“I didn’t raise you in a barn!” my mother used to say whenever I put my leg up on the chair at the dinner table.
“What’s wrong with a barn?” I’d ask.
We all have heard some variation of the “were you raised in a barn” question at some point in our lives, as if there is a proscribed list of behaviors you need to abide by in order to be considered civilized. Most of us go through life hoping for common courtesy and respect—and some of us have higher expectations.
On Reddit, one user asked “what’s a sign that someone wasn’t ‘raised right'”—and the answers were…illuminating to say the least.
1.
“You give them a lift and they leave rubbish in your car.” — kitjen
2.
“Lack of personal accountability. They can never admit wrongdoing on their part. It’s always someone else’s fault.” — DFloydd
3.
“Who are the guys who spit out their chewing gum into urinals? I see this all the time at work and I work in a high end corporate place. Do they think it dissolves and goes down the pipe? The janitor has to pick that out.” — NealR2000
4.
“Someone that does things to intentionally hurt another person’s feelings after they’ve expressed that, that certain thing hurts their feelings.” — JadeM05
5.
“Karens and male Karens who look down on cleaners, janitors, sanitary workers. They tell their kids that they’ll end up like ‘those people’ if they don’t sucseed into stealing or competing with others or some bullshit.” — fujiwara_armbar
6.
“Not respecting personal boundaries. If you’re wondering why someone has these sorts of issues, take a look at their parents.” — Wearer_of_black
7.
“How they treat animals and people without power.” — loganalytics
8.
“The word ‘no’ just means throw a fit and be as obnoxious as you can be until you get your way. ‘No’ does not mean that rules are rules or someone’s job might be on the line, they’re the important one, not anyone else.” — llcucf80
9.
“They have no manners in general, or only use manners when they absolutely have to in order to preserve their own interests.” — BlackCaaaaat
10.
“Turning conversation back to themselves at all cost. Being a good listener is a sign of a person raised well…I don’t mean quiet or a doormat. I mean generous, empathetic, supportive and curious. Good follow-up questions without making it about oneself, etc.” — larryfellows