Which city is better?

[mrswdk]

No more so in NYC than anywhere else. Unless they're going back to their overpriced apartments which cost rent whether they are home or not.

Time is money is true of many crowded cities, but nowhere is it more exemplified than in American culture.

You really are full of shit aren't you.

[subtleknifewield]

It seems to be a cultural thing for them...in a city so crowded, you almost HAVE to be assertive to the point of rude aggressiveness to get anywhere or anything. At least that's a paraphrase of what a guy who's originally from New York told me.

There are dozens of cities more crowded than New York and yet in which people still manage to be polite and considerate towards other people.

The guy you know is just an asshole and thinks that 'New York is crowded' is a good justification for acting like a douche.

Except the guy I know isn't an asshole or a douche. Care to make another failed dig?

Given that he uses 'New York is busy' and an excuse for being 'rudely aggressive', yes he is a douche.

He doesn't use it as an excuse, he just calls thing as they see them. You really have a stick up your rear for this, don't you?

You obviously have little understanding of American culture.

[subtleknifewield]

No more so in NYC than anywhere else. Unless they're going back to their overpriced apartments which cost rent whether they are home or not.

Time is money is true of many crowded cities, but nowhere is it more exemplified than in American culture.

You really are full of shit aren't you.

Funny, I was going to say the same about you.

I am not saying it is good or bad, that's just how we Americans are--so obsessed with schedules and getting things done on time.

Explaining this to you in simple words because you obviously fail to understand it, as I previously said.

[mrswdk]

Ah, thanks, now I understand. Americans are the only people who care about getting things done on time or to a schedule, and that is why New Yorkers are so rude.

[subtleknifewield]

Ah, thanks, now I understand. Americans are the only people who care about getting things done on time or to a schedule, and that is why New Yorkers are so rude.

Nice of you to put words in my mouth. I really have so little to say I need to be your puppet.

I am sure there are are a variety of reasons, these are just some of what contribute to a city's rudeness.

And actually, a lot of cultured put emphasis on things other than time. Family, friends, or the proper way of things. Sure, Americans do not have a monopoly on emphasizing the concept of time equaling money, but we emphasize it a lot more strongly than many other cultured to whom other things are MORE important.

So much so, in fact, many of us fail to slow down sometimes to actually enjoy life, because we are so focused o getting ahead. It is my personal theory this might be why we have so many hart attacks...the stress of fast-paced living.

[waauw]

I am not saying it is good or bad, that's just how we Americans are--so obsessed with schedules and getting things done on time.

Valid point. I guess I'll have to vote for the accurate Tokyo train schedules.
Oh wait, mrswdk already covered that for me.

[mrswdk]

I am not saying it is good or bad, that's just how we Americans are--so obsessed with schedules and getting things done on time.

Valid point. I guess I'll have to vote for the accurate Tokyo train schedules.
Oh wait, mrswdk already covered that for me.

No no. Americans are harder working than Japanese, that's why Japanese are so reserved and polite and New Yorkers are so rude.

Sure, everything in Japan happens to be brutally efficient, but that's probably just dumb luck, like the guy who sleeps all day then wins the lottery.

[tzor]

One of the biggest gripes I have about New York is how they put their garbage on the street for collection because they don't have usable alleys (I guess that's the reason?) - so one day a week you just have bags of refuse sitting on the sidewalks

Yes, garbage has always been a problem for the liberal administrations of the city. It's like the construction ... I guess we semi-locals just ignore it and look the other way.

[tzor]

No no. Americans are harder working than Japanese, that's why Japanese are so reserved and polite and New Yorkers are so rude.

Actually the "rude" moniker of New Yorkers is a bad stereotype. The general mix of people on the street is (in no particular order) tourist, non local, oblivious, running late, very polite people and those rude people who actually live in New Jersey and commute every day to Manhattan.

[mrswdk]

And so we have it confirmed: subtleknifewield's friend is just a rude asshole who justifies his/her rudeness on the basis of being a New Yorker.

[tkr4lf]

I know nothing of New York or Tokyo, but I have been to both London and Paris. London was by far the better place in my opinion. The people were much more friendly, the city was cleaner, I even enjoyed the architecture more. Don't get me wrong, Paris was very nice too, but the people really are quite snooty, at least many of them anyway.

[waauw]

I know nothing of New York or Tokyo, but I have been to both London and Paris. London was by far the better place in my opinion. The people were much more friendly, the city was cleaner, I even enjoyed the architecture more. Don't get me wrong, Paris was very nice too, but the people really are quite snooty, at least many of them anyway.

Did you per chance try to talk to the french in english?

[tkr4lf]

I always started with "Excusez-moi, parlez-vous anglais?," and if they said yes, then I would respond in English. If they said no, a simple "Ok, Merci." would be offered up. It seemed the best way to show that I personally do not speak French but am polite enough to realize that they do and don't just assume that they speak English as well, or something like that.

