M-B Engineers seem to be getting prettier 😁

[219]

I hope you would be so understanding for comments posted on lines about your daughter...all in the name of harmless banter of course...

Of course , and so would she - she's no fool ( and she will be 34 in a few weeks ) .

 

[219]

Has the offended bus been yet ?

You lost me with that ?

 

[Darrell]

People (men and women) often comment on how pretty my daughter is, in life and on social networks. Do we get upset? No. Do we accuse them of being creepy old folk or lusting after her? No. My wife, my daughter and I all take the comments as they were intended - as compliments.

I think comments about how pretty a young daughter is, is weird in itself. (Coming from a stranger obviously).
Saying that a car, motorbike or a whatever is pretty is understandable but saying it about a child in my view is a bit creepy. And especially on social networks!

We were in Fuerteventura a couple of years ago and noticed loads of “family pubs” with signs outside saying “kiddies welcome”!! Err, no thanks, I’ll give it a miss.

 

[flowrider]

What was it Ricky Gervais said....... "Just because you're offended doesn't make you right"

 

[219]

I think comments about how pretty a young daughter is, is weird in itself. (Coming from a stranger obviously).
Saying that a car, motorbike or a whatever is pretty is understandable but saying it about a child in my view is a bit creepy. And especially on social networks!

We were in Fuerteventura a couple of years ago and noticed loads of “family pubs” with signs outside saying “kiddies welcome”!! Err, no thanks, I’ll give it a miss.

I don’t understand the hostility towards an innocent remark that a child/young person is pretty/handsome ?

Telling a child that is a nice compliment and can only boost their confidence , or is this the same absurd political correctness that saw many schools stop prizegiving days , because , instead of creating healthy competition , it was felt that the less academic children got upset .

Why would you take offence at the pub sign ? Even when my children were young we often took them for meals .

Kiddies welcome is a much better thing than ‘no children’ signs which many pubs here have , and are the ones that don’t get my custom .

 

[whitenemesis]

Kiddies welcome is a much better thing than ‘no children’ signs which many pubs here have , and are the ones that don’t get my custom .

So, you prefer to frequent pubs that encourage children? This gets worse...

 

[Darrell]

Why would you take offence at the pub sign ? Even when my children were young we often took them for meals .

Kiddies welcome is a much better thing than ‘no children’ signs which many pubs here have , and are the ones that don’t get my custom .

I wasn’t taking offence, I just think the phrase sounds a bit Jimmy Saville. Kiddy Fiddlers comes to mind.

“Children are more than welcome” seems much nicer.

Strangely though, I’ve never seen a sign like that outside any taverna/cafe bar in Greece or Italy yet there are plenty of families inside.

 

[GeeJayW]

Taking comments out of context and then being offended on behalf of others that may or may not be offended. What's that all about FFS?

Political correctness has its place, and that is not flippin' everywhere...

 

[Darrell]

I don’t understand the hostility towards an innocent remark that a child/young person is pretty/handsome ?

Who mentioned hostility??

 

[219]

So, you prefer to frequent pubs that encourage children? This gets worse...

If I am out with my family then of course we will go to family pubs which serve meals for families ; which make up 90% of the clientele .

There is nothing wrong in that .

Incidentally , I rarely go into pubs just to drink ( the only occasion I might do that is at a railway station if I have a while to wait for a train , and then it is ONE drink ) . Otherwise they are places to either go out for a nice meal with family ( because most these days really are restaurants as opposed to drinking men’s pubs ) or to stop for a nice lunch by myself when travelling ( and if I’m driving the drink is non alcoholic ) .

Some of the things people have come out with on this thread are baffling .

 

[219]

I wasn’t taking offence, I just think the phrase sounds a bit Jimmy Saville. Kiddy Fiddlers comes to mind.

“Children are more than welcome” seems much nicer.

Strangely though, I’ve never seen a sign like that outside any taverna/cafe bar in Greece or Italy yet there are plenty of families inside.

Perhaps because it is taken for granted there ; yet some pubs here refuse entry to families - bad on them .

 

[219]

Who mentioned hostility??

The adverse comments do come across as hostile .

 

[Darrell]

The adverse comments do come across as hostile .

