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Old 08-03-2013, 11:29 PM
 
15 posts, read 39,025 times
Reputation: 29

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I work in the service industry and the company that I work for has a location in the Schertz/Selma area. I deal with a variety of customers Monday - Friday 8a - 5p. I'd like to start off by saying that we have our very good, friendly customers from this area, that, without them, I would've already left this company a long time ago. But the majority of our customers are downright mean.

Does anyone else besides me, my co-workers, and believe it or not, some of my customers from the area notice that the majority of the residents in this area are very, very uptight, mean, impatient, and downright rude?

I've had people curse me out, flip me off, kick the door open on the way out, throw papers on the counter, snap and whistle at me when I'm in the middle of consulting with a customer, I could go on. I used to work at our location over near the airport, and trust me, it's like night and day. I never had these kind of customers until I transferred to my current location.

During my lunch hour, I will go up the road to the Forum . The roads in that complex are like a free-for-all, the drivers are extremely impatient, will run stop signs, and honk until their horn burns out (not literally). The stores look ransacked and the employees look tired (some look like they're at a funeral).

I don't know, it's hard to explain, but it's just a very weird area. Every other mom seems to drive a gold or light blue Honda Odyssey. Every other guy drives a Ford truck with ridiculously over sized tires. Keeping up with the Joneses much?

Please don't get me wrong, I have good friends and customers that live in the area, and I know that there are truly good people, so no offense. During the holidays we will have our regular customer bring us holiday treats and gifts. In fact, the other day, I had a customer bring me and my co-worker Sonic drinks because she witnessed how crappy a lot of our customers are.

I was born and raised in the Alamo Heights/Terrell Hills area and still live in the area, in the Oak Park/Northwood area to be exact, my aunts and uncles live on the SE side of town and I can tell you for sure that these are just more friendly areas than the Schertz area, there's just no common courtesy over there.

Thoughts?
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Old 08-04-2013, 03:17 AM
 
502 posts, read 930,034 times
Reputation: 405
I hate that side of town with a passion! I never travel over there, something always bad happens!
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Old 08-04-2013, 09:31 AM
 
Location: USA
4,425 posts, read 5,298,324 times
Reputation: 4114
I live in the same area as you and go to the forum all time and I have no idea what you are talking about. Traffic can be and issue but at every stop sign in San Antonio and all of Texas are free for alls.
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Old 08-04-2013, 09:46 AM
 
Location: San Antonio
2,817 posts, read 3,442,408 times
Reputation: 1252
Over by seaworld area, the drivers never get upset. If you get a flat tire, the people just stop to help. In fact, so many want to help that you have to turn them away. Everyone comes to a complete stop and looks to the left and right. Nobody speeds, and we all know how to get on to the freeway. Our drivers are just the best. Everyone even drives with both hands on the wheel. Nobody talks or texts on their phone either.
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Old 08-04-2013, 10:36 AM
 
Location: Texas
5,717 posts, read 18,777,347 times
Reputation: 11222
I worked the Converse area for about 4 years and your experiences about mirrors mine. Like you I made some fabulous friends in the area but then there were the arrogant, rude, dimwits that made life miserable. I can guess that maybe it's due to the ever changing of humans out there with the military. You get all kinds with them- the great, the good, the creeps. Considering I usually had information as to where home was for most of the folks, it seems those from the northern big towns like Detroit, New York, Boston, anywhere New Jersey, etc were the worst.
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Old 08-04-2013, 11:47 AM
 
Location: United States
464 posts, read 799,583 times
Reputation: 780
Kevin, glad you stepped forward to point out the degradation of manners that is all too common these days in society; particularly here in San Antonio. When we first moved here in the late 1990's, the San Antonio area seemed more laid back and not as frantic. Cognizant of the fact that the population growth, fueled parimarily by residents originating outside of the state of Texas (like myself) bring different attitudes and habits, it's not too surprising that some change has taken place.

Having said that, there is no excuse however for the behaviors you point out in your post. I have witnessed this and more and it is becoming all too common. I live in the Schertz area and I can testify that attitudes aren't getting better but it doesn't want to make me move either; I see this negative, hostile attitude/demeanor all over. Civility towards fellow citizens is a forgotten thing. You can thank reality TV and other media for perpetuating the mean-spirited, aggressive image as the way to be. Weakness, in these shows, is viewed as a liability and such aggressive individuals seek to dominate those who do not conform with the aggressors' views.

