Treating Other People With Respect

[phiwum]

If they prefer to be called "passengers of size", would you call them that out of politeness?

Do you think that this is the term preferred by a non-negligible percentage of overweight people?

Anyway, I'll answer your question. I think I would begrudgingly use the pointlessly awkward term, all the while thinking that it is the silliest euphemism I've seen in some time and being fairly self-conscious at expressing myself so badly.

 

[phiwum]

If respect must be earned, why is disrespect free?

Er, you do realize that this is a very silly question?

If food must be earned, why is starvation free?

If vehicles must be earned, why is walking free?

And so on. Not that I necessarily agree with "respect must be earned" -- not when the "respect" we're talking about is common decency rather than honor -- but your question missed the mark.

 

[Upchurch]

Do you think that this is the term preferred by a non-negligible percentage of overweight people?

I don't think it matters. If one person prefers to be called by a particular term, what does it hurt to call them by that term? Or five? Or ten?

Personally, I would prefer people not to call me overweight or obese. I know my personal physical issues. I'm not inclined to give my business to a company who throws it in my face. I don't care that it's a stupid euphemism. It's considerate.

 

[rwguinn]

Er, you do realize that this is a very silly question?

If food must be earned, why is starvation free?

If vehicles must be earned, why is walking free?

And so on. Not that I necessarily agree with "respect must be earned" -- not when the "respect" we're talking about is common decency rather than honor -- but your question missed the mark.

I liken respect to a bank account.
When we first meet, you have a balance in that account. That balance is due to the fact that you are living and breathing, and is not necessarily dependent on things like physical appearance and dress.
You get to add to or subtract from that balance from there. some people become millionaires rather quickly; others are bankrupt after the first paragraph.

 

[Beerina]

You can be polite to people without respecting them one iota.

 

[phiwum]

I don't think it matters. If one person prefers to be called by a particular term, what does it hurt to call them by that term? Or five? Or ten?

I'm having trouble imagining a situation in which someone has told me he's sensitive about being called overweight, and yet I have to mention his excessive abundance often enough that I use the term he's told me he prefers.

In any case, yeah, I think that if I were in that situation, it would be decent to use the term he prefers, despite the fact that I think it's a terrible and silly euphemism.

Personally, I would prefer people not to call me overweight or obese. I know my personal physical issues. I'm not inclined to give my business to a company who throws it in my face. I don't care that it's a stupid euphemism. It's considerate.

So, do you think that it is only reasonable that the airlines use the term "passengers of size" rather than the term "larger passengers"? Is the latter term insensitive?

If so, what makes "larger passengers" less sensitive than "passengers of size"? The obliqueness of the latter?

 

[petrov2500]

So, do you think that it is only reasonable that the airlines use the term "passengers of size" rather than the term "larger passengers"? Is the latter term insensitive?

If so, what makes "larger passengers" less sensitive than "passengers of size"? The obliqueness of the latter?

"Larger passengers" clearly refers to fat people, while "passengers of size" is a more disguised term. It is a term the PC crowd would like to use because it says that they have some size, but doesn't directly specify a larger size. It is a similar idea to calling disabled people "differently abled" which hides the fact that the "difference" is worse.

People who are concerned about being PC also make a big deal about the attribute word (in this case larger) being placed in front of the word referring to the person (passengers). This is why some people say that "colored people" is offensive, but "people of color" is very PC. While I agree that you shouldn't use "colored people" because of the history of it, I don't care about being politically correct and don't typically use "people of color" or "African American" and just say black instead.

 

[Butter!]

I'm sorry but I disagree. When a full grown man/woman says that the moon was split less than 1500 years ago(Muslims),or they have lived before(Buddhists),or that zombies are real(Christians)then they are being stupid. Why should I(or anyone) pretend otherwise.

If a adult thinks that a human can live inside a whale-oh wait fish sorry(because that's the problem with that story!)then they are stupid and should be treated accordingly.

Firstly there's a honesty aspect. If you see or hear someone being a idiot should you not be upfront about it. Secondly if someone says something patently absurd isn't it simple decency to roll around on the floor laughing loudly.

But ultimately, above all else I strongly believe that if someone acts like a stupid idiot they should be treated accordingly. The only time you don't mock a idiot loudly is when they have a nickname like "stabby Steve"or "machete mike"and they are between you and the only exit.

That's ridiculous. There's no reason to ever go out of your way to mock people. That's stirring up trouble and conflict needlessly. Just ignore them. Roll your eyes, if you must.

Now, if the person is trying to proselytize his or her absurd beliefs to you directly, some mockery is quite a bit more understandable. Still not necessary, though.

 

[Corsair 115]

Okay

And how exactly did you divine their preference for a given term without asking them first?

