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<blockquote data-quote="devilbat" data-source="post: 2350681" data-attributes="member: 20624">It's funny that this should come up.You see, my dad has recently become an American citizen.&nbsp; He's spent the last fifteen years in Minnesota, but was born and raised in Canada.&nbsp; We often get in discussions about the differences, percieved and real, that we have between nations.&nbsp; Where we always disagree is when it comes to manners.He raised me to refer to elders as Mr. or Mrs.&nbsp; Closer family friend elders were referred to as Uncle or Aunty, even if there was no actual relation.&nbsp; We were taught to never grab, always say please, thank you AND You're Welcome.&nbsp; Use &quot;excuse me&quot; when passing by, &quot;pardon me&quot; if interrupting, hold the door for elders and especially for women.&nbsp; This was a hard and fast rule, as my father would never be labled as a gentle man.Now, fifteen years later, he tells us that we Canadians are too caught up in manners, and that little things like that are not important.&nbsp; His U.S based nieces and nephews all call him by his first name.&nbsp; If I excuse myself around them, they think I've burped or farted.&nbsp; If I hold a door for someone, they look at me like I'm going to rob them.I laugh about it, but I prefer polite people to the impolite.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="devilbat, post: 2350681, member: 20624"] It's funny that this should come up. You see, my dad has recently become an American citizen. He's spent the last fifteen years in Minnesota, but was born and raised in Canada. We often get in discussions about the differences, percieved and real, that we have between nations. Where we always disagree is when it comes to manners. He raised me to refer to elders as Mr. or Mrs. Closer family friend elders were referred to as Uncle or Aunty, even if there was no actual relation. We were taught to never grab, always say please, thank you AND You're Welcome. Use "excuse me" when passing by, "pardon me" if interrupting, hold the door for elders and especially for women. This was a hard and fast rule, as my father would never be labled as a gentle man. Now, fifteen years later, he tells us that we Canadians are too caught up in manners, and that little things like that are not important. His U.S based nieces and nephews all call him by his first name. If I excuse myself around them, they think I've burped or farted. If I hold a door for someone, they look at me like I'm going to rob them. I laugh about it, but I prefer polite people to the impolite. [/QUOTE]

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