Disgust - Things that just turn your stomach

double standards

One thing that really churns my stomach are
the double standards that plague this
society. It not only affects the secular
but also the church. Gender has become a
factor in punishments and consequences for
bad actions as far as most people are
concerned. A man can do something and get
in big time trouble where a woman can do
the same exact thing and most times get a
slap on the wrist. That is just not fair
(and I am a woman).

Age has also become a factor. Children and
teens can get away with things that an
adult would get banned from a chat for. For
instance, lying about your age in order to
get someone to fall in love with you. An
adult would be forever punished for that,
however a child/teen gets "probation" or a
slap on the wrist and a "no-no" you
shouldn't have done that.

What is wrong with this picture?

Momzilla 2004-04-01 14:43 1066

I didn't say that a kid can't make a good decisions. Millions of them make excellent decisions every day. There's a reason why there is a separate juvenile justice system and why 15 year olds can't vote, sign binding contracts, marry, or get tattooed without a responsible adult's consent. Being a teenager is a transitional time between child and adult, physically and emotionally. If you've managed to reach 18 without needing adult guidance, and never making a foolish or impulsive mistake ... you are blessed. But have some mercy on the 99.9% of the rest of us who were occasionally dumb because of our inexperience LOL There should be consequences, of course, because that's how most of us learned. But the indictment wasn't against teenagers in my post, but rather against grown adults who should know better. Read the rest of the posts to get a better context of what we were talking about and you tell ME that a 25 year old pretending to be 15 is the exact same offense as a 15 year old pretending to be 18, with the same motivations and intent.

dark_falls2003 2004-03-27 14:31 1065

Momzilla, So what youre saying is that just because some one isnt 25 they cant make good desicions? I beg to differ I am 18, and make very good descions. I do not do things that are dangerous to myself or others and i find it insulting that you base your descion of how well a person of any age can make a descions based on just those people you have met. I realize that you said that you havent met a "kid" who can make a good decsion, but that does not mean that all "kids" cant make good decisions. People base their opinions of teenagers on what they see on the news, well what they show you on the news is just the bad stuff for the most part, you here about the kids that shoot their classmates or do things they shouldnt. How frequently do you hear about the teenagers who go to their local hospital and volunteer or the teenagers who go and read to the elderly. And its not fair that people assume all teens are like the ones who make the news, honestly were not all bad.

Momzilla 2002-11-26 12:21 315

Not all laws are just. In some instances, a "no tolerance" very strict law enforcement can be unjust. I can name many examples of this. Unfortunately, too often when mercy is shown due to extenuating circumstances it is perceived as "unfair" and used by the unrepentant to justify themselves. "Well, others have done it and not suffered these consequences..." I have little patience or tolerance for that. I've spent a lot of time around teenagers. In fact, I've raised a couple of them to adulthood. While I've seen some downright mean kids, I've never met one that I believed had the same emotional capability to make good decisions as a reasonably emotionally stable 25 year old. There are physical development issues here as well as experiential. In deciding consequences, I believe that several factors must be considered. At the top of my list is: #1 is there evidence or reason to believe that this individual will continue the behavior if not excluded from the community; and #2 was there malice or criminal intent. Generally (and this is an important point!)in the chatroom realm, bannings are not so much a punishment of the "crime" but more an attempt to protect the chatroom community. I do agree, however, that it is imperitive to know all the facts of any given situation before making a judgement. Often, if you're only getting your information from once source, or otherwise not privy to the "behind the scenes" activities and discussion, you aren't getting the "rest of the story."

breubengarten 2002-11-26 00:36 311

Momzilla, very good points! The laws do differentiate the two situations However, just to be nitpicky in the mode of the original question: is the law itself an example of a double standard? Or does the law accurately represent some truth that goes beyond petty human feelings into the realm of "what must be? Please be assured that i do agree with you. I just want to encourage people to make a critical and informed decision on their own instead of buying into what society at large says. Heaven knows society at large has been wrong before.

Momzilla 2002-11-25 15:04 309

Age is absolutely a factor. Among other things, it is a crime for an adult to seduce a minor. Teens often do foolish things because of their inexperience in life. Adults should know better, and in fact I believe that they DO know better ... they just don't care. For a 16 year old to foolishly claim that they are (say)18 to engage in a flirtation is an entirely different matter from a 30 year old who presents himself as 17 to initiate relationships with teenagers. No matter what excuses this individual makes, they are a grown adult, fully understanding what they are doing, and have evil intent. There is a word for this: pedophilia. They may have a million excuses, explanations, etc., but that's just plain what it is, according to the laws of this land.