Quote Originally Posted by heroic_decepticon View Post
I'm a little of 2 minds about this issue and just playing the devil's advocate here.

I'm all for giving up seats to the elderly, pregnant women or people that need it (ie: in clutches, feet in bandages, injured, any other kind of inconvenience).

BUT, I'm not so sure about giving up seats to women - which from a reading of the posts above would mean all healthy, able bodied women who do not fall into the class of people in the paragraph above.

While on the one hand it may be chivalrous to do so, on the other hand it could look like an insult from the woman's perspective. It is very possible that in this day and age where women in the Western world see themselves as equals to men, the woman may be asking herself the question - "why would this guy give up his seat for me? Does he think that I am the weaker sex? Does he think that I have some disability? Does he think I cannot take care of myself? Does he think that I need the seat because I am a woman". Possibly, she may just find it insulting.

If however, the women that we give up our seats for are friends of yours (or your gf/partner/wife) who you are out with you as a group, then it'd likely be looked upon kindly and be considered chivalrous.

Just my 2 cents.
I totally agree with this. In today's PC world there is a very good chance that giving your seat to a standing healthy woman would be seen as you disrespecting or even insulting her as 'the weaker sex'; or worse as an unwanted sexual advance as it wouldn't surprise me if it was seen as a form of harassment.

In my opinion a lot of good manners and chivalrous behavior can now be seen as sexist. Unfortunately just as with many things in today's western society, feminism has gone a bit extremist and it is indeed possible that by doing an act of kindness like giving your seat to a woman, could end up creating a scene if she takes it the wrong way.