Aah diddums!! Come over for a big cuddle!!

 

[flowrider]

Taking comments out of context and then being offended on behalf of others that may or may not be offended. What's that all about FFS?

Political correctness has its place, and that is not flippin' everywhere...

Just what I was thinking.

 

[markjay]

I have Italian relations, over there children of all ages, boys and girls, are regularly being complimented on their looks, hugged and kissed by men and women of all ages, and also men kiss men when introduced (there are unwritten rules, obviously, all depending on the relationship). But it has zero sexual connotation, and no one blinks an eye or finds it odd in any shape or form.

If you tried any of that over here you'll get yourself arrested pretty quick... and this is another reason why I don't think it's something that can (or should) be discussed on the forum..... It very much depends on the cultural context, and there are bound to be on here members from various cultural backgrounds, which means that any sort of agreement is unlikely. Personal opinion, of course

 

[MrGreedy]

Just to relate to the point in the original post suggesting the female mech getting more business because she is attractive (which I took to mean work in addition to that which might be obtained on merit alone);

I used to work for a large engineering organisation not too long ago, and a couple of very attractive female engineers I know chose to study engineering and joined specifically because they thought that being a pretty woman in a heavily male dominated industry and knowing how to 'use it' would give them a competitive edge. And they were absolutely right. In my view, there were not discernibly better or worse than many of the very capable and brilliant engineers working in the firm (regardless of gender, identity or attractiveness), but they knew which male seniors to flirt with and complement (which was important, because despite stereotypes it doesn't work on all men). From my viewpoint, it appeared that as a result they have had unusually fantastic opportunities and resulting good careers and I continue to wish them well. They might not have been noticeably more or less capable than others around them, but they were smart enough to realise how to give themselves an edge and get ahead. The world is not fair and there is bias everywhere, conscious or unconscious. And I expect the woman referenced in the first post is smart enough to understand that the way she is marketing herself/business is likely to give her an edge and I also wish her the best of success with her endeavours.

But personally, an instagram account of lots of professional looking pictures of a garage owner stood next to vehicles is not going to sway or change my decision of which Merc Independent is going to get my business. You're safe there Jay and the Mercland team! BTW, strongly recommended a friend in your direction who should be picking up his new E-class next week, so thank you.

 

[saff]

Has all this got just a little out of proportion? Pontoneer posted a picture in all innocence and in a light-hearted manner. Perhaps we need to take things a little less seriously? I'll probably get flamed for this now, ha! It wont be the first time.

 

[Deleted member 65149]

I wasn’t taking offence, I just think the phrase sounds a bit Jimmy Saville. Kiddy Fiddlers comes to mind.

“Children are more than welcome” seems much nicer.

Strangely though, I’ve never seen a sign like that outside any taverna/cafe bar in Greece or Italy yet there are plenty of families inside.

It’s interesting how some words, phrases or actions come across as not acceptable to some whilst being perfectly normal for others. Regional and social differences appear to account for a lot of this variation. I’m sure we all take offence at lots of different things, mostly without good reason. For instance, I never use the term “kiddies” but it doesn’t bother me one iota. However it annoys me when a person who has been taught which end of a screwdriver to hold is called an engineer. I‘m being absolutely ridiculous, just as I feel those are who aren’t comfortable with young ladies being complimented on their appearance.

 

[Darrell]

It’s interesting how some words, phrases or actions come across as not acceptable to some whilst being perfectly normal for others. Regional and social differences appear to account for a lot of this variation. I’m sure we all take offence at lots of different things, mostly without good reason. For instance, I never use the term “kiddies” but it doesn’t bother me one iota. However it annoys me when a person who has been taught which end of a screwdriver to hold is called an engineer. I‘m being absolutely ridiculous, just as I feel those are who aren’t comfortable with young ladies being complimented on their appearance.

I’m with you on the engineer/screwdriver terminology.

 

[DrNick]

"However it annoys me when a person who has been taught which end of a screwdriver to hold is called an engineer "

Far more meaningful to have the engineer/technician/mechanic debate. Last person you want fixing your car is an engineer of any gender. Likewise you don't want technicians designing it.