Ozzies weren't taught manners ?????
 

As a child "P's & Q's" came natural (unless I wanted a slap on the chops )

I wonder if anyone here has noticed that many Australians do not know how the words "please" & "thanks" are used ?

What I am talking about is the use of the word "thanks", in place of "please". Could it be that there is an assumption when asking for something that one will get it and therefore no "please" is required, just a "thanks" ?

The other thing I notice is that there are many that aren't quite clear on the use of the words "then" & "than". Why is this I wonder ?

:beer:

Re: Ozzies weren't taught manners ?????
 

Fly season.

Re: Ozzies weren't taught manners ?????
 

frankly no, aussies and kiwis aren't taught manners - at least not to the same extent the british are.

american influence is another reason for different usages.

wouldn't the then/than thing just be the accent?

Alot do not have manners i have to say , and we get enough people through the doors at work to witness this , but other countrys dont either . The worst i have served was a lady and her kids , no please , thankyou or even a goodbye , i used them all she nor they didnt , they were british . But the only thing that gets up my nose is people here do not know how to form a que , they walk in front of you , wow bad manners.
Joanne

Re: Ozzies weren't taught manners ?????
 

Umm, 'slap on the chops' to teach manners???

OzTennis:)

Re: Ozzies weren't taught manners ?????
 

never did me any harm!

:eek:

I have found the Aussies here to be far more polite than i'm used to elsewhere. Even the younger shop assistants will ask you how your day is going, talk about the weather and wish you a good day/weekend when you leave. Just because their manners are not expressed the same way ours are, doesnt mean they havent been taught any, just a different set.

Re: Ozzies weren't taught manners ?????
 

I must admit im in a quandry here,

I cant recollect this Manners issue, although i will say this

U goto tescos here and try and get eye contact with the person on the till NO CHANCE MATE

U goto Woolies in Brissy and its Hello there how are you today, me and my missus nrly fainted when this happened for the first time.

LOL

I also notice that the Banana Benders tend to acknowledge and demonstrate gratitude facially rather than vocally.

My mate , an aussie in brissy kinda uses reverse speech: for eg.

That bad m8 means its good
Thats Good means Yeah so what !!!!

so its different INNIT !

I've found that in general teenagers seem to have better manners, also shop assistants are almost frighteningly helpful and polite. Nearly fainted this week when a girl in the shop shop offered to order in some sandals as she didn't have the right size. My last shop-buying trip in Brighton ended with "well, we ain't got it on the shelf, so thats it, innit, tough"......stunning sentence showing the English language at its best!!!
Also, at work theres a lot of door opening, helping out, just friendliness as well as good manners.
However I've also seen displays of shocking table manners - the sort that would have got me a as a kid - running round during meals, shouting over talking parents, refusing to wait until people have finished speaking, throwing tantrums in supermarkets - mostly among kids under 8, so maybe the manners come largely from the school environment? The language is better though - I hear far less obscenities from kids here, generally they are better spoken and have a wider vocab than kids in the UK.

:beer: Illl drink to that


:PARTY:

Whats becoming so annoying now in the UK, and reallly boils my **** is when you go into a shop and stand at the counter, the 2 ppl behind the counter strike up a conversation, now THAT is deffo rude....

manners
 

i am allso a stickler for basic manners,its the only iota of social binding we have.have had the shop assisstants chat away as well,over came this by gently goining in convo with them(sarcasticly)and then very obnoxiously follow this up with a deman (peppered with 4 letter words) to hurry up & serve me now!! no i didnt win custumer of the month award but got my ciggies and left (sniggering to myself) ;)

well customer service and manners and two different things....

customer service & genuine friendliness in stores are near non existent in many parts of the UK (though I have found it in parts of Scotland). In NZ you would literally get the sack if you are not being friendly to customers, let alone ignoring them. One reason for this is the relative strength of the economies/popn density - in UK it doesn't matter if you lose a customer, they will be a 100 more along in 5 minutes - in NZ customers are highly valued.

also I believe due to the class culture many English people have a problem appearing subservient to others, and do not like to be seen bending over backwards to help others, as it does not maintain the image of their 'privileged' position in life. 'Being waited on hand and foot' - that type of thing....

hence the so called working classes don't like to be seen 'serving' the middle classes as that reinforces the system, and many upper or middle class people can't been seen to provide 'service' to the working classes. obviously a generalisation but if you open your eyes you will see it on a daily basis....

