"Please?" US vs. Argentina

Got Language?  Sure, we do!  At least for us Yanqs, it might be easier to transition to an expat life in Argentina than anywhere else on earth (I´m deliberately ignoring the metric system and °F vs.°C) ...except for learning Rioplantense, of course.

Language was big in the news last week with this NYT article which started a chain reaction with their links to other sites that deal with differences within the English language.  While perusing those links, I discovered a discussion of the word "please" and how differently it is used outside the US.

I was amazed at how closely the US/UK differences parallel the US/Argentina ones!  Here's my favorite illustration of this:

A guy walks into a bar in Chicago.  The bartender greets him.  The guy says, "Gimme a beer."  The bartender brings him a beer.  The guy says, "Thanks."
That's polite in Chicago.
That's rude in Buenos Aires.

A guy walks into a bar in Buenos Aires.  The bartender greets him.  The guy says, "Gimme a beer, please."  The bartender brings him a beer.  The guy says either nothing at all ...or, "That was nice of you."
That's polite in Buenos Aires.
That's rude in Chicago.

The blog Separated by a Common Language does a great job of exploring the US non-usage of the word "please."

The blogger, Lynne Murphy, shows that we Yanqs believe that we use "please" as often as anyone ...and we're surprised to find that we don't.

It reminds me of a Canadian who transfered into my Chicago office and claimed that very few of her countrymen ever used the word "eh?" at the end of a sentence.  We tortured her by pointing out (usually in unison) everytime she said it.

Even after 9 years in Argentina, I still have to make a special effort to ensure that I say "por favor" with every request.  I still occasionally forget.

Any Argentine worth his máte could endlessly torture any one of us with the number of times we "forget" to use the magic word that our mothers all drilled into our heads throughout childhood.

Murphy describes, "when I first came to this country--and for a while after--I would hear British people claiming that Americans don't say please, and I would bristle. Of course we do! We are trained to add the magic word when we request things. We are nice people! I'm a nice person! And anyone who doesn't think so can have a sock in the eye.

But then I lived here a while and my family and friends started to come over and visit. They'd order food in restaurants and I'd hear how abrupt they sounded, leaving off the please. Then I noticed myself and my English friends at our weekly gossip pizza get-together. If I ordered first, then I'd notice that everyone else had said please and I hadn't."

It seems there's a reason we don´t use "please."  Unlike Argentines, Brits, Canadians, (and aparently Italians) ...we yanquis feel saying "please" is rude.

Go read her blog post, please.