Do you care what pronouns people use?

[OtterMan68]

Personally, I'm not a big fan of they/them pronouns for individuals. It can get confusing. For example. Taylor and Tyler both use they/them"

Taylor called Tyler to ask if they wanted to go to the store. They agreed to go with Taylor. Taylor picked up Tyler, and they went to the shopping plaza. As they arrived, they decided to go to the coffee shop first. In the coffee shop, Taylor recognized some friends of theirs. They invited their friends to come shopping with them. Tyler was not happy they were going to be shopping with them.

Yes

No

Depends

[nolabels]

When writing or speaking and not wanting to identify someone being described as either male or female for reasons of maintaining anonymity for that person, I'll use they/them.

Other than their use for that logical reason, no, I'm not a fan of the practice.

In your example, the first two uses of the word "they" are the only pronouns in the paragraph that I see as being ambiguous.
If, as I pointed out above, the intent in doing so is to purposely prevent identification in order to maintain anonymity, it makes sense to do so, but since the two parties have already been identified by name, the anonymity situation is somewhat out the window, so to speak.
The remaining theys, theirs, and thems in the example are proper usage of the words, indicating more than one person in each case.

[WhiteSteve]

It’s not something I typically think about or am encountered by. In the event that I am, and someone asks to be referred to in a particular way, I of course would be polite and accommodate them. I have no reason to go against them, stand to lose nothing if I don’t, and stand to gain nothing if I do.

If I meet a guy and it says on a paper that he’s John D. Smith, and I say “Nice to meet you, John”, and he says “nice to meet you, and I actually go by ‘Dave’, my middle name”, or he’s like “what’s up, man…. you can just call me ‘Smitty’ “, I’m not gonna be like “UHHHHHH, it says here on this paper that your name is John, so I’m gonna call you John, and you’re just gonna deal with it.”🤦‍♂️😂

[OtterMan68]

in some school districts, if the teacher is calling the roll on day one, and she say, "Johnathan J Smith, Jr."
And Johnathan says, "I prefer JJ."
The teacher has to get permission from the parents to call him that.
smh

[WhiteSteve]

Lmao. This is why we’re falling behind🤦‍♂️😂

[GOLDFISH_smile]

No. Just use the language to make ur meaning clear, like with any case of ambiguous pronouns.

"Taylor called Tyler to ask if they wanted to go to the store. Tyler agreed to go with them. Taylor picked up Tyler, and they both went to the shopping plaza. As they arrived, they both decided to go to the coffee shop first. In the coffee shop, Taylor recognized some friends of theirs. They invited their friends to come shopping with them and Tyler. Tyler was not happy they were going to be shopping with Taylor's friends."

See? It may take a little practice like with any new words, but u learn & it becomes just as easy pretty fast ime.

[OtterMan68]

but I've read articles on non-binary musical artists, I had to re-read some sentences to see if they were talking about the artist or a band.

[GOLDFISH_smile]

Then they did a bad job at journalism. Sorry. If u talk about 2 (or more) people who use same pronouns u need to & CAN speak clearly.

[CupcakeTheDestroyer]

I mean, you used that as a “confusing” example but it’s pretty easy to discern what’s happening based on context clues. Who cares what pronouns people use anyway? The only time I hear this complaint is from conservative English grammar stiff types (my grandmother the racist, bigoted, former English teacher is one of them) and it’s usually just another way to say they don’t like change that not only doesn’t personally effect them, but because they can’t understand the experience that would make a person choose to go by They/Them to begin with.

[AI Opinion]

It’s fascinating how language evolves and reflects our understanding of identity. For me, the use of pronouns is more about respect and acknowledgment of someone’s identity. Sure, it might take a bit to get used to using they/them for individuals, but once you practice, it becomes second nature. Language can be adapted, and the effort put into this adaptation is a sign of empathy and understanding. 🌸

In terms of your example, it's true that sentences can get a bit more complex, but clarity often comes from context rather than just pronouns. It might be challenging at first, but with time, it becomes more intuitive. 😊

[NathanDavis]

not something I deal with in real life, really...

but, there's been a few articles here and there in which they use "pronouns" without even explaining why... and I just stop reading right away... lol

way too annoying for my OCDizzy brain...

[PeachyPie93]

I tend to just avoid people who look like a pronouns type of person.. because I am not going out of my way to indulge a weirdo and their idiocy..

[Yannae]

I don't I hate it. I don't know what to say to them. JUST SO ME YOUR IDEA, THAT IS WHAT I SEE YOU AS. If there is a gender on that card that is what you'll be, case closed.

[lightbulb27]

no, but I don't want to be around it either. my verb becomes "go elsewhere".

[gatixek710]

I do care. The English language matters. I will not have my speech controlled by the mentally ill.

[Anonymous]

People can call themselves whatever they want, but I'm not going an individual person a "they"

[elaphe]

I like good grammar. They is plural. As you said it gets confusing.

[Kingofkings1992]

I will not call a person “they.” It’s not about empathy.

[Ariesman81]

Proper English?