4 ms·

If you don't have your phone, how do you know where the nearest public service is, especially in a foreign land.

by georgyo 4y ago

koolba 4y ago
I’m old enough to remember asking people for directions.
- Teever 4y ago
  And I'm old enough to remember this clip on TV: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXlpVz9rnx4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXlpVz9rnx4 If you're not aware, many people are assholes, and the story that you're reading is about an instance where someone was finding that everyone around them was being an asshole, that means it's less than likely that they would have stopped to give them directions.
  - exhilaration 4y ago
    If you're not aware, many people are assholes Oh come on, most people are awesome. People LOVE to help, it empowers them, makes them feel good. When you look at books with advice about building relationships and friendships, you'll almost always find suggestions to ASK people you want to get closer to for help.
    - Teever 4y ago
      I don't feel like having a semantic argument over the different between many and most. The world is full of many lovely, caring people, but that does little to help a person when they happen to run into a bunch of assholes. It is very feasible that a person travelling to another country could have a negative experience with everyone they meet due to racism or xenophobia, or whatever and that this would lead to a situation where even people on the street show them nothing but scorn. Imagine a Ukrainian asking for the nearest police station in Russia right now. Or someone wearing a thin blue line asking for directions at a stereotypical leftist college campus.
      - orbital-decay 4y ago
        > Imagine a Ukrainian asking for the nearest police station in Russia right now. Not sure what you expect to happen. There won't be any way to tell the difference, and even if there was nobody would care. In Moscow on a busy street, you'll probably be ignored for some time until someone helps you, not just because they are assholes there, but simply because most people aren't locals; in most sub-1M cities, there will be plenty of people willing to help.
      - signatoremo 4y ago
        > Imagine a Ukrainian asking for the nearest police station in Russia right now. > Or someone wearing a thin blue line asking for directions at a stereotypical leftist college campus. I wouldn’t be surprised in the slightest if in either case the person who is lost gets the help they need. The world is full of assholes, but they are the minority compared to the majority of helpful people, especially when it comes to simple things such as direction. Speak the local language helps of course.
        Teever 4y ago
        > I wouldn’t be surprised in the slightest if in either case the person who is lost gets the help they need. Every single time? Like you're saying that there's absolutely no chance that this could happen in these situations, or in any situations, which makes no sense given that statistically this kind of shit happens every day to someone. At almost any given moment someone is being told to fuck off because the asked a stranger for directions. Have you never had this happen to you?
        dzhiurgis 4y ago
    - dzhiurgis 4y ago
      I once heard some rich youtubers say - "giving feels so good it almost feels selfish" which I kind agree with, especially once you have your needs covered (most of HN).
- seoaeu 4y ago
  OP is literally a story about someone asking strangers for directions and being given the cold shoulder. You proposal is to… ask those same unhelpful strangers directions to a different destination instead?

If you don't have your phone, how do you know where the nearest public service is, especially in a foreign land.

koolba 4y ago

I’m old enough to remember asking people for directions.

Teever 4y ago
And I'm old enough to remember this clip on TV: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXlpVz9rnx4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXlpVz9rnx4 If you're not aware, many people are assholes, and the story that you're reading is about an instance where someone was finding that everyone around them was being an asshole, that means it's less than likely that they would have stopped to give them directions.
- exhilaration 4y ago
  If you're not aware, many people are assholes Oh come on, most people are awesome. People LOVE to help, it empowers them, makes them feel good. When you look at books with advice about building relationships and friendships, you'll almost always find suggestions to ASK people you want to get closer to for help.
  - Teever 4y ago
    I don't feel like having a semantic argument over the different between many and most. The world is full of many lovely, caring people, but that does little to help a person when they happen to run into a bunch of assholes. It is very feasible that a person travelling to another country could have a negative experience with everyone they meet due to racism or xenophobia, or whatever and that this would lead to a situation where even people on the street show them nothing but scorn. Imagine a Ukrainian asking for the nearest police station in Russia right now. Or someone wearing a thin blue line asking for directions at a stereotypical leftist college campus.
    - orbital-decay 4y ago
      > Imagine a Ukrainian asking for the nearest police station in Russia right now. Not sure what you expect to happen. There won't be any way to tell the difference, and even if there was nobody would care. In Moscow on a busy street, you'll probably be ignored for some time until someone helps you, not just because they are assholes there, but simply because most people aren't locals; in most sub-1M cities, there will be plenty of people willing to help.
    - signatoremo 4y ago
      > Imagine a Ukrainian asking for the nearest police station in Russia right now. > Or someone wearing a thin blue line asking for directions at a stereotypical leftist college campus. I wouldn’t be surprised in the slightest if in either case the person who is lost gets the help they need. The world is full of assholes, but they are the minority compared to the majority of helpful people, especially when it comes to simple things such as direction. Speak the local language helps of course.
      - Teever 4y ago
        > I wouldn’t be surprised in the slightest if in either case the person who is lost gets the help they need. Every single time? Like you're saying that there's absolutely no chance that this could happen in these situations, or in any situations, which makes no sense given that statistically this kind of shit happens every day to someone. At almost any given moment someone is being told to fuck off because the asked a stranger for directions. Have you never had this happen to you?
        dzhiurgis 4y ago
  - dzhiurgis 4y ago
    I once heard some rich youtubers say - "giving feels so good it almost feels selfish" which I kind agree with, especially once you have your needs covered (most of HN).
seoaeu 4y ago
OP is literally a story about someone asking strangers for directions and being given the cold shoulder. You proposal is to… ask those same unhelpful strangers directions to a different destination instead?