LITTLE ROCK, Ark., January 16, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- As Jim Porter's "Making Manners Worse: The Official Guide to Bad Manners" and "The Importance of Being Wilde" (now both are available in one volume through 1stBooks Library) notes, gone are the people of gentlemanly and ladylike bearing. Etiquette has been thrown into the dustbin of history, and manners have gone to the dogs, so to speak.
The caustic wit and sarcasm employed by Jim Porter in his vivid portrayals of manners gone bad will cause anyone to laugh at first, and then to rethink his position. Are these the behaviors which we were taught at home, in school and in church, and which enhanced our everyday dealings? How did we manage to give proper respect? How can we possibly tolerate the continuity of dreadful conduct?
No one can deny that he has not been placed in the familiar scenarios which Porter pokes fun at: "Dear Author: I get so tired of cell phones being used at dinner. Everytime I go out with friends, one of them gets a call. Shouldn't that person leave the table while conversing? Dear Reader: Absolutely not. The rest of you should vacate the table out of respect for the person who gets the call. If it's a small restaurant with no place for you to go, you should cease talking to each other. This will allow the other person to hear the other caller, plus allow those of you at the table to hear what is said in response."
If "Rules" became the bible of single people for dating and relationships, then "Making Manners Worse: The Official Guide to Bad Manners" and "The Importance of Being Wilde" should also turn into the manual for all those who still want to appear respectable and dignified in these modern times.
Author Jim Porter is a major Oscar Wilde fan, and has included significant Wilde quotations in this book. A native of Arkansas, Porter has been so connected with the music industry that both Gov. Tucker and Gov. Huckabee appointed him to the Arkansas Entertainers Hall of Fame Board. He was also elected as Justice of the Peace of Pulaski County. His previously published work is titled "Only in Arkansas."
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