Part of it is a numbers game. One asshole per unit of time is stressful regardless of how many non-assholes you serve in that same unit of time. Now consider th

Part of it is a numbers game. One asshole per unit of time is stressful regardless of how many non-assholes you serve in that same unit of time. Now consider that a waiter working a 30 hour week can serve hundreds of individuals at even a modest restaurant. Less objectively, I feel like assholes are much more likely to express their negativity in a service scenario. You may run into these people all the time and not see their behavior until you're the one serving them. The ways some people not-uncommonly behave can be absolutely gobsmacking. It's hard to relate to what is going on in these people's emotional thoughts. Spontaneous stress reactions like road rage are at least relatable, but the purposeful way some people treat others when being served by them can be, frankly, totally alien.