People like to say that there is nothing wrong with routine or tradition and generally there isn't... until there is, of course. The truth is there are myriad traditions out there actually inhumane and antithetical to human life.
Meanwhile, other traditions (like public proposals) are much more innocent but pretty annoying depending on who you ask.
Why not toss them all out and start over again, eh?
People shared their thoughts with us after Redditor bewarethechameleon asked the online community:
"What traditions should have never existed?"
If I paid good money for a wedding cake, I'd be so, so annoyed if someone did this to me. Especially on a suit!
"Brilliant marketing..."
"Diamond engagement ring being X months' salary. Brilliant marketing, but utterly ridiculous. I say this as a girl who isn't inherently against sparkly rocks."
usuyukisou
Yeah... there's no reason why they should be expensive. Going in debt for an engagement and/or a wedding sounds absurd to me.
"Every bride..."
"Wedding industry. Every bride is a princess all of a sudden."
baloneycologne
Even those who aren't necessarily trying to be fancy find that it ends up costing a fortune anyway. Backyard weddings are the way to go.
"Removing..."
"Removing a woman's clitoris in some African countries."
PrimaryTry5326
Female genital humiliation is horrible. A horrendous practice that traumatizes young women the world over.
"Those ass backward cultures..."
"Those ass-backward cultures where it's 'tradition' for a bride-to-be's in-laws (usually male in-laws) check her for 'purity 'That needs to stop."
cullymama
A few years ago, the rapper T.I. revealed that he would go to gynecologist appointments with his then-18-year-old daughter to "check her hymen," an admission that exposed him to immediate criticism.
"Honor killings."
"Honor killings."
"The concept of honor killing doesn’t add up. Someone does something that smears your family name so you decide to off them. And this achieves…what? Now you’ve got a murderer in your family."
EveryStranger9696
The idea behind it is that if your family or family's name has been desecrated in any way, it is the honorable thing to do to defend your family in retaliation. If nobody in the family fought back, it is seen as being weak.
"Over the top..."
"Over the top public proposals."
Selinakyle91
I think I would be mortified. Putting someone on the spot like that is like giving them no other option BUT to say yes.
"Foot binding."
"Foot binding. One of the few things the Chinese communists did right was exterminating that practice."
tripwire7
When I was a child, I read Homesick: My Own Story, a memoir by the author Jean Fritz, who spent the first twelve years of her life in China. At multiple points, she spoke about her amah, a woman by the name Lin Nai-Nai.
The descriptions of Lin Nai-Nai's bound feet have stayed with me all these years later.
"No one on the internet..."
"Over-the-top baby gender reveals. No one on the internet cares about your baby's gender, so stop trying to overdo it to go viral."
JVHazard
I have never met anyone who has actually done one of these and I don't think I want to.
"I predict..."
"Influencers putting their kids on social media for entertainment's sake without their consent. I predict 10-15 years from now there will be a ton of court cases of grown up kids of influencers suing their parents."
carissadraws
Data privacy is going to be next major technological revolution, mark my words.
What a world we live in. While some traditions are humorous, even harmless, others are detrimental, even cruel to human life. What would it take to change them? The answer is undoubtedly complex.
Have some observations of your own? Feel free to tell us more in the comments below!
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Jane Rosenberg
Jane Rosenberg
