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30 Observations About Strange Social Customs

Can we as a society move on from handshakes?

30 Observations About Strange Social Customs

September 27, 2023

The handshake — a voluntary act between two strangers to exchange germs and filth with each other. Why is it a thing? We don’t actually know. More on that and 29 other bizarre social customs we as a society still do for some reason below…

30

THE HANDSHAKE We just met, and we don't know what the other person did with their hands that day... HEY! Lets rub them against each other. CRACKED.COM — 18 Reasons To End These Traditions

29

Celebrating the resurrection of Christ with colored eggs and jelly beans is one thing... CRACKED COM But I've seen very few kids who aren't petrified by the idea of taking a picture with a man in a giant rabbit suit. — 18 Reasons To End These Traditions

28

OPEN CASKETS ARE FREAKY. Being forced to go to a funeral and stare at a corpse makes me really uncomfortable. I'm getting cremated, just to make sure nobody has to stare at my corpse. CRACKED.COM — 18 Reasons To End These Traditions

27

we neeD TO STOP TELLING BOYS THAT ONLY THE WEAK ARE AFRAID AND ANYONE AFRAID IS UNMANLY BECAUSE THEY GROW INTO men WHO Believe IT. MT UP WHen we TeLL men AND BOYS TO DenY THeIR FEARS AND ACT BRAVE WE ROB THEM OF THE CHANCE TO ACTUALLY BE BRAVE, FACE THEIR FEARS AND CONQUER THEM. CRACKED.COM — 21 Social Rules And Traditions That Are Totally Obsolete

26

We've got to dump the idea that brightly-colored hair and CRACKED.COM visible tattoos are a sign of a person's character. EX TE PEOPLE Plenty of people manage the Herculean task of having green hair and living a moral life. — 21 Social Rules And Traditions That Are Totally Obsolete

25

CRACKED.COM Why are some foods only meant to be eaten at breakfast? — 21 Social Rules And Traditions That Are Totally Obsolete

24

IF YOU'RE GOING TO TEACH YOUR KID NOT TO OPEN GRACKED.COM THE DOOR TO STRANGERS, HOW DO YOU EXPLAIN LEAVING MILK AND COOKIES FOR A DUDE WHO BREAKS INTO YOUR HOUSE ONCE A YEAR? — 18 Reasons To End These Traditions

23

Americans care way too much about nudity. Being nude is still seen as taboo to Americans. Most Europeans don't really care. They let it BEACH all hang out. CRACKED.COM — American Customs That Make No Sense To The Rest Of The World

22

IT'S A MYSTERY FOR NON-AMERICANS WHY COLLEGE TUITION FEES IN THE U.S. ARE SO DAMN EXPENSIVE. не 44607441 - G7 EONAI 30 grass SINCE - - - - но 446074418 07 IG63 GARS GD620212 01969 جامعة 03 KM 20 OTHER DEVELOPED COUNTRIES LIKE GERMANY DON'T EVEN CHARGE COLLEGE TUITION FEES TO STUDENTS. CRACKED.COM — American Customs That Make No Sense To The Rest Of The World

21

GRACKED COM Americans, want to freak out friends from other countries? TURN RIGHT ON RED To nearly everyone else in the world, a red light means you STOP and don't go until it turns green. They find it shocking and weird that Americans seem to ignore red lights and just go anyway. — American Customs That Make No Sense To The Rest Of The World

20

CLEARANCE AMERICANS ARE TERRIFIED OF STRANGER DANGER, A FEAR NOBODY ELSE UNDERSTANDS In other countries it's not abnormal for a stranger to greet, hug, or pick up a child they don't know. A server at a restaurant moving an unruly child in a stroller into a designated room without asking the parent's permission would not be given a second thought. CRACKED.COM — Source

19

Foreigners don't get why many Americans, even the ones who aren't celebrities, are so obsessed with having perfectly straight, unnaturally white teeth, especially since it requires procedures and chemicals that can be detrimental to oral health. GRACKED.COM — American Customs That Make No Sense To The Rest Of The World

18

Customer Service

Non-Americans get put off by servers and customer service reps acting like their best friend. The chatty, super-friendly approach usually feels artificial and pushy to them. CRACKED.COM — American Customs That Make No Sense To The Rest Of The World

17

These gaps next to bathroom stall doors in America confuse the hell out of visiting foreigners. CRACKED.COM — American Customs That Make No Sense To The Rest Of The World

