Stray Meerkats: The Dress Code Hill
One of the on-going, and highly entertaining series Bruce Gerencser posts is the ‘Christians Say the Darnedest Things’ series. One of the latest entries made me ponder whether to write a Meerkat Prompt, or a Thinking ‘Kat entry, but I couldn’t decide as to which was more relevant. Hence a Stray Meerkat!
In one of Bruce’s latest entries to the Darnedest Things series, he takes a look at a post by one Francis Slobodnik, who has decided that the necktie is the hill to fight on. Apparently the rising tide of men who do not wish to wear ties in everyday life is a sign of society in decline. Details such as comfort should be secondary concerns, at least that’s how I interpret Mr Slobodnik’s remarks.
One article of men’s clothing that is sadly on the decline is the necktie.
This abandonment reflects a refusal to accept any restrictions, discipline or discomfort in clothing or presentation. Many want to feel comfortable at any cost, even if undignified. Comfort and informality are today’s fashion gods. People will go to great expense to wear torn and ragged fashions with designer labels to worship at the altars of these gods.
The necktie is one major casualty of the war on good taste and formality. Some still wear it, but it is sadly disappearing and only visible on rare occasions. A person wearing a necktie stands out in a crowd today.
I can’t speak for everyone to wears the ripped jeans, or for that matter everyone who wears jeans, t-shirts and other everyday articles of clothing, but I for one do not go to a great expense to wear clothes I am comfortable in. I think most people don’t. In fact, it’s usually the tailored suits, or generally just a suit, that works out more pricey. There is certainly little comfort to be found in any suit, at least in my experience.
Besides, if one is to create boundaries between formal events and casual ones, if we are to somehow define what is termed elegant presentation, and what is not, there needs to be a distinction, doesn’t there? The meaning of wearing a tie, a suit, a jacket… it all kinds of fades away if everyone does it, all the time. It fails to be a distinguished moment if suddenly everyone is wearing a suit to say, the cinema, or a football match, or in general everyday activities.
It should also be noted that it is entirely possible to be suited and booted, and still be lazy. I could cite the example of former UK prime Minister Boris Johnson, whose behaviour and manner is as slovenly as any human being on the planet, as demonstrated by his time in office. Meanwhile, there is plenty of evidence to show that working from home, perhaps even in one’s pyjamas, is every bit as productive as getting dressed up and travelling to the office.
To quote from a bit further on:
The tie was a small detail in a Christian civilization. Those seeking to do something to oppose the destruction of good customs would do well to get a tie and learn how to tie it. Stand out from the crowd. Be part of that restoration of a Christian order that is sacral, austere, anti-egalitarian and anti-liberal.
Eh? Did Jesus wear a tie? I seem to recall he wore sandals a lot of the time. I don’t think he would be particularly obsessed with a dress code, and would he be promoting an anti-equality stance (which is what Mr Slobodnik seems to be arguing for here, hence his idea of a society that is anti-egalitarian)?
The presence of a tie, or lack thereof, is not the linchpin of civilisation. Some people really do choose the strangest hills…
Yeah, this is a silly hill to die on. This is what happens when personal preferences are turned into laws; that you can’t be a good Christian unless you do [blank]. I spent much of my life living this way, thinking the God and Creator of the universe cares what one wear. Granted, the Bible does talk about clothing, jewelry, and the like, but I find its teachings largely irrelevant. Polly was 45 before she wore a pair of pants. We lived in Yuma, Arizona, at the time. One day, we went shopping at Target. The store had capris on sale. I said to Polly, “why don’t you buy some of these?” She got this fearful look on her face, worried that God might strike her dead if she bought and wore “britches.” I assured her that wouldn’t happen, and sure enough she’s still alive; a pants convert. 🤣 I look back on some of our beliefs and shake my head. How could we have been so stupid? Welp, that’s what decades of conditioning and indoctrination will do to you.
It does seem to be a religious trait to desire opinions to become rules. OK, fine, if you want to follow those rules under the guise of your faith, go for it. It may seem peculiar to me, and at times even inappropriate, but so be it. It’s when they try to push their rules onto others, that’s when we’ll be having words.
Does one need a necktie to stand out and appear confident and bold? I don’t think so. I for one wear my bright yellow Timon t-shirt in town, without a single damn care for what other people make of it 😀
As long as you don’t wander around town wearing a Man Utd T shirt everything is just fine and dandy.
😂
I would not be seen dead in a Man Utd t-shirt! Liverpool fan here, a true Red!
Well. Good for you.
Liverpool here too. In fact, I am happy to say I indoctrinated my entire family😈😈.
😂
Did you read that Nunez is probably out the door?
Off to Saudi.
I can’t say I’m too upset about Nunez. He brings energy and works hard, but his finishing has left a lot to be desired from the start. I don’t know if we need Izak, but I guess if we sign him we’ll not be wanting for attacking options. I want us to sign Guehi, give us more depth in the centre of defence, but then again Slot won it last season, so I’ll put my faith in his judgement.
Equally no fan of the female equivalent of the suit and tie, the skirt suit, tights and heels. I’ve worked for firms which forbade female staff to wear trousers in the office and those who did but had a conservative view of what trousers actually were. No five-pocket models of any sort.
These days, being middle aged and senior administrative level in the public sector have allowed me to decide what I wear a little more freely. I work on a biomedical campus so many organisations I visit adhere to clinically correct dress codes of flat shoes and short sleeves. No ties, no heels, no open toe shoes. Suits me. So I rock up to work in chinos, plain sneakers and polo shirts unless I have a board meeting, in which case I have to wear a collared shirt. No one has batted an eyelid yet. And the world keeps turning. I’m comfortable so I can concentrate on my work rather than being distracted because my feet hurt or I’m hot.
I don’t see what extra a tie or heels could provide, apart from formality in a world which seems to increasingly be rejecting such a concept.
You are of course, absolutely right. The expectations that a dress code for work or for society can somehow enhance society or fix it, are rooted in some very old-fashioned thinking. People who are more at ease tend to be more productive than those who are harried or stressed, and if wearing comfortable clothing helps someone to feel more relaxed and happier, then I say go for it.
I did wonder about exploring this further. The Victorians had some very elaborate formal wear, does this mean Victorian society was better and more refined than today? Well, scratch the surface, and debauchery was never far away! They had a sordid underbelly to their society that would make the puritans of today faint!