Ok, I am far from rich, But, I've noticed a lot of lower income/impoverished people are really lacking in basic manners. Could this be a reason they have not been able to attain success in life?

No, it's probably just conformation bias on your part.

We don't have enough money/time to be anything but curt.

I think it depends the situation. I am poor but I have good manners and am kind to all, especially friends and family. Thanks to my ability to do voices I can at most times sound like a noble of old England, despite looking like a thug, hoody, track suit, sneakers. Or urban monk.

In comparision the neighbours are poor also, live in governemnt housing, work from home or are engaged in adult services. The smell of weed constantly wafts from their house and whereas I greet people with a friendly wave or hello, they tend to yell swear words and make rude gestures to those who make contact.

It's hard not to judge others but yes some people do regress in their behaviour. But if society treats people like animals eventually those people will become animals. An act as stated above I partake in. So am I different to them?

Civility is always important

Read a book recently that brought up
Respect in action
Pay attention
Acknowledge others
Think the best
Listen
Be inclusive
Speak kindly
Don't speak Ill
Accept and give praise
Respect even a subtle "No"
Respect others opinions
Mind your body
Be agreeable (sometimes disagreeable)
Keep it down and rediscover (silence)
Respect other people's time
Respect other people's space
Apologize earnestly
Assert yourself
Avoid personal questions
Care for your guest
Be a considerate guest
Think twice before asking for favors
Refrain from idle complaints
Accept and give constructive criticism
Respect the environment and be gentle to animals
Don't shift responsibility and blame
Striking though the form to the substance
(Choosing civility)

As usual, the beloved Stella and Curiouspaint just nailed it.

Civility and courtesy, and decency are lacking in every rung of social hierarchy. By your reckoning, Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk would be absolute paragons of morality.

And yet...here's are documented actions of a multi-billionaire that resulted in the deaths of some of his employees...er, FORMER employees.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/kimbal-musk-next-door-restaurants-coronavirus_n_5e8ccb32c5b62459a9302dbb

tl;dr: you don't need to be poor to be a cunt.

This read a little like satire to me at first but you appear to actually be serious (!) so..

I had the poorest of childhoods (by western standards) and had manners drummed into me at every turn

Some of the richest people seem to have no sense of honour, no grace, no manners, no inner balance of justice, and common sense. I think the ones who have inherited wealth rather than created it.

Anyway, I think it's confirmation bias too. You don't notice the poor people who have an abundance of manners, because none of their behavior stands out to you/sticks in your mind. Only the negative does.

This is a real thing. When I moved to a poor neighborhood I noticed right away that at shops and such NO one held a door open for others. Bit unsettling at first. Got the vibe that people didn't want to seem soft, set up to be a mark.

"Hey, we have sick child and we ran out of gas. Can you give me a dollar so we can get back to Whoville?"
"Nope."

I ain't falling for that shit.

There's confirmation bias because no one group of people has a monopoly on any sort of behavior, for the most part. These things are all true:

1. Some people don't get anywhere in life because they lack tact or people skills. This can be overcome with talent (the more talent you have, the more people will put up with), but if you don't have that and aren't a pleasant person to be around, why would anyone want to employ you in a good job? Or be in a relationship with you?

2. Some people think the world owes them something and when they don't get it (usually because they don't want to work for it), they are rude and bitter at the world for this. They take it out on everyone around them.

3. Some people want to feel better than they really are so they act rude and mean to people they feel are "beneath them." See how retail workers are treated by the cheapest customers.

4. Some people are very very nice and don't get anywhere in life despite or because of this. They are taken advantage of by others or just don't assert themselves enough to get where they need to be. They are kind and nice but don't have much going on for career or finance.

5. Some people know they lack talent and decide to be good people as a result. This is the poor and nice group. There are many people here too.


There's large numbers of people in all those groups, so it's not a "this group tends to be this way." There's some of all of this.

"Be aware that death does not release the employee from their contractual obligations or work attendance requirements. They will be expected to make arrangements for someone to cover their scheduled shifts"

Nah, he actually fired them so they couldn't used the "family fund".

Trust me, he's got no monopoly on trying to stay in business. I work for a billion dollar company that crapped all over employees with decades invested in making a CEO successful. Bottom line is that all you can do in this world, no matter who you work for, is keep your skills and resume current and some money in the bank. It's just life. I can say though that the jerks I work for were at least courteous about screwing us.

This take is so bad I'm not really sure where to start. My assumption from this is that you're finding an excuse to say "some people fail for a reason." Seemingly taking a stereotype and applying to a whole group and stating this is the unequivocal truth on the matter. Occam's razor is rarely applicable, especially in social sciences. This is akin to the 20th sciences of skull measuring where Africans were believed to be less evolved than Europeans which validated why many people of African descent lived in poverty. Now we know that was all white supremacist pseudoscience and the reason why people of non European heritage in America and other western countries were held down was social hierarchies based from the time of slavery, to segregation, Jim Crow, voting restrictions, systematic oppression, and more.

Saying people fail because manners is the most bizarre and unthoughtful argument I've ever heard regarding social sciences. If the world was this black and white I'm sure that would be the case, but surprisingly more than manners exists. Furthermore, manners barely even matter in modern society in terms of social progression, just like 100 years ago the impoverished people are held down my race based systematic oppression as well as a stanch feudalistic culture where class mobility is barely achievable. Even with three university degrees I'm barely scraping by and I life in a country with an extremely affordable life. Many people with masters degrees in America live with multiple roommates which is ridiculous.

Your own observations, I hate to break it to you, are actually not a good way to measure the truth. If that was the case I could easily say from my personal experience that all rich people are extremely mean, ill mannered, and disgusting; while poor people are extremely kinda, persistent, and strong. While I see that to be true, I know my life experience isn't the end all be all of fact. Another assumption I can make is, "umd members who pose questions that are rude are terrible people." That's my assumption but it's not true, at least as far as I know, you could prove my point correct.

While I wish the social hierarchy was created by people who lack manners, it seems the ones who lack the most manners are the ones with such a little understanding of anyone else in the world they think because someone didn't hold the door for them that's why they're a failure. Next time, try to think about what constitutes manners and if you value human dignity, respect for others, and empathy; then quite possibly that person would pose such a hateful question.

I like the list that Curiouspaints posted, although most of it would be lost on the folks who need that the most.

But this post is nice. It's real. The world is not black and white. It's a million shades of grey. And you have to get out in it and interact with real people to understand this. Mass media and/or Social Media consumption is what leads to narrowminded opinions about 'others'.