This is one reason I tend to gravitate toward individual, spiritual solutions to these issues. As isolated individuals, we’re not going to change the trends: they’re too big for that. But we can change ourselves (or, rather, allow God to change us). And as we change, who knows how much change we can foster in others?

As I began reading your posting I thought about the bumper sticker. I think it speaks so much to the overall frustation of people today. The reason the BS is so nasty is because people have now been trained to shout lower, speak tougher, be nastier to get their point across. It also speaks to the fact that in most likelihood even if they began in a soft gentle way to say what they wanted they got them now were, were beaten down. Hence the bumper sticker. They are frustrated and aggrevated. They are tired of (in this case) not being able to understand call customer service reps, clerks in stores, etc.

I never thought I’d find myself that way. After all I was raised with a totally different attitude and view point. But in the last several years as I’ve had to deal with first insurance companies, then businesses and finally misc. organizations it seems that they have been slowly training us to yell, scream, or throw temper tantrums before anyone will pay attention to us. I feel it rise up in me from both ends…and I hate it. I can’t count the number of times I’ve gotten off the phone from calls with Verizon or Ebay and just wanted to take a shower to wash out the communication methods they now employ. The amount of wasted time I have had to spend trying to get service. The way they treat me like an idiot, etc. It almost makes me want to do anything to avoid that. I’ve tried tons of tactics and yet the only one that seems to work is to be firm and to fake anger. How said that our world has come to that.

Not too long ago I had a discussion with a friend that spoke to how in dealing with companies today we just might as well throw hissy fits right away, they won’t pass us along or deal with our issues til we have has done our appropriate performance for them. How frustrating can that be. Certainly the escalading violence of people shooting others shows the overall frustration level is much higher in the 21st century than in the 20th. So the ultimate question is how do we change it. How do we go back to dealing with people on the other end of the phone without having to yell at them. Its sad that we’ve gotten to this level. What a frustrated world we live in!