LadyPact -> RE: Don't be a creeper (12/3/2015 4:11:34 AM)
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ORIGINAL: ManOeuvre Even though much of this behaviour doesn't cross the line into criminality, there are real life consequences of people getting labelled as creeps or creepy, and so long as such sanctions, be they social, civil or criminal are encouraged, they ought to be applied, if there is any attempt being made to right some injustice, as responses to actions that someone has taken. I have read a lot of posts on here that specifically reference the feeling of being creeped out. I had to dig back a few pages for this, so I hope you don't mind if I don't repeat what some others have said in the interim. Of the three types of sanctions that you mention, (social, civil, or criminal) being creepy as a singular issue doesn't meet two of those criteria. If you are hitting criminal, you're talking about a specific violation of law (i.e., stalking, harassment, indecent exposure, etc) so *just* creepy doesn't hit that level without additional behavior. Civil doesn't work either because then you are hitting areas like sexual harassment that is job related, which you also have to base on a) reporting incidents and b) non response to correct the problem. Social is the area where I would say you are correct. Then again, this fits the same as any other social behavior that dictates our preferences with whom we choose to spend our time. If you know the guy who makes several of your female guests uncomfortable when you throw a party, that might not be the guy you want to invite. quote:
I certainly cannot argue that someone has experienced some feeling or other, but to establish any sort of rules for society that is dependant on someone's feelings does feel a touch like a descent into madness. Of course nobody here has recommended that "creeps" be crucified, castrated, or straight up culled, but the OP did essentially title this post with something of an injunction. Had the OP titled the thread "don't be an asshole," I highly doubt there would have been pages of responses with the underlying message of 'person X wore this, so I was entitled to be an asshole'. There also wouldn't have been a lot of posts from people trying to quantify just exactly what an asshole is or trying to pin down exactly what they have to do to be an asshole. It would mean person X did A last week that made them a jerk but someone two months ago did something different but that still put them in asshole territory. quote:
I don't disagree with the notion implied by Ladies Pact and Constanze, and stated by Greta that well north of abductors, batterers and rapists on the behaviour charte there are legions of men who suffer a serious vitamin Etiquette deficiency. Thank you. I don't think anybody on this thread is trying to say being creepy is the same level as criminal activity. At the same time, it is a form of behavior that can be improved on by some individuals. Just because it's not the biggest social issue that we face doesn't mean it's not an issue at all. quote:
I react much as you'd hope when some fool behaves in that way towards a woman of mine, or who's otherwise close to me. I tell imperfect strangers to smarten up if I judge them to be out of line towards women in public. I'm even arrogant enough to impose my western style chivalry-ish etiquette expectations on men within an umbrella's reach when I'm far from home, and can barely bahasa. I seriously do not defend the actions of a single one of the "creeps" brought up in the anecdotes posted by the women on this thread, and I'll never recommend similar actions to my sons. Of course, every instance brought up in the examples is something the world could have done without. By this time, I think some of that has been displayed numerous times on this thread. When other men step up and basically say don't lump me into the category of the way you act, that's also saying that some men don't approve of creepy behavior. There's really nothing wrong with a man who is seeing the woman in his company being repeatedly bothered by the guy who is trying to pick her up telling him to leave her alone. And, yes, teaching our sons that certain behaviors are not socially acceptable is our job. I actually got a kick out of the video of what happens when the guys were catcalling their mothers. I didn't feel a bit bad for the males in that video. quote:
My argument is simply that the word creep, along with its many inflections, being so prone to arbitrary application, used for such a wide spectrum of cases, and carrying a stigma so scarlet in hue, is not a terribly useful term. Are you under the impression that the word creep is being used as a synonym for stalkers, rapists, etc? If so, we have a difference of view. I think people know the categories are different. At the same time, we can't just say, well, they haven't broken a law, so the fact that the behavior puts women at a higher sense of alert should be discarded completely. Telling people to listen to their instincts about their interactions is usually a good idea. quote:
I also think that using it to describe a person who has harmed no one, rather than specific deeds, is disingenuous, especially when describing a man whose overall aesthetic, before he opens his mouth or lets wander his wonky eye, just exudes and aura of birth control. I'm not sure I agree with you that harm has to necessarily come into it. The guy who is a jerk to you for whatever various reasons doesn't have to *harm* you for you not to want to be around him. Maybe you just think he's crude, so you'd prefer him not to be in your company. Does he have a bad habit of making inappropriate remarks to the women that you and your other friends are dating? Not exactly the guy you want when you're inviting people over, is it? Disrespectful to you, yes. Were you harmed? quote:
*EDIT* Oops. Had this sitting on my desk for awhile. Didn't realize we were onto cars, women's fashions, and boring, boring insults. I'll try to be quicker next time. Yeah, this one took a very strange turn, didn't it?
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