Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I think the issue is the term itself, which is a dumb politically-correct term just like all the other ridiculous designations meant not to hurt anyone's precious feelings. I guess they had to come up with something for us aging baby-boomers though. We're not quite "elderly", but we're getting past "middle-aged". I think the term "active adult" is dumb too. The builders created this term so their over-55 communities wouldn't be thought of as being for "old people".
I don't know what I'd like to be called (I'm 60) but I do know I'm tired of all the PC-ness.
Thanks for your posts and comments...I like discounts but I still don't like to be called a "senior" or "senior citizen." For some reason these terms really make me cringe...Maybe I just don't like to be set apart and put in a "box" or "category."...I like to interact with people of all ages....Being labeled a "senior" can really put up "walls" when it comes to how younger people may view me...I don't go around calling younger people "kids" and I don't like to be put into a "pen" and labeled a "senior" either...How do you feel about it? Thanks.....
My feelings exactly. I don't feel, look or act "senior" and when I hear the term I think of a little OLD gray haired lady with a bun, sitting in a rocking chair.
I think the issue is the term itself, which is a dumb politically-correct term just like all the other ridiculous designations meant not to hurt anyone's precious feelings. I guess they had to come up with something for us aging baby-boomers though. We're not quite "elderly", but we're getting past "middle-aged". I think the term "active adult" is dumb too. The builders created this term so their over-55 communities wouldn't be thought of as being for "old people".
I don't know what I'd like to be called (I'm 60) but I do know I'm tired of all the PC-ness.
Noun 1. senior citizensenior citizen - an elderly person
golden ager, old person, oldster
adult, grownup - a fully developed person from maturity onward
ancient, antediluvian - a very old person
centenarian - someone who is at least 100 years old
curmudgeon - a crusty irascible cantankerous old person full of stubborn ideas
dodderer - one who dodders from old age and weakness
dodo, fogey, fogy, fossil - someone whose style is out of fashion
dotard - an oldster in his dotage; someone whose age has impaired his intellect
back-number, has-been - someone who is no longer popular
nonagenarian - someone whose age is in the nineties
octogenarian - someone whose age is in the eighties
old boy - a vivacious elderly man
graybeard, greybeard, old man, Methuselah - a man who is very old
old woman - a woman who is old
septuagenarian - someone whose age is in the seventies
sexagenarian - someone whose age is in the sixties
I think the issue is the term itself, which is a dumb politically-correct term just like all the other ridiculous designations meant not to hurt anyone's precious feelings. I guess they had to come up with something for us aging baby-boomers though. We're not quite "elderly", but we're getting past "middle-aged". I think the term "active adult" is dumb too. The builders created this term so their over-55 communities wouldn't be thought of as being for "old people".
I don't know what I'd like to be called (I'm 60) but I do know I'm tired of all the PC-ness.
I think the term had is origins well before Boomers were even possibly in the tube line. Senior citizen
Origin
This American phrase was coined in the 1930s as a euphemism for 'old person' and has since spread to many other English-speaking countries. Prior to that the term 'senior citizen' had been used but was restricted to those people who were the oldest in their community. For example, this piece from the Canadian newspaper The Manitoba Free Press, October 1930:
So shall it be Old Person discount?
Nah not sure even with a store using the concept of Old Person discount many Old Persons would shop there.
Why do you need a label at all? If you are over 55...show your card and get the discount. Doesn't need to be called anything. Prices for 50+...yada yada......I don't like labels for anyone, least of all myself. You are pigeon-holed before you even begin.
In the 1990s, when my dad was in his 70s, he complained about how bored he was and I suggested he join the local senior citizens group (they were still called that, at the time). He looked at me and said, "I went to one of those once. There are all OLD people there."
Would you rather be a senior and not need Viagra or Middle aged and needing it? The term is nothing and in fact would you rather be 50 and look older or in your 60's and have folks surprised when you tell them you are a senior? There is more to worry about in the aging process than the term senior citizen.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
My feelings exactly. I don't feel, look or act "senior" and when I hear the term I think of a little OLD gray haired lady with a bun, sitting in a rocking chair.
