How Can We Stop the Rudeness Infecting America?

Is it just me or do you see that people are becoming more and more rude with every generation?  Why is this? And how can we stop it?   Is it the fault of the ME generation that was deemed selfish?  Or is the problem really with X, Y, and Z (aka new GenME)?  Have we raised (or are raising) children that think only of themselves?  Are manners and thoughtfulness things of the past? 

I think the rudeness is part of incivility trend that has been crawling across the country for several years.  In the past, Americans respected government offices, such as president, and would never be disrespectful of the person holding the office even if they had lost trust in the individual.  The attacks on the new president when he speaks are not so different from those on other presidents when they were new to the office.  Trump (Republican) Obama (Democrat), Bush (Rep), and Clinton (Dem) were also disrespected by either the media or select politicians claiming to represent the citizens.  As you can see by the list, we show our discontent with a presidential party and their politics by selecting a different one the next time. 

Discontent is no excuse for rudeness and disrespect!  How can anyone be rude to the president and claim to represent the majority of citizens when they were elected based upon a majority vote?  It is just an excuse; get over the politics of the election and give the new guy a chance to do his job. (This is basically what we hear every time a new party takes office.)  Stop being rude and start respecting the office!  Show respect until the new person actually does something to destroy our trust.  Those in power that are not supportive and overly apologetic (often without getting all the information) are showing disrespect for the office of president and for the citizens (most likely their own constituents) that voted for that president. 

I am putting politics aside now and explaining that I do not think we can blame any particular generation for the rudeness (aka era of incivility and viral vs privacy ethics).  We need to lead by example and everyone must teach their children their own personal values and acceptable behaviors.  Plus, we all have to take responsibility for allowing everyone else to be rude and accepting incivility in the past if we want to change the future.  

On that note, as we grow from children to adults, we learn the difference between a privilege and a right.   The opportunity to protest is a privilege that not many other countries have.  Freedom of speech is a right, doing it unlawfully or violently is not.  

Below are a few books by psychologists, sociologists, and others on what rudeness/incivility is doing to hurt America.

- A Short History of Rudeness (2015) by Mark Caldwell – how it is hurting families

- End of Discussion (2015) by Mary Katharine Ham and Guy Benson – how PC is hurting this country

- The Outrage Industry (2013) by Jeffrey M. Berry and Sarah Sobieraj  – how media is confusing citizens

- Incivility (2010) by Phillip Smith, Timothy Phillips, Ryan King – how it is hurting communities

For books on how it is hurting business, read Is the Era of Incivility Going to Destroy American Business?

This post is my opinion based on personal observation.  I have a right to my opinion and I respect anyone’s right to have a different opinion.  You are welcome to comment on this post if you do so respectively.  Personal attacks, rude text, and profanity are NOT welcome here.  Thanks for your understanding.