Noj]

With this in mind, I'd say I'm good.