Eh, this seems to me to be in the vein of other articles that tend to fetishize cultures other than ours. As a New Yorker, I've heard constantly about how we're

Eh, this seems to me to be in the vein of other articles that tend to fetishize cultures other than ours. As a New Yorker, I've heard constantly about how we're all aggressive, rude, direct, confrontational, etc. While, like most stereotypes, there might be a sliver of truth, my experience has been quite different. People will keep to themselves, avoid confrontation (even moving to a different subway car if they're bothered by something); it's more that less is said, such as callously shoving past someone on a crowded sidewalk, or being passive-aggressive. I know articles like these appeal to the HN crowd since they're techies who are deficient in social skills, and crusade against "PC culture" and other niceties. But in real life, being overly direct will quickly get you labeled as unpleasant. Small talk and the like actually do have a purpose.