It depends on how you wield it.
Cynicism shouldn't cloud your judgement. That's the actually correct point you wanted to make, I think.
There appears to be some force that promotes one particular way of thinking, perhaps the inevitable consequence of accumulated experiences. In the case of cynicism, the balance tends to shift towards one side of a scale over time.
Without a countervailing force on the other side it can tip a normally balanced system out of stable equilibrium.
My point is explicitly: the world provides the force in one direction, and the individual must provide the force in the other.
Maybe this is the same thing you intended by saying it shouldn't Cloud your judgment.
It doesn't help that the clinical meaning and the colloquial meaning of the word are different, with the latter being used by people to hit you over the head with, pretending that it would be the former.
Is what you said. The clinical thing.
> You're just being cynical
Is cognitive dissonance forcing its way out of the mouths of people to shoot the messenger.
Isn't the first a product of generator of cognative dissonance? Doubling down on beliefs that pay rent, even when it doesn't fit?
Right now it is flashing, so I will pull over and call AAA
I think your reaction is rather ironic given the context. An example of how people can't even talk to each other anymore.
Any other interesting thoughts worth sharing from your side?
I don't think cynicism is the correct approach though. It's possible to accept that circumstances are unhealthy without internalizing general negativity. It's just hard. I suspect you and I, and OP, are all agreeing with each other on this point.