16

DROPPING BY UNANNOUNCED WAS ACCEPTABLE ONLY WHEN THERE WERE NO PHONES. There are dozens of ways to reach a person and check if they want to hang out before you come barging into their home. CRACKED.COM — 17 Everyday Customs That No Longer Make Any Sense

15

Is there even a point in wearing neckties? There are other, more comfortable ways to look good. GRACKED.COM — 17 Everyday Customs That No Longer Make Any Sense

14

CRACKED.COM BACHELOR PARTIES ARE FUN. BUT STOP AMES HOLDING THEM IN BARS THE NIGHT BEFORE THE WEDDING. Ma M SHI E Make ueray Roco Mam CHIV D THE BRIDE WON'T - vot C BE APPRECIATE HER IMAN NAYA BEING HUNG OVER OR SICK - ON THE BIG DAY ONGT 19 — 17 Everyday Customs That No Longer Make Any Sense

13

TWO MONTHS SALARY IS TOO MUCH GRACKED.COM TO SPEND ON A ROCK ARTCARVED — 17 Everyday Customs That No Longer Make Any Sense

12

Brazilian Customs

Brazil CRACKED.COM Many countries eschew utensils altogether. Brazil takes the opposite stance. While there, you should always use utensils, no matter what. Yes, New Yorker shedding a single tear, even for a delicious pizza pie. — Food Network

11

Armenia CRACKED.COM If you ever attend a wedding in Armenia, you may notice sheets of traditional lavash bread draped over the newlyweds' shoulders. This both signals future prosperity and makes their shoulders look delicious to birds. — Wander-Lush

10

Portugal CRACKED.COM Decide you want to spice up your meal in Portugal? Keep it to yourself. Asking for salt and pepper is an insult to the chef. Which is why I fill one of my jeans pockets with salt and the other with pepper. Lifehack! — Food Network

9

Japan CRACKED.COM Visiting Japan, finding out what ramen tastes like when not cooked in a dorm room microwave? Slurp loud and proud. Loud slurping is both considered evidence you're enjoying the meal and thought to improve the noodles' flavor. — Republicworld

8

Japan CRACKED.COM If you ever end up in Japan on December 25, you'd better get your KFC order in early. KFC launched a Christmas meal there in 1970 and it took off. An estimated 3.6m families turn to the Colonel come Christmas. — Mashed

7

CRACKED.COM Greeting cards made sense in the old days before the information revolution, but at this point, they're just a waste of resources. — Pointless Social Customs That Need To Be Retired, ASAP

6

CRACKED.COM IT ret are YxY=25 CZ Y=5,-5 + g3 2 os X 2 g 2 In an age where nearly resi everybody has their own smartphone, there's no reason to keep requiring algebra classes for all COST etgp P college students. В ± etga — Pointless Social Customs That Need To Be Retired, ASAP

5

FROM THE NOGGIN NED Dear Neighbor Dear Everyone, We know that we're not dear to every person who has written us a letter. Can we quit opening letters with this pleasantry? love, Everyone — Pointless Social Customs That Need To Be Retired, ASAP

4

THE WEDDING CAKE SMASH HAS GOT TO GO! Feeding wedding cake to each other is supposed to symbolize a promise between the bride and groom to provide for one another. The wedding cake smash is a wasteful display of DISRESPECT instead. CRACKED.COM — Pointless Social Customs That Need To Be Retired, ASAP

3

Let's stop requiring good excuses from friends who are unable to hang out with us. Some people are busy. Some need to rest. It should be perfectly fine to reject an invitation for any reason. GRACKED.COM — 21 Social Rules And Traditions That Are Totally Obsolete

2

CRACKED.COM JOUR J For some reason we treat cat owners like pathetic losers, and label them needy, codependent shut-ins. But cats embody the opposite traits: they're emotionally aloof, totally independent, and often anti-social. — 21 Social Rules And Traditions That Are Totally Obsolete

1

FAMILY ALWAYS COMES BEFORE FRIENDS? WHY? FRIENDS ARE COMPATIBLE PEOPLE WE CHOOSE TO ASSOCIATE WITH. AND SHARING DNA WITH YOU DOESN'T ABSOLVE SOMEONE FROM BEING AN ASSHOLE. GRACKED.COM — 21 Social Rules And Traditions That Are Totally Obsolete

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