Innermost Thought

In a recent poll New York City was deemed by Reader's Digest to be the most polite city in the world. No. Really.

To be honest, I'm not really surprised. In my own experiences with NY I have found her to be both polite and compassionate. On many occasions I have relied upon the kindness of strangers for open doors, dropped suitcases, and the general day to day please and thank yous that occur. Now it's true I've also been semi-accosted, wolf-whistled, cat-called and jostled at one time or another but those instances, in my mind at least, pale in comparison to the many times I've been the recipient of the basic respect that ettiquette requires.

But now that I think of it, there have been those moments.

New Yorkers seem to have a strange dichotomy when it comes to politeness and etiquette. They are very matter of fact. Unlike my homeland of Texas where graciousness is almost a Broadway Musical production. New Yorkers can be abrupt, to the point, brusque, and exasperated. But they can also be polite.

I saw the truth of the Reader's Digest poll in a recent real life occurrence on the A train to Canal Street one day. It seems that New Yorkers are taught from an early age the importance of being polite. There was a mother with three children (4 years, 7 years, and a toddler) and another woman who could have been the children's aunt. As the women were talking, the children were sharing two bags of gummy fruit candy. At one point the boy cried out:

LITTLE BOY: Mama I want some water!

MAMA: What the fuck you asking me for water like that for? How the fuck you ask your mama for water?

LITTLE BOY: (Contrite) Mama may I please have some water?

MAMA: That's better. Here you go. I'll fuckin' slap you upside the head you don't learn some fuckin' manners.

AUNT: That's right. 'Cuz everybody knows that please is the magic word.

Apparently New Yorkers may also be #1 when it comes to the use of profanity.