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We are living in some interesting and hectic times.
We are in the midst of a culture war. And there seems to be no end in sight.
That is because everybody has stopped looking for common ground to merely start conversations with.
And this leads to everyone being offended by everything, all of the time. And it's become a real issue.
So where do we go from here?
Redditor PowerfulAd5343 wanted to chat about the things that people need to calm down and try to be so sensitive about, they asked:
"What is something people absolutely need to stop getting offended over?"
I'll start... I'm wrong a lot. So please don't yell at me when I'm learning.
Mind your business...
Trigger Reaction GIF by MOODMAN
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"My friend tweeted about his grandma dying and someone got mad at him for not adding a trigger warning." ~ jack_snaz_lord
It's Ok
"Being wrong! It's okay to be wrong, as long as you’re also willing to learn." ~ TheBostonKremeDonut
"I used to have a friend like this, she could not stand to be corrected and automatically felt as though you were 'attacking her' or diminishing her, even though you were just trying to correct and help her. I burned that bridge and I am thankful for it." ~ TelemachusTheYoung
Get Facts
"Third party people who hear one side of a story, assume that's all the facts and not any bias or perceptive distortion nor a misunderstanding, and then go on to attack the other party who is also hurting from what happened between the first two parties." ~ misunderstood_blob
Not Going
"Declining their offer. Years ago my mom (she's gotten much better now) would offer to help with something and if I said no she'd take it as a personal insult. One time I said I was coming to pick up my things as I was in the process of moving out, she said she can just hold onto them until I find a place."
"It was pretty clear she wanted to slow the moving process down as much as possible but I said no thank you, I'd rather have them with me now. The conversation ended with her telling me to go to hell and threatening to throw my property on the lawn in the middle of the night cause I insisted instead of caved." ~ Homo-Homie
Stay Young
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"When I ask for I.D. to sell a product." ~ gumbi01
"This but I work at a bank. It blows my mind how mad people can get that I ask them to verify their identity to access their secured funds." ~ SpaceCase9212
All valid. Why are you bent out of shape about looking young? Be offended when they stop asking.
Back Off
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"Setting boundaries with toxic people. It's not 'vindictive' or 'unforgiving,' it's healthy." ~ danthedoozy
Looks...
"Acknowledging physical characteristics in a non racist way. For example, let’s say you’re at a party and there are 20 white people and one black guy. You’re chatting to him for a bit and then he leaves. Later you’re talking to someone else and you’re like, 'I was chatting to someone earlier, can’t remember his name… he had a yellow shirt on… eerr, he was the tall guy with glasses….' Etc etc. Just say it was the one black guy, people take these things way too far." ~ Bont74205
Parents Explain Which Things Surprised Them Most When Their Child Moved Out | George Takei’s Oh Myyy
Parenting is a lifelong commitment but the load is certainly lightened when kids go off to college or move away for their first "adult" job. It can be quite ...Light Shedders
"I know a lot of these are trying to shed light on important issues, but the activism you see on Instagram (or really any social media platform for that matter) are getting pretty annoying and downright patronising. It's like they're not doing it for the activism so much as the likes and comments agreeing with them." ~ MistressGravity
Mocking
"Cultural appropriation when not done in a mocking manner. Especially with food. The people who get mad because a chef modified a dish someone else’s grandma made in the old country need to just stop. There’s already so much noise in the world, getting mad over food is ridiculous." ~ NKR1978
On behalf of...
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"Getting offended on other people's behalf just on the assumption that they'd probably be offended." ~ WarmProfit
Just Text
"Not answering the phone. I am not contractually forced to answer the go**amn phone each time it rings." ~ Kadavez
"I am old enough to remember the phone ringing being an event! Lol there used to be a race to see who could answer it. That was back in the day when people actually called to talk. There was never any bill/debt collections. Sales pitches. Phone scams. 90% of the calls i get now are all scams… was a much simpler time." ~ CircusSizedPeanuts
Hurting No One...
"Offended by things that hurt no one. Tattoos, bad haircuts, men doing feminine things and vice versa. Such pointless things to be offended by, but people still do it." ~ keiome
"I simply don’t get where some people take the energy to care so deeply about what others are doing from. Seriously, why on earth would I spend time bitching about what this dude over there is doing in the bedroom, when I could do any number of things with it? I just can’t really imagine giving a crap about what others are doing with their free time." ~ RussianSead**k
Move On...
