"Politeness Costs Nothing"

I came across this phrase today while I was reading online. A person defined this phrase as follows: "Politeness costs nothing" means that any person can be polite and friendly without having to pay money for it. Wouldn't you agree with that? It's such a simple concept that I'm amazed that it is ignored so often, especially in the world of online discussion forums. The "best" of us are guilty at times too. Whether our motivations are pride or arrogance, or we simply fall back on rudeness that is covered by the anonymous nature of the internet, there is really no good excuse for being impolite.

Well if politeness costs nothing, is there an expense associated with rudeness? I would hope the plain answer is a resounding "yes." There is a saying that nobody remembers the good things you do, but everyone will remember the bad. This is true in sports, relationships, and in our participation in online discussion forums. Discussion forums on the internet seem to be the perfect setting for misstatements and misinterpretation of meanings of what we type. A lazy sentence or two, or an imprecise attempt at written sarcasm in a discussion forum can quickly lead to misimpressions and hurt feelings. The lack of intonation in written communication often leads to defensiveness and escalation written jabs. Before you know it, the original topic has been forgotten and a battle of "who's the best/smartest/quickest/etc." is on.

The price of politeness is nothing. The cost of rudeness, or even just imprecision in our communication, can be great and lasting.