Good morning,
MR. GRUMPY IS BACK…AGAIN
It’s been a while since my cranky old man rants, so here are the latest:
I have given directions to people a number of times in the past few months using a quaint old system that involves the coordinates of a map (you know, north, south, east and west). In each situation, the retort was “can you just tell me which direction?” to which I respond, “I just gave you the directions.” Their response, “No, I mean tell me right and left.” What happened to the good old days of Automobile Association maps, Thomas Brothers maps and the ability, through the miracle of the universal language of maps, to pick up a map of a foreign city and get around without GPS?
The other day I was watching the Stanford-Cal game (known to each as “The Big Game”). The announcer stated that something was a “mute point.” Come on, it’s a “moot point.” To be a “mute point” it would have to be a point that is silent.”
Then there is “honing in on something.” You may be “homing in,” as it getting closer. I know some think these are synonyms (indeed, even some dictionaries). But “honing” really is sharpening something.
Why do so many of my gender have such difficulty with aim and delivery? There is an inordinate number of puddles around urinals, as well as splashed toilet seats. Come on guys, grab on and take control!
Why do people answer an “excuse me” or a “thank you” with “no problem”? Of course it wasn’t really a problem. It was an expression of thanks. How about “you’re welcome”?
And while I’m at it, too few people say “thank you.” Hey, I didn’t hold the door open for you because it’s my job. I did it because it was civil and polite. Don’t just dash through like British royalty or the president heading to a press conference.
On a happier note, a woman stepped aside when we were hiking. I said “thank you” as I passed and she responded with “thank you for saying thank you.” Clearly, she isn’t hearing words of thanks much either. It should be the rule and not the exception.
A WORLD WITHOUT GUARDRAILS
There is a constant tension between the rights of the individual and the needs of society and our inter-relationship. One of the lessons of COVID is that we are more interconnected than perhaps we want to believe. I believe we have taken a turn away from working toward our collective good and instead are inordinately concerned with ourselves.
I am reminded of the U.S. Army recruiting commercials of the 1970s, “Be all that you can be.” This is what we increasingly think and tell our children. How about being part of a larger society? How about following rules? No guardrails means less civility and greater chaos.
We have been living through a period during which the guardrails that govern civil life slowly are receding or completely disappearing. Common decency takes the back seat. Constraining one’s immediate reaction, in order to be polite, is a quaint old practice. Instead, everyone is encouraged to “establish boundaries” and say exactly what they feel, without regard for the feelings of the other person. If someone is offended by an off-hand remark, regardless of the intent, the speaker must immediately be admonished and perhaps even shunned (even for a mistake or a misunderstanding).
In politics, this abandonment of guardrails has had a profound effect. People don’t hold back and employ divisive, offensive, virulent language. People are called horrible names and lies are knowingly spread to win elections. In anticipation of an election loss, candidates will say that the election must be rigged if the vote count is against them. And if someone loses, they are inclined not to concede. The lack of rules and guardrails has coarsened us. Hopefully the last election’s results will nudge us a tiny bit back to civility. Some people who lost elections actually conceded (while others congratulated the winner for “being declared to have received the most votes”). Some guardrails are being bolstered and strengthened. Maybe, just maybe, we are headed to an era of greater patience, understanding and civility. One can hope.
MOTORSPORTS, TRAVELING THE WORLD (AND NOT)
An education on motorsports and an eye-opening statistic on Americans and their travel habits, pointing, perhaps, to some of the problem with Americans’ tolerance of foreigners, from David Berkey:
“For as long as I can remember I have been a motorsports enthusiast, principally around formula one and endurance cars (Le Mans)… I mention it because writers around such a highly technical and global sport are by their very nature well read and extremely interesting. The term motorhead is as far away from what I am describing as the earth is to the sun. One such writer that I follow is a fellow names Joe Saward, who literally travels the earth for formula one and I dare say has not missed a race in at least five decades, maybe longer.”
https://joesaward.wordpress.com
“Anyway, in his latest narrative he noted that “something like 38 percent of all Americans have never had a passport and another 26 percent no longer have a valid passport, which means that around 210 million Americans either never travel or have not travelled recently. This means that their view of world is formed entirely by the media. I am not saying it is wrong not to travel if one is happy with one’s own country, but it does lead to some odd attitudes and behaviors because the more one travels, the more one learns and the more tolerant one is to new ideas and different cultures. This, to me, explains a lot.”
CULTURAL APPROPRIATION AND PLAYING PARTS NOT OUR OWN
After my Musing noting that we should be encouraging people to play ethnicities not their own, Tom Carter replied:
“A good story (especially one with a moral or important message) can translate across racial, ethnic, religious, and generational lines. It can improve understanding and build empathy. I always marveled at Shakespearean troops interpretations of the Bard. And good acting should be appreciated in any color.”
Happy day,
Glenn
From the archives:
I never realized that we agree on so many things!❤️