"As someone in the trans umbrella, accidental misgendering. Don't get all up in arms with a stranger calling you miss when you go by he/him pronouns. They don't know, they don't care to know. It's not on purpose. Move on." ~ Vashj1995
"Honestly if you politely say to someone 'I'd actually prefer if you'd call me X' they will most commonly be fine with that. There is no need for people to get super confrontational right off the bat with it." ~ gridfilter667
Frown
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"People not smiling. For some reason it bugs the hell out of some people when someone doesn't smile often, to the point where they feel inclined to embarrass them by loudly telling them to smile more." ~ 14thCluelessbird
Weight Goals
"When I tell people about my weight loss goals, and I get hit with a 'you look fine/don't worry about what people think/you don't need to lose weight' and won't drop it, acting like I'm doing it out of self-hatred or something. Like, no, I do need to lose weight, I was 40lbs over my healthy BMI. I've lose 10 so far, and I tend to lose 30 more. it has nothing to do with self-esteem, I already think I'm attractive."
"I just have to be realistic with myself and admit that I'm putting myself at risk. my family has a bad history of heart disease and diabetes, and I don't wanna end up dead in the dirt at 55 like everyone else has. Some people lose weight for perfectly healthy reasons. it's not always just internalized hatred." ~ ZCLoki
"Who's Pete?"
"Using people's race to describe them. Like 'Who's Pete? My friend from school - asian guy, you met him before.' My mom used to say it was incredibly offensive to use someone's race to describe them. It's honestly just the fastest way to explain who you're talking about." ~ the_saas_guy
Kevin
"When someone tries to hold them accountable- which is different than attacking someone for their behavior. For example- 'It’s not that you’re an a**hole by default, Kevin; you’re actually a pretty chill guy. But when you get really drunk, and start yelling at everyone, it’s hard to not see your asshole-ish behavior.' It’s not who you are, it’s how you behave- It can be tricky to communicate but it can help maintain your relationships with people." ~ RielGreen
Trash
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"Something simple like ringing my bicycle bell. I'm trying to alert you that I'm going so you don't accidentally sidestep and I run into you because of that! I'm not saying 'Get off the road, you piece of trash.'" ~ North_Spirit
Respectful Admiration
"A lot of people have a very diluted feeling of what cultural appropriation is. You see people wear clothing that belongs to a different culture and everyone immediately begins screaming cultural appropriation, but just wearing clothes from another culture really isn’t and in many ways can show someone respects that culture." ~ tuc-eert
Be Merry
"Saying merry Christmas. I don’t celebrate Hanukkah, but if a Jewish person said 'Happy Hanukkah' to me I’d be like oh sweet yeah bro happy Hanukkah. It’s literally just a day. Someone is telling you happy day." ~ Gullible_Tell3000
"As a Jewish bus driver, one time I dropped off a Muslim woman at the hospital where she worked, she said to me 'Merry Christmas!" and I said "Merry Christmas to you too!'"
"There was an awkward pause because we clearly didn't mean to say it to each-other on purpose, it was just instinctive, but also not worth trying to rectify either. Seriously it's not a big deal. It's just something funny to think about for me." ~ Rusty-Shackleford
Maybe it's time we get better therapists, or just try to be calm and listen to another person's intentions, and then react.
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The old wives' tales.
They are the stories of legend.
I think we all need a big DEEP Google dive though.
Where did they originate?
WHO ARE THE OLD WIVES!
You don't hear about them as much anymore.
It's like science and logic are suddenly a thing.
But they sure are a good way to keep your kids and their behavior in line.
Redditor the_spring_goddess wanted to discuss the tall tales we've all been fed through life, so they asked:
"What is an old wives tale that people still believe?"
"Wait an hour to swim after eating."
What a crock!
So many summer hours wasted.
I want revenge for that one.
Say Nothing
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"An undercover cop has to tell you he's a cop if you ask him."
LonelyMail5115
"Pretty much most advice when it comes to cops are old wives tales. I’m not even a cop but most of the advice you hear is pretty off."
I_AM_AN_A**HOLE_AMA
Say Something
"That you have to wait 24 hours to report someone missing."
Severe_Airport1426
"I really think this one is important and should be the top regardless. As it’s a piece of advice that needs to be relearned and the only way to do that is through awareness."
crappycurtains
"This used to be true. I think they changed it after some guy named Brandon went missing back in the '80s or '70s. You used to have to wait 24 hours if the missing person was an adult because they had 'a right to be missing' and then everyone realized that was stupid and stopped doing it."
