Technology Has Made It Easy To Behave Inconsiderately

I feel quite annoyed today.

The following scenario's push my annoyance button:

I reply to an advertised job via e-mail as requested. I wait and wait and wait for some response. After a couple of weeks I reply, inquiring as to the status. I receive nothing. Or I reply after a few days to ensure the e-mail went through. I receive nothing. I'm tired of kissing the potential employer's ass while I receive silence in return for my, well, ass-kissing. Give me something, people. A simple: Yes it was received. If we are interested we will inquire with you further. There ya go. Quick and easy.

Next scenario:

I am doing business with an individual at a local agency. I call to speak with the person. I receive their voice mail. I leave a message. 24 hours pass. 48 hours. 72. No reply. So I phone again. And wait. And wait. And wait. Finally two weeks later I receive a response. And yet, no apology. If I point out the obvious--I have had to leave two messages and wait a considerable time for a reply--I am met with some lame defensive answer. "Oh, I've been busy." How about "I apologize for my late response" and leave it at that. Short and simple and to the point. No excuses. They make you sound uncaring.

And yet another:

I read an exchange between people online. What starts off as an offered opinion turns into a game of "who can insult the other the quickest". The basic tenets of the argument get lost in an exchange of insults and assumptions.

And my favorite:

The e-mails sent out with specific questions and the responses that come back to you that do not address the questions. So ok, you think perhaps they didn't read carefully the e-mail. So you re-send. And don't hear back. Or you do hear back and again, all questions aren't addressed.

What does this world need? A new book of manners in the technological age? "Achieving Adult Maturity In This Era of Technological Adolescense". Hey, that's a pretty catchy title, eh?

Technology has made us lazy, folks. Lazy and inconsiderate. The energies of consideration, grace and concern have been replaced by what-the-fuck-ever-i-will-do-whatever-i-want-without-any-self-responsibility-or-careful-thought. I am in e-mail contact with a couple of folks through some professional organizations here locally. Their response times are appalling slow. They often misspell my name. And their punctuation and spelling are outrageous at times. Where did these folks attend school? E-Mail University: where anything goes and the rest, out the window, including spelling, punctuation, grammar, etc.

And I needn't mention the cell phone issue considering I've blogged enough about it in the past, but what the hey. It's a new day. People having their loud conversations next to others out in public places, in line at the stores, in banks, not to mention the very foolish folks who think they can drive effectively and responsibility and talk on their cell phones at the same time. (Newsflash: A recent study published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied, put out by the University of Utah concluded that "drivers using mobile telephones are as impaired as drivers who are legally drunk." And despite what many folks think, "a hands-free device does not lessen the risk.") Not surprising considering the near-misses I've experienced by such drivers. I shudder when I think of the near-misses I've seen with such drivers and bicyclists. I despise Big Brother, but I support bans on texting and talking whilst driving only because people are often blinded to their own behavior. A common mindest: "Oh, I can do that just fine. It's other people who can't."

Logic flaw 101: Thinking one is superior to others in order to avoid facing the truth.

We all do it, don't we?

Then there are the people who visit your home and during the middle of a conversation, their phone rings. Rather than do the polite thing, which is to turn it off, they instead answer the phone and proceed to have a conversation, leaving you sitting there twiddling your thumbs. The last time this happened, I turned on the television and engaged myself in a program. Upon termination of the call, my guest said they were ready to resume the conversation. Oh, sorry, you will have to wait until I am finished watching this, I announced.

You are in my home. You have come to visit me. Unless you are expecting an emergency or important call, shut the damn phone off. Or let it go to voice mail. Certainly when I have guests over and the phone rings, I let it go to voice mail (it's there for a reason folks--USE IT). If I am expecting a call, I apologize and say as such. If it is not the expected caller, I say I have company and end the phone call. Why do I do this? Specifically: because I have already committed my time to the individual in my home. Generally speaking: I think about how my actions may affect others. A behavior I find to be grossly missing today.

Yes, perhaps my recent behavior was a bit immature. It certainly wasn't one that was as honest as I would normally like to be. But damnit, I should not have to point out this behavior. Sometimes perhaps a dose of their own behavior thrown their way will be the wake-up call they need. I have noticed a trend in this regard: that some folks simply respond more to that kind of behavior than they do with a respectfully given, honest assertion of ones opinion.

As my girlfriend says at times "I should not have to scream to be heard."

Ah, sadly, sometimes we do.