# Men's shorts, I pit thee **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [May 5, 2009, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mens-shorts-i-pit-thee/495442 "2009-05-05T18:08:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mens-shorts-i-pit-thee/495442/41 "2009-05-06T14:58:39Z")
You’re not the only one with pants problems. [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=506643&highlight=pants](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=506643&highlight=pants) **MsWhatsit** said: > [@](#): > > It’s a common fallacy that men’s sizing is logical and corresponds to waist size. Trust me, it doesn’t. I wanted to make a surprise pair of pajama pants for MrWhatsit a couple of years ago, and needed to get his waist size without his knowing about it. So I got out a tape measure and measured the waist of a few pairs of his jeans. What was supposedly a 34-inch waist ranged anywhere from 33 inches to 38 inches. When you buy “relaxed fit” or “comfort fit” or whatever, it really means they’re adding inches to the waist measurement without telling you. Men’s clothing is not immune from vanity sizing, trust me. Really? See, I always thought that meant extra room in the seat and thigh. Those are parts of the pants we aren’t typically given numbers for. Whereas the waist size is a numbered measurement. Now I’ll have to go check that. **Cluricaun** said: > [@](#): > > What’s wrong with some below the knee shorts? Pants that reach below the knees are called trousers. Shorts are supposed to be, you know, short. **Justin\_Bailey** said: > [@](#): > > Fuckin’ A! Shorts that stop above the knee look ridiculous. I like that my shorts go to the knee or just a little beyond it. It looks good and it’s comfortable. Look good? What are you, six? If I want to wear pants, I’ll put on a pair of jeans. Shorts are supposed to be short. Not Richard Simmons short, but mid thigh. **zweisamkeit** > [@](#): > > This increasing bizarre modest clothing movement for men is really stupid. It’s not about modesty, it’s catering to the baggy clothes trend of pulling your pants down below your butt cheeks. It’s about looking like a dumbass to fit in with all the other dumbasses out there. ---
**Author:** ![buttonjockey308](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bcef8e/32.png) [@buttonjockey308](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buttonjockey308)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mens-shorts-i-pit-thee/495442/42 "2009-05-06T15:04:53Z")
> [@Mister\_Owl](#): > > Let freedom swing. > > [utilikilts.com](http://utilikilts.com) (Warning page will open with a video playing. In fact, go to their “Mock-u-mercial” page and look for the one titled “Call me.”) > > Hootie Oh AMEN to that. I have one and will be getting more. These are incredible. ---
**Author:** ![zweisamkeit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zweisamkeit/32/4360_2.png) [@zweisamkeit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zweisamkeit)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mens-shorts-i-pit-thee/495442/43 "2009-05-06T15:28:37Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > **Justin\_Bailey** said: > Look good? What are you, six? If I want to wear pants, I’ll put on a pair of jeans. Shorts are supposed to be short. Not Richard Simmons short, but mid thigh. > **zweisamkeit** > > It’s not about modesty, it’s catering to the baggy clothes trend of pulling your pants down below your butt cheeks. It’s about looking like a dumbass to fit in with all the other dumbasses out there. To your reply to **Justin** : YES. Jesus god, those long shorts look absolutely ridiculous on you guys. And to me: dunno about that. Most guys I know look _horrified_ at showing any flesh above the knee but also think that having saggy pants are stupid. They just have this irrational fear of wearing shorts. And I’m not even talking about Richard Simmons shorts. [These look perfectly fine, not ridiculous at all, and they’re above the knee](http://www.kmk.com.au/images/leisure/ST2010%20Mens%20Shorts%20-%20ST2010B%20Kids%20shorts.jpg) (just for the length; I know they’re athletic shorts). I see far too many guys [looking like this dork](http://i607.photobucket.com/albums/tt151/chizzmaster/094ecd2f.jpg). Sorry guys, that isn’t a good look at all. [It makes me think you look like this kid](http://sweetiegirlz.files.wordpress.com/2009/03/boy-siting-on-rock.jpg). Yeah, you know that’s what you want to look like. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mens-shorts-i-pit-thee/495442/44 "2009-05-06T15:33:17Z")
> [@zweisamkeit](#): > > And I’m not even talking about Richard Simmons shorts. [These look perfectly fine, not ridiculous at all, and they’re above the knee](http://www.kmk.com.au/images/leisure/ST2010%20Mens%20Shorts%20-%20ST2010B%20Kids%20shorts.jpg) (just for the length; I know they’re athletic shorts). If I had thighs that looked like that I wouldn’t mind wearing shorter shorts. Hint: most of us don’t. ---
**Author:** ![CrazyCatLady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dfb087/32.png) [@CrazyCatLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrazyCatLady)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mens-shorts-i-pit-thee/495442/45 "2009-05-06T15:48:03Z")
> [@Justin\_Bailey](#): > > It looks good No, it does not. There is a name for shorts that are wide-legged and come to the knee or just below it. That name is culottes, and they look ridiculous. They are only worn by Pentecostal teenagers who can’t get out of gym class. Pentecostal girl who can’t get out of gym class isn’t a good look for anyone, but it’s particularly not a good look for a dude. ---
