The Generic They

The Generic They

They do not look like us.

They do not act like us.

They do not talk like us.

They sometimes frighten us.

They?

They do not think like us.

They never speak for us.

They are not young like us.

They are not old like us.

They?

They do not live like us.

They don’t shed tears like us.

They don't want war like us.

They don’t want peace like us.

They?

They don’t believe like us.

They must be against us.

They feel God rejects us.

They want God to damn us.

They?

They implies absolutes

in a world without them.

Don’t stereotype all theys.

God doesn’t love this way.

Reviews

[roarke]

Ain't it the truth. To me, "they" has become more ambiguous and manipulative in it's usage than it EVER was. If that's even possible. You've done your very best to define those "theys" here W.W. To me, "theys" are just a word to shift focus, attach negativity and avoid the responsibility of thinking an issue through and taking some part of responsibility for making the "buck" stop there. Let's hope your write inspires others to do away with the "theys"... nice thoughts W.W.

[Willys Watson]

Thank you for your kind words, my friend.

[Willys Watson]

This is something I wrote fairly quickly this afternoon after thinking about several Face Book posts from a few nights back where ‘they’ was thrown around a lot without the poster defining who the they were in they. For as long as I can remember they has been an over-used generic mainstay of our contemporary vocabulary.