Offended by 21st century life

There once was a world where we could express how we felt without being told we are being too offensive to one subgroup or another in society. At the same time, we could express alternate views without being considered absurd.

Frankly, I have had enough of people being too over-sensitive to certain phases used to describe cakes and fruit drinks. It’s one thing to be offended by something Trump says, such as the now famous “grab em by the pussy” quote, but to shout about a biscuit is another.

There has been conflict over gingerbread men being too gender biased. We now must call them gingerbread people because it offends those who don’t believe in it. Sorry, Greggs, it’s time to rebrand because yet another gender complaint has been shoved down your throat.

Photo by Noelle Otto onPexels.com

Victoria’s Secret, luxury lingerie brand, was slammed for only using skinny, pretty girls to represent the angels on their catwalks. Many were saying it isn’t a true representation of women and that there should be more plus-sized models. But surely, they should be free to decide who they want to represent their brand. The same way clothing brand Yours and Simply Be use only plus-sized models to represent theirs. The angels are quite a specific bunch, an exclusive group. They represent something that isn’t human. People look up and aspire to be like them the way people aspire to be mermaids or unicorns. Obviously, they aren’t actual mythical creatures, but let’s admit they’re the closest we’re going to get. If they changed their branding to hire everyone, there would be no exclusivity, and everyone would be a model.

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The thing with people’s mindsets today is that we feel pressure to please everyone. Maybe this has been a result of the ‘likes’ system used for social media and the fantasy that everyone is your friend. I have been told in the past, “don’t post now wait until ‘I’m a celebs’ on”. This is because they believe you will get more likes on your newest Instagram post because people look at their phones during the breaks of popular programmes. There have been times when I have posted three photos of a trip I went on in a row and was criticised for it because it “isn’t the way to get the most likes.” But in reality, who actually cares? Is it so offensive to post two photos of my dog one after another? I think we can all agree, it is not.

Twitter and its retweet and like system are the same. We live in a world where it is ok to make a gender issue with children films with its use of colour, but not ok to have a tweet that doesn’t get over 10 likes, otherwise, we’re a loser. Maybe that is a reason for all the nitpicking. People want attention and that is a very good way to get it.

Photo by Tobias Dziuba onPexels.com

I like to feel relaxed and able to express my views, but with mums getting upset over Robinson's fruit drinks having the word ‘sons’ in it and claiming it is only made for boys, makes me not want to tweet at all.

All in all, society needs to just chill out a little bit. Not everything in life needs to be set to everyone’s social standards, it’s impossible. There are too many viewpoints in the world to pinpoint which one we should stick to.

It’s fine to express an opinion, but if you’re going to make a political issue over something small like the colour of a shopping bag, then maybe just keep that one to yourself.

This opinion piece was written for one of my university projects at the end of last year (2018). It is included in the magazine my group and I created called POCOFF, specialising in politics and culture.

Here is what my piece looks like in print, included in the ‘Backyard’ section where we get to express our inner thoughts and annoyances.

This piece can also be read over on my personal blog Lilachoneyblogg.wordpress.com