 

[The Atheist]

In the case of airlines, we could take a leaf out of Samoa's book and charge passengers by their weight: http://edition.cnn.com/2013/04/02/travel/samoa-air-fare-by-weight/

Adjust seat size accordingly and we have a perfect, politically-correct answer. Nobody but the passenger and airline ever needs to hear about the weight and skinny people won't get squashed between two behemoths.

 

[Upchurch]

And how exactly did you divine their preference for a given term without asking them first?

It doesn't matter how you know. It's part of the premise of the question, a given. Would you?

 

[The Atheist]

Next, let's talk about the politically correct way to stop armrest-hoggers.

I favour needle-sharp push pins taped to my outer forearm, but others may have a better way.

 

[The Atheist]

Personally, I would prefer people not to call me overweight or obese. I know my personal physical issues. I'm not inclined to give my business to a company who throws it in my face. I don't care that it's a stupid euphemism. It's considerate.

It's meaningless is the main problem.

Come up with some kind of sensible term and it might catch on, and surely the fact that something is euphemistic doesn't lessen the impact at all - however you look at it, they're saying "This person is too fat to be considered a normal person."

 

[phiwum]

"Larger passengers" clearly refers to fat people, while "passengers of size" is a more disguised term.

First, neither term really is synonymous with fat people. I presume that a seven ft. tall person is larger than most, and if anyone is described as "of size", he is.

Second, I was really asking for the opinion of someone who defends the usage. It doesn't seem like you fit the bill.

 

[skeptichaggis]

That's ridiculous. There's no reason to ever go out of your way to mock people. That's stirring up trouble and conflict needlessly. Just ignore them. Roll your eyes, if you must.

Now, if the person is trying to proselytize his or her absurd beliefs to you directly, some mockery is quite a bit more understandable. Still not necessary, though.

Really. A grown adult says horses can fly(Muslims think this). And you should not,in 2015,make a fool of them for it.

Horses cannot fly,this is impossible. They are tetrapods with a long fossil history. On top of which its fairly obvious horses don't fly. They are in fact widely known for not flying.

On planet earth(as opposed to the marshmallow planet)if you act like a fool you should be treated like one.

The above is only one example.

 

[Pup]

I'm curious what advantage there is to not using a "politically correct" term that one knows or suspects the other person prefers. Let's take a classic from a while ago, "negro."

What is the advantage of calling someone a negro if you strongly suspect he would prefer black or African-American? Is it because you (the generic you, anyone) don't have to relearn an old habit? Is it because you enjoy being known as non-PC, not a blind follower of the latst trend? Is it because negro has always worked before and you see no reason to change? Is it because you want to get in a subtle jab of control and disrespect?

There were people who continued to use "negro" till the day they died, maybe some elderly ones who still do. It's a more blatant example of widespread change in language that most people accept today, but it's still the same basic problem: If you know a person prefers one term over the other, what is the benefit of using the term they don't like?

 

[Corsair 115]

It doesn't matter how you know. It's part of the premise of the question, a given. Would you?

So you're suggesting a preference for one term over another purely on the basis of speculation?

 

[Upchurch]

So you're suggesting a preference for one term over another purely on the basis of speculation?

Not speculation, a given.

The point I'm questioning is not the relative value or accuracy of a particular term. I'm not questioning how you know the other person's prefers term.

What I'm questioning is, given that you know how a person prefers to be referred to, do you refer to them with that term?

The assumption I am making, since you avoided answering the first question, is that you do, in fact, want to be polite to overweight and obese people. If the answer is actually "no", then it might be safe to assume the same answer for this subsequent question.

 

[phiwum]

I'm curious what advantage there is to not using a "politically correct" term that one knows or suspects the other person prefers. Let's take a classic from a while ago, "negro."

What is the advantage of calling someone a negro if you strongly suspect he would prefer black or African-American? Is it because you (the generic you, anyone) don't have to relearn an old habit? Is it because you enjoy being known as non-PC, not a blind follower of the latst trend? Is it because negro has always worked before and you see no reason to change? Is it because you want to get in a subtle jab of control and disrespect?

There were people who continued to use "negro" till the day they died, maybe some elderly ones who still do. It's a more blatant example of widespread change in language that most people accept today, but it's still the same basic problem: If you know a person prefers one term over the other, what is the benefit of using the term they don't like?

I tend to agree with your point here, but is there any significant evidence that "persons of size" is a term preferred by some significant percentage of large persons?

I've never heard the term before today, and all I've heard about it is that some airline was using it. If there's a movement to make this the preferred term, I've not seen it.

ETA: I understand completely that Upchurch was asking about a hypothetical situation, and I gave my answer there. Now, I'm asking a different question: is the hypothetical situation similar to the real world?

 

[arthwollipot]

I may have missed it, but is "person of size" a term that is actually used in the real world?