**Author:** ![Who\_me\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/958977/32.png) [@Who\_me\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Who_me_1)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mens-shorts-i-pit-thee/495442/46 "2009-05-06T16:29:59Z")
> [@Justin\_Bailey](#): > > Fuckin’ A! Shorts that stop above the knee look ridiculous. I like that my shorts go to the knee or just a little beyond it. It looks good and it’s comfortable. Give me some ridiculous looking shorts then. I wore the shorts in the 60’s and 70’s that were _short_. I don’t want them that short, but an inch or two above the knee would be nice. I think those long shorts look ridiculous, I want to wear shorts because it’s hot outside, not because fashion designers say they look cool. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mens-shorts-i-pit-thee/495442/47 "2009-05-06T16:32:35Z")
> [@Who\_me\_1](#): > > Give me some ridiculous looking shorts then. I wore the shorts in the 60’s and 70’s that were _short_. I don’t want them that short, but an inch or two above the knee would be nice. I think those long shorts look ridiculous, I want to wear shorts because it’s hot outside, not because fashion designers say they look cool. So you wear Speedo-style trunks when you swim? Damn old folks… get back on your lawns! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![zweisamkeit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zweisamkeit/32/4360_2.png) [@zweisamkeit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zweisamkeit)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mens-shorts-i-pit-thee/495442/48 "2009-05-06T16:47:18Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > So you wear Speedo-style trunks when you swim? > > Damn old folks… get back on your lawns! 😉 Note that I said earlier that I like shorter shorts for guys who have the legs for it (responding to your reply to me). And a lot of younger guys have better legs than they think (again tying to that bizarre sense of modesty that they have)\*. And at 26, I don’t think I’m old. I _am_ probably in a target dating demographic age (and female) … who laughs at guys who wear those stupid shorts. 😉 - and perhaps more of the gym buffs would have better legs if they didn’t spend all their weight time doing bench presses and bicep-curls with weights far too heavy for them, thus leaving them with decent upper bodies and then silly chicken legs. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mens-shorts-i-pit-thee/495442/49 "2009-05-06T16:50:19Z")
> [@zweisamkeit](#): > > And at 26, I don’t think I’m old. I _am_ probably in a target dating demographic age (and female) … who laughs at guys who wear those stupid shorts. 😉 > > - and perhaps more of the gym buffs would have better legs if they didn’t spend all their weight time doing bench presses and bicep-curls with weights far too heavy for them, thus leaving them with decent upper bodies and then silly chicken legs. Hmm. Well, for what it’s worth, I’ve got chicken arms to go with my chicken legs. ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mens-shorts-i-pit-thee/495442/50 "2009-05-06T16:51:00Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > Look good? What are you, six? If I want to wear pants, I’ll put on a pair of jeans. Shorts are supposed to be short. Not Richard Simmons short, but mid thigh. Mid-thigh? It’s not the 70s anymore grandpa. ---
**Author:** ![Fuzzy\_Dunlop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/848f3c/32.png) [@Fuzzy\_Dunlop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fuzzy_Dunlop)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mens-shorts-i-pit-thee/495442/51 "2009-05-06T16:57:59Z")
> [@Who\_me\_1](#): > > Give me some ridiculous looking shorts then. I wore the shorts in the 60’s and 70’s that were _short_. I don’t want them that short, but an inch or two above the knee would be nice. I think those long shorts look ridiculous, I want to wear shorts because it’s hot outside, not because fashion designers say they look cool. Fashion designers **don’t** say they look cool. I mean clearly any clothes were designed by _someone_ who is technically a fashion designer but I don`t hear anyone saying culottes are trendy or hip. They make them because people like wearing them, regardless of how stupid they look. You don’t exactly hear a lot from, say, Thom Brown about men’s shorts at all. And men’s fashion magazine’s like GQ certainly aren’t recommending culottes. I don’t remember a men’s fashion magazine EVER recommending culottes. If GQ were to do a piece on buying new shorts for the summer I can almost guarantee they would blast below-the-knee culotte ‘shorts’ and suggest a 7-9 inch inseam. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mens-shorts-i-pit-thee/495442/52 "2009-05-06T20:17:16Z")
Unfortunately (in my opinion) I think it’s a sea-change that spans generations, much like what happened in popular music between 1955 and 1965. For all the successive genres and styles like disco, glam rock, new wave, hip-hop, grunge, etc., that have appeared since, older rock continues to resonate with young people today. Bands like U2 play to stadiums full mostly of people who were born after they started, and you still run into fifteen- and twenty-year-olds who are enthusastic Doors fans. I was fifteen in 1973, and there was no way I was going to listen to Glenn Miller or Bing Crosby. But such is the space of time that now separates today’s fifteen-year-olds from The Velvet Underground and The Doors. So with men’s shorts–for males today fitting in is paramount irrespective of considerations of comfort. This has been the case since about 1990 and shows no signs of ever changing back. In the grand sweep of Western history, very few legendary heroes have worn shorts; instead clothes have always been a kind of psychological armor, whether it be social and political figures like Lincoln, or innovators like Edison. Full-length pants, long sleeved shirt, jacket. All the time, no matter what. The wearing of true shorts by men, in the 1960s and 1970s, was, historically speaking, an aberration. The privilege to bare one’s skin is now virtually reserved to the female–and dont’ start with issues of toplessness, because the permission to go shirtless is pretty much limited to the beach and the pool. I’m with the OP, although I think the problem for thin guys isn’t just shorts, it’s trousers of all kinds. I have a 28 or 29 inch waist at 5’9" of height and it’s hard, shopping out there. ( **Giraffe** , how is it possible you can’t find shorts that are long enough? There is nothing out there but long shorts.