When did you last yell at someone? Why? Did you later regret it?

I do the vast majority of my yelling in either the safety of my car or in order to be heard over a large group of small humans. In the car, I feel like it’s okay to yell because the idiot driver in front of me who is clearly riding his or her brake cannot hear me and, therefore, cannot be offended when I call him or her an idiot and/or question their parentage. In that situation, no, I do not later regret it. Idiots who have no business possessing a driver’s license deserve to be yelled at behind their backs from time to time. As for yelling at the children… It’s really not so much that I’m yelling at them. It’s more that I need them to hear me and when they’re being loud, it’s easy to get carried away and become loud myself. I also do not regret these instances. Even though there’s a school of thought that says one should speak more quietly when facing a room full of loud children. The soft voice will force them to be quiet because they’re naturally curious about why one is speaking in a whisper. I don’t buy it, though.

What about you? Any good shouting matches you’d like to share with the class?

*The Question of the Week can be found in The Book of Questions by Gregory Stock, Ph.D.