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Britons Not Polite?

Politeness 'missing from society'

Britain needs to do more to promote good manners, the government's "respect czar" Louise Casey says.
Ref. https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/Hi/uk/6714407.stm

Polite Britons

Manners, common respect and courtesy are definitely going awol. Respect for elders is almost a thing of the past in major cities. There was a time when people would give up their seats on a bus for pregnant women, that wouldnt happen in most of the places I have lived in. Some people blame parents other blame the youth. I think maybe it is the extremely secular, liberal and materialistic society were there is now very little appreciation for concepts such as "society" "religion" and "spiritualism". These have been replaced with "individual liberty" "materialism" and "skepticism".

Britons Not Polite? Reviews Consumer & Travel Family Culture

These days who is polite? It seems that in every country there is a growing dislike for other people and cultures. In Britain they are getting allot of Muslims and they are not to good when it comes to thinking of the people not of their religion, and it is the same in France.

Polite Britons

I think that in most countries politeness and manners have slipped way down, but in the statement regarding England, there has been a definite decline in the last say 20 years.
Not only that, but people used to talk to other people out and about that they hadn't met before, but I guess it's because people no longer trust strangers, they don't tend to strike up a conversation.
The old neighborhoods where people helped others out has gone in most areas too, it's too often a sad sign of the times.

Polite Britons

Funnily enough sometimes when I visit some secluded welsh speaking communities on a medical placement I see some very close knit communities where old british values are clearly on display. People will invite you into their homes for a barbecue the first day you meet them. Strangers in the street will greet you. Everyone seems to know everyone. Men will wait hand and foot on the women to the extent that in one place I never saw a woman having to open a door for herself.

I remember as a child I use to have a babysitter who was quite elderly who would frown everytime I asked for something without saying please or recieved something without saying thank you. She made sure i kept my elbows off the table, never blew to cool down my food and waited till everyone was sat on the table before eating. I still do those things religiously to this day. But its almost as if etiquette belongs to a different generation.

I dont see things getting any better though. Its a shame the British were once famed for their manners.

Britons Not Polite?

The strangest thing happeded to me a while ago, when I was a student and on my way to my part-time job at a supermarket. I was crossing the road to get to work and on the other side was a guy that just stared at me the whole time, with a sort of peaceful smile on his face.
I knew that I would have to cross and walk passed him, but was a little reluctant at first as he was a bit of a burly looking guy, who was for some reason smiling at me.

The weird thing was, I approached to walk past him, he said Hello, and we suddenly started speaking for about 15mins on how people don't seem to say Hello in the street any more. When we departed we both seemed really grateful that we had had the chance to discuss it. It was just bizzare.

I would love to live in a village where everyone knew everyone , and we all help to make each others lives that little bit better, just by being polite.