# Old geezers - should these signs be changed? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 16, 2014, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-geezers-should-these-signs-be-changed/704815 "2014-11-16T23:33:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mr.Kobayashi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4af34b/32.png) [@Mr.Kobayashi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Kobayashi)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2014, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-geezers-should-these-signs-be-changed/704815/1 "2014-11-16T23:33:57Z")
[These traffic signs](http://www.wnd.com/images/elderlycrossing1.jpg), to be specific - a notice to drivers that old geezers might be crossing the road. A [government tsar](http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/government-tsar-calls-for-ban-of-damaging-triangle-road-signs-depicting-elderly-people-9863788.html) for the elderly has called for them to be scrapped as _“There is almost a subliminal message that older people are in some way physically or mentally sub-par. However, as there are more and more seeking work and I do not want to see their skills and talents go to waste. I want them to be taken seriously.”_ If you were in charge of road signs, would you change the sign or get rid of them entirely? ---
**Author:** ![Chessic\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7c8e57/32.png) [@Chessic\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chessic_Sense)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2014, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-geezers-should-these-signs-be-changed/704815/2 "2014-11-16T23:44:11Z")
Ain’t nuthin subliminal about it. Old people are both physically and mentally sub-par. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2014, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-geezers-should-these-signs-be-changed/704815/3 "2014-11-16T23:45:41Z")
But at least they get the common courtesy of a reacharound. ---
**Author:** ![Pai325](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c68b51/32.png) [@Pai325](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pai325)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2014, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-geezers-should-these-signs-be-changed/704815/4 "2014-11-16T23:58:51Z")
Old people know they’re old. I know I am. Leave the signs alone. ---
**Author:** ![ZenBeam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3ab097/32.png) [@ZenBeam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenBeam)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2014, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-geezers-should-these-signs-be-changed/704815/5 "2014-11-17T00:05:33Z")
I’m not a geezer yet, but parents and in-laws are all upper 70’s and above. Leave the signs alone. “Government Tsar” shouldn;t treat “elderly” as a derogatory word. ---
**Author:** ![DingoelGringo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9d8465/32.png) [@DingoelGringo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DingoelGringo)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2014, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-geezers-should-these-signs-be-changed/704815/6 "2014-11-17T00:06:30Z")
> [@Chessic\_Sense](#): > > Ain’t nuthin subliminal about it. Old people are both physically and mentally sub-par. I resemble that remark. I cannot run at all any more and I know my mental faculties are all back to being students once more time. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2014, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-geezers-should-these-signs-be-changed/704815/7 "2014-11-17T00:12:26Z")
We have signs telling drivers to watch for kids. I don’t think signs warning drivers to watch for elderly people are any different. At least they don’t say, “Fogey Crossing”. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2014, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-geezers-should-these-signs-be-changed/704815/8 "2014-11-17T00:13:42Z")
I love the “elderly pickpockets” signs. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2014, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-geezers-should-these-signs-be-changed/704815/9 "2014-11-17T00:41:01Z")
There’s a possible need to alert drivers to the type of hazard they might encounter - children may not be paying proper attention to traffic; elderly people may be crossing more slowly, or may have hearing or sight impairment; deer may appear from nowhere, etc. But if you need to have a textual sign underneath saying ‘elderly people’, then the iconic representation of the elderly couple is redundant. [this](http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/pictures/2013/10/15/1381855808247/Deer-crossing-sign-008.jpg) sign doesn’t require labelling “Deer”; [this](http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/02592/crossing_2592541a.jpg) sign apparently doesn’t need to be labelled ‘Children’. If we were trying for consistency, the elderly people sign either doesn’t require labelling, or it should be replaced with the generic hazard warning sign (an exclamation mark in a red triangle), and labelled ‘Elderly People’ ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2014, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-geezers-should-these-signs-be-changed/704815/10 "2014-11-17T00:50:49Z")
I don’t fit the demographic, and would keep it the same. Facts are facts. I will fit the demographic within 10 years or so, and I think I’d still vote to leave the sign as is. ---
**Author:** ![ZenBeam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3ab097/32.png) [@ZenBeam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenBeam)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2014, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-geezers-should-these-signs-be-changed/704815/11 "2014-11-17T00:51:49Z")
Just the words doesn’t indicate what the hazard of “elderly people” might be. Just the image may not be clear. Both together is more clear than either alone. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Joker\_and\_the\_Thief](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e79b87/32.png) [@The\_Joker\_and\_the\_Thief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Joker_and_the_Thief)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2014, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-geezers-should-these-signs-be-changed/704815/12 "2014-11-17T00:59:08Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > snip Redundancy is a good thing. Ask any engineer if they’d build a system with a 0% margin of error, for example. The visual sign is useful for those who do not read the language, and the textual sign is less likely to be stolen. Some people probably find each kind quicker to read too. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2014, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-geezers-should-these-signs-be-changed/704815/13 "2014-11-17T01:02:38Z")
There are likely to be people here who move slowly and whose senses and reflexes aren’t all that great. Drivers should be aware of this situation and exercise extra caution. The signs are appropriate. ---
**Author:** ![Lorene89095](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/a8b319/32.png) [@Lorene89095](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lorene89095)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2014, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-geezers-should-these-signs-be-changed/704815/14 "2014-11-17T01:13:31Z")
We don’t have those here. We need them. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2014, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-geezers-should-these-signs-be-changed/704815/15 "2014-11-17T01:14:21Z")
Get off my crosswalk! (And don’t change the signs.) ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2014, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-geezers-should-these-signs-be-changed/704815/16 "2014-11-17T01:34:10Z")
The sign should be extended to say, “Elderly people–with lawyers.” I’m not that old, but I’m cranky and slow and I’ve kicked a car that wasn’t giving me the right of way. Left a mark, too. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2014, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-geezers-should-these-signs-be-changed/704815/17 "2014-11-17T02:58:20Z")
I don’t fit the demographic … yet. With luck some day I will. The signs are a good idea & should be retained as-is. ---
**Author:** ![Recusant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/838e76/32.png) [@Recusant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Recusant)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2014, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-geezers-should-these-signs-be-changed/704815/18 "2014-11-17T04:03:24Z")
Some elderly people move very slowly and are less aware. Not all of them, but many. It makes sense to have signs warning people of this, and the alternative would be so absurdly PC that by the time you finished reading it you’d have run three old folks over. Leave the signs as they are. And for pity’s sake, the UK government has czars too? I thought that particular brand of stupidity was limited to the US. ---
**Author:** ![Dale\_Sams](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/779978/32.png) [@Dale\_Sams](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dale_Sams)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2014, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-geezers-should-these-signs-be-changed/704815/19 "2014-11-17T05:12:58Z")
Conjoined twins can get out of the road almost as quickly as you monos. Just slow down and it won’t be a problem. ---
**Author:** ![Ranger\_Jeff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranger_jeff/32/2065_2.png) [@Ranger\_Jeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranger_Jeff)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2014, 5:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-geezers-should-these-signs-be-changed/704815/20 "2014-11-17T05:21:13Z")
What honks me off are the “School Crossing” signs around colleges and universities. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-geezers-should-these-signs-be-changed/704815.md?page=2)