how assumptions about how people look is wrong

yeah .....you are right....appearances are deceiving and before we come to any conclusion about someone we should have a good conversation with the person in order to be sure about what exactly he/she is ....not what he/she looks...

Ame to that. It is none of their business at all. Your son is going through enough as it is. People do not need to judge others at all or assume things about them. I have been done that way all of my life too and it isn't right. It is very rude. A couple years after having my daughter, my belly was still a little bigger than normal but someone came up to me in a store when we were on vacation and aksed me when my baby was due. I WAS NOT PREGNANT! How rude?

It is nobody's business what other people eat. I notice you said the other man was Middle Eastern. I don't think a pure laine (born French Canadian) would have bothered to remark. I worked in Quebec (just across the bridge from Ontario) for many years and I found the francophones the most tolerant and laid back people. I hope you have the same experience where you live in Quebec.

I guess these are people who have nothing better to do and who are not secure with themselves. It's sad.

well thats not right the nerve of them assuming what he is. and to say something about it grrrrrrrr.. and what if the hot dogs were be3ef ones? woluld that have made a difference? probably not they assumed they were made of pork. Still at 31 he will just have to grow a thicker hide and let things like this roll off his back best way not to get hurt. hugs

let's split one thing into two pieces.on the one hand,the one treat something only comes from his assumptions.it's unsuitable.but on the other hand,his assumption trace from the appearance. he is wrong.but you do not as rude as him. if you can tolerant his fault,you will be dignity.

That is sad how people make assumptions about things like that..It can be very upsetting. Anyhow it was none of the persons business what another person eats he should take care of his own business and but out of others. Even assumming if your son had been as this man thought it could have been an all beef hot dog I am sure they sell those as well. Maybe sometime in the future they will be a time that looks won't matter and people stay out of others business. I hope that in the future that people keep their opinions to them selves. I guess I am pretty ordinary looking besides being overweight, I guess that is the way with overweight people also. They all assume we are lazy and eat all day when most of us are busy as a bee and hardly eat at all just eat the wrong foods.. I have forced myself away from the computer long enough to get some walking in and doing a doet and have lost 33 pounds this month. So I hope your son is feeling better and that he can maybe ignore the others if he can although sometimes they can be up in your face about some things like that man about the hotdog..

That's awful what that person said to your son! I don't know why people think they have to bring other people down like that. We have the same issues here where I live where we have people are are Hispanic or Native American with Spanish surnames and don't speak Spanish. Often times, people will come up to them and start speaking Spanish and when they find out that they don't speak that language, the Spanish speaker will spit out something offensive. Many people get treated worse than that, like they are some sort of traitor for not speaking Spanish. Most of the non-Spanish speakers are descended from a long line of English-speaking Americans and are often from other parts of the country where few people speak Spanish.

I don't know about skin color as that I'm white. I do know what your talking about though. I live in the Southern part of the United States. Most of the time you see on tv about the South is that the people are dumb, and live in trailers. We are dumb when it comes to driving in snowy weather as we are not used to it. I wish people would not assume that we are dumb, illiterate all because of what they watch on tv.

Many people are disrespectful of everyone else, winterose. I believe that it is only their nature. Your son responded just as he should have in this case. It really was none of the man's business.

I know what you mean during the twin towers here in the states some one went into a store that has been there and shot the owners son cause he as the shooter said looked like one of them this man that was shot was an american an a sweet man thank god the shot only grazed him it just proves how ignorant people are tell your son that the man that upsetted him is worth the worry

Wow! How presumptuous of the man! My husband always gets people thinking he is of a different ethnicity than what he is. He is Mexican and Chinese. He identifies as Mexican though. His father was full Mexican and his mother is mostly Mexican; all but one great-grandparent is Mexican. One great-grandmother was Chinese I believe. He is constantly asked if he is "Arab" or "Filipino" or any number of other things. Nobody has ever been accusatory toward him in the way your son has though. He has dealt with some racism along the way but he just lets it go. He had a patient once that wouldn't let him see them because of his race. Most of the time it irritates me more than him. But I tend to get protective of my family. Oh yeah! I have to share this story before forcing myself to go to bed! After Hurricane Katrina most people know (well the ones in the area) that a lot Mexicans went there to work. One of my son's friend's dad told his son to "Stay away from the Mexican's, they steal kids." The kid then went and told my 3 older children. They were ages 7, 6 and 4 at the time. My daughter who was 4 cried and was terrified. My oldest son was smart and told his sister, "Strangers steal little kids! Rob (my husband) is Mexican! He doesn't steal kids!" That put things into perspective for her, but for a bit I was furious! We know the kid's dad! My thinking went like this, "They (my kids)have a baby sister who is half-Mexican; I don't want them growing up thinking this way!" We had a little chat; the 4 of us. They know about strangers, and now they also know that it is not okay to single people out. Whether they are purple, too tall, too short...it doesn't matter.

i look at people at who they are not what colour their skin is.i think people should not be judgemental and take people for who they are.many of my best friends have dark skin and they are all well adjusted to certain comments or racial slangings from other people.as much as we would like it not to be racial you can not change people from being rude about it.cheers sue

hehe I am the son in question just wanted to add that the fact i dont like being misjudged by my appearance stems from my childhood. now im not racist i like or dislike all people equally depending on interactions but as a youth it was hard enough not being french in Quebec added to the fact i was not white and i came from the ghetto i was looked down on by alot of people in authority mostly by my looks. i wasn't white enough for one crowd and not black enough for another i was finally accepted by both atleast those around me for who i was and not what i looked like, but meeting people they'd always assume something first it was pakistani seemed at the time alot started coming here and alot of the ignorant people would mock them. well as i got older i got over it and some times i was even flatered when someone thought i was spannish or italian or persian but shortly after 9-11 i've been harassed by even passers by snidely saying something about afganistan or iraq so again i have to put up with it and it's generally now by white or black people go figure my own peoples, atleast this guy was of a race or religion he thought i was... though i still dont like it much at all :P

That sounds pretty gutsy of a stranger to do. I hesitate to approach strange young men anyway, and then to approach in such a negative way. I am sure your son is proud to be who he is, for his own value. We do jump to conclusions a lot.

I can agree with you. What your son eats has no affect whatsoever on this man. No matter what nationality either one of them is. The only time I care about where someone is from or what their nationality is, is when they have a nice accent. I will compliment them on it and then ask where they are from. Other than that, I could really care less and I really do not see what the big deal is.

It is often observed that the misbehavior of certain people make us really offended. It is time they realize how awful it is to voice out dirty pranks.

people are really people! different guts and confident. must better to know first the person before you speak with a thing with misinterpretation with there identities. This world have a lot of strangers to deal with so better always prepared yourself in dealing with it.

that middle eastern manwas way out of line and very rude also. Nobody has the right to speak to a stranger that way at all and to make stupid assumptions about someone that they do not even know is most pathetic.they have no right to do these things at all.