Instructions for morons
December 4th 2007 20:09
Clear, detailed instructions are great thing, aren't they? Well, yes -- as long as they don't insult your intelligence.
Germans love instructions -- clear, detailed instructions. Because instructions make things run efficiently. And because instructions prevent people from being able to use the "I didn't know" excuse when they do something wrong. For this reason, there are a lot of signs in public places (such as parks, train stations, you name it) telling you what to do and what not to do. Most of the time they are actually quite useful, but sometimes... well... just consider the example described below.
I went to a public indoor swimming pool in Bonn one day. In the ladies' changeroom I noticed a sign on the wall that contained complete instructions for what to do before and after swimming. The "after" part contained instructions that sounded something like this:
"At home: Wash your towel and rinse your swimming costume. Hang everything out to dry."
What a stunning example of wasting space with something that 99% of people with an IQ above 80 would already know. I was speechless.
My boyfriend tried to defend the poor sign-writer's case with something along the lines of: "Hey, remember that most Germans do not come from a beach-culture city like Sydney. Swimming might be something they only do occasionally, so these instructions might not be 100% obvious to them."
Well, I only have one response to that: rubbish.
Here is my logic:
That particular pool ain't no kiddie pool -- therefore you can safely assume that practically everyone who goes there knows how to swim. And just the fact that they know how to swim indicates that they have already swum quite a few times in their life. And even a few times are enough to know exactly what to with your togs and towel once your bathing experience is over. What's more, this is a first-world country for goodness sake.
Good old Germans and their instructions... *sigh* Then again, I guess it's nice to see that even the least bright individuals are catered for in this society. Isn't that what caring and tolerance are all about after all?
Germans love instructions -- clear, detailed instructions. Because instructions make things run efficiently. And because instructions prevent people from being able to use the "I didn't know" excuse when they do something wrong. For this reason, there are a lot of signs in public places (such as parks, train stations, you name it) telling you what to do and what not to do. Most of the time they are actually quite useful, but sometimes... well... just consider the example described below.
I went to a public indoor swimming pool in Bonn one day. In the ladies' changeroom I noticed a sign on the wall that contained complete instructions for what to do before and after swimming. The "after" part contained instructions that sounded something like this:
"At home: Wash your towel and rinse your swimming costume. Hang everything out to dry."
What a stunning example of wasting space with something that 99% of people with an IQ above 80 would already know. I was speechless.
My boyfriend tried to defend the poor sign-writer's case with something along the lines of: "Hey, remember that most Germans do not come from a beach-culture city like Sydney. Swimming might be something they only do occasionally, so these instructions might not be 100% obvious to them."
Well, I only have one response to that: rubbish.
Here is my logic:
That particular pool ain't no kiddie pool -- therefore you can safely assume that practically everyone who goes there knows how to swim. And just the fact that they know how to swim indicates that they have already swum quite a few times in their life. And even a few times are enough to know exactly what to with your togs and towel once your bathing experience is over. What's more, this is a first-world country for goodness sake.
Good old Germans and their instructions... *sigh* Then again, I guess it's nice to see that even the least bright individuals are catered for in this society. Isn't that what caring and tolerance are all about after all?
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