Why are people suddenly so concerned about the need to see the faces of people they are speaking to......?

Question

.....when they are quite happy to yak away on the phone to one another for hours on end?

(Yes....I'm talking about the 'veil' thing here!)

Ooops! How did this end up in homework help?

Slip of the mouse I guess....

So, pepsi_bandit, do you feel uncomfortable talking to people on the phone, because you need to see their face?

Letting someone wear what they want is hardly 'bending over backwards'

Last time I checked, being rude wasn't against the law....

Again, you have no trouble talking to someone on the phone or the 'net whose face you can't see, do you?

Hmmmm, dumplingmuffin seems to assume that all people who cover their faces are suicide terrorists.....

...watch out on October 31st! Britain will be crawling with suicide bombers, knocking on people's doors.....

vic_t, I assure you I am very much British - I just don't happen to believe that British = Brutish....

Since you are such a patriot, I hope you drive a British-made car, as I do....

Answer 1

All the other answers mention the fact that you need to see the eyes, well i dont know if you've seen a muslim woman wearing the veil but all you can see is..wait for it.. the eyes. As for bending over backwards... have you walked down a highstreet at midnight on a saturday to see all the clothes that girls AREN'T wearing, no matter how cold it is!
To some this would be classed as offensive but i dont see anyone complaining about that!

Fact is, everyone is different, wears different clothes, have different beliefs and the beauty of England is the fact that there are people from all over the world here practicing their individuality.

Muslims have been living in the uk for over 40 years and have always worn the veil... yet it only becomes a problem when the media tries to demonise Islam because it has to get the public to believe that they have a just cause for bombing the crap out of Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq so on and so forth.

Answer 2

People don't just communicate with words, but also with body language, facial expressions and eye movements. It is important when speaking to someone face-to-face that it is exactly that-face-to-face. As soon as there is a barrier i.e. a veil or dark sunglasses the opposite person feels at a disadvantage as the lines of communication have been changed to being one-sided. The same would happen if you were speaking to someone behind tinted or blacked out windows. When you go into a Dentist's room, they will speak to you initially without their masks, same goes in theatre - once they have started they will put on their masks. Speaking on the telephone is different as each person has the same circumstances in how much body language they can see - none.
Re the current "veil thing", I think you will find that if someone believes they should cover their entire face with the veil then their hands should be covered also.

Answer 3

In our society the wearing of a mask which disguise identity has always been the mark of the criminal.
This costume could and does lend itself to use by criminals for illegal purposes and the wearers should be body searched as a matter of course to check whether they are males in disguise especially with the current terrorist threat.
Apologies would not have to be made as this is actually only a necessary security measure.
I would not dream of wearing such a mask or disguise in society and would expect extreme suspicion and even arrest if I did so.
You yak on the phone to people you know and even then you have to watch if you make jokes or subtle comments because they are often taken wrongly which doesn't happen when you can see someone's face.

Answer 4

That's a stupid point. Of course people talk to each other over the phone without their faces covered as you say "for hours on end" because they have no choice (anyway if only I had the time). Also if you were speaking to someone for hours it would most likely be with a friend/relative of whom you'd feel comfortable talking to. If I was going to speak to someone I wouldn't stick a paper bag over my head to do so! It's like putting a barrier up against the person you are speaking to. The reason why most people are against the veil is because its like a statement to the British that "we want to be different and not integrate into your way of life". Sorry but it's true. Also it is well known that it is not required by sharia law to wear one, so to stop this debate and for these women to be accepted it should be outlawed. Only then can we start integrating. It's also about RESPECT. Respect our ways and we'll respect theirs.

Answer 5

I think that when you live in a society that accepts that one show his or her face as a matter of courtesy, then one should do exactly that. In the west, we like to know to whom we are speaking. Otherwise you are speaking to someone who ostensibly has something to hide.
Of course one could argue the the rudeness of heavily smoked auto glass, but then we aren't really dealing with each other as we did in the era before air conditioning made the automobile its on little cocoon.
The change in people's public attitudes has changed remarkable over the last 30 years, sometimes bordering on paranoia. We no longer understand how to greet people we do not know or be friendly to others. No doubt part of this has been brought about by crime and general bad manners.
Lastly, since you acknowledge that you are speaking of the "veil thing" I can only suggest that when you move into a different civilization, you are somewhat obliged to become a part of it,which means, for all intents and purposes, acting as they do in public. It is wrong to take from a society without becoming a part of it, in my opinion. Without intending to be rude, if one wants to be among those who accept a veil in society, there are always countries that accept them readily and even enforce them.

Answer 6

Well, actually, I'm not happy about talking to people on the phone - I hate it! Strange that I don't mind 'talking' here though.

I've got no personal objection to women wearing veils. I do think it's concerning when you read muslim people's objections to it on the grounds of disempowering women - but I can't really comment knowledgably on that.

I do think though that it puts up a barrier in the same way that wearing a hood or really dark glasses does - I'd be unlikely to strike up a conversation in the bus queue with anyone wearing any of these things. But if we're talking about banning something, I'd rather hoods were banned than veils... it's really intimidating when people wear hoods down to their noses!

Answer 7

In regard to the teaching assistant: I think the main point is that she was teaching foreign children english. Being able to see the shapes the mouth makesto make the sounds is such an important part of learning a language. The children themselves asked her to take off the veil because they just couldn't understand.

Answer 8

I don't know honey! Maybe because Muslims keep blowing s h i t up.

Speaking on the phone isn't a very good example I'm afraid. Speaking with someone on the phone is SLIGHTLY different from being face to er sort of face with someone. It makes people uncomfortable. which I think is fair enough!

Answer 9

It is uncomfortable for people when speaking in person and the other personsface is covered. How uncomfortable would it be for you to speak to someone in a balaclava? Or with a scarf wrapped round their face no matter how cold it is.
Fair enough people have the right to wear what they want but when talking to someone I think face-to-face is not too much to ask

Answer 10

Unfortunately in these days of threat and terror it is understandable to treat with suspicion anyone who feels the need to hide their identity. Several shopping malls have now banned "hoodies" for this very reason and you cannot enter a bank or petrol station in a motorcycle crash helmet. It can be argued that even the gender of someone so completely covered could not be seen. Without trying to be racist here, it is now commonly understood that the majority of terrorist outrages have a muslim connection and I have heard it argued that the muslims in general cannot blame the rest of us for our suspicions. I cannot help thinking that it is them that should now be attempting to understand our concerns as they have chosen to live in our country.