Comment by random5634 | Hacker News Reader

Comment by random5634 | Hacker News Reader

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"Hey guys, want to get coffee" - is a historically common (and yes, now bad way) of asking if a group of folks, of any gender, want to get coffee.

The insistence that someone is focusing on genital's and have a pervasion when asking this really does seem like a projection on the part of the folks making that claim, and I have noticed the genitals things come up over and over now in this context - it seriously is WEIRD! Please read up on projection.

Many of us are married, with kids, and focusing on the genitals of work colleagues is the LAST thing on our minds.

I've broadened it in the past, hey guys and girls or hey guys and women - all less than ideal in my view, girls doesn't have same connotations as guys, and women or ladies feels awkward. Hey people works well in my view. But when a women says to me, hey guys, want to get coffee - I don't freak out on them with this type of focus on genitals / perversion language. I just say, sounds great - 5 minutes? And away we go very happily to chat about whatever issue has come up.

Are you telling us that you’ve never heard a woman say to her group of female friends “Hey guys, wanna xyz?”

It’s 2021. “Guys” has been gender neutral since basically forever and a day. It was so in my schools in the 70s/80s, and by my mother’s recollection, the same back in her school days.

And it pretty much has to be so: we lack a good alternative second person plural.

Note though that “guy” (singular) is gendered.

Actually - where I am guys is considered negative because it derives from male as the default gender / ie, patriarchal is the argument I've heard.

But absolutely NO ONE considers it a perversion or focus on genitals except for a few folks. This line, why are you focusing on my genitals or why are you focusing on their genitals comes up repeatedly in this context so it has to be a commonly used argument in some more activist circles.

That and focusing on "perversions" - which I find even weirder, most of the offenders are just normal people who didn't even realize "guys" was offensive or might be offensive to some.

Some of the activists who start yelling about perversions and genitals seem a bit more off their rocker at times then the folks they are accusing. The only thing that caught my eye was the perversions / genitals thing, because I'd just been reading someone else who used this same argument in a similar context.

You should stop assuming that idiots stirring up shit over a non-gendered term that has been in use for well over sixty years have any sort of legitimate opinion. “Where I am guys is considered negative“ is puerile bullshit and you have been suckered. Quit lending them your support.

I am not talking about everyday conversation 'guys' / 'gals' / 'babe' / 'baby'.. you can say whatever is appropriate in your social circle...

I'm just trying to show that any gender based argument is pretty broad and sort of ridiculous (hence use of the word genitals, to show how absurd the argument is..)

Texans had "y'all" right the entire time.

Haha. Doesn't work where I am as southern accents are seen as racist in a way - and also I'm not southern so would be weird on that level - but I like it if you were in the south!

btw "gaz" is a perfectly harmless way to address a mixed crowd - the men hear "guys" and the women hear "gals" and not even the worst griefer would pick on a speech impediment

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