Post by pharaoh on Feb 18, 2008 4:03:31 GMT -5
you're growing fast! Why you'll be as tall as your father before you're 13!
Eat all your vegetables; don't you want to grow up to be big and strong like your brother?"
We've all heard expressions like these. Whether they were told to us individually as youngsters, or to someone else, we can all identify with these words of wisdom, can't we? After all, who wants to be short?
There are all types of discrimination, all types of prejudices. Some of the more common of these are: race, ethnic background and nationality. Even overweight individuals have appeared on talk shows and have started organizations to assist those like them to combat discrimination. So where are the organizations to combat height discrimination? Why don't they exist? Why is no one (or at least so it appears) interested in helping short people
All species of insects and animals begin small. Helplessness and weakness are associated with being small or short. A baby begins short, and grows. He doesn't start out tall and then shrink. Isn't it only natural to associate lack of size or height with weakness and vulnerability? I would say that virtually everyone makes these associations; but they are not just associations, they are physical realities. Along with greater height comes greater weight, greater muscle mass, denser bones, a reach advantage and a power advantage in striking. The bottom line is this: The greater the height advantage (all other things being equal) a person has over another, the more likely that person will be physically able to hurt the shorter or smaller person in a one on one physical confrontation
don't clubs and bars hire 5' 7" 140lb. 5th degree black belts as bouncers? – Because no one would be intimidated by them. People are intimidated by size. People are intimidated by men who are tall, and either very heavy or musGreater Height makes us feel greater, better, and superior. That's true whether you're a homeless person with no money, or a $2 million/year corporate executive. Go stand on a chair. Now get on your knees. Which feels better? I heard a three year old girl once say to her mother; "Mommy, why are other daddies bigger than daddy?" I also remember when I was six years old and heard another six year old say, "My dad is bigger than anyone." It is natural. It is also natural for the short child/man/woman to feel lesser and inferior to the taller child/man/woman if for no other reason than the fact that he or she is at a physical disadvantage. And short men, we ARE at a physical disadvantage. It doesn't mean the short person is inherently inferior, but it is inevitable to have some feelings of inferiority. If those natural feelings aren't enough, society will make sure the short person knows he is inferior through subtle and sometimes not so subtle cues. But the short person is in the minority as well. If most children were short, and there were an occasional tall child that would be another matter. There are few like him or her. That makes the problem a little more difficult to deal with and solve. Up to this point in time there have been no solutions.
Eat all your vegetables; don't you want to grow up to be big and strong like your brother?"
We've all heard expressions like these. Whether they were told to us individually as youngsters, or to someone else, we can all identify with these words of wisdom, can't we? After all, who wants to be short?
There are all types of discrimination, all types of prejudices. Some of the more common of these are: race, ethnic background and nationality. Even overweight individuals have appeared on talk shows and have started organizations to assist those like them to combat discrimination. So where are the organizations to combat height discrimination? Why don't they exist? Why is no one (or at least so it appears) interested in helping short people
All species of insects and animals begin small. Helplessness and weakness are associated with being small or short. A baby begins short, and grows. He doesn't start out tall and then shrink. Isn't it only natural to associate lack of size or height with weakness and vulnerability? I would say that virtually everyone makes these associations; but they are not just associations, they are physical realities. Along with greater height comes greater weight, greater muscle mass, denser bones, a reach advantage and a power advantage in striking. The bottom line is this: The greater the height advantage (all other things being equal) a person has over another, the more likely that person will be physically able to hurt the shorter or smaller person in a one on one physical confrontation
don't clubs and bars hire 5' 7" 140lb. 5th degree black belts as bouncers? – Because no one would be intimidated by them. People are intimidated by size. People are intimidated by men who are tall, and either very heavy or musGreater Height makes us feel greater, better, and superior. That's true whether you're a homeless person with no money, or a $2 million/year corporate executive. Go stand on a chair. Now get on your knees. Which feels better? I heard a three year old girl once say to her mother; "Mommy, why are other daddies bigger than daddy?" I also remember when I was six years old and heard another six year old say, "My dad is bigger than anyone." It is natural. It is also natural for the short child/man/woman to feel lesser and inferior to the taller child/man/woman if for no other reason than the fact that he or she is at a physical disadvantage. And short men, we ARE at a physical disadvantage. It doesn't mean the short person is inherently inferior, but it is inevitable to have some feelings of inferiority. If those natural feelings aren't enough, society will make sure the short person knows he is inferior through subtle and sometimes not so subtle cues. But the short person is in the minority as well. If most children were short, and there were an occasional tall child that would be another matter. There are few like him or her. That makes the problem a little more difficult to deal with and solve. Up to this point in time there have been no solutions.