2 ms·
even as a natural-born citizen, the fact that we accept crappy public transportation really chaps my hide. how do we (re-)instill pride in such things?
by clairity 8y ago
even as a natural-born citizen, the fact that we accept crappy public transportation really chaps my hide. how do we (re-)instill pride in such things?
- rayiner 8y agoIt’s an emergent cultural phenomenon. Who knows how you change it, if you even can. My complaints that my scheduled 24-minute Metro ride regularly takes 30-35 minutes are met by blank stares and “so whats?” It’s like being outraged in India or Bangladesh that you had to make a small “facilitation payment” to access some service. So what? People don’t really care, or even realize it can be different.
- clairity 8y agoit certainly can be cultural. for example, as noted in another comment, the idea of sitting on, and blocking, stairs strikes japanese folks as rude (i tend to agree, even if mildly). most other cultures wouldn't give it a second thought. i'd love to see a shift toward pride in craftsmanship (a japanese cultural value), over the pride in ownership americans seem to principally exhibit. you see a rennaisance of this in certain parts of the culture, like fancy barbershops and coffee shops. if we give esteem to bus drivers and train conductors for being on time (a form of craftsmanship), maybe we'd get better service (a tall order, i know).