The Case for Getting on Your High Horse

On being judgmental

In college, my roommates and I had a favorite insult for each other: get off your high horse. You’re chirping me for skipping a class, when you blacked out on a Tuesday night? Get off your high horse, you scumbag. Healthy criticism that led to good laughter. Self-righteousness, after all, is one of the quickest roads to delusion.

But as I was reflecting on this recently, I thought about the more generalized form of this Get off your high horse type thinking that holds great influence in our culture. Think about it. If you hear the word judgmental some negative connotations will likely come to mind. Why?

It is something that seems to be ingrained into the Western psyche by centuries of conditioning. Professor Gad Saad unpacks this in his book The Parasitic Mind, pointing to Biblical quotes like Matthew 7:1-2:

“Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you.”

Saad also urges us to consider how antonyms of the word judgmental include admirable characteristics like open-minded, tolerant, and unbiased. He also points to common phrases like, “I don’t judge,” or “who am I to judge?”

While this all makes sense, one must realize that an open mind not tempered by critical, judgmental thought is dangerous. To judge is a necessary component of who we are, and helps shape the quality of our lives. To draw more wisdom from Dr. Saad, consider another excerpt from his book:

“To judge is to be human…We judge whom to include within our close circle of friends. We judge various prospective suitors prior to marrying our eventual spouse. We judge the performance of our students and employees. Life is laden with endless judgments…To never judge is to be an intellectual coward for it serves as an insurance policy against the possibility of being a polarizing figure…Of course, not all judgments are created equal. The difference between a judgmental ideologue and a judgmental intellectual is the process by which each arrives at his position. As long as one uses well-articulated arguments in support of one’s judgments, it is perfectly acceptable to judge.”

When I first read that excerpt a few days ago, it hit me hard. Saad’s unapologetic defense of judgment felt like permission I didn’t know I needed.

I’ve often struggled with accepting passing judgment as okay, and sometimes I still do. I don’t want to be mean.

But the more I think about it, the less I worry. If judging is human, avoiding doing so can be cowardice. The older I get, the clearer it becomes that seeking truth isn’t about playing nice. It’s a sacred duty that outweighs hurt feelings every day of the week and twice on Sunday, to use a phrase my old basketball coach loved.

That’s why I don’t hesitate anymore. For instance, if I see my hometown making national news as a trans sanctuary city—while there are real problems there like poverty and gang violence—I’ll mock it and not care. Truth demands calling out ridiculousness, not tiptoeing around it and pretending nothing is wrong.

To give another example, if my intelligence is insulted by a professor tossing a word salad at me in an attempt to appear profound, I’m going to say, “What do you mean?” Or if I’m disturbed by the ignorance of socialists campaigning on the riverwalk in Austin, I’ll denounce them as I run by.

I’m not exempt from all this, of course. If you don’t like my takes, judge me. Criticize me. Nonsense deserves a punch on the arm, not a hug.

That’s the main point: protecting emotions shouldn’t be placed over sober discernment. Poor thinking needs to be challenged, dismantled, and judged. You may rub some people the wrong way when you do it, but who cares? On the other hand, some people will love it.¹

It is better to have some guts and say what you really think, than to be spineless and and sit on the fence on matters in which you secretly do have strong opinions.

So climb up on that high horse when you think it is called for. The view is worth the risk.

Thank You For Reading

If you like what I’m doing with this blog and want to support my work, there are various ways you can do it.

1. Like and Restack — Click the buttons at the top or bottom of the page to boost the post’s visibility on Substack.

2. Share — Send the post to your friends or share it online

3. Upgrade to Paid — A premium subscription gives you:

   • Knowledge Journey posts: exclusive curated deep dives into culture, languages, and philosophy

   • Entry into the subscriber chat

4. Buy me a coffee — If you enjoy the content I put out and are not ready to become a paid subscriber, you can simply make a one-time donation at Buy Me a Coffee:

With gratitude,

Jeff

1. “The best art divides the audience.”

— Rick Rubin, The Creative Act