[mrswdk]

Everyone speaks English these days, unless they're an uneducated oaf.

It's the global language. If they can't speak it, that's their fault.

[mrswdk]

Anyway, Tokyo wins!

Next up: Kuala Lumpur vs Toronto

[jonesthecurl]

I know nothing of New York or Tokyo, but I have been to both London and Paris. London was by far the better place in my opinion. The people were much more friendly, the city was cleaner, I even enjoyed the architecture more. Don't get me wrong, Paris was very nice too, but the people really are quite snooty, at least many of them anyway.

Did you per chance try to talk to the french in english?

They get far more snooty if you talk in French (at least if you have an accent like mine).

[subtleknifewield]

And so we have it confirmed: subtleknifewield's friend is just a rude asshole who justifies his/her rudeness on the basis of being a New Yorker.

Or you are just an arrogant snob. People can only judge based on what they know.

Apparently you like to pretend to more knowledge than you have.

[subtleknifewield]

Everyone speaks English these days, unless they're an uneducated oaf.

It's the global language. If they can't speak it, that's their fault.

Not every uneducated individual is an oaf. Get off your high horse. Or do you pay ANY attention at all to the news about how, far from everyone has the opportunity to get an education?

[mrswdk]

Everyone speaks English these days, unless they're an uneducated oaf.

It's the global language. If they can't speak it, that's their fault.

Not every uneducated individual is an oaf.

Well actually, by definition they are.

[subtleknifewield]

Everyone speaks English these days, unless they're an uneducated oaf.

It's the global language. If they can't speak it, that's their fault.

Not every uneducated individual is an oaf.

Well actually, by definition they are.

In which dictionary? Here's a few definitions.

noun
1.
a clumsy, stupid person; lout.
2.
a simpleton; dunce; blockhead.
3.
Archaic.
a deformed or mentally deficient child.
a changeling.
----------------
Yeah, we all know uneducated equals stupid, right? Right?

[mrswdk]

This is not a thread for you to tell us all about how you don't feel like any less of a person due to not completing high school. This is currently a thread for debating the merits of Kuala Lumpur vs Toronto y(^_^)y

[subtleknifewield]

This is not a thread for you to tell us all about how you don't feel like any less of a person due to not completing high school. This is currently a thread for debating the merits of Kuala Lumpur vs Toronto y(^_^)y

And there you go again, making an ass of yourself with assumptions--just when one was proven wrong, you make another on top of it. You must secretly enjoy looking the fool or something.

I ain't stopping anyone from debating those cities, but I have been to neither, and frankly know little about either.

[KoolBak]

so anyway, why is it people in cities are ruder? In backwater towns, like where we go hunting or where I grew up, almost everyone is super nice...everyone waves from their cars to you (strangers), smile and will stop and chat on the street, chat you up in grocery / feed / hardware stores....cities you just try and avoid eye contact and thats the polite side. Portland (or) is moderately bad....seattle (wa) is awful....last time I was in dallas (tx) people were cool, and thats a big damn city....

Don't get it. Southerners nicer than northerners? USA only obviously....never been abroad except for Puerto Rico (where seemingly everyone was armed) and St Thomas, where you were either dirt poor or a tourist.

[Dukasaur]

so anyway, why is it people in cities are ruder? In backwater towns, like where we go hunting or where I grew up, almost everyone is super nice...everyone waves from their cars to you (strangers), smile and will stop and chat on the street, chat you up in grocery / feed / hardware stores....cities you just try and avoid eye contact and thats the polite side. Portland (or) is moderately bad....seattle (wa) is awful....last time I was in dallas (tx) people were cool, and thats a big damn city....

Don't get it. Southerners nicer than northerners? USA only obviously....never been abroad except for Puerto Rico (where seemingly everyone was armed) and St Thomas, where you were either dirt poor or a tourist.

It's an inevitable function of city size.

http://www.citylab.com/work/2012/03/why-people-cities-walk-fast/1550/



The larger the city is, the more people feel pressured to keep up. The precise mechanism is debated, but the fact that it is a function of city size, independent of other factors, is shown by the above graph, where large and small cities in the same country are paired.

The rudeness isn't a separate thing from the others. It's just part of the overall package. Feeling pressured to compete with larger number of strangers leads to feeling in a hurry to get things done which leads to feeling a need to ignore distractions (the needs of others) and remove obstacles from one's path.

[jonesthecurl]

This is not a thread for you to tell us all about how you don't feel like any less of a person due to not completing high school. This is currently a thread for debating the merits of Kuala Lumpur vs Toronto y(^_^)y

Oh, I thought by "KL" you meant "Kings Langley"*

Never been to KL then, but Toronto is good if you want to go to concerts or visit my old school chum Nigel, otherwise fairy dull apart from the tower. Had more unremarkable or simply bad food there than most places.



*apologies for obscure reference