Are people getting more rude ?

[Moemg]

After reading Big Ritchie's post about customers in his restaurant (see tip jar thread ),I started recalling some incidents with patients that made me think are people just getting more rude ?

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

I think they are. Between population growth and crowding making people more faceless, we're sticking technology between people and reducing real communication.

I just grimace when I see "Dear Abby...I've been text messaging my boyfriend for the last four hours because somethings wrong and I cant get him to tell me what!"

Same mechanism that happens when you put someone behind the wheel of a car...they lose perspective.

People also seem to be more inner focused than they used to be...lost in their own world. Maybe too much activity, data and stuff hitting them and not enough time to sort it out.

 

[citrine]

I think everyone is just becoming very robot-like. I still screen my calls on the cell phone whic shocks some people....just because I have one does not mean I have to answer it!
I always let people who have a couple of things go ahead of me in the grocery store line....and every time I offer, they look at me like I'm insane! What happened to just being plain nice to someone?!!

 

[Bigritchie]

Without a doubt, when I first opened 8 years ago, I had a rude customer every now and then, and we probably had a 95% cool customer to a 5% jerk-off customer.

Now the abuse we take daily is amazing, with around a 30% cool customer to 70% jerk-off ratio, not even taken into account customer theft and stuff like that.

It isn't just the customer either, employees are worse, vendors, everything. I think the ever increasing pace of the rat race has alot to do with it.

That is the biggest reason that we decided to retire as young as we are, my wife and I are afraid we would go nuts if we stayed at it. And we joke about how we may need counseling to kinda find ourselves again, which is probably more true then we think.

It just really seems like the overall intelligence of people are dropping also, people have forgot the Golden Rule, Treat others like you want to be treated.

I have spent many nights as a veteran depressed, thinking this is what I crushed my body for, and what has happened to my countrymen? I wonder about people like my customers going to other countries to visit, and thinking "No wonder everyone hates American's".

And I just do not understand what people think they are accomplishing by acting that way. Are they too stupid to realize that if they are kind, you will give them the shirt off your back?

I think alot of these giant corporations are making it worse too, catering to the scammers, and giving into these idiots. Many times when dealing with 50 year olds, I feel like I am dealing with a 5 year old.

And most of the theft and crap, does not come from the lower income customers, but from the Yuppie ones driving a Lexus. (BTW I do not mean to come across as people that drive Lexus are bad, I am just generalizing)

 

[lazygood4nothinbum]

i think it's simply poor toilet training.

 

[maddythebeagle]

I also think it is people becoming more disconnected....the most recent generations are most certainly more self centered...the "I am important" complex....I wouldn’t discount the competitiveness of the workplace and fragmentation of viewship due to the internets and cable....

 

[macdaddy]

I think I read somewhere that general public rudeness is one sign of an impending recession...

 

[dex]

I think I read somewhere that general public rudeness is one sign of an impending recession...

or Global Warming

 

[dex]

I also think it is people becoming more disconnected....the most recent generations are most certainly more self centered...the "I am important" complex....I wouldn’t discount the competitiveness of the workplace and fragmentation of viewship due to the internets and cable....

I agree.

If anyone can find an article titled "The Death of Shame" in Time or Newsweek that would be great!
I searched and can not find it. I think it was in the '70 and the cover story was about the increase in out of wedlock births

 

[tangomonster]

Definitely people are more self-centered and "me first" and "to hell with you."

Do you think it's everywhere or just the USA?
Younger people or everyone?

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Its Mr. Rogers' fault...

Moving On - WSJ.com

 

[REWahoo]

Are people getting more rude?

Where the Hell do you come up with a stupid idea like that?!!!

 

[unclemick]

Hmmm - maybe I'm living in the wrong part of the midwest - people of all ages seem to be more considerate and polite now a days.

heh heh heh - ?perhaps being ER'd and not being 'out and about' during rush hours or prime dining/entertainment peak periods - maybe helps the frazzle quotient a lot.

Except perhaps when I threaten to move to Texas!!!

