What happened to Courtesy?
I nearly arrived late for work today, mostly due to a late bus. But what disturbs me today isn't really the transport operators but the passengers. I've come to realise that if a bus or train is crowded, people somehow tend to forget their manners. Isn't it weird?
Basically 2 incidents happened this morning that got me seriously wondering whether all the money spent on our courtesy campaigns have gone down the drain. The first incident was when I was on the train. It was crowded at usual but when we reached Clementi, some 2 seated people got off. Immediately 2 GUYS rushed for the seats even though there were 2-3 ladies (aunties?) standing even closer to the seats.
What is even more apalling was that both these guys were quite young. One is most likely in his 30s while the other can't be much older than me. Yet they didn't bother to give way to the ladies, who were also making a move for the seats. Call me old fashioned, but I think that despite all the talk of gender equality, as guys who have gone through NS and its accompanying parades, we should be more considerate. At the end of the day the 2 guys got the seats and closed their eyes, trying to be oblivious to the world.
The second incident happened on the bus. This time it was a 30+ lady who got under my skin. Basically, because the bus came late (as usual) it was very crowded, so when we reached a bus stop where a lot of people got off, I was relieved and was about to move into some space when this lady SQUEEZED past me. Now I emphasise squeeze cos she isn't what anyone would call slim, I wouldn't even use plump on her cos it would be an understatement. Yet she insisted on squeezing past me causing me to bang against the bus chairs. And the worst part is, after squeezing past me, she stood just after the door, basically blocking everyone else from walking to the back of the bus where there are now some empty seats. Why? Cos she wanted to get off on the next bus stop. If she had just waited a while more, we would have all shifted to the back, now wouldn't that be better, and a little more comfortable for those of us she squeezed by.
Now, I'm sure you guys have experienced worse, in fact, I have experienced such things before (just that I didn't have a blog to whine on before). But I really hope that the courtesy level here will get better. And I hope that we all will try our best not to be guilty of doing such things (although I admit I have commited a few inconsiderate acts that I'm not proud of). I believe we all constantly remind ourselves to be considerate and remind our friends/family to be considerate, Singapore will be a much better place to live in...
Basically 2 incidents happened this morning that got me seriously wondering whether all the money spent on our courtesy campaigns have gone down the drain. The first incident was when I was on the train. It was crowded at usual but when we reached Clementi, some 2 seated people got off. Immediately 2 GUYS rushed for the seats even though there were 2-3 ladies (aunties?) standing even closer to the seats.
What is even more apalling was that both these guys were quite young. One is most likely in his 30s while the other can't be much older than me. Yet they didn't bother to give way to the ladies, who were also making a move for the seats. Call me old fashioned, but I think that despite all the talk of gender equality, as guys who have gone through NS and its accompanying parades, we should be more considerate. At the end of the day the 2 guys got the seats and closed their eyes, trying to be oblivious to the world.
The second incident happened on the bus. This time it was a 30+ lady who got under my skin. Basically, because the bus came late (as usual) it was very crowded, so when we reached a bus stop where a lot of people got off, I was relieved and was about to move into some space when this lady SQUEEZED past me. Now I emphasise squeeze cos she isn't what anyone would call slim, I wouldn't even use plump on her cos it would be an understatement. Yet she insisted on squeezing past me causing me to bang against the bus chairs. And the worst part is, after squeezing past me, she stood just after the door, basically blocking everyone else from walking to the back of the bus where there are now some empty seats. Why? Cos she wanted to get off on the next bus stop. If she had just waited a while more, we would have all shifted to the back, now wouldn't that be better, and a little more comfortable for those of us she squeezed by.
Now, I'm sure you guys have experienced worse, in fact, I have experienced such things before (just that I didn't have a blog to whine on before). But I really hope that the courtesy level here will get better. And I hope that we all will try our best not to be guilty of doing such things (although I admit I have commited a few inconsiderate acts that I'm not proud of). I believe we all constantly remind ourselves to be considerate and remind our friends/family to be considerate, Singapore will be a much better place to live in...
posted by CS at 8:36 AM
6 Comments:
Oei...Oei...
Yah. Actually I wanted to do that. But since the ladies around are not chio so I din bother. Muahaha!
No lah, juz kidding. Was watching from a distance so cannot really do anything in the crowded train.
I think the first incident is more of a chivary issue rather than a courtesy one. We're in a society that believes in gender equality but we seldom practice it or think that way.
Doesn't mean that the guys being the stronger gender must always give up their seats. Who knows, you should give them the benefit of the doubt, maybe they have gastric or they ripped the bottom of their pants so they want to sit down desperately.
Oh regarding gender differences, I had a lecture today about women and exercise and it talked about whether the differences in women and men are actually due to gender differences or are they due to the environment. Example of an environment is like girls are not allowed to take part in "active" sports in school and hence they are not that physically active... or another is that people say that men are taller than women, but then not all men are taller than all women. hehe i'm deviating from the topic but its all interesting
~bunkmate
Well, in a sense its also a chivalry issue but why I said it was a courtesy problem was because the guys were actually further from the seats than the gals. And they basically rushed to the seats.
I mean if you see someone trying to sit down you don't go rushing into the seat in front of him/her regardless of your gender.
But I do agree with you that I may be ignoring some underlying problems the guys might have...
haha yea, good point. retribution at its sweetest :)
~bunkmate
i have met people who are like what u mention in your blog...
perhaps that's just what most of us in Singapore are... I must admit I could easily have acted like the fatty Lass but probably not as "banging" coz im so skinny anyway but i would add a sorry if I banged someone. However, I also knew of people who just like to block the door exits and imagine the anxiety of the bus leaving any minute, probably I had do the same.
However, i also remembered once... A guy who stood and opened the door for me & my friend when we are exiting a library. And he was a caucasian... Haven't met such a Singaporean yet. Well.. Of course SG has such people too...
Well, this proved to be a popular thread...
Actually, I know why the lady acted the way she did. I would do the same to, provided I wasn't obstructing anyone. The difference between her and other people is:
1) She didn't say "Excuse me" or "Sorry" as she squeezed by, banging people, and
2) Because of her size and her position, no one could walk past her.
This resulted in the bus being super crowded in front (as ppl were still getting on) and empty behind.
I do agree that there are still considerate people with good manners and courtesy in Singapore. In fact I think that there are many. Just that many of us tend to forget our manners when it gets squeezy, which is quite sad...
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