Society is getting more and more casual, and I love it

[belamyi]

That's funny.

My biggest complaint about suits (matching fabric head to toe) is that they look like pajamas.

Exactly: in America, America, money, money.

They can be saggy enough in Europe, but Fatamerica is beyond outrageously ridiculous in that department: and yet still considered "formal"!!

 

[belamyi]

So, why is a suit proper attire for a man, while women are free to dress as they please- for most any situation?

Do women get special treatment, or are they still held, in your head, to be too insignificant to consider?

Is a man wearing a suit putting women in their place?

Western male suits are male burqas. Period.
It's not about manliness, or about formality (let alone "elegance"), it's about concealing, in the case of proud old fat yokels, and beauty-shaming, in the case of fitter guys, particularly in the crotch department, where men are forced to look as flat as women usually are without their tit implants or cheaper falsies.
Then there is also the "Chris H" version, in which fit, yet ridiculously bulky guys, must wear hugging suits to avoid looking silly and bloated under the clothes.

 

[belamyi]

Oh, I know who you're referring to: orange, runs some tacky hotels, used to be on TV quite often a couple of years ago.

No: those who worship him.

 

[rareboy]

Well the more I could afford great clothes, the less important they have become.

Now I mourn the loss of any sweatshirt that is less than 20 years old before the cuffs are too frayed.

But I am a believer in the sense of occasion. I would never turn up for a meeting without shirt and tie or black turtleneck with a sportscoat over.

And weddings and funerals get the full drag.

 

[belamyi]

Well the more I could afford great clothes, the less important they have become.

Now I mourn the loss of any sweatshirt that is less than 20 years old before the cuffs are too frayed.

But I am a believer in the sense of occasion. I would never turn up for a meeting without shirt and tie or black turtleneck with a sportscoat over.

And weddings and funerals get the full drag.

 

[Kahaih]

Well the more I could afford great clothes, the less important they have become.

Now I mourn the loss of any sweatshirt that is less than 20 years old before the cuffs are too frayed.

But I am a believer in the sense of occasion. I would never turn up for a meeting without shirt and tie or black turtleneck with a sportscoat over.

And weddings and funerals get the full drag.

I'm pretty much the same. I do wear a sports jacket/blazer often, though, even when I'm gardening if the weather calls for it.

But @ the last line:

Weddings and funerals are superstitious rituals in which I do not partake. Ever.

~~
And I stopped wearing neckties that are designed to point at my dick long ago.

 

[Kahaih]

Western male suits are male burqas. Period.

Poking the 'like' button wasn't enough.

That is a great comparison. Perfect.

 

[NotHardUp1]

So, why is a suit proper attire for a man, while women are free to dress as they please- for most any situation?

I cannot agree with the assertion. Women are not given a pass to wear as they please in polite society. The may or may not have to wear a dress, but they do have to wear an appropriately dressy outfit if going to an event that occasions the man to dress in suit and tie. She cannot, for example, wear an expensive track suit to a dress event and be acceptable. She can also not be in a state of undress that is too revealing or nude-ish and be accepted.

That said, there is a social current that measures all etiquette merely by money. If you wear expensive Nike or sweats and bling, you're imporessive, which is used as an exchange for appropriate and respectful. That segment of society has grown to a signifcant percentage of folks.

That's also what is actually good about traditional formality. A poor man can wear a suit and tie, and a woman a dressy pant suit or dress, and they are accepted as socially respectful and respectable members of the society, regardless of their income. If the esteem is shifted to bling and the wealthy, tacky or not, then it becomes a MORE stratified society, not more egalitarian.

 

[belamyi]

I cannot agree with the assertion. Women are not given a pass to wear as they please in polite society.

 

[NotHardUp1]

Weddings and funerals are superstitious rituals in which I do not partake. Ever.

Is that a fair assessment of all weddings an funerals? Because most include an element of religion, does that make the entire ritual nothing more than a religious observance? I would argue that sociologists and psychologists would disagree. Rituals surrounding life's milestones are communal activities that validate the lives of the individuals as members of the community, and opportunities that allow the community to be bound meaningfully through shared experiences expressing respect to one another. Commencements are in that same category.

And I stopped wearing neckties that are designed to point at my dick long ago.

But the more formal attire is a bowtie, and cravats are the forerunner of the neckties and they were not phallic. Another truth is that neckties don't point to anything when the jacket is buttoned and there were vests before that which also obscured the termination of a long tie.

In both scenarios, the tie is an accent at the upper part of the torso, taking attention from the waist, which was typically spreading in an era in which most men became fatter as they grew older.

 

[bedbugy]

criminals wear suits

 

[eddielee]

Casual is fine, but wearing pajamas grocery shopping is inappropriate, and something I would never do.

 

[frankfrank]

It doesn't bother me at all, seeing even national leaders (e. g. Zelensky) dressing casually in public.

 

[Rickrock]

I agree that neck ties can be uncomfortable, but they can tie an outfit together and really make the outfit. I remember a time when women dressed up with nylon stockings and high eels and make-up and hats and looked good and men dressed in suits. I regret that time has passed, but I do understand that high heels are uncomfortable and neck ties are as well. I try to dress as the occasion requires which is more often casual, but not sloppy now.

 

[rareboy]

Bishes stole my look.

 

[Vannie]

 

[nycguydowntown]

I’m def a casual dresser but dressing up never means a suit & tie. At most nice jeans a nice shirt and sport jacket. At most. I’m dreading going to Milan to visit friends in the spring because I’m going to have to take it up a notch

 

[NotHardUp1]

criminals wear suits

In the movies, and on Wall Street.

But the locals wear hoodies.

 

[belamyi]

Actually, the really uncomfortable, truly stupid part of the "formal" suit-and-tie dress-up is the shirt... the reason I stopped wearing the Oxfords I keep in my closet like dead bodies or down-low homosexuality is that there was no way to keep them in place. However, it's true I would wear them with old-style trousers: the ones I have been wearing for the past decade are suit trousers that need no belt (even if they still do them with the silly loops for it), thanks to the fit and triple-button fastening, and they might be as good for shirts as for turtles... When I finally found a decent belt to replace my favourite (hence, only) one, I decided it was not worth it to spend €120 over something I would not always be wearing, since it ruins the line with certain clothing.
Anyway, fit jackets and "suit-style" trousers, obviously with natural fibers, are one of the most comfortable things you can put on. The reason I am not wearing a shirt is that turtles are more flexible and keep one warmer... and since I am not wearing ties, you would need to pick very carefully the clothing items and their colour not to look rather awkward.

 

[rareboy]

A black turtle neck is the equivalent of Chanel's little black dress and has been my go to choice for decades.

I have even worn it with a strand of pearls once for a very homosexual birthday dinner party to underline the point about dressing up or dressing down.

And yes Bela...we've seen you in your turtleneck and you are Barcelona hot.