Common courtesy is dead: paranoia, selfishness suspected

Courtesy in America is gone.

It's come to the point that Americans are getting so paranoid that most think stopping to help a stranded motorist will result in robbery, kidnapping or other horrible unknowns.

Case in point: When I was leaving my mom's house in Rowlett, there was a woman stuck out in the middle of the intersection. I had my mom roll down her window and ask if someone was coming to help her. She assured us there was, said thanks, and then said in the 30 minutes since her car had died, we were the first people to stop and offer help.

Sadly, in circumstances like that it is now the exception, rather than the rule, to offer help.

I know if I'm trapped in a car - especially considering I don't have a cell phone right now - I'd love for someone to stop and help me. But I don't see that happening.

Maybe I'm barking up the wrong tree. Maybe it's not just that people are scared. Maybe it's just that nobody cares anymore.

I have noticed a big change in the attitudes of people as I've grown up. We as Americans have become so concerned with ourselves that we've stopped caring about how our actions impact others.

Common courtesy just isn't that common anymore.

The lack of caring for others is a vicious cycle. Think about it like this: if you're in your car, and you're trying to turn out of the gas station onto the road, right by the traffic light, most likely you'll be waiting a while, and grow more and more frustrated. But if someone stops to let you in, you are happy and drive on down the road and I bet you will let someone else ahead of you.

But if you sit there and wait and wait, and finally have to force your way in, you're probably going to do the same thing to another car because no one let you in. So now instead of being nice, it's become the way of life to just drive on by.

It's tunnel vision. If it doesn't directly affect us, then we don't care about it. A lot of us learned it from our parents, and some just picked it up along the way.

However you learned it, it needs to change.

We need to stop thinking about the small little circle of our lives and expand just a little. Even if it's as simple as driving up beside a car and rolling down your window to ask if you can help, or maybe if there's someone walking behind you up to a store, you can stop and hold the door open.

Things like this take maybe 30 seconds out of your day, but they will make you feel just a little bit better, and maybe will make someone else stop and help someone else.

There are a lot of people out there who do take the time to think about someone other than themselves, but unfortunately the majority of people just don't care.

Maybe we all just need to show we care a little bit more than we already do. If we set the good example, then maybe courtesy can become common again.