by Elizabeth M Young

Created on: May 07, 2010

Cell phones! These technological marvels have to top the list of public annoyances. Cell phones give a person the ability to ignore and annoy everyone. Even those who have no business worrying about a total stranger who is talking on a cell phone in public will loudly ensure that the controversy will continue to grow.

Spitting. That is is the most disgusting and unhygienic thing that a person can do. Why people think that they can spit just anywhere, when they would be arrested for doing any other private bodily functions in public is a mystery that only increased fines and well publicized arrests can solve.

Neglectful or ineffective parents in public places. While everyone understands that the odd tantrum or mercurial crying jag will happen, completely out of control children who fly in a cloud, ignored by non reactive parents leads to others having to step in. Then the annoyance is compounded when the parents start up with the fake outrage over someone else taking action to keep their children from harming themselves or doing damage.

Fake crying. The fake cryers just don't get it. When tears are real, a person cannot talk very well and there will be runny noses, tears and wet eyes. Digging around in the eye with a dry tissue or raising the soft palate when talking really aggravates the fakeness. At least put some onion juice on that unnecessary tissue to make the act more convincing.

Store rudeness. Rude store clerks, staff and customers may have their excuses for behaving badly, but given the brief experience of doing shopping, no one has time to find out what the excuse is.

Parking lot rudeness includes straddling spaces to keep others from parking near the car, dent-and-run incidents. Stealing a space that someone was waiting for is beyond rudeness.

Public figures who telling obvious lies, slander people, make racial slurs, call for violence and make cheap shots in public speeches, then whine or lie when others respond is public annoyance beyond belief.

While it can be fun to look at a group of loud and active young people and remember the times when we were young and silly; it is not so appealing when much older or drunken people do it.

Public drunkenness or substance abuse in general.

Loud music when there is not a music event going on. This includes blasting car stereo systems.

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