Just a viewpoint from a non-Brit which, unless you've lived in NZ or Oz you probably won't 'see'.

Good points jan and user.

However I must be of the old school with you guys...

Another thing that irritates me , sounds like MR MAD off radio 1 > yrs ago


When I go into a shop here, and im not in a metroplolis but a village, why oh why oh why when you pay for someat by hand do they give you your change by placing it on the counter, grr thats another 1 offf my chest ( . )( . ) oops me man boobs are now inflamed :)

I'll second those observations Jon. I find the same thing with shop assistants UK vs Melbourne. And why does it always seem to be here that when you want help there is no shop assistant to be seen but when you just want to have a browse they are at you like vultures?

The British obsession with queueing never ceases to amaze me. For example, I recently went to the butcher's in our local town and it was p****g down. There was a queue from the counter out into the street. I came along and thought s*d this, I'm not standing in the rain. I asked whether it would not be better for everyone to go inside the shop as there was room for everyone and I said surely you know who is first and so on. You should have seen the looks I got for having the temerity to suggest something so outlandish.:D And yes, they kept queueing in the rain so I went to do some other things and came back later.

OzTennis:)

As an Aussie who has lived in the UK for the last 10 years, I hope I can make some observations:

Aussies are much more forward, and WILL complain or make their point known if you please or displease them. The English (as I can`t speak for the Scots or Welsh), will just put up with any old crap from the govt., shop assistants, taxi drivers, whatever....
Sometimes this means the Aussies come across as being rude.... I prefer to think we are just more matter-of-fact about things, and straight-forward. I constantly see the English being stuck in a rut (as with the queu in the rain mentioned by OzTennis)... with little common sense.

As part of the above, Aussies also say things and don`t hold a grudge, eg if an Aussie is pissed off about something, he`ll say so at the first opportunity, and then he`ll forget about it and get on with his life. It`s not a personal thing... it`s just a statement of fact. In England, people REALLY hold grudges for centuries over the stupidest of things. My wife`s family in the UK are a perfect example of sections not speaking to the others for 40 years because of an argument way back when..... grow up ppl.

I`m a real stickler for good manners, and generally in the UK I think ppl (outside of stores) have better manners (from what I remember of Aus 10 yrs ago). Of course, there are still LOADS of rude and ignorant people here also.... my wife works for Jessops and she get`s her fair share of really shitty customers.... and it makes her sick. I think staff in stores in Aus are generally better behaved as they know the customers wouldn`t have a problem shouting at them (as they are more straight-forward).

I think the education system is better in Oz.

I think the chocolate is better in Aus (more cocoa), and believe it or not there is much more choice.... which shocked me when I came here as I thought the UK would have had more choice.

Travel is definitely better and cheaper in Oz (trains and buses that is).

Aborigines (on the whole) are what let Aus down, possibly because they get everything or perhaps because they are bitter at whites taking over their country. Also the attitudes of many of the Italian immigrants who are stuck in their ways. The 2nd generation of those Italians will be able to be more open-minded though, so it`ll all work out.... much the same as it is working out with 2nd/3rd generation Pakistanis in England.

At least in Oz the street signs aren`t in Chinese or anything yet (are they?), like the Urdu here in Slough and Southall.
Probably sounds like I`m racist, but I`m not. Just being truthful. I have Indian, Pakistani and black friends btw.

I think the Aus media is disgusting when it comes to sports and stuff..... quite immature and derogatory. They let themselves down and don`t speak for a nation. The UK sports press are alot fairer, whereas the Aus press is very arrogant. Dissapoints me alot and I feel quite ashamed.