I came across this posting on craigslist in my town. I’m wondering what cosmic fatalistic rupture caused this to happen.

[note: link has since gone dead]
8-week Christian Yoga class – Free!

I just skimed through an article in the Style section of a major metropolitan newspaper. Though I don’t live in the city that this newspaper is written in, I do happen to like the insite it affords me to those who live in a more hectic world.

To my surprise, this article was about etiquette. “Would the demographic of people that read the style section of this newspaper need to know on the new world of manners?” I asked myself. It turned out that, yes indeed we do. The article cited the reasons why people gravitate to the more gentile and self-confident polite person. Aparently the citizens that read a Sunday paper need to be reminded that rude people suck, overbearing ungroomed people don’t get laid, and you can’t get ahead without acting professional.

In all honesty, I don’t think that my manners are all that bad. Then again, I do not sup with royalty or captains of industry. What good are manners when you just want to come off as a ‘regular joe’ in this relaxed-fit flat-fronted world of reality-tv? The sources quoted in the article blame this sloppy trend on rushed-parenting and the faceless interactions we have in the highly abreviated colloquial exchanges on the Interweb.

According to this article, sales of etiquette books and seminars on manners are on the rise. While there are no concrete numbers on the subject, I don’t think that this is a phenomenon in middle america. We have big cities in America’s heartland, but we’re not overcrowded to the point that we don’t smile at strangers once in a while.

I do like the stuffy event served on fine china and an array of flatware, but knowing which water glass to drink from, and which fork to use doesn’t have any bearing on how I am as a person. I don’t blame my hard-working immigrant parents for not teaching me the compenents of a dinner table like the article suggests. Manners and refinement should be of your own choosing.

If the universe that you choose to live in is a white-linen service 4-course meal followed by a rousing power-suit wearing business meeting, go and spend money on etiquette books and lessons. If you choose to live your life in a blue-collar world full of people who just live by the golden rule, then stay away from the formal trappings of this neo-Victorian ‘movement.

A certain car manufacturer has been running a commercial touting how wonderful their products are and the wonderful deal the public is getting when they stop into showrooms. The sentiment doesn’t really stick with me and it’s not because I don’t like their products. Look carefully at the titles and positions of the people on these commercials. The majority of these folks are managers, designers, or somewhere in advertising.

These ‘professionals’ are used to represent the face of the brands. It pains me to think why the people who work in manufacturing aren’t featured. If I can’t be shown proud people bailing the products of their company, I question the quality of the product. The tack that the advertisers are taking focuses on the ’employee’ and these smiling white collar people aren’t cutting it.

Unfortunately these commercials come on the heels of a huge layoff of laborers, so there maybe some backlash in the factory parking lot when they see a UAW member sells out in a commercial. All union bitterness aside, a entire plant, shift of workers, or group of workers that would be proud to say they make the cars would be sufficient.

Fake me out, use beautiful and happy people that aren’t employees. Even better, just have beautiful people say that they received the employee discount.