Poll concludes Americans are getting ruder

In a recent survey of American adults, 69% felt that Americans are becoming ruder and less civilized. (You might wonder if the other 31% threatened to beat the stuffing out of the telephone pollster asking the question, but that was not the case.)

The phone poll, by Rasmussen Reports, found that only 14% of the responders felt that our countrymen and women were kinder and gentler; 17% were undecided. That's better than last year when 75% of respondents said they felt Americans were getting more boorish.

The phone survey, which was conducted in mid-August, also found that what is considered rude behavior is starting to change. This year, 43% of adults said it was rude if someone talks on their cell phone while sitting next to them. Last year, 51% of respondents found the action rude.