 

[CuppaJoe]

Same mechanism that happens when you put someone behind the wheel of a car...they lose perspective.

I had my mouth open in awe this morning: Guy on a bike was shouting at the driver of a car, "well, could you get any closer than that?" Bike had the entire left lane by that time, car was in the middle lane on a one-way street. At the next intersection, car tried to make a left turn right into the bike, now the bike riker (without a helmet) gets mad! Bike goes on a couple of feet, driver tries making the left again, almost knocks bike down. Bike guy is shouting at driver's open window, maybe saying something along the lines of, "you're not making a left turn!" Driver continued on straight and vanished out of my sight.

 

[Bigritchie]

I had my mouth open in awe this morning: Guy on a bike was shouting at the driver of a car, "well, could you get any closer than that?" Bike had the entire left lane by that time, car was in the middle lane on a one-way street. At the next intersection, car tried to make a left turn right into the bike, now the bike riker (without a helmet) gets mad! Bike goes on a couple of feet, driver tries making the left again, almost knocks bike down. Bike guy is shouting at driver's open window, maybe saying something along the lines of, "you're not making a left turn!" Driver continued on straight and vanished out of my sight.

Cannot tell you how many times driving here in TN, I have someone pull right out in front of me to cross the road, almost kill us both, and then they flip ME the bird.

 

[tangomonster]

Its Mr. Rogers' fault...

Moving On - WSJ.com

I like that, CFB! Instead of blaming it on the bossa nova, blame it on Mr. Rogers! I always knew that no good would come from those cardigan sweaters!

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Cannot tell you how many times driving here in TN, I have someone pull right out in front of me to cross the road, almost kill us both, and then they flip ME the bird.

I got that twice in the last month. Some lady comes on the entrance ramp to the highway, i'm in the lane next to her. Floors it, swerves in front of me, then jams her brakes on and gives me the finger out the rear window.

Not a soul behind me.

I've got a fully loaded trailer on the back of the car.

Had I a gun and no family...

Also had someone behind me on an entrance ramp suddenly accelerate and pass me on the left shoulder of the ramp, nearly forcing me to eat the curb on the right side. Only to enter the highway and...go nowhere at any speed faster than anyone else. I pulled up along side and made the "what the hell was that?" gesture. She points at her wristwatch. Apparently making it onto the highway a few seconds sooner, to no apparent benefit, was some sort of time saver. Vehicles and bodily safety be damned...

 

[Nords]

I had my mouth open in awe this morning: Guy on a bike was shouting at the driver of a car, "well, could you get any closer than that?" Bike had the entire left lane by that time, car was in the middle lane on a one-way street. At the next intersection, car tried to make a left turn right into the bike, now the bike riker (without a helmet) gets mad! Bike goes on a couple of feet, driver tries making the left again, almost knocks bike down. Bike guy is shouting at driver's open window, maybe saying something along the lines of, "you're not making a left turn!" Driver continued on straight and vanished out of my sight.

Speaking as a former bicycle commuter, this guy has a few things to learn:
Wear a helmet and use a windshield elbow strike...

 

[bpp3]

Do you think it's everywhere or just the USA?

It's not everywhere, so don't blame it on the march of technology.

 

[Andy R]

I'll interject something that I have seen that might be a factor. In Brazil I have found the people to be extremely kind, polite and happy. Their economy is the best it has ever been. The book and movie "The Secret" was a top seller and packed at the box office. I don't think it's just about the economy but the rapid increase in their standard of living. So even though the economy in the US is good the standard of living is not improving at the same percentage as in the past. It's like going from 2 to 4 and being very happy things doubled. Or going from 100 to 102, even though things just got the same amount of better, it seems like less and maybe people don't really notice.

It would be cool to see a broad study on this (the rudeness index) where correlations could be made with various factors.

 

[Moemg]

At the surgery center were I occasionally fill in I had a patient ask me for something to eat and I said "We only have crackers " .He immediately flew into a rage and said " Some f-----g five star restaurant this place is "

He also asked me if he was the worst patient .Usually I say no ,you're just stressed but with this jerk I said No but you are in the top five!