Matthew Steinbach

opinions @theotherpress.ca

Common courtesy has gone out the window...or
has it? By Crystal Auffray

I. today’s busy world, you’ re lucky to find the rare occasion when a person walking down
the street will smile at you, but don’t expect anything as grandiose as a quick “hello” —that
would be too much work. Why is it that no one holds open the door or even says “thank you”
anymore?

I’m becoming disillusioned with the human race, and it’s made even worse by morning
and evening commutes on transit. If you’ve ever wanted a quick glimpse of what humanity is
really like, look no further than your nearest train or bus. You will find a veritable laboratory
of human behaviour. And I would be willing to bet that you wouldn’t exactly be enamoured
with what you witnessed.

Stories such as the woman who inevitably always buys the stranger behind her a
coffee on her morning Starbucks or Tim Horton’s run out of sheer goodness have become
somewhat of an urban myth. Do these people still exist, or have they in turn become cynical
and fallen into that bottomless pit of discourteousness?

Case in point: a 7 a.m. bus ride to Richmond from Metrotown. No one actually wants to
be on this bus, but because we’re good employees, students, etc., we begrudgingly embark
each morning after standing in a queue that seems to get even longer each day.

All I ever want to do is get off that bus. So when it’s my turn to disembark, I politely
make my way to the exit. One particular morning, a fellow rider seemed determined to get in
the way. He, along with his overstuffed duffel bag and bad attitude, decided to stand directly
in front of the double doors and seemed to be annoyed when people either a) body checked
him as they tried desperately to flee from the stinking, crowded bus, or b) said “excuse me”
politely.

At this time of the morning, I’m sure no one wanted to be dealing with such inanely
rude behaviour, but there you have it. Alarmingly, our society seems to be degenerating into
willing acceptance of such actions.

I had all but lost faith in the world until that afternoon when I got back on the bus, with

its familiar odour of sweat and old food and the faint sounds of music notes and screaming
voices hailing from iPods and mp3s everywhere, I grabbed onto the metal bar overhead,
preparing myself for a standing-only ride that would last 30 minutes. And guess what? A
kind man stood up and offered me his seat with a simple gesture of his hand.

And that has made all the difference. Courtesy is alive and well—you just have to be
fortunate enough to find it.

 

 

 

By Shannon Mackay

 

Sara Ershad-Karimi
1st Year Associate of Arts
“I’ve never read it before. I’ve heard of it, but I’m new

Jeff Taylor
2nd Year Sports Science
“T read it whenever it’s out. I enjoy the comics and humour
section...sometimes I’ Il read it in class.”

here so I haven’t had a chance to pick it up.”

 

‘WORD ON THE STREET

“How often do you read the Other Press?”

 

Mike Norton

2nd Year General Studies

“Never. I don’t really care. I think, ‘Why bother?’ I don’t

even know much about it. But maybe Ill read it next week
since I’Il be in it.” a