"If you can't say anything Nice, don't say anything at all."

[Negatempest]

So, I heard this very quote in Fallout New Vegas. Through some digging I learned that it could have originated from Bambi in the 1940's. Now, considering how we are today and the people we meet...does this old wives tale still hold water?

To me, if my brothers know a person is a total douche, I want them to tell me about it. If a teacher is specifically picking on them I WANT TO KNOW ABOUT IT. I want to know how much of a douche these people are and decide whether that person has had a bad day or should be avoided.

What about "You" the people of Escapist. Would you promote such a saying considering the people you have met here or in R.L.? Is this situational? (I don't see it as such, information is always important). Would you teach your own children or siblings this saying? I am actually quite curios.

EDIT: The saying came from Thumper's Father. Thumper was to repeat the sentence after replying that Bambi was "Wobbly". To me Thumper didn't say something mean, he said a fact out loud. AKA Speaking your mind.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5Bbt9extsg


P.S. Damn it, it's not showing the video clip.

P.S.S.: Saying a movie is terrible is being a dick. Saying a book is terrible is being a dick. You are honest, but you still are degrading a piece of work that took time to create. Could we lie about how we enjoyed Star Wars: The Phantom Menace (I loved it personally). Could you tell your friends that Michael Bay's Transformers was a great homage to the original? Would you say the Twilight series is an "interesting" read? No, for quite a few of us we want to say that most of these are a piece of ****. We would want our siblings to know that it is a piece of ****.

To me the saying is too..incomplete. There is more that has to be added, but could only be added through experience. This is why I could never tell my younger brothers this saying if it is something so incomplete because it would just confuse them when applied to life experien

 

[Rednog]

I think the saying only really applies in cases where people just say "bad things" just for the sake of saying it or just to be a dick.
I don't think it applies to keeping your mouth shut if something bad is happening to your or not snitching.

 

[Jaranja]

It's all down to how you define "nice".

Is criticism that's harsh but true nice? If not, then no. I do not agree with the saying.

 

[RatRace123]

That's a good question considering that some people seemingly exist only to make other people's lives a living hell.
But as a society we have to learn to pretend to like eachother, so I guess fostering the habit of finding the nice side of people is a good starting point.

 

[FalloutJack]

I've actually augmented that one slightly, because I'm not always nice, but I DO have something to say. And sometimes, that not-nice something is something you need to hear. So, I pretty much follow the guideline that if you can't say something useful or funny, don't say it at all. Contribute to the conversation or crack a joke, but don't be a jackass.

 

[Monkfish Acc.]

I follow this mantra, only in reverse.

You know, I always thought it had more to do with insults and being rude. I guess I can see how it could extend to just all bad things in general, but that was not the intention when I was told it as a kid.

 

[Sonofadiddly]

Could you imagine if people actually followed this? Online gaming headsets would be rendered useless! Also society would probably collapse.

 

[supermariner]

nah that saying is bollocks
people need to be critisised (contructively, not just for the sake of it)
if i don't realise that what i'm doing is shit
i need to be told
so i can try and improve ... or choose not to
either way, the information that i'm shit is important and may or may not be acted upon, but isn't pleasant to hear. but is necessary to know

 

[Ham_authority95]

It should be "If you can't say anything contructive, than don't say anything at all."

 

[The Salty Vulcan]

Well Yahtzee would certainly be outta the job.
I generally agree with it though to a point. If you have nothing to contribute to conversation, and your only saying "bad things" for the sake of it, than yeah shut the hell up.

 

[Nouw]

If everyone followed that, we'd all be silent douchebags. I beg to differ on this saying, and have been begging to differ for quite some time as I learnt this saying from someone a long time ago. Not sure why...

Guess the saying just needs to be tweaked and used to an extent is all.

 

[Bernzz]

Oh yeah? Well fuck you, matey!

Joking, joking.

But all jokes aside, my opinion is this:

I generally agree with it though to a point. If you have nothing to contribute to conversation, and your only saying "bad things" for the sake of it, than yeah shut the hell up.

 

[manaman]

A lady that was being just about the rudest she could be to me. Something about parking my truck close to her car. I just looked over and said "Lady you got plenty of room, stop being a ****."

I believe I heard a collective gasp from everyone around me. **** might have been a strong word to use, but really I didn't have anything nice to say to the lady, but she needed something said to her. The truth is I did park closer to her then I would have in smaller vehicle, but I parked even closer to the vehicle on the drivers side, I was as considerate as the conditions would let me be and still she ranted at me for a good 20 seconds, it would have taken her less time to open her door as wide as she could have and get in the friggin car.

Its almost a pet peeve of mine when people feel so entitled that they would do something like that. Yes my truck is big, yes the spots where made with smaller vehicles in mind, but at least I would park at the back of the lot if other spots where open. I doubt that lady would have thought twice about taking a spot that left a gap to small for the other person to enter their vehicle, yet she has the audacity to rave at me for making her day slightly less comfortable.

I really do think that needs an addendum, one that says something along the lines of "unless they really need to hear what you have to say."

 

[Ham_authority95]

nah that saying is bollocks
people need to be critisised (contructively, not just for the sake of it)
if i don't realise that what i'm doing is shit
i need to be told
so i can try and improve ... or choose not to
either way, the information that i'm shit is important and may or may not be acted upon, but isn't pleasant to hear. but is necessary to know

You should
stop hitting
the
enter key so often.

I'm giving constructive criticism.

 

[Gigaguy64]

I think its more of a "Don't be a jackass just for the sake of it".

Criticism is needed, and sometimes people need to be told or put in place, but if you are just being a rude prick just because then this saying would apply to you.

 

[manaman]

nah that saying is bollocks
people need to be critisised (contructively, not just for the sake of it)
if i don't realise that what i'm doing is shit
i need to be told
so i can try and improve ... or choose not to
either way, the information that i'm shit is important and may or may not be acted upon, but isn't pleasant to hear. but is necessary to know

You should
stop hitting
the
enter key so often.

I'm giving constructive criticism.

Ah but see it's the manner in which you stated it that takes it from constructive criticism to just plain criticism. Something that can be taken as rude.

Had you simply said: Hitting the enter key so often makes your text hard to read. Well then it would hard to find that insulting. Which makes it constructive.

 

[ArandomHobo]

It depends on this person to me. If they do things I can't take I Would say something.

 

[Ham_authority95]

nah that saying is bollocks
people need to be critisised (contructively, not just for the sake of it)
if i don't realise that what i'm doing is shit
i need to be told
so i can try and improve ... or choose not to
either way, the information that i'm shit is important and may or may not be acted upon, but isn't pleasant to hear. but is necessary to know

You should
stop hitting
the
enter key so often.

I'm giving constructive criticism.

Ah but see it's the manner in which you stated it that takes it from constructive criticism to just plain criticism. Something that can be taken as rude.

Had you simply said: Hitting the enter key so often makes your text hard to read. Well then it would hard to find that insulting. Which makes it constructive.

Thank you for giving me constructive criticism on my not-so-constructive criticism. XD