The 5 senses and social responsibility?
 The 5 senses and social responsibility? | |
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Hadoken
Initiate Usergroup: Members Joined: Dec 15, 2003 Location: SF Bay Area Total Topics: 5 Total Posts: 57 |
 #1
We have developed certain standards of what is acceptable to transmit via other peoples senses, we have certain "rights" when it comes to what we should not be exposed to. For most of the five senses, it is pretty obvious when someone is out of line, but it is not so with the sense of smell. Sight: It is not socially acceptable for me to walk up to you on the street, and expose you to a disturbing picture. It is also illegal. Hearing: It is not socially acceptable for me to blast loud music into your ears, unless it’s at some party. It is also illegal. Touch: It is not socially acceptable for someone to touch someone without their permission. It is also illegal. Smell: huk!? Obviously I have not included taste as that is rarely applicable. Of course, it is not cool for a cook to prepare bad food or piss in the soup, etc, but professional ethics are not what we are discussing here. My question is, why is it that we have not developed any strict social standards when it comes to how it is acceptable for someone to transmit scents to you? For example, let us say I am sitting on a bus. I have 4 people sitting right around me. One of them is a sexual criminal, one is blasting loud music, and one is openly looking at a...lets say something along the lines of "rotten-dot-com" (a website that shows extremely gruesome pictures), and one is a homeless guy who smells like sour urine. Let's say the molester starts trying to grope you, the one listening to music in his headphones turns it up so loud it hurts your ears, and the one looking at the nasty pictures tries to show you them, and the bum just sits there. Now, a normal person would easily feel comfortable dismissing the first three, but why is it that they cannot dismiss the "smell offender"? Of course, you may say it is because it is more passive than the others, but wouldn't the person blasting the music be equally passive? Like he could just turn off his music, the bum could also "turn off" his smell by taking a shower. Sure, it may take a longer time, but it is not like you can say "Oops! I forgot to take a shower for 4 weeks today!". I mean, sure, it may not be socially acceptable to smell bad, you wouldn't have many friends at some party, but why, in this case, is this bum a different case than the first three? Ok for the touch and sight senses I didn't really come up with good examples, but I think you guys know what I mean. Maybe a better one for touch would have been someone who isn't wearing clothes, or something, and then sat next to me, then being in contact with me. Ok, so what do you guys think? Sorry If it's kinda disorganized, I hope it made sense. Note: This is not a statement that all bums should go take a shower, I'm just posing a question. |
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Radrook
banned Usergroup: Members Joined: Aug 11, 2002 Total Topics: 17 Total Posts: 1716 |
#2
Smell involves taking in molecules from the offending substance into your body via the respiratory organs. That is analogous to a violating physical touch. Perhaps that is why you tend to view it as so offensive. |
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Da GOAT
banned Usergroup: Members Joined: Apr 14, 2004 Location: 23rd Level of Purgatory Total Topics: 4 Total Posts: 54 |
#3
Radrook wrote: Smell involves taking in molecules from the offending substance into your body via the respiratory organs. That is analogous to a violating physical touch. Perhaps that is why you tend to view it as so offensive. and secondly each person is composed of their own unique scent, you can't try to force them to not be what they are given at the genetic coding process thingie sha bobber!!! plus where do these bums go and take showers? you go be a bum, get all nice and smelly, then go to a gym and and ask if you can use their shower and see what response you get, this is also the same as people who cannot control the volume of their voice, the bum cannot control this, because finding a shower every day or every other day isn't as easy as you may think it is, the streets is ruff son, my boy yayo still in jail FREE YAYO!!! |
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Hadoken
Initiate Usergroup: Members Joined: Dec 15, 2003 Location: SF Bay Area Total Topics: 5 Total Posts: 57 |
#4
Smell involves taking in molecules from the offending substance into your body via the respiratory organs. Yes, that is one of the points I was trying to get across. Now why are there no strict social repurcussions for this? No laws?
