It could be worse...

And so the saying goes.

Recently, a friend of mine was having a discussion with a co-worker.  He was discussing a perceived injustice in the system.  The argument went back and forth with my friend clearly asking more and more pointed questions until finally, his co-worker responded with "look, at least you have a job, right?"

And there it was.

"It could be worse."

The conversation was pretty much over then, but it got me thinking.  I was genuinely annoyed by that response.  I started analyzing it. Digging into what it meant and why it got under my skin. What I found was nothing less than a light bulb!

There are three ways that the concept of "it could be worse" can be applied.  The first is simply a matter of trying to get someone to put something into perspective.  In my experience, this typically has to do with an overreaction  to a relatively minor event.  I picture kids reacting to getting a minor scrape like they just lost a limb, or maybe a girl being consoled by her best friend after breaking up with her boyfriend.  It has a hopeful connotation like the saying "it isn't the end of the world".  It is saying "keep it in perspective."  This, by itself, is okay.

The second is a threat.  You have heard it.  If you a parent, you might have used it.  If your kid is complaining about having to clean his room before he can play, you might fire off "It could be worse, you could clean your room and then go straight to bed."  Yeah, I've done that.  It isn't nice, but it is still what I would call a legitimate use of the phrase.

The third is a red herring.  And that just ticks me off.  It is what happened to my friend.  It isn't related to the conversation, and it isn't related to the argument.  It is nothing more than a red herring that one person uses to get the argument off track.  I don't like logical fallacies, but this one really gets under my skin somehow.  It is dismissive and totally not relevant.  If there is something that needs correcting, then that should be addressed.  The answer shouldn't be "At least you have a job."  You could have said anything negative and it would be no more relevant.  "At least you are alive", "At least you aren't on fire", "At least the earth hasn't exploded", etc.  It isn't related to the conversation and it is a crappy way to try and end the argument.  I tell you, it makes me want to beat my head against a wall.

But, I guess it could be worse...