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Quotes For When You Just Can’t Handle Another Karen In Your Life

Updated September 6, 2021

Okay, I know that everyone is stressed out right now, and the world is a big ball of overwhelming suck, but can we just make a pact to stop being dicks to each other?

Life is too short, and chaotic, and generally hard right now to worry that I might be yelled at by a random stranger because reasons. It’s not even about who is wrong or right in whichever of the many polarized debates are currently in vogue, but simply that individuals trying to live their lives or do their jobs shouldn’t bear the brunt of anger over things they can’t control.

The teenager being paid minimum wage to scan your roughly three billion coupons doesn’t have the authority to change the rules because you misread the fine print.

Pinterest | Jennifer Fletcher

There have always been “Karens” in the world. The name may have changed over the years, but there have always been people getting over dramatic about things that don’t really merit it.

Maybe it’s the internet and the fact that we’re all bored at home, but these Karens do seem to be more common now.

Pinterest | Etsy

Don’t forget their male equivalent either: the Ken.

There does seem to be a trend of onlookers no longer letting those people get away with things anymore.

Where fellow shoppers might have once “minded their own business” or just rolled their eyes as a Karen berated a store employee, now they’re willing to step in and call them out.

Pinterest | YourTango

One could argue that such an action isn’t particularly “polite” either, and I would hope that those allies are remaining calm and rational in their attempt to defuse the situation, but we’re definitely at a tipping point.

For too long, “manners” have covered for a multitude of sins, from relatively harmless outbursts in retail stores to much larger, systemic issues.

Personally, I think that if someone is being a dick for no reason, it’s perfectly acceptable to intrude on their tirade.

Instagram | @crybabycare

A simple “Sir, you are taking things too far and perhaps you should take your issue to the manager instead of yelling at the cashier,” is a polite way to diffuse the situation and call them out, without resorting to name-calling or debate.

Oh, and Karen or Ken aren’t “slurs,” but they are definitely meant to stigmatize a certain kind of unacceptable behavior. So if someone calls you that, instead of freaking out even more, consider why they might have thought the moniker was appropriate.

I’m sorry to all of the perfectly kind people named Karen or Ken right now. Give it a while, and I’m sure the nickname will shift again and you can have your names back.

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