\*) As for modesty–a fig for modesty! Maybe I don’t want to look at your thighs either, but if it’s 90 degrees out (with a “feels-like” temp of 100), I’m not going to bag on you for exposing them, regardless of your size, shape, or gender. \*Almost nothing–guys can get short shorts at American Apparel. Worth checking out if that’s what you want. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mens-shorts-i-pit-thee/495442/53 "2009-05-06T20:26:12Z")
> [@zweisamkeit](#): > > And I’m not even talking about Richard Simmons shorts. [These look perfectly fine, not ridiculous at all, and they’re above the knee](http://www.kmk.com.au/images/leisure/ST2010%20Mens%20Shorts%20-%20ST2010B%20Kids%20shorts.jpg) (just for the length; I know they’re athletic shorts). These aren’t bad, but they tend to look extra baggy on slender guys. When buying similar shorts for myself I’ve usually found that the overall roominess isn’t sized down very well for a \<30" waist and build. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mens-shorts-i-pit-thee/495442/54 "2009-05-06T21:17:34Z")
> [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](#): > > I think the problem for thin guys isn’t just shorts, it’s trousers of all kinds. I have a 28 or 29 inch waist at 5’9" of height and it’s hard, shopping out there. . Also belts, come to think of it. I’m about to take an old belt of mine to to have it shortened by a cobbler; I’ve lost about four inches in the waist since I bought it, and it’s now too big for most of my jeans even at the innermost notch. I’m not even going to try to find a new belt like it with the third, center notch at 28 or 29. ---
**Author:** ![shy\_guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a6a055/32.png) [@shy\_guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shy_guy)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mens-shorts-i-pit-thee/495442/55 "2009-05-06T23:13:44Z")
> [@Fuzzy\_Dunlop](#): > > Fashion designers **don’t** say they look cool. Yeah, the trendy thing for guys now are slender shorts that hit just above the knee. Go to NYC and you don’t see the hipsters sporting the baggy cargo shorts. You can see that on the [Urban Outfitters site](http://www.urbanoutfitters.com/urban/catalog/category.jsp?popId=MENS&navAction=poppushpush&isSortBy=true&navCount=30&pushId=MENS_APPAREL&id=M_APP_SHORTSSWIM_SHORTS), for example. The annoying thing for me is that my legs and thighs are quite muscular so the slender shorts are either way too tight on me or don’t fit at all. ---
**Author:** ![Auntbeast](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Auntbeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Auntbeast)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2009, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mens-shorts-i-pit-thee/495442/56 "2009-05-08T04:06:59Z")
> [@Shirley\_Ujest](#): > > You may be interested in this [style](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ji6r7J6L2bk). Remind me never to ask what you do in your spare time, especially if it leads to videos like that. I’m so torn…the legs were great, but why, oh why were they dancing…like that. I am a leg woman. I love a great pair of legs on a man. I hate, hate, hate the manpris. I want eye candy too! Show me a little leg, will ya? Good luck OP. I’m suffering in solidarity with you. ---
**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2009, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mens-shorts-i-pit-thee/495442/57 "2009-05-08T04:32:37Z")
If you ask me (and don’t you all want my opinion?) adults shouldn’t wear shorts at all in public anyway, except at the gym. They’re children’s clothes. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2009, 6:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mens-shorts-i-pit-thee/495442/58 "2009-05-08T06:46:43Z")
> [@Kyla](#): > > If you ask me (and don’t you all want my opinion?) adults shouldn’t wear shorts at all in public anyway, except at the gym. They’re children’s clothes. That’s why nobody asks you. Also, do you live at the North Pole? ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2009, 10:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mens-shorts-i-pit-thee/495442/59 "2009-05-08T10:19:57Z")
> [@Kyla](#): > > If you ask me (and don’t you all want my opinion?) adults shouldn’t wear shorts at all in public anyway, except at the gym. They’re children’s clothes. Ditto. I don’t like the look except on a very, very small percentage of the population. ---
**Author:** ![corkboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9bcb4/32.png) [@corkboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/corkboard)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2009, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mens-shorts-i-pit-thee/495442/60 "2009-05-08T12:28:56Z")
> [@Kyla](#): > > If you ask me (and don’t you all want my opinion?) adults shouldn’t wear shorts at all in public anyway, except at the gym. They’re children’s clothes. Now that’s an interesting angle. What should I wear, then, when it’s 102 with 95% humidity- jeans? How do you feel about bathing suits? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mens-shorts-i-pit-thee/495442.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mens-shorts-i-pit-thee/495442.md?page=4)