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Do women mind being called girls?

Does it bother you?

  • Yes, I'm a woman and it does bother me

  • No, I'm a woman and it doesn't bother me

  • I'm a man & think it doesn't matter

  • I'm a man & women are women, not girls

Results are only viewable after voting.
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#121
58kites said:
That's because she is your girl, not really the same thing.
It is not always just the word girl, it can be several words used to put someone in an inferior position.
In other parts of her life, I'm pretty confident that your girl (wife) has been addressed in a way to put her in a lower position and it was not appreciated.
Ask almost any woman if it has been done and if she liked it, the answer is almost always yes, men have done it and that it was not appreciated.
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I think most of us get it and agree with you.

This for my girl who I am thinking of right now. Soon I will be going home to her love. Marrying her was one of the BEST things I have ever done.
Sorry for the de-rail hard to contain myself when it comes to my beautiful wife.

 
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#122
RED J said:
Which is the reasonable course in any personal interaction. No dogma needed.
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Good call, using wisdom and knowing who you are talking too is always better than a dogmatic approach. For me it is woman or women unless I know the person I am taking too and there is a reason for saying something else. Like being blown away by the actions of a friend and saying something like "GIRL! You rock."
 
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#124
I asked my wife. She said, "that's stupid." So I voted doesn't matter. This is a woman who spent time as a shipboard firefighter in the Navy and is now a trauma nurse, so I count her opinion as much more valuable then most.

Edit: She meant it's stupid to worry about it, not that Blossom herself is stupid. Obviously, she a very intelligent woman
 
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#127
blue4 said:
This snowflake BS is not helpful. It doesn't help in the political world, and it certainly won't help here.
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True.

Like I said, I meant no disrespect, and if the issue really bothers a person and I knew it, I would not not use whatever term they felt offensive.

Here communication is key, as I don't think calling a female a girl is widely considered disrespectful or demeaning by the masses. It certainly isn't in the area I live. Maybe different parts of the country hold this in different light, heck I don't know. I'd would also like to stress I normally use this when talking about someone, such as "the girls went to the bathroom, they will be back in a moment" and normally regarding people I know. As I earlier said anyone I don't know is referred to as Ma'am or Miss. The females I know often refer to the men as boys as well. This might be a Southern thing, as it's typically seems to be the norm.
 
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#128
Have you not read what every woman forum member who posted here said?
What is said among friends has nothing to do with the original post or the video.
The snowflake and buttercup terms are just other ways for a guy who thinks he's a hard guy to denigrate somebody that he feels superior to.
It always says more about the person doing it than the the person it's aimed towards.
 
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#129
58kites said:
Have you not read what every woman forum member who posted here said?
What is said among friends has nothing to do with the original post or the video.
The snowflake and buttercup terms are just other ways for a guy who thinks he's a hard guy to denigrate somebody that he feels superior to.
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Well it looks like we have got to the point of silliness. I'm done. I have an opinion, you have an opinion, as does everyone else. I don't feel it's offensive across the board, and the the opinions of a few people aren't enough to sway my belief regarding this. It certainly isn't in the area I live, as I hear it all the time being used.

I agree that we can disagree, without disrespect towards anyone or anything.

My main issue here was the condition of the political correctness going on in this country that is completely unreasonable. In some areas it's good that things have changed, but in other areas it's just gotten crazy.

Peace to everyone and have a wonderful evening.
 
#130
JGbassman said:
Well it looks like we have got to the point of silliness. I'm done.
I have an opinion, you have an opinion, as does everyone else.
I don't feel it's offensive across the board, and the the opinions of a few people aren't enough to sway my belief regarding this.
It certainly isn't in the area I live, as I hear it all the time being used.

My main issue here was the condition of the political correctness going on in this country that is completely unreasonable.
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How about the opinion of every female who has posted?
 
#135
JGbassman said:
My point is our society has become so sensitive and politically correct towards everything its become absolutely ridiculous.
...
I was taught respect and I give it. By twisting my words you take my point out of context.
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But what if what you were taught is respectful (using ma'am and sir, just for example) is not actually taken as respectful by the people who are on the receiving end? What if they really don't like it? I found out that the women I spoke with REALLY don't like to be ma'am'd. So I'm going to stop ma'am'ing women in general. Would you make the same decision, or would you say 'I was taught to do this because it's respectful, and I'm gonna do it whether you like it or not!'?

Times change. Maybe what was respectful - and expected - 50 years ago is neither today. Maybe it wasn't that great then either. Heck, it was about that long ago that white people addressed black men of any age with 'boy' with impunity. That it was widespread and accepted among whites as an acceptable form of address does not mean that it was in fact an acceptable form of address. We were wrong.

It's far more respectful to others if you do what they want you to do rather than insisting that what you are doing is respectful, whether they like it or not.


mapleglo said:
Really, it's all about context. My Husband will often call me "girl". It's a term of endearment. Just like when he calls me "babe", and when I call him "babe".

When I'm with a group of women friends, and one of them says "Would you girls like another drink?", again, it's a term of endearment.

When the waiter comes up to the table I'm sharing with a friend, and asks if us "girls" would like another drink, that's not OK.

But you know, we live in a male dominated world, and when white men decide that it's ok they call me a girl, that's what they'll do, whether I like it or not. Well, 50% of them, anyway. At least as of this moment:
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This, exactly. All of this.


JGbassman said:
Well it looks like we have got to the point of silliness. I'm done. I have an opinion, you have an opinion, as does everyone else. I don't feel it's offensive across the board, and the the opinions of a few people aren't enough to sway my belief regarding this. It certainly isn't in the area I live, as I hear it all the time being used.
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Again, the fact that you hear it all the time doesn't mean it's ok with the people on the receiving end. Have you asked how anyone feels, or are you just going with a crowd mentality? Be aware that even if you *did* ask, you might not get an honest answer. Women (not just women; many other members of groups that have been diminished or marginalized would be able to corroborate this) have been known to say 'It's ok' when they really don't mean that, because they don't want to be subjected to the often-argumentative 'discussion' that follows. If a woman told you that she didn't like to be called a girl, would you say 'I'm sorry I said that; I won't do it again' or would you say 'Come on, it's a term of endearment'?

That 'you' is a generic one. It applies to me also. If someone tells me that they find something uncomfortable or offensive, it's my job to respect their feelings rather than try to persuade them not to have them, whether I understand these feelings or not. Simple.
 
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#138
There are a lot of women who identify as "chicks" and are not offended by that term. They're not the kind of women I would hang out with, though. Whenever I'm in a situation with unfamiliar people, say, speaking to a classroom full of grad students, I always refer to women as women. It's just the respectful thing to do. But when, say, my wife and I are going out to dinner with another couple, I usually say, "Chicks ride in the back." They're going to ride in the back anyway so they can yak, but it has to be said. Really, it gets down to your familiarity with the particular women with whom you're interacting. I had a female business partner who said I could get away with calling her the "B-word" (I never did), but never call her the "C-word" (I never-ever did).
 
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