Politeness

As a parent who loves to hear kids say "please" and "thank you" I understand the value of politeness. I'm on board. I think it's part of being nice, and if you're not being nice, you're being mean.

But, on the other hand, there is a line. If you cross that line, you're not being polite, you're being odd and misleading.

For me that line falls somewhere this side of the phrase "dog dirt." I heard that for the first time a few years ago and couldn't believe that an adult would actually say that to another adult. This is allegedly a polite way of saying "dog poop." But to me, it's not the polite way to say it, because that's simply not what it means. Dirt is one thing, poop is another. Dirt on your shoes is an everyday occurence. Poop on your shoes is cause for immediate cleaning.

If you call if dog dirt, you're just in denial. It's poop, people! SH*$! (That's the polite way of writing...)

Another example of a similar thing: the litter box. News flash: that stuff in their ain't litter! If I show up at your house with an empty bag of chips and a soda can, that's litter. What would you think if I put that stuff in your litter box?

To me that's sort of like if someone says "would you mind helping me lift this heavy thing?" and you say "yes" to be polite, even though you have a bad back or some other reason not to want to help. "Yes" in that instance is not polite, it's a lie. And I think it's usually mean to lie to people. Because when you go to the hospital after lifting their file cabinet, they're going to wish you'd given them the opportunity to find someone else to help.