We already know that anonymous letters are despicable. In etiquette, as well as in law, hiring a hit man to do the job does not relieve you of responsibility.

Learn graceful ways of saying no and of pointing out that this pressure to do something is not in line with most people's wishes.

Like language, a code of manners can be used with more or less skill, for laudable or for evil purposes, to express a great variety of ideas and emotions. In itself, it carries no moral value, but ignorance in use of this tool is not a sign of virtue.

Many people mistakenly think a new technology cancels out an old one.

When you consider how epidemic boredom is in our time, you have to concede that entertaining is a healing art.

When politeness is used to show up other people, it is reclassified as rudeness. Thus it is technically impossible to be too polite.

Perhaps the greatest rudenesses of our time come not from the callousness of strangers, but from the solicitousness of intimates who believe that their frank criticisms are always welcome, and who feel free to "be themselves" with those they love, which turns out to mean being their worst selves, while saving their best behavior for strangers.