if i ...

...... were an elderly impolite white man who has burned too many bridges in Hongkong and in Cebu, would I elicit disfavor from this city’s respected grand dames by maligning them? Recently, the above mentioned aging social mountaineer  (let’s call him Ripley) had a heated exchange of words with another guest at a wedding reception after he disapproved of what the guest wore at a previous party. When the guest told Ripley that he was in no position to publicly and rudely ridicule what he chose to wear, and that he should be more careful with his words especially when he is around Cebu’s genteel ladies, Ripley retorted: “oh, those old women don’t know fashion anyway. They haven’t traveled enough, so why should I even care?”