Right of Way

My first true post of a micro moral is a simple one: Walk on the right side. This applies to sidewalks, stairwells, and doorways. This may seem small or unimportant or even petty, and the last thing I want is to sound like some busy body from your neighborhood who calls the cops every time you drive past his house a little too fast. But life is easier for all of us when we know what to expect. Ever go in for a hand shake and get surprised by a hug? Go in for a hug with your aunt and get surprised by a kiss? How many times do you walk into a door only to be surprised by someone trying to come out. Was it your fault? How do you know?

You know it was your fault because you walked through the left side didn't you. I know that sometimes it is easier to walk through the left side. Maybe someone has just walked through and it hasn't closed yet, or they even seem to be holding it open for you, but you step in only to have an awkward dance with someone who has the right of way. Ultimately, it is your fault and your motivation was selfish. Should you go to jail or be stoned to death? Of course not. But the social awkwardness is entirely the fault of the person who ignored the rules. I can't pretend to say that I have never walked through the left door, but now I have two children and navigating doorways is hard enough without impatient people barreling through the wrong side. Making a commitment to small gestures of kindness that may never be noticed is the height of morality and what micro moralism is all about.

There are more obvious forms selfishness in the battles of right of way. Lovely people who walk in pairs down a sidewalk and don't break formation when your are walking in the other direction. These people are saying that they are more important than you. That is the only logical explanation. What is worse? Stepping behind your walking partner for a second while someone passes, or having to step into the grass or something else. I am proud to say that I have never been this selfish, but it does make me angry. Maybe more angry than I should be, but to me this is the epitome of someone who can parade great Macro Morals around and never lie, cheat, steal, have promiscuous sex, contemplate abortion, but in these smaller actions they show their true selves. They show themselves to be selfish and only moral when people are watching or when the issue is important enough for people to care.