30 Common Practices That Are Actually Disturbing If You Step Back And Think About It
Recently, Reddit user RetR0-Danger posed the question, "What is something that is widely normalized but is actually really fucked up?" to the folks over at askreddit. And let's just say the responses were painful, sad, and relatable. Check it out:
1."Poor care of 'beginner' pets like goldfish, hamsters, leopard geckos, etc."
"The fact that one betta fish requires at least a 5-gallon tank is the reason I didn't get one as a pet in college... I'm so glad I researched that because I realized how horribly bettas are treated. And people don't care because they're fish."
2."Getting puppies for Christmas just to rehome them a couple of months later (i.e. dump them at shelters)."
3."Zero tolerance in schools. Protects the bully and harms the innocent."
"Yeah, my school suspended a kid because a person punched him. The puncher got suspended as well, but the kicker is that he didn't fight back."
4."Parents posting their children’s entire lives on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok and treating them as accessories instead of people. Imagine the horror stories we’ll probably hear from these 'kidfluencers' in 10–20 years' time."
"My cousin does this. Every day, she posts her kids just going about their regular day. Nobody cares. Give the kids some privacy."
—X0AN
5."Having to pay for vision and dental insurance in addition to health insurance. Last time I checked, your eyeballs and teeth were part of your body and should be considered under medical insurance."
6."Zero expectations of privacy. We're all expected to behave like we could be recorded at any time, and we wonder why everyone has anxiety now."
7."South Africa specific answer — having your electricity switched off for several hours a day. This can range from two to eight hours a day. We just organize our lives around it like it isn't a thing 'cause we've been doing it for 16 years now."
"California had this going on for about a year when I was a teen, and our governor was impeached over it. They weren’t announced in advance often so shit like being out shopping or at a movie theater when suddenly the power goes out would happen. I can’t believe this has been happening for 16 years!"
8."Side hustles to get by; fuck, if you're working full-time, you should be able to get by."
"And they’re not ‘side hustles.’ They’re part-time jobs. You’re working two jobs."
9."Working 40+ hours a week to make enough money to still be in poverty."
10."Working yourself to death."
"The Japanese have a term called 'karoshi' which offers incentives to widows from 'death by overwork.'"
11."Phone use while behind the wheel. Every trip out is a death roulette game. I see someone nearly drift into my lane all the time."
12."Expecting people to be contactable 24/7 and acting like someone is rude if they don’t respond relatively promptly. Back when the main form of contact was calls, it was deemed relatively normal for people to not answer as they were busy or not home, therefore it was so much easier to switch off and enjoy other things. Now, it’s expected that people are connected to everyone all the time, and if you try to disconnect from that a bit, it can almost get you socially ostracized. You can relate it to workplaces as well and the rise of employers basically expecting workers to be contactable 24/7."
13."The amount of sugar we consume and give our kids."
"I finally found a can of peaches that didn't have added sugar or sweeteners in it. It cost $6.50. What the fuck is wrong with us?"
14."Filming strangers without their knowledge or consent and posting it online for millions to see."
"In 2004, when I started my filmmaking classes, I did some b-roll of a crowd outside of a metro station. My teacher told me you can't film people without their consent or knowledge. You either need to put a disclaimer somewhere or film their back or feet. I felt very bad about it.
Somehow, this is the new normal now. I was at IKEA the other day, and someone was just filming around, and I'm pretty sure my face was in there. It's upsetting."
15."Trying to guilt the consumer into thinking that they are the ones who can really make a difference with recycling, when 98% of all waste is industrial, retail, and restaurant, and none of them are big on recycling if they do it at all."
16."The amount of plastic we use. It's absolutely insane."
—[deleted]
"And then companies say they are reducing waste but actually making more plastic to say that they are saving the planet."
17."Driving drunk/high among teens. People my age (18) often mention it in passing like it’s no big deal, and then I’m treated like a wet blanket for making a thing out of it. No, Kevin, you don’t 'drive better high,' you’re just selfish."
"I had a coworker your age who one day bragged about being basically blind without glasses and how she'd drive drunk on the weekends. She never wore glasses or contacts.
In shock, I blurted out, 'Jesus you're gonna kill someone doing that.' Her only response was. 'Well I haven't so far,' before she turned her back to me. Somehow, I was the one in the wrong, though, and got some shitty looks from the others working with us."
18."Corporate crimes having almost no consequences."
19."Delivery drivers and waitresses having their wages determined by customers and not their employers. AKA living off of tips while employers don't pay enough."
20."Most gynecological procedures, as they often don’t allow anesthetics and can be downright barbaric. Women get screwed when it comes to healthcare."
21."Doctors dismissing severe period symptoms because it’s ‘normal.' If you are vomiting, cannot move from pain, and passing out from blood loss, they don’t really care and usually just give you a slightly better pain medicine like naproxen, which does fuck all, and then tell you to get over yourself. If you had these symptoms and did not have periods, you’d be admitted into the hospital on the spot."
"A doc told my wife that the pain she was having was 'her body's way of saying it wanted to have a baby.' Took a few more years and a specialist to diagnose that it was endo and prescribed quality of life improving medication."
22."This is coming from my (a woman’s) point of view, but being expected to spend hundreds of dollars on someone else’s wedding. Between buying the dress, nails, makeup, hair, shoes, bridal shower gift, bachelorette party, wedding gift, time off of work, etc., it’s just a lot!! I understand you are celebrating someone you are close with, but today people can barely afford to pay their bills!!! So, a shoutout to the people who want all of these extravagant things for their weddings and are willing to cover all of the cost of said things!!"
23."Restaurants and grocery stores throwing away mass quantities of good, edible food and not being allowed to donate it."
24."The cost of medical coverage in the US. The insurance, copays, deductibles you have to meet — all of it. It’s so insane how much it costs to even have a baby in the US."
"I recently lost my old medical coverage, and after looking at how expensive it would be to get another of my own, I just decided I can't afford it. It would cost more money than I'd make after all my other bills and needs are met. So for now, I just don't have insurance and hope that nothing bad happens. It's incredibly demoralizing and depressing."
25."Forcing mothers to go back to work when their babies are, like, fresh from the womb. It’s barbaric and cruel."
"I went back to working overnights a week after giving birth because they said they wouldn't hold my job position for me longer than that. My PPD was so bad, and my breasts were engorged and leaking while I worked. They wouldn't allow me to pump or store the milk. I missed my baby so much that I would just stand and silently cry at the register. Luckily, my partner would sometimes bring the baby in when he was up in the middle of the night (we lived close by), and a couple of very kind coworkers would cover for me so I could nurse and be close to him."
26."Child beauty pageants."
27."Having toddlers scroll TikTok so they shut up. Hell, every human under 12 shouldn't be anywhere near."
28."Viral cringe/freakout videos, especially of minors. I was a super weird kid, and thank god I grew up before social media and smartphones were a thing. I don't know how I'd ever get over my 'spazziest' moments being seen and ridiculed by millions of people."
29."Predatory gaming companies making billions off of micro transactions."
"I embarrassingly fell victim to one of these iPhone games when I was in recovery for a major surgery. Spent hundreds. It’s one of my greatest shames, and I’ve majorly changed my habits because of it."
30.Finally, "Worshipping politicians."