Common Denominators

As we all learned in grammar school, a denominator is used to divide or separate into segments. It is a means to fractionalize. I never truly understood why societal “common denominators” were considered shared traits that were thought to bring us closer rather than serve to divide us. This holiday season, however, I have seen many examples of the divisiveness that results when some “common” traits are missing in action.

The one that I find frequently absent these days is “Common Sense.” I have noticed it is especially rare in retail stores of all types. From fast-food chains to elegant boutiques, it seems that workers are required to leave their rational mind and problem-solving abilities at home. No thinking allowed on the job! Here is an example from yesterday.

My husband stopped at a drug store for a pack of antacids (dessert for Christmas dinner?) and was thoughtful enough to pick up a soft drink for me. The store has a large fountain with various kinds of coffee, fruit coolers, soft drinks, etc. Their usual price for carbonated beverages is 50 cents for a 22 ounce cup and $1 for a 44 ounce one. However, the store was out of the usual cups that are stocked at the soft drink machine. When my husband asked for a cup, he was told that they were out and to use one of the plastic cups at the iced fruit cooler machine. These are 32 ounces, so my husband was already alerted that there might be a problem at check out. He figured the easiest thing would be to pay for the pop right there with the clerk who had told him to use a substitute cup. After all, that person would know that the cup was used for pop and not the fruit smoothie. Can you guess the outcome????

The clerk SCANNED the cup – which rang up at $1.59 with tax. My husband asked how he could charge $1.59 for 12 oz. LESS soft drink than would have been in the 44 oz. cup for $1. This question created some frowning and finger counting on the part of the clerk, who did not immediately grasp the simple math. The clerk finally said, “Well, that’s how much it rings up and that’s what we have to charge.” Apparently, the manager who decided to substitute the cups didn’t give the clerks any direction on how to charge for the substitute contents. Clearly, this was a situation that called for a little “common sense” by the manager AND the clerks. They had all abandoned their logical thought at the door when pinning on their employee IDs. My husband paid for the soft drink (I would have left it had it been me) and delivered my “gourmet” priced Dr. Pepper along with a short rant. He vowed to never visit this store again – demonstrating how this simple lack of what is thought to be a common trait functioned as a common “denominator” that divides us and our future patronage from this retailer.

The other “common” behavior that I have seen causing a lot of divisiveness recently is the lack of “common courtesy.” From what I can tell, it is becoming as uncommon as 4-leaf clovers. In a season when we send greeting cards with messages of peace on earth and good will toward our fellow man, it appears that we don’t have either the time or inclination to actually practice those concepts in person. This “common denominator” serves to divide not only the people who fail to demonstrate courtesy, but infects the recipients who then spread the problem to everyone around them. Common “discourtesy” seems to be more contagious than the common cold! I’m sure I don’t need to give any detailed examples of this phenomenon – if you have been out shopping for the holidays you undoubtedly have a few of your own experiences to share. Feel free to add them in the comments section. I guarantee that I will display “common courtesy” and read them as if I never heard of fractions :-D