That is analogous to a violating physical touch. Perhaps that is why you tend to view it as so offensive. |
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Checksum
Resident Usergroup: Members Joined: Jan 15, 2004 Location: California Total Topics: 8 Total Posts: 205 |
#5
It's much harder to control. I'm not sure if we even have measurements for intensity of smells - I'm sure we have them, but who here knows them? Some people have a keener sense of smell than others anyway. Even then, is it really all that easy to control smells? |
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Hadoken
Initiate Usergroup: Members Joined: Dec 15, 2003 Location: SF Bay Area Total Topics: 5 Total Posts: 57 |
#6
It's much harder to control. I'm not sure if we even have measurements for intensity of smells - I'm sure we have them, but who here knows them? Some people have a keener sense of smell than others anyway. Well, measuring smell i think is done in "parts per billion" or something along those lines. While that may be hard to measure and would require some sort of device, wouldn't you also need that for measuring how loud something is? Even then, is it really all that easy to control smells? Sure some people have a keener sense of smell than others, but isn't that the same with every other sense? Some people are more easily offended by dirty pictures, by physical contact, by noise (some people are very sensitive), etc. As for how hard it is to control the smell, It depends to what extent. Sure, I guess we cant expect a bum to apply deoderant every day (or can we?), but I think we should hold them accountable as to not let their smell get to an absurd level. I do know that there are plenty of showers in some public parks and places near the beach. |
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Janette
Initiate Usergroup: Members Joined: Apr 07, 2004 Total Topics: 5 Total Posts: 42 |
#7
All elements in this world omit a smell - you pick up a newspaper and it has a smell about it - the sences see, touch and hear only apply to humans i.e. a newspaper can not see, touch or hear but a newspaper can omit a smell I think that is the difference between smell and the other senses mentioned. We can control what we see, touch and hear but we can not control what we smell because it's all around us. Laws about human smells??? - hmmm - We've all heard of cases where people have been evicted from a property because they were dirty - the smell was so offensive Another point - it is pretty easy to walk away from a bad smell - the bad smell is not going to argue with you and force you to stay - |
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Hadoken
Initiate Usergroup: Members Joined: Dec 15, 2003 Location: SF Bay Area Total Topics: 5 Total Posts: 57 |
#8
Janette wrote: But are these not all true of the other senses as well? Dosn't a newspaper emit an image? And is it not also easy to walk away from?All elements in this world omit a smell - you pick up a newspaper and it has a smell about it - the sences see, touch and hear only apply to humans i.e. a newspaper can not see, touch or hear but a newspaper can omit a smell I think that is the difference between smell and the other senses mentioned. We can control what we see, touch and hear but we can not control what we smell because it's all around us. Laws about human smells??? - hmmm - We've all heard of cases where people have been evicted from a property because they were dirty - the smell was so offensive Another point - it is pretty easy to walk away from a bad smell - the bad smell is not going to argue with you and force you to stay - We can control what we see, touch and hear but we can not control what we smell because it's all around us. Well, yes, its all around us, and we have to breathe, so we are breathing in this air. But dosn't this make it even more concerning?
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Paradox
Resident Usergroup: Sponsors Joined: Dec 17, 2002 Total Topics: 4 Total Posts: 244 |
#9
I seem to vaguely remember a case where nasty smells were causing offense and complaints were made to Environmental Health departments. Turned out some psychopath was dismembering people and trying to get rid of body parts through the drainage system (Maybe Jeffrey Dahmer, not sure). The point is, if people complain, it will be investigated just like a noisy neighbour would. I just think, like someone else said, that smells are much more difficult to control. |
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Hadoken
Initiate Usergroup: Members Joined: Dec 15, 2003 Location: SF Bay Area Total Topics: 5 Total Posts: 57 |
#10
Yes, but that is a different scenario. That's like a different kind of responsibility, like you have the responsibility to report crimes, etc. |
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