I think it’s that people who grow up in very crowded spaces have a much smaller zone of personal space they’re comfortable with. I was at Disneyland with friends years ago. It was an off-day, off-season and not crowded. We were at the Main Street train station waiting in the “holding pen” with an Indian family. We were a party of four, and the family was about six people (mom, dad, kiddies and granny). The holding area was large and could accomodate at least 50 people (probably more). While we were waiting for the train, no one else entered the pen.
Granny insisted on standing practically on my feet. She’d occasionally bump me she was standing so close (and the others weren’t far off). It was annoying. But I didn’t make a big deal about it. My guess was they were used to large crowds and always bumping into people, so she didn’t even notice it. It was weird to me, though.
When was being addicted to your device declared such a disability that it allows those people to take up all the bus’s front seats? Heaven forbid they should use up the 30 seconds of “plurky turkey” time walking back to the sixth front seat.
ETA: I used to call these people “plunky monkeys” because they reminded me of monkeys picking off lice. My sister called them turkeys, and the term “plurky turkey” was born.
My job often involves me pushing a hand cart loaded with boxes of paper on a regular basis. Because hand carts are hard to drag up stairs, I always use the elevator. There are always people who look stunned when they try rush into the elevator before I have time to get off. Yeah, I’m a small female, easy to shove out of the way. 300 lbs of paper on a cart with locked wheels isn’t nearly so easy to move. Wait until I have cleared the area, and there will be more room for everyone else.
I learned while growing up that one should always let the people IN the vehicle out first just because it was common sense.
Anyone who takes the subway in NYC has run into the most asinine and rage-inducing behavior of the guys (occasionally girls, but it’s almost always guys) who sit on the steps leading up and don’t get up to move as everyone is trying to exit the station. Whoops, that giant bag I was carrying *accidentally *smacked the back of your head, so sorry!