Aussies called out over 'selfish' summer trend on the rise: 'Un-Australian'
It was the Australian debate that went global this recent holiday period. And again, Aussies are being called out for using "unfair" and "selfish" tactics to reserve prime spots at campgrounds, beaches and car parks to the detriment of others.
One of the nation's leading etiquette experts, Jo Hayes, spoke to Yahoo News on the matter, and said the "poor" trend is "reflective of a general societal decline" in courtesy towards our fellow man and woman.
She argued such acts are "bad form" and even branded them "un-Australian".
It comes after heated debate erupted over beach cabanas in January, and in particular those who use them to reserve space on the sand. Often people set up a cabana and then vacate the area, only to return later to expect to see it still waiting.
And the act isn't limited to beaches, with similar incidents occurring at campgrounds too. In Victoria, a local MP last week told Yahoo "ghost reservations" — reserving a campsite but leaving it unoccupied to prevent others from using it, or failing to honour a booking entirely — were costing the tourism sector big bucks in the wake of the state offering free camping to all visitors and residents.
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Nationals MP Tim Bull said the change "resulted in less people enjoying the outdoors in peak holiday period". Online this week, numerous examples of all three acts surfaced.
In one instance, a woman was photographed standing in the middle of a car park at Balmoral Beach in Sydney, in a bid to deter others from seizing the spot. She argued her "husband was coming soon".
Another example shows people setting up their picnic blankets in Cronulla at 7am in anticipation of Australia Day events later in the day, then vacating the area until showtime.
Hayes said the "only people who have the right to do such reserving" are the local council/regulators in charge of that area. "It's not fair," she said.
"There are ways that one can reserve the best, desired spots, that align with common decency and proper etiquette," she said. "This is the way things were done in previous generations. Get to the venue early, claim your spot and set up your gear, then stay there — you must have at least one person staying with the claimed spot.
"If you've taken the time to get there ahead of others — all power to you. Well done. But you don't have the right to lay down a blanket, or cordon off an area with your own self-made sign, and then choof off."
Hayes said that when in doubt, apply the golden rule of thumb: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
"The average Joe doesn't have the right to 'reserve' a spot and leave," she reiterated. "If a group wants to have an event at a council park, they can contact local council to officially reserve the spot. Council puts up a sign stating that the area is reserved for an event.
"One can't just put up their own sign."
Hayes said the example of the woman reserving the car park spot at Balmoral "is OK, as she is actually a human person standing in the spot" — but putting up a self-made sign "would not be OK."
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