stupid people

Obnoxious cell phones, cutting lines, road hogs: People more rude, less civilized than ever, survey says

People can be so dang rude.

deadart 022 — Art and photo Ryn Gargulinski

A prima donna plops herself in front of everyone standing in line at Fry’s.

A guy sitting next to his date is ignoring her as he furiously texts someone else.

A motorist who either forgot or did not bother to prepare for an upcoming turn cuts off three lanes of traffic just to make it work.

These are not hypothetical situations, but a few fine Tucson examples.

And discourtesy is not limited to the Old Pueblo, but instead rears its ugly, rotting head throughout the entire U.S. of A.

A full 69 percent of folks who answered an August Rasmuseen Reports survey of 1,000 adults across the nation said people are generally becoming ruder and less civilized.

A mere 14 percent, perhaps those who don’t get out much, said people were becoming kinder and gentler while 17 percent were “not sure.”

Maybe they were too busy texting during a date to give the question much thought.

Other poll results had 62 percent saying Americans were ruder to sales personnel than they were 10 years ago and, in turn, 57 percent saying the sales personnel were also ruder to customers than a decade hence.

We’ve come a long way baby.

So why are people becoming cruder, ruder and more barbaric?

We could easily blame TV and call it a day, since TV is already behind most of the world’s woes. Or we could play with a few other theories.

Technology could be to blame. Rudeness often comes from loud cell phone conversations, blaring ringing in the middle of meetings and yes, folks furiously texting or yapping on their phones while out on a date or in other social situations.

Cell phones can also indirectly lead to rude driving. Drivers blabbing on cell phones are perhaps not necessarily attempting to be rude but have instead become so oblivious to the road that they have no clue what they’re doing.

Entitlement is another possibility. Some folks today act as if they are entitled to everything, from being at the front of the line to owning last 50-cent sale item in the clearance bin. They will thus push, shove or steamroll others just to fulfill that entitlement.

Lack of manners can also stem from upbringing, with parents and schools feeding kids the idea that they can do no wrong. Children are applauded simply for breathing. They are gifted with new toys and cars just because they exist.

Such children grow up expecting the world, and everyone in it, to bow at their feet – or at least not blink an eye when they abruptly cut the Starbucks line.

So what should we do when accosted with such crude actions?

Only a slight majority of those surveyed – 51 percent – said they have actually confronted someone for the person’s rude behavior in public.

A full 44 percent let it go without comment while 5 percent said they were “not sure” if they’ve ever said something about another’s uncivilized actions. We’re not sure how people are “not sure” but wonder if they took a beating after the confrontation that could have clouded their memories.

Letting rude behavior slide might be the easiest thing to do, but it also threatens to turn us all into a stack of doormats, letting rude people claw their way to the top of the pile and continue to stomp.

Confronting the rude behavior in an equally rude manner may feel good, but it also brings us down to the other person’s level, a subterranean one that includes being a real jerk.

The best method for dealing with the behavior is to counter it with the sappiest, sweetest and most polite behavior of our own we can manage. This not only allows us to keep our dignity but can also work to make the obnoxious person feel about 2 inches tall.

Either that, or they will wallop us in the face, in which case we may not recall the confrontation any old way.

[tnipoll]

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Ryn Gargulinski is a poet, artist, performer and TucsonCitizen.com Ryngmaster who likes blaming TV – for everything. Her column appears every Friday on Rynski’s Blogski. Her art, writing and more is at RynRules.com and Rynski.Etsy.com. E-mail rynski@tucsoncitizen.com.

What do you think?

What’s some of the rudest behavior you’ve witnessed around town?

Are you ever rude on purpose? Do you ever apologize?

Jaywalkers beware: Police crackdown on bicyclist, pedestrian violations to end of Sept.

The next time you feel like darting willy-nilly across the middle of the street on foot or on your bicycle, think again.

Not only does such an action put you in danger of being mowed down by a street sweeper or mini-van, but you are now in increased peril of getting a ticket.

The Tucson Police Department is in the midst of a crackdown on violations involving bicyclists, pedestrians – and motorists who disobey rules related to the two, according to a news release from the department.

The crackdown started earlier this month and will be going on through the end of September. A grant is paying for this special enforcement deployment.

Time to cut out all that jaywalking.

It’s also time to note some of the most common violations pointed out by TPD.