AlbinoShavedGorilla
Body Temps
"That drinking ice cold water after eating oily foods will solidify the oil and permanently remain in your body. I informed my coworker that if your body temperature ever reached that point, you’d have bigger problems than weight gain."
chriseo22
"Oh, I have a cousin who 100% believed this. One of those guys who believed every early 2000s internet rumor and old wives tale. One night I chugged a big glass of ice water after dinner and he started freaking out and saying my guts were gonna harden."
"I sarcastically told him to drive me to the hospital if that happened. Obviously, nothing happened and the next morning I said something like 'Thanks for being on standby in case my guts filled with hardened oil.' He just walked off muttering under his breath."
apocalypticradish
Arms Down
"When I was pregnant, I was told by young and old alike that I should NOT raise my arms above my head or exert myself in such a manner because it could cause cord strangulation to my unborn sons and daughters."
Fatmouse84
10 Years Actually
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"Chewing gum stays in your stomach for 7 years."
"I remember accidentally swallowing a piece of gum when I was a kid in like 1995 and just accepting my fate like welp, gonna have this in my stomach til high school I guess."
Gecko-911
I was so afraid to sallow my gum when I was young.
This tale is haunting.
High/Low
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"You can tell the sex of the baby by how you carry."
LeastFormal9366
"Pregnancy certainly wins awards for the most old wives tales. So much absolute BS was repeated to us by everyone we talked to."
IllIIIlIllIlIIlIllI
The Cursed
"If you’re a woman and you wear opal jewelry but opal is not your birthstone (October), you’ll never be able to have children, or will be widowed, or just generally have bad luck or something. You can counteract this by having a diamond in the same piece of jewelry as the opal, though."
"I have a nice opal ring that my parents gave me years ago, and I’ve had other women give me this 'advice' unprompted more than once when I’ve worn it. I have absolutely no idea where it started, but I’m pretty sure this little chunk of silicate rock has no concept of what month I was born in, let alone of how my reproductive organs work."
SmoreOfBabylon
Stay In
"Going outside with wet hair will make you get pneumonia. Or an earache. Or maybe arthritis. Depends on which old wife you listen to."
"Jokes on them - I haven't blow-dried my hair in decades and usually leave the house with wet hair in the morning. On winter mornings, the tips of my hair get frozen. No ear infections or pneumonia or arthritis yet."
worldbound0514
Dreams and Facts
"You never make anyone up in your dreams you've seen everyone in your dreams somewhere else before and never make anyone up entirely."
"How would you possibly prove that to be true? My partner adamantly believes this and tells me this 'fact' whenever I have a dream about someone I've never met before."
mattshonestreddit
"My late wife used to tell me that before she met me she would have dreams of standing at an alter on her wedding day but could never see the guy's face, no matter how hard she tried. After meeting me the face was filled in with mine. Don't know if it's true but one of those things I like thinking of every now and then when I miss her."
Darthdemented
Cracked
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"Some people still believe cracking knuckles causes arthritis."
Choice-Grapefruit-44
"There's a doctor (Donald Unger) that cracked his knuckles a couple of times a day for 60 years, but only on one hand, just to prove it. Both hands remained exactly the same."
MacyTmcterry
I love my knuckles.
Do you have any tall tales to add to the list? Let us know in the comments below.
Every now and then, a friend of ours might say something, or we might overhear a complete stranger say something that makes us stop in our tracks.
More often than not, what we can't believe we just heard is something so ridiculous, we can't help but put the person who said it in their place.
Other times, however, what we just heard might have stunned us silent because of how shockingly clever it was.
Resulting in our not wanting to scold or yell at someone, but rather give them a handshake.
Redditor SubmergingOriginal was curious to hear the sharpest and wittiest things they've ever heard, from friends and strangers alike, leading them to ask:
"Enough with the dumbest; what is the wittiest thing you've ever heard someone say?"
Don't Give Me So Much Credit...
'I was on a team at work that was on a project working insane overtime."
"One night after an 80-90 hour week, we were all sitting around the table trying to finish up so we could go home."
"Around 11, my buddy's wife called, dubious about the hours he'd been keeping."
"We heard her through the line - 'are you cheating on me?'"
"Exasperated, he looked at our boss, then replied 'honey, if I was cheating on you, I would have been home by now'."- lionbatcher
Eternal Optimism...
"Asked a blind guy if he'd been blind his whole life."
"He said 'Not yet'."- Feeling_Mode_6465
Free time Isn't The Only Thing He Has On His Hands...
"My brother got a vasectomy and when the doctor was releasing him and giving him instructions (with the nurse listening in), one of the orders was to 'come back and have a follow-up appointment after you’ve ejaculated 30 times'.”
"Without missing a beat my brother asked 'what time do you open tomorrow?'”
