Dare To Ask Talk And News About Our Differences - This topic has 6 replies, 7 voices, and was last updated 15 years ago by
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- I've noticed that older people tend to believe anything that is presented to them, from politics to the door-to-door salesman. We are always seeing on the news where the older generation is targeted for a lottery, sales or fix-it-up scam or believing politicians without researching them. I was always told how wise this generation is, but from what I've seen I am beginning to doubt this. With the exception that older generations are more trusting (that's a copout), why are they so ready to believe everything they hear?
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Name : Rob, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Religion : Catholic, Age : 30, City : Warren, State : MI Country : United States, Occupation : Architect/business, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,I've wondered about this myself, and I have a theory: This generation has a concept of 'your word is your bond,' which worked well as long as people put the common good before self-interest and lived in small communities where breaking one's word had lasting consequences. Add to this the desire to hear things that are favorable to their interests, perhaps due to desperation, as many of them no longer have any meaningful earning power. The older generation also has a concept of 'it sounds like it should be that way,' which can have horrible consequences when applied to changing Social Security, pension and inheritance laws. Lastly, there is a potent element of 'moral high ground' ('How could you lie to an old person and still live with yourself?') This is just my slant on it. (And people who swindle the elderly are beneath contempt.)User Detail :
Name : Augustine23552, Gender : M, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 40, City : Columbia, State : SC Country : United States, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,Maybe I'm too young to respond, but it seems to me that gullibility has nothing to do with age. Yes, some older people get scammed, but I think it's more a matter of intelligence than age. There may be something to the idea that the loneliness of the elderly makes them so hungry for friends that they are easy prey for con artists, but I really think that elderly victims of scams were probably also victims when they were younger. In fact, considering the millions of people who buy lottery tickets, I'd say that gullibility is a national disease.User Detail :
Name : Morgan, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Agnostic, Age : 65, City : DeKalb, State : IL Country : United States, Occupation : Tinkerer & Philosopher, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,I agree with Morgan that it's not the age. Even young people can and do get conned. I think also, as you said, they are lonely and want to be able to trust people. They are wise, as they have been through a lot in their years. Anyone at anytime can get conned. People can be pretty slick. I think old people are the greatest. They have so many wonderful stories they tell, and I find them very interesting.User Detail :
Name : Diana, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Italian, Religion : Catholic, Age : 53, City : Richmond, State : VA Country : United States, Occupation : nurse, Education level : Technical School,Unfortunately, older folks are targeted more by scammers and/or other crooks who seem to think that they are gullible..... I am not elderly. Unfortunately, for the scammers, I DO HAVE AN OLDER RELATIVE WHO IS AN UNRETIRED JUDGE WHO IS AWARE OF THE SCAMS AGIANST OLDER PERSONS AND BEHAVES ACCORDINGLY! AGE IS NO INDICATOR OF AN INDIVIDUAL'S ABILITY TO DO A CERTAIN JOB--AS INDICATED BY THE LENGTH OF SERVICE IN THE US SUPREME COURT......User Detail :
Name : jane-doe20933, City : anon, State : NA Country : United States,You don't hear of many younger people going to the bank with a total stranger to wipe out their accounts, and hand it over to them.User Detail :
Name : chris32176, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 32, City : trenton, State : MI Country : United States, Social class : Middle class,I think it depends on two things. One is since childhood a person is tought by their parents and school that one should not cheat. So most of the people thinks that others do not cheat either. Second when polulation of con men/women increases possibility that others will get conned increases. On the other had if you have more friends and family around then possibility that you get conned decreases because chances of getting right advise increases. If a con men/women gets harshest punishment then I'm sure number of con people will decrease.User Detail :
Name : Sam, City : Lewisville, State : TX Country : United States,
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