Money Can’t Buy Everything

hear hear!!

good write up, and VERY TRUE!

These assholes are not pigs, (the pigs would be insulted to have been compared to them) they are just low life dirt sucking cretins.

no matter how expensive their clothes, house, cars etc, it doesn’t cover the fact they are slobs with no manners.

It makes me wonder though, how did they get to be so rich when they are so lacking in manners? I thought the secret of wealth lies in appreciating even the smallest people, no?

About buang sampah sembarangan, gw sempet ngasi look kaya hamsternya di blognya Rima (nyambung kesini euy) gara-gara ada ibu2 yang nggandeng anaknya yang kurleb 5-6 tahun dan ngasi tau “Udah, buang (bungkus permennya) sini aja” di trotoar ketika anaknya (yang mungkin diajari oleh bapak ibu gurunya di SD) ngotot untuk nyari tempat sampah.

I often see this too – parents giving bad examples to their children. There are plenty of parents who actually don’t feel the need to control their children even in public places. They see their kids screaming on top of their lungs, banging and wrecking displays at shops, and the parents just ignore them and continue to browse whatever the hell it is they were browsing at. MAD!

Yeah… a food battle even sometimes they stand near the table and blocking the queue. in Indonesian term we called it “ga mau rugi”

Yep, and “Hukum Rimba”, “Siapa Menang, Dia Dapat” Even though the food being offered are not exactly rarities… Somay, sate, soto ayam, bakso? And people are fighting over them as if they have never eaten such food in their lives? He3x…

Before I ever attended an Indonesian wedding I was warned ” eat before you go or book a restaurant after” as the feeding frenzy is truely amazing, much safer to stand back and marvel at the whole display. It has proven excellent advice!!!!!!!

There is a real “Me Me” culture here with some people.
Like I need some food so stop my car and call the warung attendent over to take my order while completely blocking the road.

Like I need to text my best friend, as I’m lost, so I stop in the middle of the intersection, find my phone in my handbag, then start texting, same thing completely blocking all traffic.

Like I really need to get on this plane first as I have seat 15C, then I really need to be the first off the plane, probably cause I was first on the plane, f*cked if I know why it happens.

You are right it’s manners. I have a theory on why it happens, may be this is a post idea.

BTW I have seen no scribbling so far!!!!!! How is it going??? Too many bloggy lunches.

You pointed out some pretty good things there too, GJ!! Indonesians have this strange habit whenever they’re on a plane and it’s landing; even though it’s still moving and the seatbelt sign is still on, people actually take their seat belts off, stand up, and proceed to turn on their mobiles as if their lives depend on them!

And then they try to take their luggage from the head compartment and blocking other people’s way, which just makes it longer for everyone to get off the plane – it’s bizarre!

Scribbling is good, actually. Have done a couple of sketches but I haven’t scanned them yet – I keep forgetting. I will do one, just for you, GJ

I’d hate to diss my own fellow Indonesians, but seriously, when people say Indonesians are one of the friendliest people, with great manners, I thought they are mad.

I think the real down-to-earth Indonesians do exists in the suburbs. They happen to be those with less money than most of us. It makes you wonder doesn’t it, why oh why is it that people with money feel that they have the right to be rude?

I see it too often in Jakarta especially. I have actually told people off when they cut in front of me in a queue, or when they throw rubbish just anywhere they like.

A simple thank you, and a smile do not cost a thing..so..please people. Have some manners!

And Therry, good post my friend! =)

Thanks Miss Lai Lai!!

You’re right, when I visited Semarang the people there were so nice and friendly.

When I went to an ATM to get some cash out, there was a gardener who was sweeping the fallen leaves outside and when I was finished he said (In Javanese of course), “Make sure that you get all your money, and that you don’t leave anything behind”.

You will never see that happening in Jakarta! Most of the time people will just WISH you leave money/ATM card inside so they can drain your whole account dry!

You have a good point there about people having money and being rude. They probably think once they pay they own the whole goddamn place/people/whatevs

yep, esp. in the airplanes. when the gate is opened, everybody scrambles in, pushing and yet they’re taking a freaking long time just to put or get their bags. entering the airplane, too, people want to be the first to get seated, which i don’t understand…i mean YOU HAVE YOUR SEAT BOOKED!!! NOBODY WILL STEAL YOUR SEAT! and it’s not like the faster you’re in, the faster the plane will depart!!!

most of the time, i would just stay back and wait for the madness to end and get in to the plane when there’s no longer a queue.

LOL yeah that baffles me too! I reckon it’s because they’re used to catching public transport here in Indo so the mentality is already developed to think the same way even when they’re catching a plane. Which is probably not entirely true since they probably have their own chauffeurs and cars, so… yes, it’s a mystery to me too.

And oh, oh, what about the cinemas though!! Same thing right?!

Therry…

Manners or the lack thereof is not something which is unique or exclusive to Indonesia. It happens everywhere. Perhaps it is a cosequence in the type of world we have allowed to develop.

Manners should be reinforced at school. However, the majority of your manners should be learned at home. For me this is part of the parenting process. I learned my manners from my folks.

In terms of the rubbish in the rubbish bin thing. I always make a comment when I see someone littering. If it is an adult, then the comment usually goes along the lines of what kind of world do they want to leave for their kids and grandkids. I regularly jump in taxis and almost always find rubbish stuffed in the door handles, the seat pockets, or under the seat. Laziness?

