When we recognize our own self value beyond what other people think of us. when we actually have a reason to act a certain way,or to take particular action that is more important to us than what people have to say about it. generaly speaking when we grow up : )   

waaaaaaaaaaaaay ahead of you

answer : 2abadreeeeeesh

self monitoring. Wiki it :)

2 cents, 2 dollars or the beta 1 dollar ;)

NEVER!

Never say never. I think they're getting more diluted in every generation. You probably won't raise your kids the same way your parents raised you.

Yes, some of these traditions are worth keeping, but only if we as individuals believe in them.

It take time,lots of it.

i wouldnt anull all tradition... even some of the cumbersome ones, since people pleasing (to a degree) is a survival skill... and since arab countries are non-welfare states it would be daft to totally drop such ways. So invite everyone and their cat to ur wedding... better than risking upseting someone whose help u may need in the future.

Thats never. I dont believe we can go to the extreme of being just careless. Its part of life; we work around our consiquences and know where we should stop and where we shouldnt. That doesnt mean it isnt do-able... it's just not to the extreme you speak of. Call me old fashioned but traditions are set for a reason and should be followed. Some people need the restrictions to NOT be a disgrace to society because they're unable to establish self esteem.

Laila - speaking of weddings, I find it ridiculous that the "dad" has to invite people whom you have never met or heard about to the wedding. But they have to be there because it is a sort of social business.

Now that is a tradition that has to be dropped!

Thankfully all my friends' weddings/engagements till now have been youth-only.

Qwaider: I wouldn't go to the extreme of dropping all traditions (not that you implied that). I guess the bad ones should be dropped and the good ones maintained. But how do we objectively decide what is bad ? I don't think we can. .. but however, i think society (specially in this day and age) is in a self-correcting cycle. After all, people nowadays are exposed to more stuff than before, and they are free to adopt and drop whatever traditions they want.

KJ: Well .. i don't know. I mean, yes it might be a bit weird for you to be attending a party were you don't know many people. But keep in mind that in the wedding party you will have your wife's family and friends (all of whom you don't know) .. so a few of your dad's friends won't be much. Also, come on .. the wedding night is one of the few moments in your adult lives that is truly happy for your parents. Ya3ni, imagine in 2060 when your kid decides to get married .. don't you want to invite Hamza or Moogle to that party ?

Plus .. the guest list should be the last thing on your mind for that night ;-)

I think tradition is a part of all of us - we shouldn't loose all of it. Maintaining connections is very important. I find it common to attend weddings where there are a few hundred people and I only know about a hundred people or less. Everyone from the meat seller's family to wedding planner's family to cousin's friend's best friend to all the neighbours you know to the person you just met at a conference last month.

Arabs have their own traditions, so do Indians, Koreans, Chinese, Japanese, Malays, Thais etc and thats what makes us different. That  makes different cultures interesting and unique.

Obviously, in the case of some traditions you have to take into account the implication of it in today's context etc and not just follow it blindly.

In conclusion, I do not agree with your sweeping statement :P

when we stop being so selfish and hypocrite! one said: we need to drop the tradition of having to invite everyone even tho we dont know them, i say, we need to drop the hypocrisy of throwing a huge fancy wedding party and make open invitations! in the past, wedding guests were made up of by-passers, THAT was a tradition, THIS is not!