"The nurse couldn’t keep it together after hearing that."- UtahUtopia
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Double Whammy!
"My pal uses the phrase 'he doesn’t look strong enough to carry information' and it cracks me up every time."
"Calling someone stupid and weak in one fell swoop."- JennyW93
Can't Hide Your DNA...
'Whenever I jokingly insult my mum, she says 'that must be where you get it from'."
"She cracked the code."
"I can never offend her without offending myself."- JennyW93
Self-Sufficient!
"My brother was a line cook at a New Orleans restaurant."
"My mom was in town, staying at a fancy hotel, and he stopped by after work, still wearing his kitchen whites."
"He was reading a newspaper in the lobby waiting for her to come down when the shocked lobby manager sputtered at him, 'MAY I HELP YOU!?!?'
"He answered, 'thanks, but I know how to read',” and went back to his paper."- jobrody
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A Miracle!
"My brother-in-law’s comment."
"The entire family went out for my mother’s 80th birthday and after the meal we all went to a local park, largely occupied by the elderly, to rest."
"My mother needed crutches at this point, and they were resting against her bench."
"My 10-year-old niece, who looked like every starving waif image from Dickens, grabbed the crutches and started hobbling round the park."
"All the OAPs were following her progress with looks of pity until my brother ran up behind her, and kicked away the crutches."
"There was an audible gasp from round the park and then my niece picked the crutches back up and started chasing my brother, clearly intending to hit him."
"In the confused silence my brother-in-law’s voice rang out 'Praise be! She can walk again!'"
"We still think this was the highlight of the birthday celebrations."- DdraigGwyn
Still Legal, Whichever Way You Cut It...
"I picked up my pleasantly tipsy boyfriend from a nightclub."
"We were stopped by the Police for a random breath test."
"They asked me my age, and I said, 33."
"My bf blurted out '33? You told me you were 22'."
"Police just laughed and let me go."- Aggravating-Corgi379
Music Video Police GIF by Andrew W. K.
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A Bit Too On The Nose?
"Business law class in college years ago, talking about the issues that black Americans had before the Civil Rights."
"Amendment, trying to travel through the south with the discrimination so rampant, trying to find restaurants to serve them and decent lodgings."
"My instructor was posing a hypothetical: 'So you pull up out front of this place, you're exhausted from driving for hours, and you see the sign out front says 'Ku Klux Klan Motel'."
"'What would you expect to find there?'"
"Without missing a beat, from the back of the room came this gem: "'Extra sheets in every room?'"- NedsAtomicDB
Not Yet, Anyway...
"I was working with my friend and his dad."
"My friend (26) heard an ice cream truck near where we were working."
"He asked his dad if he could have a couple dollars."
"His dad asked, 'what for?'"
"My friend told his dad that there was an ice cream truck in the neighborhood, and that they were playing music."
"My friends dad told him "'They don't charge anything to listen to the music'."- tatersalad1234567890
Words Escape You In The Literal "Heat" Of The Moment...
"A friend of mine is a teacher and her husband is known for his wit."
"She told this story to him:"
"One day at school a kid took the hall pass and returned reeking like smoke."
"She asked the kid if he’d been smoking and he denied it over and over."
"She was about to send him to the office when she noticed smoke coming from somewhere."
"She told the kid and he realized that he didn’t put his cig out completely and it was burning in his pants pocket."
"The kid noticed and frantically tried to put it out and someone finally poured water on it."
"Her husband sat listening to this with a weird look on his face."
"She asked him what was wrong."
“'What’s wrong???'"
"'This was probably the only chance you’ll have in your life to say literally, ‘liar,liar, pants on fire’ and you missed your chance'."- Luder714
On Fire No GIF by PEEKASSO
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Amazing What You Might Say A Few Drinks In...
"When I went to a renaissance faire once, I went to a beer tent and ordered a Newcastle Brown Ale (seemed the most fitting for the surroundings)."
"The beer wench, without skipping a beat, said, 'Everyone wants a Newcastle - no one wants to remodel!'"- jayhof52
Read The Room People!
"My dad wiped out when skiing down a mountain and lost a ski."
"After a few minutes of hunting for it, he gives up, slings the one remaining ski over a shoulder and starts walking down the mountain in his ski boots."
"About half-way down, another skier stops and goes 'Gee! Did you lose a ski?'"
"My dad instantly replied 'No, I was out for a walk and found one!'"- PeterJoAl
There's a reason your mother always told you to "use your words".
As clever remarks can have a much more lasting effect on people than a push or shove.