There’s not enough courtesy in the world.
People cut in line, people change lanes right in front of you without signaling. People will walk in a mall or down a sidewalk in a long chain without even thinking for a moment that there might be someone behind them who wants to get past them. And if you really want to see people at their worst, work in retail. People are SELFISH.
Say “Please.” Say “Thank you.” Let other people know that they should continue going a little bit out of their way for other people the way they did for you.
Nothing pisses me off more than people pushing in line. Why do they do it? Will pushing you from behind make the line move any faster? And sometimes people just cut. They say “fuck you” to everyone behind them and just slide right in. Again, it’s a selfish thing.
What about dating? If you’ve gone out on multiple dates with someone and it’s not working out, have the courtesy to tell the person you were seeing that it’s not working out. If you really want to be big about it, be thoughtful enough to provide an explanation. Don’t just stop returning their calls. Don’t ignore them. Sure, it’s easier that way, but have half a ball and at least give them the dignity of a goodbye.
And then there’s the whole “texting” thing (see my related rant). When someone leaves you a voice message, call them back. Don’t text them. Be nice.
Some of the biggest offenders are drivers. Don’t drive slow in the left lane. Don’t make left turns from the right lane. Check your blind spots. Just use a little common sense, make half an effort to avoid an accident, and save everyone a lot of trouble. And don’t show off your indifference to annual emissions checks by waiting for a car to pull up behind you and then drowning them in thick, black smoke when you hit the gas.
Use your signals, people. They are there for a reason. Use your signals before you use your brake. Don’t bother telling me that you are going to turn after you have already pulled in front of me and slowed to an unexpected stop. I don’t care. Would have been nice if you had told me that you were going to make the turn, though. That way I could have changed lanes 200 feet back and made that yellow light.
It amazes me that people signal when there isn’t a car anywhere near them and then don’t signal when they glide right in front of you and cut you off. If you’re going to be an asshole, at least be a safe asshole. And when someone wants to get over, and you graciously slow down to let them in, is it so much to ask for a little wave of thanks? How nice would it be to know that your highway gesture is APPRECIATED instead of EXPECTED. How about those people who speed up after signalling that you need to move into their lane? They keep looking straight ahead as they zoom past you, never showing a bit of remorse or giving you the opportunity to threateningly glare at them. Oh, and good luck getting out of a stadium parking lot with a smile on your face. If you leave an inch of space between you and the car in front of you that just cut you off, someone else will surely try to squeeze in.
Somehow, I think there was a time when people WERE courteous. I might be imagining it, but I seem to remember that when I was younger, people were nicer. Have people really become assholes in the last 10-15 years, or has it always been like this?
Our youth now love luxury. They have bad manners, contempt for authority; they show disrespect for their elders and love chatter in place of exercise; they no longer rise when elders enter the room; they contradict their parents, chatter before company; gobble up their food and tyrannize their teachers.
– Socrates
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