Maybe it's just me, or maybe it's just one of those signs of advancing age, but... didn't kids used to be a bit more polite yesteryear?
Here's what brings this up... over the past weekend, I was merrily surfing the web, minding my own business, when I hear a knock at the front door. This being a Saturday morning, I suspect it's going to be the Jehovah's Witnesses coming by to drop off Yet More Literature, so, grumbling a bit, I hunt down my keys and head for the door. I open the door... and there's an early-teens lad, talking on his cellphone. He takes note of my presence and, without a word, turns and slouches off towards a waiting truck on the street.
Now, I'm guessing that he was looking for somebody, and likely had gotten hold of that somebody on the cell phone by the time I got to the door, who told him that he had the wrong address. But honestly, at that age I would have, at a minimum, interrupted my phone conversation to tell the guy at the door "whoops, sorry, wrong address", I'm thinking... it's like the kid believed that, since he didn't know me, I didn't matter, never mind that it's my house he was at. Oh well, here's hoping he picks up some basic social skills somewhere before he grows up.
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In college, I thought the whole greek system was silly. But looking back, I realize that for many it was a boot camp into social niceties. My friends in the greek system complained about "forced" civic service, "forced" study hall, "forced" formal dinners and other social training (and, well, lots of parties). But they probably came out of the system with a lot moire than they entered. I never rushed the greek system when I was in college. But it would have been nice to have been a bit more understanding of those who did at the time.
Yeah, I'm familiar with the concept... after all, even the Navy had a rudimentary system of ensuring minimal courtesy (you act in a way that might offend the locals, you don't get to leave the ship). Unfortunately, there's going to be a sizable segment of the population that doesn't get even that much... here's hoping we're not raising our own barbarian downfall...
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