Free Republic

We live in brutal times without transitions. Everything must be instant and rushed, leaving no time for reflection. Thus, relationships become mechanical and inhuman. We need time to ponder, even if just for a minute, to get our bearings. This is why we develop small social conventions to aid our judgment and temper the brutality of instant expectations. One example of these reflecting habits consists of greetings. Those small formulas that start conversations or written letters provide us with transitions so we might communicate more civilly and effectively. How we need greetings today, and how society is impoverished without them!...

<p>New York in the summer is a noisy place, especially if you don’t have money. The rich run off to the Hamptons or Maine. The bourgeoisie are safely shielded by the hum of their central air, their petite cousins by the roar of their window units. But for the broke—the have-littles and have-nots—summer means an open window, through which the clatter of the city becomes the soundtrack to life: motorcycles revving, buses braking, couples squabbling, children summoning one another out to play, and music. Ceaseless music.</p>

As we slide into cold and flu season, it’s time to remind everyone that it’s most polite and sociable to keep yourself and your family home when you’re sick with something contagious. Most social difficulties in life should be solved with simple politeness and consideration. One of the most basic ways we function together as a society is by caring about each other, working together as families and communities. As we slide into cold and flu season, it’s time to remind everyone that it’s most polite and sociable to keep yourself and your family home when you’re sick with something...

SAN DIEGO (UPI) -- A California psychologist says young people have become increasingly indifferent to the impression they make on others. Jean Twenge, the author of "Generation Me," teaches at San Diego State University. She gathered data from surveys taken between 1958 and 2001 by more than 40,000 youngsters. They featured questions aimed at whether the respondents always said "please" and "thank you" or were careful to dress appropriately. Twenge says that 76 percent of children aged 8 to 12 in 1999 were indifferent to social approval, up from 57 percent in 1970. Among those who were already in college...

I left my headlights yesterday at work and so I couldn't drive home. There were few people around, but I asked this group of people for a jump (I told them I already have cables). One guy said to call the wrecking company. I have no money for a wrecking company, I'm a father of 3 young kids and we barely squeeze by each month. They had their cars there, all they had to do was drive a whole 20 yards and pop a hood open to let me hook up the cable. It would cost them absolutelly nothing besides...

WASHINGTON -- Americans' fast-paced, high-tech existence has taken a toll on the civil in society. From road rage in the morning commute to high decibel cell-phone conversations that ruin dinner out, men and women behaving badly has become the hallmark of a hurry-up world. An increasing informality -- flip-flops at the White House, even -- combined with self-absorbed communication gadgets and a demand for instant gratification have strained common courtesies to the breaking point. "All of these things lead to a world with more stress, more chances for people to be rude to each other," said Peter Post, a descendent...

BRITAIN DESTROYING ITSELF FROM WITHIN BY JOAN COLLINS UK DAILY MAIL THUS AUG 04, 2005 A great civilization is not conquered from without until it has destroyed itself from within, said the American historian Will Durrant about ancient Rome. This self-destruction of values is exactly what is happening in England today. Yes, I still call the country of my birth England, in spite of the peculiar political correctness that insists that it be called 'the UK' and that we, its denizens, must be 'Britons'. Even though the Welsh are proud to call themselves Welsh, as are the Irish and certainly...

Konnichi what? Japanese are forgetting how to be polite Justin McCurry in Tokyo Monday February 7, 2005 The Guardian The Japanese have become so poor at speaking their own language that they may soon have to refer to a government manual for advice on how to be polite. A damning report issued by a cultural affairs agency panel says that although most Japanese believe keigo - honorific or self-effacing speech - would remain an important part of their language, many are using it incorrectly. The misuse of keigo, a series of complicated conjunctions of nouns and verbs used when addressing...

Pardon me, please. I'm a tremendous sucker for a truly lost cause. And Johns Hopkins professor Pier Massimo Forni has one. An expert on romance languages, Forni is the cofounder of Hopkins' Civility Project and author of "Choosing Civility: The 25 Rules of Considerate Conduct." He's written special election-year tips on political politeness.

I had established the foundations of philosophically verifiable etiquette in the Public-Private Ethical Distinction, which is explicated in an essay of the same name. Etiquette is thoroughly grounded in rational egoism; it is a scientific classification of the instances and categories of action which are best for an individual to keep solely to himself or within a self-defined delimited circle of pertinent associates and which it is to his advantage to seek the cooperation and contribution of others toward. That former treatise had addressed with considerable specificity the alternative of withholding or disclosing and how profoundly it permeates all public...

<p>The fuss over frowning has generated so much angst, ridicule and hate mail that the Palo Alto City Council is doing an about-face.</p> <p>The council plans to dump a proposed guideline discouraging members from frowning or using other body language to show ``disagreement or disgust'' at public meetings.</p>

Shock tactics for anti-social mobile use Musical mobile makes people look stupid in public Anti-social mobile phone users could be punished with an electric shock if prototypes from a design company go into production. The increasing irritation of inappropriate or noisy conversations in public places prompted design firm Ideo to come up with handsets that would encourage people to be more tactful in their phone use. The designs are not intended to make it on to the high street but rather to prompt debate about the social impact of mobile phones. Designs include a phone with two metal plates...

“But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded, and the glory of Europe is extinguished forever.”Edmund Burke, 1793 On British television recently, there was an advertisement for a beer. Set in the eighteenth century, it began by showing a pretty young woman sat in a carriage, looking on as the two men who seek her heart meet up in a field and bow before one another. Then, turning on their heels, they both walk towards their duelling positions. Except the duel doesn’t happen. After a few seconds, one of the duellers turns and...