But perhaps the qualm here is not just manners but the manner of conduct. Queue jumping is a classic anywhere that it happens, but here it is sometimes hard to tell where the queue is or what the queue etiquette is. For example, last night I am lining up at the ATM, there are two ATMs next to each other (one with 50’s and the other with 100’s).

The bloke in front of me got a little bit impatient and decided to jump across to the other machine. It turns out the machine was out of paper and he could not do all of the transactions he wanted to do. So, when he finished what he could do he returned to the queue and thought he would just slot back in front of me.

Queue etiquette for me is once you leave the line you rejoin it at the end (unless you have come to an agreement with the people behind you to rejoin the line where you left it). I told this bloke as much and said something narky about manners and learning. He went to the end of the line. I do not feel any better for having made a mini scene but I was tired and irritable, and the queue jumping to my mind was plain rude.

The thing that irks me most is where people cross the roads. For example, people who prefer to play frogger because they are too lazy to walk up a flight of stairs (or an angled walkway). It also bother me that drivers do not stop at red lights or pedestrian crossings. I have dinted a few cars in my time on Rasuna Said as I have crossed the road.

Money does not buy you many things, but perhaps the moral of this story is that belief that if you have money then people should respect you and you do not need to respect others. Perhaps money means that you do not need manners.

A final thought. You do not buy respect but rather you earn it.

Rob, thanks for the lengthy but thoughtful comment

From my experiences being overseas, I don’t think I’ve ever encountered any nation being as rude as Indonesians. True I might have only visited 2 countries, but a good friend of mine who has globetrotted everywhere also made the same comment that I couldn’t help but thinking; what was it with Indonesians? GJ wrote a good theory about this

However, I agree with you that in terms of queuing, it’s hard for some of us who have manners to know which way is actually right and which isnt, because the people were all in a shambles, the line was unclear, and everyone made their own rules.

On top of everything else, I just realised this; Indonesians are lazy. That’s why they don’t bother to line up, or walk up the stairs to cross the road, or wait for light to turn green. They don’t even have the patience to queue out of the freeway exit that they choose to cut in on other people who have waited patiently before them.

I is true; Indonesians think that because they have money, they think they own the country. And they totally don’t understand about earning respect. They’re so used of being bought all the time.

The rule “Money Talks” really applies well in this country.

Manner and character is what most become who we are.
Nice reading Therry.
My best.

Thanks Toni! As you can see, it’s clear I’ve just had a very bad day and quite fed up with how Indonesians are. But I’m sure there are some of us who still respect and appreciate each other out there

Hi Therry, interesting posts you have here
One of my major gripes whenever I fly back to Jakarta for hols is people driving (and speeding) on the road shoulders!
About Indonesians being lazy, they’re not really THAT lazy, I think. If they’re really lazy, would they put in the extra effort to pack all those sushi from the wedding banquet into their nanny’s bag, or rush to board the plane (same thing on arrival, where everyone stands on the aisle with their supermi boxes at the first sign of the plane stopping).
Although here in Singapore IMO the faces and personal service is way unfriendly compared to Indo, people still follow rules & manners – since they get fined if they don’t, and people are really paranoid about getting fined here. Someone told me on his first visit to Singapore that he’s impressed with the number of signs posted in public places. Every 10 meters there’s something saying no smoking, no littering, no eating, no durian, no loitering (nongkrong aja dilarang! pedahal ini favoritnya orang indo) no forgetting to flush the toilet, etc. Maybe Indo needs something as big-brother like. (but maybe they’re too lazy to enforce it anyway)

Thanks Jade! You know, apart from being lazy, another world-famous Indonesian trait is being greedy, even to something as silly as flower decorations at wedding receptions that are often get snatched away by irresponsible hands.

And the whole rushing to the plane thing is due to the habit of catching Indonesian public transport – it’s so unbelievably messy and dysfunctional that people often have to run to catch the bus at almost all the time! LOL

I agree, Indonesia (especiall Jabodetabek area) needs the strong hands and discipline of Singaporean governments.

My friend worked in an upscale wedding/event organiser in Bali, and her stories of how people behave during wedding parties can make my skin crawl.

One of the classics was when for a particular wedding (Indonesian couple) my friend decorated the back of each chair in off-white cover, with pretty maroon-colored wide sash tied in a pretty bow. Since the aircon was blowing rather strong inside the reception room, the bejeweled Ibu-ibu untied the bows and wore the material around their shoulders like one would a pashmina. So it was like a uniform during the party! And then, all the ladies just took the sash home with them.. despite all their bling-bling, heavy makeup and hairdo that suggested they could very well afford their own pashmina. Not also that, they stole some candlestands, flower bouquets, fancy cutleries etc. These honourable guests were practically looting! I doubt if any of them has ever head of the word “manner”.

ROFL.

That has got to be the funniest and most ironic wedding reception stories I’ve ever read! And nobody actually scolded or told these women off that the sash was not a part of the wedding souvenirs??

Oh.. how sad. One of them could’ve just told the hotel staff to change the AC setting – but I guess the urge to possess the sash/pashmina was stronger!

I do feel sorry for people who hold wedding receptions now because they’re the ones paying for the hotel loss!