Common driver violations:

Not yielding to pedestrians
Not giving bicyclists at least three feet of room while passing them
Not coming to a “complete stop” at red lights and stop sign

Not looking in both directions after stopping to make sure you don’t hit a bicyclist, pedestrian or other car

pedsign2 — Watch for peds/Ryn Gargulinski

Common pedestrian violations:

Jaywalking, jaywalking, jaywalking – Tucson has all those jazzy crosswalks for a reason
Violations of Tucson City Code 20-92: Jaywalking currently carries a $161 fine (That’s one pair of shoes, maybe two)

Not waiting for WALK signals at intersections

Common bicyclist violations:

Riding on the sidewalk
Not following same rules that apply to motorists, including riding with traffic
Not giving “appropriate” hand signals for turning and stopping
Not stopping for red lights and stop signs
Not wearing a helmet if younger than 18
Not having at least a headlight and rear reflector for nighttime riding

Some of the finest moves we’ve witnessed:

Bicyclist riding against traffic along Oracle Road dragging a small dog by the leash while the dog careened dangerously into outer lane traffic

Bicyclists hogging the sidewalk, yelling at pedestrians who are using it, like our pal belligerent bike boy

Pedestrians bolting across the street in the middle of the night, “wearing dark clothing and not in a crosswalk”

Pedestrians flipping off or yelling at cars that refuse to stop for them when they dart out of nowhere in the middle of a car-packed street

Motorists have way too many stupid moves to list

2009 statistics from the TPD website:

Fatal accidents, motor vehicle vs pedestrian: 8
Fatal accidents, motor vehicle vs bicycle: 2
Personal injuries, motor vehicle vs. pedestrian: 225
Personal injuries, motor vehicle vs. bicycle: 221
Property damage, motor vehicle vs. pedestrian: 36
Property damage, motor vehicle vs. bicycle: 71
Bicycle accidents: 35

Sorry, no stats immediately available on jaywalking tickets – but we did find 115 reports of road rage.

[tnipoll]

pedsign — Watch your step/Ryn Gargulinski

What do you think?

Have you ever gotten a ticket as a bicyclist or pedestrian?

What about as a motorist violating rules involving bicyclists or pedestrians?

What other stupid moves have you seen bicyclists, pedestrians and motorists make?

The case of the belligerent bike boy

Just when you thought it was safe to go outside, here comes belligerent bike boy.

bikeboybike — Illustration Ryn Gargulinski

Belligerent bike boy is this college-student-looking dude who cruises around the neighborhood “at a high rate of speed” with his dog leashed to his bicycle. He’s always out at prime dog walking time when I’m out with Sawyer and Phoebe and other dogs and owners are strolling around our midtown neighborhood.

Even though biking with a dog seems incredibly hazardous – especially since belligerent boy is way too cool to wear a helmet and his bicycle and dog combo drives Sawyer wild – we usually don’t really care about bike boy.

bikeboyatus — Illustration Ryn Gargulinski

We cared, however, when bike boy came barreling right at us.

Sawyer, Phoebe and I were on the sidewalk when bike boy came bolting out of a pathway, saw us on the sidewalk, then turned directly into us.

We were too stupefied by the stupidity to do much more than just stand there.

Of course, bike boy’s dog and Sawyer went at it.

bikeboydogs — Illustration Ryn Gargulinski

Of course, this made bike boy fall off his bike.

We wonder what bike boy was thinking, or if he were thinking at all.

bikeboymap — Illustration Ryn Gargulinski

Once he got up, bike boy began to yell at us. He said we were in his way on the sidewalk every day. We were in the wrong, said he, because he was biking in the same direction as traffic, even though he was on the sidewalk. We were supposed to cross the street and use the sidewalk on the other side to “go with the traffic flow,” he said. Besides, he added, it’s easier for us to go into the street and out of his way, letting him have full reign of the sidewalk, since he’s on a bicycle.

bikeboyyell — Illustration Ryn Gargulinski

We bring up bike boy because he illustrates so much of what is wrong with society:

1. Some people don’t give a dang about the laws.

2. Some people don’t give a dang about their neighbors (bike boy lives down the street from us and we’re also convinced he’s the one who left a bag of dog poo in our yard the last time we had a bike boy run-in).

3. Some people are pocked by false sense of entitlement.

4. Some people pick on women (bike boy NEVER pulls this stuff when I’m out walking the dogs with my beau).

5. Some people stink.

Have a nice day.

[tnipoll]

What do you think?

What would you do about belligerent bike boy?

Have you had similar encounters with folks who just don’t care?

Should we give bike boy the right of way even though the law is clearly on our side?

stupid people

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