The Millennial Star

Mister Manners says: it is rude for you to ask me to take off my shoes when I go to your house

Have you ever been to somebody’s house and seen one of those signs saying, “please take your shoes off” or, even sometimes, “shoes off!”  Well, Mister Manners says that is an incredibly rude message to send to your guests.

Before you get all huffy, let me make my case.

First, if you live in Japan or someplace where it is part of the general culture to take off shoes, then my complaint obviously doesn’t refer to you.  I am talking about places like the United States, Latin America and most of Europe where the general culture is that people do not routinely take off their shoes before going into a house.  If you live in some city in Italy where everybody takes off their shoes, again, Mister Manners gives you a pass.

Here is my argument:

 

I would estimate that about five percent of the people I visit have the “no shoes” rule, so it isn’t something I encounter all the time.  But everytime I do I think to myself, “do these people know how incredibly rude it is to demand that their guests take off their shoes before entering their home?”

So, my advice is:  take down the “please take off your shoes” signs.  You are insulting all of your guests.  If people are dirtying your floors all the time, you either need to stop inviting them to your house or you may want to consider that you are OCD and need therapy.

Mister Manners feels much better now.

 

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