Do you respect the ways of other cultures and peoples?

Question

In certain parts of the world older men can marry young girls.... My question:
How do you know that its a bad thing for this older man to marry this young girl? Do you not respect the culture of another race of people inhabiting this big planet? How can you dictate rules for someone you don't even know, and how do you know that your dictated rules are appropriate and accurate for a people and society you have never lived with?? Do you think that your mind could be so clouded by the sexual aspect of old marrying young that you make insensitive judgemental decisions? What if the old man wasn't having sex and just had a need for her to work the farm? Why does the WEST constantly push its ideology and civilty on a people they know nothing about?

In this world it takes all kinds and that should be respected.

Yes, some girls are forced into marriage and some are even prearranged. The flip, side... I know a handful - many woman here in the WEST that chose to never get married, but want, hope, and pray everyday to be married. LOL.... See, sometimes when other people make choices for another person it isn't such a bad thing... It may not be a great choice on that day, but there may come a day when it was the best choice... Sometimes, America has given so many, so many such freedoms that they get so bogged down that they can't even make a choice. They end up, remaining stationary.

Answer 1

Best question I have ever seen here. Could it be that : a} we are just always being judgmental. b} a lot of people never travel away from their comfort zone so do not know there is another world out there?c} if we did respect other cultures would there be less wars?

Answer 2

Yes as long as they aren't hurting anyone else by doing it. In the instance of the old man marrying the young girl, I don't like it but I'm not going to go there and stop them. The reason most people have a problem with this is that the girl in this situation probably doesn't want to get married and is having to do it against her will. Those types of cultures usually have arranged marriages and personally, I would never want to marry some stranger that I could never love. She probably doesn't want to have sex with him either, and she will be forced to do that. Girls are given no rights in those countries. They have to give up their childhood to marry someone that they don't even love and live with this person and be forced to have his children and wait for him hand and foot. I'm pretty sure you wouldn't like it if you were in that situation. Now I'm sure that some of the girls don't mind, they see it as a duty, but a lot of them are coming to the WEST in order to escape that. So maybe people know a little bit more than you think, and if SOOO many people are against this idea of the old man marrying the young girl then obviously there is something wrong with it.

Answer 3

Hmmmm, old men / young girls. As long as the young lady is of legal age, and consents to the union, i say who cares.

The key here is consent, and legal age.
Q1). if the parties are of legal age and consent, no problem
Q2). I do respect the cultures of all the inhabitants of planet.
Q3). Laws are passed by representation of the people for whom they are enacted. And at any rate a nations laws don't extend passed the borders of that nation. There are however multi-national treaties that agree upon certain laws but, again not enforcable in non-treaty nations.
Q4). My mind is never clouded. as before legal age concenting adults, who cares if they marry, does the name Anna Nicole Smith mean anything to you?
Q5). If the old man needs someone to work on the farm i am sure that there are people that need jobs, the need of marriage is a just ruse. Yeah right, a man not having sex with a young bride, that thought is just silly.
Q6) The "WEST" as you put it is not pushing its ideology on people, if you don't like it here there are options, a) run for office and attempt to change things, but remember it takes a majority to win, or b) move away

Now see life is really simple. You seem to enjoy the freedom of the west

Answer 4

There is no one answer to such cross culture questions. But then we all evolve and progress towards what is right which means that wrong practices should be dropped . Rights of women ,proper health practices, cures for mental health are some of the advances that have made people change attitudes.

But then again this may not be a question about culture !
Love, Security or any of reasons out of Hollywood !

Answer 5

You are jumping into all kinds of incorrect conclusions, making sweeping statements and generalities. The West do no such thing as you alleged. Infact the theological-based countries in Asia and Mid East impose their religious doctrines and government on peoples more than any other in the world. Truth is your state of mind and thinking reflects the very sickness that you claim the West possess.

Answer 6

Wow...
your questions have nothing to do with Culture...
and everything to do with society.

Social norms my accept foreign cultures...but only on the condition that social norms remain unbroken.

You are welcome to travel East, buy a farm, and marry a child to put her to work. However, you just violated an asian norm to avoid tainting bloodlines with white, round eyed, westerners.

The age line discrepancy in an unwritten rule for the society you live in...hers will have it's own. The two of you need to decide which is less painful and make your move.

On Ideology being pushed on other lands...
you don't change society by forcing ideology without that society wanting the change. Iraq has embraced Democracy, however, they maintain their religion within government which is not something accepted in the American form of Democracy.

The way I read into your commentary is that YOU are the one with the racial identity crisis having a problem adapting to society and being "social".

Check yourself before you wreck yourself.

Answer 7

There's a lot other cultures do that I am real glad ours does not. Mutilating young females private parts in Islamic countries, bull fighting in Spanish cultures, c ock fighting among Pacific Islanders. Differences are amazing. In South Pacific cultures women are free to go bare breasted in public, it is no biggie, you see it all the time, but the ankles MUST be kept covered. You should never show the heel of your shoe to a Moslem person. Its weird, isn't it? Each culture has its rules, whether they make sense to people of other cultures, or not.

Answer 8

Each culture has it's own codes of behaviour, we "in the west"may not understand them but I think we have to respect them, even those that seem extremely backward to us. The most problems seem to arise when people of a certain culture try to take this culture with them into another country where it is not accepted. In reverse I think the same thing applies, do not take your own culture out of its context, if, in your own country it is, for instance, normal to have multiple wives, do not assume that that will be accepted in another country and do not try to do it there.

Answer 9

I cannot bring myself to respect the culture that has women stoned to death for infidelity, or for a child to have their hands chopped off for stealing a loaf of bread, or for throwing a donkey from a high tower for festival fun, or stabbing a bull in a bull rink for fun. Many world cultures have sick parts to them and only civilised people can condone these, so when you ask if i respect other cultures i must answer, in part only.

Answer 10

your just trying to make it okay that your wanting to do a younge girl by saying its a Cultural thing i think girls under 17 should be kept younge and not curupted by dirty old men trying to make them baby machines (i am refering to the middle east)