"Ladies and Gentlemen" becoming an outdated term?

[Allison]

You do know transgender and gender fluidity is a mental illness right? It's not actually a real thing.

Just because you declare it doesn't make it so.

 

[skyblue17]

There is no consensus on it. Some say mental illness, some don't. I'm firmly in the mental illness camp though.

Because when presented with people who are different from you, it can't just be that they are different, there has to be something wrong with them, right?

 

[mjkacmom]

You do know transgender and gender fluidity is a mental illness right? It's not actually a real thing.

That’s like saying vaccines cause autism because you read an article. You do realize that for gender reassignment, candidates go through extensive counseling and psychiatric examinations by actual experts, who might know a bit more about the subject than yourself.

 

[Happyinwonerland]

Are you not represented if they choose to use "everyone" or change the greeting to "good morning" or "welcome" without a direct reference to the audience?

It simply isn't as formal. I was 100% sincere in my question, is there and equally formal term for the nonbinary? I know very little about this. They could add the 3rd term instead of changing it to a less formal greeting.

I think language can set a tone "Good morning Ladies and Gentlemen" sets a more serious tone than "Hi everyone!" , and that is important. We use verbal cues to infer what type of behavior is expected in a situation and also helps us to know the type of the information we are about to receive.

 

[BlueStarryHat]

You do know transgender and gender fluidity is a mental illness right? It's not actually a real thing.

Criminey. And here am I with my mental illness. Gosh do I have egg on my face now!

Seriously, though. Your post was so incredibly insulting that I don't even know how to process it. I have *friends* who are trans and genderfluid, and because they're now comfortable in their skins they're incredibly well-adjusted and happy. I want to cry at your lack of understanding.

 

[Sandeep1]

Because when presented with people who are different from you, it can't just be that they are different, there has to be something wrong with them, right?

Depends on the difference that you are referring to. I interact with different people everyday of my life based on age, gender, race, religion, etc. Nothing at all wrong with those differences.

 

[disykat]

In response to the respecting the language of our elders post.... My mom is 87 and doesn't really relate to "lady." I'm 58 and it's not something I'm often called. We're both very feminine. It's just a pretty old fashioned term we just don't hear that much anymore. While they don't bother me, the terms "ladies and gentlemen" do remind me of "charm school" that was popular when I was a child in the 60's. (and no, I didn't go because my mom found the whole thing ridiculous. She probably would have gotten laughed out of her league of women voters meetings!) I don't exactly equate listening to an airplane announcement as requiring the formality that going to tea with the queen might. I'm a lady, a female, a woman, a girl, whatever, but before that I'm part of "everyone." My gender is way lower in priority than my humanity. I don't feel the need to be separated by gender in order to listen to an announcement.

 

[Allison]

It is interesting to see this discussion and have a very solid idea of where people would fall if they had participated in the civil rights movement in the 50s and 60s. Just an observation that no matter how things change, some things stay the same.

 

[Welsh_Dragon]

Act like a lady" has been used for a very long time to badger and nag the energy, curiosity and spirit out of girls

I don’t agree with this. Referring to people, young or old) as a ‘lady’ (small ‘l’) or gentleman implies a certain decorum and standard of behaviour. I expect my young adult children to behave in a ladylike and gentlemanly manner but that does not mean that they cannot pursue their dreams and be whomever they want to be. It just means that they will be kind, charming, polite, considerate etc while pursuing those dreams.
I would far prefer to be referred to as an old lady, than an old bag.

 

[soccerdad72]

I think language can set a tone "Good morning Ladies and Gentlemen" sets a more serious tone than "Hi everyone!" , and that is important.

What's the matter with 'Good morning everyone"? Why would you need to change the greeting to 'Hi' in your example?

 

[b2k1121]

I would argue having to indulge someone's fantasies does affect me.

Lets hear that argument.

 

[Happyinwonerland]

What's the matter with 'Good morning everyone"? Why would you need to change the greeting to 'Hi' in your example?

As I previously stated, the formality sets the tone of expectation. Ladies and gentlemen tells the audience that the airline anticipates they will behave as ladies and gentlemen.

 

[skyblue17]

I don’t agree with this. Referring to people, young or old) as a ‘lady’ (small ‘l’) or gentleman implies a certain decorum and standard of behaviour. I expect my young adult children to behave in a ladylike and gentlemanly manner but that does not mean that they cannot pursue their dreams and be whomever they want to be. It just means that they will be kind, charming, polite, considerate etc while pursuing those dreams.
I would far prefer to be referred to as an old lady, than an old bag.

You could just encourage them to be good people, and leave it at that. Saying someone is a gentleman or lady does not make them so.

 

[soccerdad72]

As I previously stated, the formality sets the tone of expectation. Ladies and gentlemen tells the audience that the airline anticipates they will behave as ladies and gentlemen.

Given the past history of air travel these days, that's pretty hilarious to suggest in this example.

 

[skyblue17]

As I previously stated, the formality sets the tone of expectation. Ladies and gentlemen tells the audience that the airline anticipates they will behave as ladies and gentlemen.

It's an airplane. Do you think the person behind you with bare feet and headphone volume so loud you can hear it from your seat is going to change behavior suddenly because the flight attendant called them a lady?

 

[skyblue17]

Depends on the difference that you are referring to. I interact with different people everyday of my life based on age, gender, race, religion, etc. Nothing at all wrong with those differences.

Sounds pretty arbitary. In the meantime, you've definitely interacted with people who have a different view on gender than you do and they indulged your fantasy that there is something wrong with them instead of being as insulting to you as you are to them.

 

[Welsh_Dragon]

You could just encourage them to be good people, and leave it at that. Saying someone is a gentleman or lady does not make them so.

They are adults now and good people and even if they were rude, I would not presume to chastise them. I agree that saying someone is a gentleman or lady does not make them so. Professionally I was an ‘Esq.’ for many years but I certainly didn’t morph into a man.

 

[Sandeep1]

Sounds pretty arbitary. In the meantime, you've definitely interacted with people who have a different view on gender than you do and they indulged your fantasy that there is something wrong with them instead of being as insulting to you as you are to them.

C'est la vie

 

[fla4fun]

Well nobody has doubted it in my 30+ years of living. I guess that's what happens when you go by the sex listed on your birth certificate. Crazy huh?

Well, as a woman who identifies with the biological sex on her birth certificate, who has an hourglass figure with a couple ample assets, I still get called sir three or four times a year. Yes, I am a bit of a plain Jane, but I just shrug it off and think they need glasses because it’s so obvious that my body is not male. I haven’t been offended by it, but it happens. Sometimes I think people go on autopilot and a greeting comes out before they have actually looked at me. It’s their mistake, not something I have done wrong.

But I can empathize with people who identify differently, because I certainly wouldn’t want to be called sir all the time. No one wants to be treated as though they are anything but their most genuine self. Our vocabulary will eventually catch up and we will have more formal phrases that are all inclusive. For now, everybody isn’t a bad choice.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

In my experience, if you call a singular female "lady," you aren't doing it as a sign of respect.

I completely disagree. I deal with the public, including a lot of elderly, and they love being called by these types of names, they consider it a sign of respect.

And you glossed over my point. What about their preferences? Do they count? Or are we just to skip over those?