Urgent Alert: some social customs make no sense, alert the media, get the people in the bomb shelters, this is breaking!
In all seriousness, by the logic you presented in this post (I won’t say “your logic”) no one should say “hello” or “goodbye” or “how are you” or any other meaningless social constructs. All conversations should be reduced to <One line succinct explanation of what one needs> <Quick response and immediate leave to follow request> because that’s the most efficient and productive way to hold a conversation. Which… well, while that actually may be really nice in some cases on review, it’s still not a reasonable expectation judging by the way our society (hell, any society) works with random, superfluous language peppers.
Edit: To answer the actual thread I rarely say “bless you.” I do on the odd occasion, but if I say anything at all it’s usually a joking “no, don’t die!” to my friends and even that isn’t that frequently uttered.
Although I usually use “bless you”, I actually like gesundheit or salud better. Basically, either is an implied wish for good health, which even those of us who are diety-free would have a hard time having issues with.
I come from one of the most churchified background of anyone on this board, and I don’t say it. My parents never did, and I don’t feel like perpetuating the idea that “the devil made you sneeze”. I understand that may be an urban legend, but many people believe that’s where it started, anyway.
He didn’t say it either. He just stared blankly at you while drooling before turning back to the cowboy porn book he had stashed in front of his daily brief sheets at the White House meeting.
You are DEFINITELY new. You’re first attempt. See, this is not Great Debates, this is IMHO. Different rules. Your first reply was a tad silly by saying other people do it so I do it. Childish. Give me something grown up.
I would, Locrian, but this voice in the back of my head is telling me that when I’m dealing with a guy who compares following etiquette by saying bless you to playing in traffic, grown up talk might be setting the bar a bit high for the first session. Come back when you’ve figured out how analogies work, mmmkay?
On edit: Oh, and by the way, please don’t talk to me about grown up words until you’ve figured out the difference between “your” and “you’re.” Seriously.
YOU started with the analogy of not saying god bless you was the equivalent of talking ghetto trash in front of kids. Do the same. Come back when you learn analogies, kid. I merely followed your example, quite well I must add.
Errr, no, Locrian, that was in response to the other thread you linked to in the OP. The one where you’d respond to the request to watch your language by, let’s see, politely requesting the other person to “stop believing in bullshit.” I stand by my post and assertion that you’re not quite up for mature discussion about etiquette.
Don’t forget the blaring car horn, insisting that he wasn’t, at all, disturbing the peace because “you can’t disturb the peace in the afternoon”. :rolleyes:
You’re forgiven your trespasses (See how easy that is?). Now go study up on grown ups and how they debate. You’ll like it. It’s actually pretty fun once you get the hang of it.
Bullshit, son. Stay on the right thread. Just, relax, okay? I made one quick joke with a parental voice, and you go postal. You came into this thread with an adversarial attitude against me, it seems. I’m sorry if my opinions offend you.
I don’t care enough about your opinions for them to offend me. Why don’t you read a few of your posts in both threads and see if you can figure out why someone would have an adversarial attitude toward you. I’ll give you a hint: It involves being grown up.
You a very childish by hijacking a thread just because you feel the need to trash me.
Pit me, complain, whatever. Start a thread about how childish I can sound, or better yet, tell me why you hate me and other skeptics. I know your posts very well.
You jumped on me for making a joke I apologized for. Since it involved a parental voice, you took offense, then you admitted that the REAL reason you jumped on me was because of how I sounded in a different post, different subject.
I read you like this: You’re (hey! got it right) a believer, I’m not and that makes you angry. Any thought or comment I post, you jump. Please stick to the OP.