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Location: The western periphery of Terra Australis
24,544 posts, read 56,029,399 times
Reputation: 11862
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Stumbler.
The key is not to be blind to differences obviously (of course we would all agree that say, not letting a child vote or drink, not giving a heavy lifting job to a skinny fellow whose body can't handle it, or declining someone who can't speak English well a job that needs verbal fluency, is only proper). Statistically discrimination is used all the time, (after all, what is marketing? If one group, say women, people aged 19-30, those of Italian culture. etc. is more likely to be the target of your product of course you focus on them) but to ignore irrevelant differences and stereotypes in situations that one is tempted to give when they are not helpful to or get in the way of knowing the individual.
For example, if I was making lunch for my friend, and I wanted to decide if I'd like to add chili peppers to it, I'd ask him "Do you like those?" if I can, rather than reason "Well, he's a recent immigrant from a country whose cuisine is known to be spicy, and statistically has a high consumption of hot peppers, so I'd bet on it". My knowledge of whether my buddy usually likes that kind of food is the useful generalization, not the "demographic which my buddy belongs to".
To be fair though, we have (well at least in many parts of the civilized world) gotten rid of many behaviours that were common and that happened thousands of years ago, and what is natural and instinctive isn't always right, an idea which has been beaten to death.
Very good point. Sometimes things are interpreted as being racist when it's common sense.
Anyway, I basically stand by my answer. You asked what I did, so how is that a 'wrong' answer when it's your opinion?
I just think that elderly people deserve to be treated with just a bit more honor and the people who disagree with me seem to be saying the same thing that you are saying, "treat everyone with respect," which is a statement of respectful courtesy rather than honorific respect. You IMO seem to be ignoring the difference between honor and courtesy.
Location: The western periphery of Terra Australis
24,544 posts, read 56,029,399 times
Reputation: 11862
Quote:
Originally Posted by smartalx
I just think that elderly people deserve to be treated with just a bit more honor and the people who disagree with me seem to be saying the same thing that you are saying, "treat everyone with respect," which is a statement of respectful courtesy rather than honorific respect. You IMO seem to be ignoring the difference between honor and courtesy.
Like what, calling them 'Mrs. Smith' instead of by their first name? I find most old people actually prefer to be treated just like everyone else, not ignored or treated like a fragile old statue.
Oh things like opening doors etc for them are pretty obvious...
This is all true, but the question remains. Do we treat elderly strangers with a bit more courtesy or even honor than the young whippersnapper stranger?
There are situations where it's relevant and those where it's not. For example, I'd obviously be more inclined all else being equal, on first thought to offer my seat to an elderly person on the bus than a young fellow based on the assumption that the young guy needs it less, although that assumption could change in a situation.
If an elderly person has something to tell about what life was like in the 1950s and all the experiences he'd been through, I'd be more inclined to weigh his opinion highly than if a young guy just told me something he read off the internet about life in the '50s.
But on the other hand, there are situations where the age of the individual might not be as important, and everyone has to be treated the same.
I think culture plays a large part toward this question and the role that elders play in that culture. In my culture, Comanche Nation of Oklahoma, the elders are the keepers of our culture. They know the stories, traditions, language, wisdom and beliefs. It is from them that the younger generations look to keep our culture alive. They pass on their knowledge and experiences and we learn from them.
Unfortunately, many of the young people among the various Nations are following the trend in America of marginalizing the elders and do not seem to get it.
Worthy? That's the loaded word in the OP, I guess we all want the respect of others but whether we are "worthy" of that respect is determined by the individual observer at any given moment. No one above the age of sixty got there by being so foolish as to do something that killed them, but many people do end their life with a horrific display of poor judgement. Long life can often be attributed to a persons use of good judgement and therefore those who survive into old age often are seen as just a bit more experienced in a way that makes you wonder if they aren't just smarter than their peers who went down in flames due to alcohol, drugs, work, stress, poor diet, lack of exercise, and a host of other life threatening indulgences brought on by making poor choices. In this way we could show our respect for those old folks who have done the right things in life and made those difficult but wise choices when the odds weren't always the best. As many here have already pointed out and I think it would be obvious but for what it's worth I'll say that no one is deserving of our respect in an automatic fashion, it's always about behavior, and that can change from time to time.
Just for being alive longer? Is their opinion more valuable? On one hand, old people do have a long archive of experience, but on the other hand, some people are idiots no matter what age they are.
Why does a judge get more respect than an ordinary citizen? Why does a president get more respect than an ordinary citizen? Why does a chaplain get more respect than an ordinary citizen?
Should they get that extra attention than others?
I was raised to respect the grays hair on others. What I mean by respect is the extra politeness that recognizes their age. Their opinion in general may tend to have the wisdom of experience behind it and as such may tend to be more valuable from someone that may have walked the walk.
I do not know how old you but do you give the same value to the opinion of let us say a 13 year old than a 60 year old?
Let us say you have a question on romantic relationships, who do you think most likely has more experience thus more value in the opinion?
Granted, there are people that grow in life always being foolish. There exception like anything in life just are there may be many very wise young teenagers that act way beyond their year in how they conduct themselves. I am talking in the general sense older people tend to provide wiser knowledge in life because they have lived longer.
The bottom line is my respect is a general recognition to having lived longer and the wisdom the generally goes with a long life. However, that does not negate the common respect to all as human beings, take care.
I respect senior citizens more, and call them sir and ma'am.
It has nothing to do with whether they are wise or foolish, it is just that they are older. Reaching old age is an accomplishment in itself and the way I was raised it warrants respect.
Everyone deserves respect until they demonstrate that they do not.
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