Say goodbye to civility

In one form or another, most of us were taught when we were young that we should treat people the way we would want to be treated by them.

Most belief systems use this as a fundamental teaching. For example, Christianity refers to this as the Golden Rule, and it is a teaching that acts as a vessel through which believers can express love for God and their fellow man.

Many non-spiritual belief systems also agree that this is a good approach to life.

However, when looking at the world, I wonder if this teaching is having the impact on our society that it once did.

For example, I was recently talking with a friend who works in the customer service industry. He remarked that his profession is becoming more of a grind because of the attitudes he encounters from customers on a daily basis. He said that people appear to have shorter fuses than in the past, and it was a deep source of frustration for him.

This was especially interesting to me because my friend is no rookie just out of college. He has worked in the profession for many years, and he has seen this change slowly develop through the years.

When I asked him why he thought this was happening, he felt it might be because people are feeling financially squeezed. After all, unemployment and inflation rates are rising. Since many people have already over-extended themselves when it comes to debt in the last few years, this hostility may be an extension of that.

He makes a good point. Whether it is in the household or the government, overwhelming debt has become a daily part of many people's lives. Nothing creates stress quite like financial stress.

However, I wonder if this problem runs a little deeper. Not long ago, I was shopping in Murfreesboro and stopped at a fast food restaurant for lunch.

It was a Saturday, and the place was overflowing with customers. The lines were long and so was the wait.

While waiting, I saw customers verbally slap the employees taking their order several times. The employees were young and likely not making much more than minimum wage, but the customers really let them have it.

I guess having to wait five minutes for a hamburger was too much of a burden to handle so they took it out on them.

Now, I understand that customers have a right to expect professional service for what they are purchasing. We should all expect first-rate service, but there is a fine line between presenting a complaint and going off the deep end.

And more and more people seem to be going off the deep end.

I also have experience working in the customer service industry and have been surprised regarding what will cause a person to explode. This is especially true when dealing with somebody on the phone.

Maybe the anonymity of talking on the phone causes people to drop their inhibitions, but many people will start using profanities over just a few dollars.

People like to say that all things run in cycles, so hopefully there will be a turn toward gentleness and kindness sometime soon.

However, I am not encouraged. Our society's heart has become coarse, and it appears to be getting harder and thicker each day.

I hate to sound so pessimistic, but there is too much evidence piling up that supports my point of view.

My challenge to everybody reading this (including me) is to resist the negativity and keep fighting the good fight.

It's the right thing to do.