Where did all the civility go?

I would like to bring forward some very thought-provoking comments posted in response to one of my other posts.

"Sadly, random acts of kindness seem to be a thing of the past as we witness a generation of inconsiderate, lazy, young adults. Have we created a generation that lacks the basic communication skills because they are so reliant on email and text messaging? There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t notice a “thank you” unspoken or a door slammed in my face, or a simple wave as I let a car ahead of me in traffic. I’m sure at some point or another we are all guilty of missing a thank you or rushing through traffic, but when did this become the norm? Thoughtfulness for others or sympathetic regard is a thing of the past. Acts of kindness are now considered extraordinary when really shouldn’t rude behavior be the unexpected?"

To see the full text of the comments, click on the comment link under "Curing poverty?". There were two points made here that interested me. The first is that the writer credits only young adults with being rude. While I thank her for giving my generation (and those ahead of me) with still being polite, I must disagree.

Today, I was carrying a box and two bags full of items for "Operation You've Got Mail" and it was a young woman of about 15-16 years old that walked from the curb to the post office door to open and hold it for me, while continuing her cell phone conversation. She then walked back to the curb. On the other hand, it was an older man of 60-70 years for whom I held the door on my way out as he carried a box in, that didn't even bother to acknowledge my assistance. The point is, civility seems to be a dying thing.

The second thing that I would pose to my readers is, when DID this become the norm? More importantly, how do we change it? After 9-11, here in the NY metro area, some of that civility came back. We began to realize that we do depend upon each other and that any one of us walking down the street at 9 am, may not survive to 10 am and therefore we should enjoy the time and contacts that we are given. Slowly, that has diminished and here we are 5 years later as rude and callous as we were before. Why? What can you and I do to reverse the trend? Let's hear it!

BTW, tis the season to enjoy my favorite movie, "It's A Wonderful Life". If you haven't seen it, DO. If you have seen it, WATCH IT AGAIN with someone who hasn't. It is a wonderful reminder of why you need to get out of bed every morning.