To not think I should have to thank them

[Tellmelies65]

I went on a walk to the supermarket earlier and came Across a group of people talking on a pavement. They were outside a house clearly talking to the person who lived in the house. They moved as I approached them and then the woman shouted thank you at me.
I’m not a rude person but I don’t think you should have to thank someone when they are on a pavement.

Why do these picks feel entitled to a thank you. You are a stranger. Why are they so offended and hurt that a stranger didnt say thank you?

Its polite not to expect a thank you from someone.

You don’t have to but it is a harmless nicety that makes the world a little more pleasant to live in.

They weren't blocking the way though - they moved before being asked. If she had to ask then they would be blocking.

They hardly went out of their way and they were blocking the whole pavement. I think it was ruder of them to shout at you then it was of you to not say thanks.
I had similar in a shop once, I was reading the headlines of the papers and two elderly people started talking about how rude it was of me to stand in the way of them trying to get a paper. I had to laugh because they thought it was more appropriate to bitch about me than politely say excuse me.

Someone is doing something, they stop what they are doing for you, you say thank you. How is this even a debate and when on earth did we get an edict stating you can’t talk on pavements?! Currently you can’t invite people into our homes so aren’t most conversations held across pavements.

the pavement lady was a passive aggressive git, OP. yanbu.

I would be mortified & embarrassed & wanted to scold that lady if she was part of my group on the pavement. FFS, nobody should demand a thank you for basic human decency. Nobody should demand a thank you for failing to behave like a total arse.

It’s basic good manners both for them to move and for you to thank them.

A child of 7 would know this.

Where I live, people will give you a lot of space if they can - they'll get off the pavement, walk round cars, stand in garden gates etc in order to allow social distancing, and we ALWAYS say thank you to each other for making that wee bit effort. There's a sort of code. A single or couple of elderly infirm get the pavement- others walk round; dog walkers with multiple dogs or mums/dads with prams get the pavement-others walk round; it's nice to be neighbourly and look out for each other. Yes, say thanks. It costs nothing to be polite.

@1992serpent

I wouldn't have said thank you. What Walker stands on the pavement in everyone's way. That's far rude than not actually saying thanks.

Woman is a bitch.

This is a bit extreme, can’t people stop and have a chat with everything that is going on at the minute!!! They hardly blocked the way, they moved before she even reached them. It’s basic manners to move and it’s basic manners to say thank you 🙄 calling someone a bitch is not.

You don't need to thank people for moving Op.
Not when they're the ones blocking the pavement.
You weren't being rude, they were.

You don't need to thank people for moving Op.
Not when they're the ones blocking the pavement.
You weren't being rude, they were.

They were not blocking the pavement though, because they moved. If they were blocking they would not have moved. There was no block.

@Tellmelies65

In my mind they shouldn’t have even been standing there talking. We are in tier four area.

FGS. Just mind your business OP. Life is too short to be a busy body! The women shouldn’t of even moved for you!

Yeah, I'd say thanks when people have moved.

Though I recall one time when I was walking DC home from school and pushing the pram I didn't notice that someone was waiting (in a car) to leave a dental centre. So I just walked along the pavement talking to the kids, and this woman drove out, slowed down, rolled down her window and really screamed "say thank you, you're soooo ruuuuuude!". Was a bit baffled as I hadn't seen her waiting. Sometimes we all can get a bit distracted.

You were rude, you should have said thank you

Would it of actually hurt you to day thank you
Maybe they shouldn't be talking bit you have no idea why they were and they could of also just not moved
Manners is one of the things in life that are free

Also I always shout out thank you to those that don't
Don't really care if considered passive aggressive if they had used manners on the first place there would be no need
Too many people think they are above others or have more rights than someone else
There is no pavement rules that say people must not stand still and talk and walking is only allowed

Don't really care if considered passive aggressive if they had used manners on the first place there would be no need

I wouldn't say thanks to you either. Easily offended snowflake.

Why does the response to someone else's perceived poor behaviour have to be aggression and nastiness / dismissing them completely as a horrible and /or rude person? Yes, you should say thank you in the OP's situation, but what would shouting after her in the street actually achieve other than making someone who may already be having a bad day feel even shittier about themselves? Really, people would be much happier if, after minor infractions of some kind of unwritten 'good manners code' they just shrugged their shoulders and got on with life.

While it was slightly bad manners of the OP not to say thank you, and much worse manners of the other person to loudly demand that she do, I don't think either is a really big deal. They did move without being asked. What I hate is when people block the pavement and won't move, but just expect that others will go into the road to get around them. Once, some time before the pandemic so not related to that, I found a group of young people, probably students, completely blocking my way, and asked if they could move slightly so that I could get past. They refused and told me to 'just go into the road' around them. As I have mild visual problems, I find it very difficult and potentially dangerous to negotiate around traffic (it wasn't an extremely busy road, but this happened near a corner where cars sometimes turned quickly and unexpectedly), Rather than argue with them or try to explain my difficulties, I just went back to the beginning of the street, where I could cross at a pedestrian crossing. Anyway, that's the sort of thing that I really would consider as rude.

So OP asked AIBU - most people are replying yes and still they continue to argue they aren't BU

You are one rude lady.

I never understand threads like this. It’s like basic manners cost something. It takes a second to say thank you. Someone moves out your way to let you pass you say thanks. End of.

You don’t think well they are rude standing talking so I can now be rude too. That’s just weird.

Saying thanks is no effort at all.

We may live in what is called a democracy, but actually life isn't a democracy.

Because a lot of people think something is true, doesn't make it so.

The OP asked a question and loads of people have said the op wasn't being unreasonable or rude.

Maybe the majority may have said the op was unreasonable. Personally, I think people like a bit of an argument so they are suggesting the op was rude. Doesn't mean the op was rude.