Glad this thread is getting back on track again. Hey
SuzyQ, I have never read Simone de Beauvoir but I will give her work a look now that you pointed her out. I need to read something other than chemical equations for a little while anyways.
Thank you.
Skip, not sure how to respond to that one. Domestic violence is a terrible thing, but, as a continuation of your (obvious) joke, if a woman is still doing what she wants after you told her twice, you better put the apron on and start washing the dishes man.
Rugbythug, your post is evidently directed at someone, but I am not sure towards whom as you weren't very clear. However, here are a few corrections for you:
society is simply a reflection of the people in it.
Society is a reflection of the collective beliefs of the
majority of the people that compose it. Your statement leaves out the minority groups, the people who are too few to voice their opinions, the downtrodden, the misunderstood, who have no less a right to voice their opinion than anyone else.
I get tired of people dogging on how society is causing people to change or holding up images that are unattainable.
People trying to conform to norms established by the majority is a normal reaction, as it is a psychological instinct to try to fit in with your peers. The natural hierarchy of human society comes from the inbuilt human impulse to group and form a community. Society
does cause people to change, so getting tired of people pointing that out is not a solution. And unattainable ideals are the dangerous end result of people trying to push the envelope to end on top of the social food chain as they are the ones most likely to be selected for hero worship and emulation. Which is why the collective mentalities of a majority are so perilous.
You are society so fuckin change it
No man, that's not correct. It's couch potato mentality.
WE are society, change depends on all of us, including you.
And why are you so worked up about what other people think anyway?
I think that is already amply explained above and in previous posts. What society thinks can be a dangerous thing, because a collective mentality can give even a weak, and completely wrong idea incredible power. Think of the German nationalistic convinctions prior to WWII. Think of racial discrimination and hatred in the US in the early part of last century. Hell, think of how the average Joe and Jane Pencilneck view bodybuilders. The examples are too many to list. You know them as well as I do. What other people think can cause a lot of grief. Don't make the mistake of not caring about it because it does not directly affect you. Indifference can also be a crime.