Newspaper Publication

"Where have our manners gone? We put four cities to the test" 

USA Today; May 26, 2000; Craig Wilson

Abstract:
"Our obsession with individualism began back then, and you add to that mix changes in demographics, like more divorce, more latchkey kids, diminishing parental involvement, and you pretty much have the collapse of a lot of institutions in America, good manners among them."

Bad manners have gotten under the skin of more than a few Southern legislators, too. Lawmakers in Alabama, South Carolina and Georgia are considering legislation that requires elementary school pupils to address their teachers "yes, sir" and "no, ma'am." Such legislation is already in place in Louisiana. (Assessments of the Louisiana law's effectiveness vary. Some teachers say they weren't aware of it, and others say it provided modest benefits.)

The state capital, Jackson, however, came out on top when USA TODAY dispatched reporters to four cities to put local manners to the test. We evaluated each city on several criteria -- for example, how quickly residents hit their horns when stuck in slow traffic. Minneapolis came in second, Philadelphia third, and San Francisco a distant fourth.

"The enemy of civility is self-absorption."
"You know, when you're civil to other people, it comes back to you."
"Civility is the WD-40 of life - it lubricates everything."