You may have seen or heard the news of the Spirit Airline brawl last week. Some fisticuffs broke out in the Ft. Lauderdale airport as pilots were not responding to call-ins, hence the routes were not being serviced. Customers got irate. They took it out on the people behind the counter, then some took it further, throwing fists, shouting, getting crazy.
This was not a story about “all” the customers. Only some of them, and probably a minority. But it made for timely news coverage in our seemingly increasingly coarse and angry era.
I shook my head when reading the stories. Then I put on my journalistic cap and began asking friends what they thought about the situation, and was this type of event happening more frequently today than 5 years ago, and if so, why.
There was full agreement in the 6-7 people I quizzed that these situations have increased in frequency and intensity the past 3-5 years, and that social media is the primary cause. As two people responded, “Look at all the people taking selfies and posting them online. It’s all about them. That’s all they care about. They don’t think about others or how their actions affect others. All they care about is themselves.”
I hadn’t thought of social media – Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat probably being the primary platforms – as self-absorbing technologies, but when you think about it, that is clearly the case. You are trumpeting your position. You want to get your name and face out there. You want to shout your position. It’s about you. It’s not about other people. The individual vs. the collective good or the team.
The “me first” mentality also ties into the lack of etiquette. As old etiquette weakens, people pay less attention to social mores and choose to do whatever they want. The individual’s needs rise above all else. There is less empathy and less consideration about how something will be perceived. People don’t put themselves in the shoes of others.
My informal polling also brought out our current desire for “instantaneous” reactions. People don’t take time to think things through. They want to immediately judge someone or a situation.
Throw in a crowded and stressful place like an airport and you have the perfect toxic brew. People don’t want to wait. They are in a hurry to get somewhere, whether it is for work or vacation. Any change to a schedule is an inconvenience. Tempers rise. People on edge act crazy. We shouldn’t be surprised, I guess.
The people I respect are the ones who understand there is nothing you can do in that situation. Give the people behind the counter consideration for doing the best they can at their jobs. Stay calm. Be kind to others. See if you can help find a solution. Several people were interviewed in the Spirit incident who adopted this perspective and it was good to hear their voice. But the rage in the cage gets the page for the most part.
More situations like this will occur in the years ahead as we close in on each other and the planet gets more and more crowded: Traffic jams; public transportation; office spaces; sporting events.
Going postal makes for great video on the 6 o’clock news. General sensory overload from social media and life in general contribute to the problem.
Tick tock, and someone will snap. Don’t let it be you.
Deep breath in, deep breath out. Remember what you can control and what you can’t. Take the long view. Help someone up rather than knocking someone down. Now go out and do it.
This was not a story about “all” the customers. Only some of them, and probably a minority. But it made for timely news coverage in our seemingly increasingly coarse and angry era.
I shook my head when reading the stories. Then I put on my journalistic cap and began asking friends what they thought about the situation, and was this type of event happening more frequently today than 5 years ago, and if so, why.
There was full agreement in the 6-7 people I quizzed that these situations have increased in frequency and intensity the past 3-5 years, and that social media is the primary cause. As two people responded, “Look at all the people taking selfies and posting them online. It’s all about them. That’s all they care about. They don’t think about others or how their actions affect others. All they care about is themselves.”
I hadn’t thought of social media – Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat probably being the primary platforms – as self-absorbing technologies, but when you think about it, that is clearly the case. You are trumpeting your position. You want to get your name and face out there. You want to shout your position. It’s about you. It’s not about other people. The individual vs. the collective good or the team.
The “me first” mentality also ties into the lack of etiquette. As old etiquette weakens, people pay less attention to social mores and choose to do whatever they want. The individual’s needs rise above all else. There is less empathy and less consideration about how something will be perceived. People don’t put themselves in the shoes of others.
My informal polling also brought out our current desire for “instantaneous” reactions. People don’t take time to think things through. They want to immediately judge someone or a situation.
Throw in a crowded and stressful place like an airport and you have the perfect toxic brew. People don’t want to wait. They are in a hurry to get somewhere, whether it is for work or vacation. Any change to a schedule is an inconvenience. Tempers rise. People on edge act crazy. We shouldn’t be surprised, I guess.
The people I respect are the ones who understand there is nothing you can do in that situation. Give the people behind the counter consideration for doing the best they can at their jobs. Stay calm. Be kind to others. See if you can help find a solution. Several people were interviewed in the Spirit incident who adopted this perspective and it was good to hear their voice. But the rage in the cage gets the page for the most part.
More situations like this will occur in the years ahead as we close in on each other and the planet gets more and more crowded: Traffic jams; public transportation; office spaces; sporting events.
Going postal makes for great video on the 6 o’clock news. General sensory overload from social media and life in general contribute to the problem.
Tick tock, and someone will snap. Don’t let it be you.
Deep breath in, deep breath out. Remember what you can control and what you can’t. Take the long view. Help someone up rather than knocking someone down. Now go out and do it.
