Is Rude and Selfish Behaviour a Sign of The Times?
Posted by Stephen on
May 29, 2007
I was at a coffee shop today and took up my place in line behind a a bunch of people milling around the cash register. One elderly lady was trying to load some drinks onto the top of her push cart and I made an attempt to give her the room she needed to turn around and make her way out. I notice that a line has formed behind me and I was next.
As I make my move to the register, a lady waltzes right in front of the whole line, in front of me, and starts to make her order. Hullo? The cashier looks at us, and the woman doesn’t seem to give a crap. It was almost like deja vu from something in the past. It was absolutely one of those “What The FXXX” moments that you didn’t think was possible.
Luckily, she’s done before I have a chance to burn a hole through her with my heat vision. I took a moment to take a breath, and the killing rage subsided. Then the lady behind me tells me that I should have moved right up, blocking off the area. Umm… When I tell her that I was giving the old lady with three cups of coffee on top of her little push kart the room to turn around and get herself out of there, she gave me a “I don’t give a crap” look. How selfish can you be? I guess I did sort of prejudge her as being one of those high and mighty bitches so I guess I’m a good judge of character. The fact was, If I’d moved up that close, how the heck is granny going to be able to run around without spilling her drinks all over herself? I’d be no better than the hag that skipped the queue.
Unfortunately, crap like this happens a lot more often these days, and people counter this behaviour with even more rude and selfish behaviour of their own. I was even instructed on how to perform some. As time goes on, we’re just going to be complete pricks to one another. No one will talk to their neighbours anymore and even the simplest things like holding a door open for someone else will be a thing of the past. In fact, everytime I do that for someone nowadays, I get a reaction of surprise. Are we really that far gone?
What sort of rude and selfish behaviour have you folks noticed that you’d never ever thought possible? Do you do anything selfless that people seem surprised at nowadays?
.-= Beat Maker´s…
I think what happened in a queue I was once in was the best form of justice ever
I was inline waiting for a cash machine. There were 4 machines and me and this other guy were next (2 queues actually). A lady barged right in between us and jumped the queue. Me and this guy just looked at each other and shook our heads and laughed it off.
She proceeded to get cash at which point I wasnt too fussed about her jumping the queue as there was no point creating a fuss. When she finished she turned around holding a huge wedge of cash (probably 200 – 300 GBP… 500 dollars ish) a gust of wind blew it out of her hand and notes went flying everywhere.
The funny thing is that no matter what you do, someone gets pissed off. Simple things like stopping to let someone cross the road gets you honked at.
The things that are the most annoying are the rude people with shopping carts that ram into you and then give you the dirty look or comment like it was your fault.
Is it too obvious for me to say that the cashier should not have taken her order? I used to be a cashier at a convenience store and have come across some of the rudest people I’ve ever seen. I would simply say “this man was here first” and continue with his order. But then there are those people who would throw their money on the counter and leave without even telling me what they bought (and it has to be coded into the register). There’s something about waiting that brings out the worst in some people.
-Laura
I agree that the cashier should have taken the initiative to inform the rude lady that there was a line and refuse her service out-of-queue.
As for the dropping the money and walking away thing, it may have been an integrity shop authorized by the retailer. I used to work for a private loss prevention company and that was part of our job, to visit retail stores, (usually 7-11′s and such) and play the impatient shopper. We’d work in pairs: One guy would drop the money on the counter and walk out with product, another would be the one in line and together they would observe to see what the cashier would do with the money.
I’m also one that will hold the door open for people approaching and I often get looks of astonishment or very kind words of thanks. Another thing I do that always seems to catch people off guard a little bit is that I will let others out of the elevator before I attempt to exit. Most people are trying to push out as soon as the doors open.
It is interesting to see though how people interact with others. Too many times it seems people completely ignore the presence of other people and do not extend common courtesies.
But I still would have interrupted the rude woman and told her that she could go to the end of the line.
I hold doors open too, and more often then not, the other people don’t even acknowledge me – IT”S NOT MY JOB TO OPEN THE DOOR FOR YOU , It’s not like I work here. Even if I did, you could thank me.
People are jerks.
Hmmm, I do not have too many experiences like that one. Being as I am a giant by most peoples standards, there are not oo many people that would do that to me. The few that do get told where to go very quickly.
I am the first to help someone reach something off the top shelf at the grocery store, but I am also the first to put rude people back in line if the need arises.
Although, I do get the same amount of rudeness while I am driving as people cannot see me. It is amazing how many people get pissed off because you slow down as you don’t want to run someone over.