The Top 40

The tie has to be the dumbest most worthless piece of clothing EVER.

It might be dumb but it's a whole lot better than kissing your sister.

I hate ties. They serve no practical purpose and feel irritating around my throat. I wear them only when necessary.

Well, except for my My Little Pony tie. I'll occasionally wear that tie just to look awesome.

I hate ties, as well. I have no nostalgia for them, and the only time I will wear them is for weddings and funerals.

My hero was the late Prince Bernhardt of the Netherlands who ripped his tie off at a state dinner and said he was going to kill that snake that was trying to choke him to death.

Yes, ties are a damn nuisance but they do have an effect on people. My job went to a suit-and-tie dress code for all of us Administrative drones. I used to get by with khakis and a Polo shirt. I knotted it up and the difference in the way store clerks treated me was a night and day difference. I was called "sir" at least three times on day one. After about a year or so, I "forgot" the tie and just went with the dress shirt and jacket because I really couldn't stand having the thing strangling me. People will treat me nicer than they do on my seedy sartorial Saturdays, but without the tie, it just isn't the same.

What irritates me is polishing my shoes, getting a monthly haircut and keeping my fingernails clean.

Would make my life easier to pick and choose the standards that are most convenient for me.

For starters, cutoffs, T-shirts and going commando would suit me just fine. After enough time has passed, and the lowest common denominator has been located.. we can elect politicians based how well they thumb their noses at established traditions and their pop-culture ratings...
How kewel would that be?

I've discovered that isn't the tie that strangles me, but trying put a 17" neck into a four year old shirt with 16" on the little tag sewn to the inside of the collar.

First impressions. Signals, indicators, body language, defensive interpretations of visual cues. Speaks volumes.

You can tell a lot about a man by the way he wears his tie ... or doesn't.

There is a distinct correlation between a man wearing a Tie to work and live plants in a Doctors' office.

I may not have seen this 3 years ago, but I do now.

Dr. Maltz and his Pyscho-cybernetics was able to influence the hearts and minds of plastic surgery patients with suggestions, colors, sounds ands olfactory triggers. Variations of those principles have been used to manage detainees and otherwise uncooperative subjects, mostly through subconscious manipulation of their feelings and attitudes. A randomly applied band aid on the face of an interrogator, a mis-buttoned shirt, a price tag or cleaners tag left stuck on the sleeve can disarm the most recalcitrant subject. I wear ties somewhat for how I feel wearing one but mostly for the effect it has on those that view me.

When I engage a lawyer I expect him/her to be sharply dressed. If I see his breakfast dribbled down the front of his shirt or if he's meeting me with his ass hanging out of sloppy jeans and a tee shirt, that's all she wrote.

Ties were, in earlier days, the mark of the gentleman, who earned his wage with his brain not brawn. As time went on ties became a trademark of businessmen and were indicative of a man who was careful and serious about his approach to his work.

That has been the main purpose of the tie - to identify the professional who is serious about his work. But the tie is also worn for formal occasions - church, funerals, dances, weddings, etc.

I wore a tie everyday of my working life as first a Naval Officer and then airline pilot. Since I've retired, (retirement is not about being a serious professional) I wear a tie only to formal occasions. Most of my ties are over 15 years old and I'm not contemplating buying any new ones. I priced a new one a couple of years ago - oh my what they want for them these days.

Good to see I'm not the only guy who remembers Maxwell Maltz - or how to wear a necktie.

I had neither the wherewithal nor a reason to dress well until my 40's, at which point I discovered to my considerable surprise that I truly enjoyed dressing well.

And to continue the Maltz analogy, I was absolutely astonished to see the improvement on the way strangers responded to me. All from learning how to wear a suit and tie.