Thanks to a cultural movement that began back in the 1980s with teaching parents and kids that they're special, unique and deserve the best was the beginning of the breakdown in manners. Self-awareness has changed in definition; these days it means to be aware of only yourself and what you need, not how you're perceived by others and how to adjust to fit in. Roll forward to the early 2000s and the advent of reality TV and its focus of worship upon the thug/whiner/schemer as hero and you further perpetuate bad behavior.

The more common these characters became on the media the more "accepted" this previously offensive behavior became until, sadly, it seems the norm now. Whenever a population center is changed through migration by those from outside areas, change occurs. Back in the day those migrating to a new home would eventually conform more or less to fit into their new cultural backdrop. Not the case anymore in the self-centered world we live in. People have this expectation that they will bend others to their will, be it by force or sheer intimidation. Sounds a lot like the description of sociopathic behavior to me.

It's gotten so bad in the business world that corporate protocol and etiquette consultants are now busier than ever. My company recently hired a protocol/etiquette consultant to come in and train our executive and sales staff. The consultant had just finished their 2 day training for our selected employees and I asked the consultant what their unbiased opinion of the results of our training was. The feedback I received on several employees was shocking and being on the executive committee, had to bring these comments to our CEO. Several of the individuals singled out are in critical customer-facing roles that could result in potential lost clients if the issues that were discussed continued unabated.

I didn't want this post to be so long as to qualify as an essay on the decay of manners, but it's worth pointing out that the degradation of civility is not confined to any one certain area, but is a spreading disease that infects all of society and shows no sign of stopping. People can control its spread but it takes effort; it takes a person who is aware of their behavioral impact on those around them. It requires being honest with yourself and acknowledging that you may possess certain behaviors that need correcting. Many people aren't equipped for that kind of self honesty. And it takes a person who is willing to resist engaging in bad behavior when facing the same.

Only then can things begin to change for the better.
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Old 08-04-2013, 12:19 PM
 
Location: San Antonio. Tx 78209
2,649 posts, read 7,409,062 times
Reputation: 1763
Kevin, I totally agree with you, I'm from the same area. I have family that lives in Converse, they moved to Cimarron 15 years ago, just in those 15 years the area has changed, I don't know if it's because the area is getting less wealthy, and families have had to cut back and the strain it puts on them, but I know my family actually prefers to now shop in our area, ie the Austin Highway walmart, HEB ect... They do own their home outright and that is the only thing keeping them there.

To Winefan, agree with you too, the other day there was a post by a mother who was being transferred here for an Army job, She was letting her precious snowflake pick out where to live for the high school even though it was really out of her price range and not convenient to her work place, but her snowflake wanted to live there. I pointed out how asinine that was and got a snappy reply back. The truth hurts sometimes.
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Old 08-04-2013, 01:48 PM
 
7,005 posts, read 12,414,046 times
Reputation: 5478
I was just at the Schertz Walmart and noticed how rude two people were to an employee who was pushing a long line of shopping carts. I normally don't drive out of the county to go shopping, but they had something in stock that wasn't in stock at any of the San Antonio locations. I do a lot of my shopping on Austin Hwy. However, the drivers are bad all over San Antonio. The area I hate driving in the most has to be 1604 and 281. As a matter of fact, I used to drive an express bus up there, and the riders on that bus were the rudest.
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Old 08-04-2013, 05:49 PM
 
2,359 posts, read 6,400,347 times
Reputation: 658
I don't want to stir the pot but I stay away from there as much as I can, many rude people and I encountered at the HEB there and at the Wal-Mart. It was both employees and customers so maybe people just hate living in that part of town but who knows. I am better off staying away from there, it does not have anything special anyway.
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Old 08-04-2013, 07:58 PM
 
15 posts, read 39,025 times
Reputation: 29
There is a HUGE sense of entitlement over there. Forgot to add that one in. A lot of angry military wives that want discounts for everything and think they can cut the line.
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