Final answer:
The question addresses the social norms and decision-making processes in social gatherings, highlighting the exclusion of family members for various reasons such as maintaining objectivity or preventing conflicts. It also touches on the aspects that make attending a friend's dinner enjoyable or stressful, and uses a voting scenario among families to illustrate complexities in group decisions.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question implies a consideration of social norms and decision-making processes within groups. Excluding family members or friends from a dinner invitation may suggest an opportunity to introduce new dynamics, perspectives, or to avoid complex social ties that could influence the gathering in unintended ways. Refraining from inviting family members or certain individuals, potentially seen as enemies or having conflicting interests, may also be intended to prevent conflicts and ensure a harmonious event. In other contexts, such as the voting scenario mentioned with the Ortegas, the Schmidts, and the Alexanders, the exclusion of family members might be to maintain objectivity in decision-making or to mitigate biases during a majority vote situation on menu choices for a New Year's Day celebration.
Going to a friend's house for dinner can be both enjoyable and stressful due to factors like the quality of interpersonal relationships, social expectations, or dietary restrictions. The image provided by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay showing people sitting around a table serves as a visual representation of a group dining which can be a social and unifying experience that offers a pause from politics and evoking traditions.
Lastly, the mention of a dinner party where dessert is served highlights issues of resources and sharing, accentuating how social norms and etiquette play a significant role in collective settings. Similarly, the dinner party where each guest receives two brownies illustrates how resources are allocated and decisions are made based on availability.