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American politeness (or lack thereof)

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  • #1

    American politeness (or lack thereof)

    A mildly interesting (though hardly controversial) article I noticed on Yahoo:

    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051014/...rude_americans

    LSN
    Tags: None
  • #2
    Re: American politeness (or lack thereof)

    Originally posted by L_Stearns_Newburg
    A mildly interesting (though hardly controversial) article I noticed on Yahoo:

    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051014/...rude_americans

    LSN
    It's very true, but not confined to the USA. The same attitudes are evident here in the UK as well. Though my wife thinks I'm turning into Victor Meldrew (a grumpy old man for non-UK TV viewers.)
    Arioch, aid me! Blood and souls for Arioch!

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    • #3
      Re: American politeness (or lack thereof)

      Originally posted by silverhand
      Though my wife thinks I'm turning into Victor Meldrew
      I don't believe it!

      (sorry, couldn't resist that one :) )

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      • #4
        Re: American politeness (or lack thereof)

        Originally posted by spaced_moorcock
        Originally posted by silverhand
        Though my wife thinks I'm turning into Victor Meldrew
        I don't believe it!

        (sorry, couldn't resist that one :) )
        Groan ! :clap: Though I should've expected it. :lol:
        Arioch, aid me! Blood and souls for Arioch!

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        • #5
          I don't think that politeness and etiquette is becoming worse. I've worked with a wide range of people of varying ages and have found that age had no bearing on their conduct. If they were impolite and ignorent, then they had always been so.

          What I think has happened is that people are not interacting with each other on a personal level as much as they used to. Ignorance breeds contempt. The less contact people have with each other, the more likely it seems that they will have conflicts with each other.

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          • #6
            Originally posted by spaced_moorcock
            I don't think that politeness and etiquette is becoming worse. I've worked with a wide range of people of varying ages and have found that age had no bearing on their conduct. If they were impolite and ignorent, then they had always been so.

            What I think has happened is that people are not interacting with each other on a personal level as much as they used to. Ignorance breeds contempt. The less contact people have with each other, the more likely it seems that they will have conflicts with each other.
            If you want to see some bad manners first hand on a large scale, live in Las Vegas for about a month. Las Vegas gets the worst of the worst from all over the world. Etiquette has no meaning and I'd settle for impolite compared to some of the behavior I have witnessed. :lol:

            "With a deep, not-unhappy sigh, Elric prepared to do battle with an army." (Red Pearls)
            - Michael Moorcock

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            • #7
              I don't think bad manners are limited to Americans. At our office in the UK we have one staffer from Canada on secondment to us and one of my pet peeves is that he *never* ever says 'please' when he asks the Help Desk for anything. His emails are all, 'Can I have this?', 'I need to be able to do that', 'When am I going to get the other?'. Since he seems incapable of mastering the niceties of human intercourse, his requests tend to go to the bottom of the pile. I mentioned this to some other people and they agree that he does come across as incredibly rude, so I know its not just me. :)
              _"For an eternity Allard was alone in an icy limbo where all the colours were bright and sharp and comfortless.
              _For another eternity Allard swam through seas without end, all green and cool and deep, where distorted creatures drifted, sometimes attacking him.
              _And then, at last, he had reached the real world – the world he had created, where he was God and could create or destroy whatever he wished.
              _He was supremely powerful. He told planets to destroy themselves, and they did. He created suns. Beautiful women flocked to be his. Of all men, he was the mightiest. Of all gods, he was the greatest."

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              • #8
                Originally posted by lemec
                If you want to see some bad manners first hand on a large scale, live in Las Vegas for about a month. Las Vegas gets the worst of the worst from all over the world. Etiquette has no meaning and I'd settle for impolite compared to some of the behavior I have witnessed.
                I agree. I lived there for a time and enjoyed it at first...the excitment, the pace, having thing to do. After being a away for few years and maybe maturing a little I went back only to discover that I can't stand the place. It's the attitude of the people more than anything. I don't think it is just a Vegas attitude; rather, I'm more prone to believe to be a "West Coast" attitude. Being from the upper-midwest, where people are reknowned for their politeness, seeing the ego-centric, image-crazed, materialistic attitudes of the West-Coasters completely turned me off to the entire area.

                Of course, I was raised to have a natural politeness toward my elders and strangers, etc. My dad always made us say our Please and Thank You's...we always had to open doors for Mom...we could never interrupt...neither of my parents would tolerate fits. They weren't strict; they just ingrained in us a natural Respect toward other people and a politness in dealing with them.
                "In omnibus requiem quaesivi, et nusquam inveni nisi in angulo cum libro"
                --Thomas a Kempis

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                • #9
                  It's definetely happening here as well.
                  Kids, and adults nowadays are so vile mannered in this supposedly "silent country".
                  And gadgetry, cell phones, internet, reality soaps, on-line gaming, self-indulged consumerism. And what not, are the signs of the times we are living in. Lets hope it's not the end of 'having time' because of it.

                  I'm also guilty of some of these things, but I've almost stopped using my cell phone, and try to stop to speak to people as I'm really a 'nice' guy.
                  There's all this hype about weight issue's and health.
                  If people had more time (mentally) to cook real food and sit at the table with others and speak about their day and socialize I bet people would find their health, and normal weight level quite quickly.

                  One of the main culprits I think is the flexibility, stress, and team-building, on that so called "free market". Which is consuming people's time and life.

                  People need time, in order to sort things out in life.
                  At least to think!

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