Could we try this?

	Stacy Innerst, Post-Gazette Click illustration for larger image.

Audience participation exercise: Raise your hand if you consider any of the following public acts offensive: putting on make-up, eating, kissing, crossing one's legs on a bus, hanging in there with a crying infant and using an umbrella to practice golf swings. . . (OK, just a smattering of hands. Now I'll read the same list, but I want a show of hands from Japanese readers only. . . Ah, thumbs down on pretty much the entire list. OK, let's turn the bad behavior list up a notch): Thoughtless cigarette smoking, using strong perfume and bellowing into cell phones . . . (Hands from people of all nationalities, including some guilty of these practices.)

For us, random acts of narcissism are just another day in America. But in Japan, the threshold for what constitutes bad behavior is considerably lower, and so there is government concern over the rise in public rudeness, particularly among the young. If you don't behave in Tokyo, reports The Times of London, you could have the Study Group Relating to the Prevention of Behavior that Causes Discomfort Among Numerous People in Public Places breathing down your neck. (SGRPBCDANPPP, for short.) And not just on the streets. Politicians have been warned not to send cell phone e-mails or read comic books in parliament. When it comes to fighting incivility with incivility, though, the Japanese are at a disadvantage: They're not good at swear words. The worst, not lost in translation, is "Drop dead, you idiot!"

Is it OK to say "idiot"?

By custom, Brazilians have called each other black, fat, short and ugly without giving it a second thought. Words that could provoke fist fights or lawsuits here are no big deal in Brazil. But Brazil has now entered the wonderful world of politically correct speech, The Christian Science Monitor reports, and has even outdone us. The government has listed 96 words and phrases it hopes will eventually become unacceptable. At least 17 refer to race, ethnicity or creed. But those serious warnings were lost in the brouhaha over seemingly innocuous words. Brazilians are advised not to call a drunk a drunk because even alcoholics deserve respect. Old people should be called elderly, because "old" sounds too negative. And lay off the word "clown," because comedians, a traditionally sensitive lot, might be offended.

Chillax, you lingweenie

Merriam-Webster asked visitors to merriam-webster.com to submit their favorite words that aren't in the dictionary.

From the AP
• Man Buys Smoker, Finds Human Leg Inside • Coach Stops Runaway Horse by Biting Ear • Man Allegedly Tries to Use 'Blurry' $100 • Police Break Up Brawl at Chuck E. Cheese • Suggestive Card Ruffles Farmer's Feathers • Nerds to Auction Themselves to Women • Toilet to Tap? San Jose Probes Plan • Seattle to Allow Pygmy Goats As Pets • Yankees Rookies Dress Up in Oz Costumes

The top 10:

1. Ginormous (adj): bigger than gigantic and enormous.

2. Confuzzled (adj): confused and puzzled at the same time.

3. Woot (interj): an exclamation of joy or excitement.

4. Chillax (v): chill out/relax, hang out with friends.

5. Cognitive displaysia (n): the feeling you have before even leaving the house that you are going to forget something and not remember it until you're on the highway.

6. Gription (n): the purchase gained by friction: "My car needs new tires because the old ones have lost their gription."

7. Phonecrastinate (v): to put off answering the phone until caller ID displays the name and number.

8. Slickery (adj): having a surface that is wet and icy.

9. Snirt (n): snow that is dirty, often seen by the side of roads that have been plowed.

10. Lingweenie (n): a person incapable of producing neologisms.

(Pittsburgh) debut

It was recently brought to The Morning File's attention that Bruce Springsteen did indeed write a Pittsburgh song. But he never publicly performed it until last week in St. Paul on his "Devils & Dust" tour. Coming out for encores, Springsteen mentioned St. Paul police officer Sgt. Gerald Vick, who was killed in the line of duty. He then sang "A Good Man is Hard to Find (Pittsburgh)" from 1998 in honor of Sgt. Vick and his family. We're honored, too.

Include a group photo

You think our government is in your bedroom? Check this item from Spain, where the business news is not all about price/earnings ratios. As of July, directors of corporations will have to disclose not just dealings with spouses and family but also with anybody else with whom they have an "affectionate relationship," meaning lovers and gay partners, the Spanish daily El Mundo reports. This is to ensure that loved ones of all persuasions don't benefit from insider information. Enforcement remains unclear.