{
  "id": 11393086,
  "title": "This week I am despondent!",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/02/this-week-i-am-despondent",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-10-02T08:20:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "IOL",
    "slug": "iol",
    "url": "https://iol.co.za/saturday-star/opinion/2026-10-02-this-week-i-am-despondent/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "This week I am despondent, as I have observed a decline in manners and social etiquette. Last weekend, a charming individual attempted to scam me, causing me to become frustrated and angry. The incident resulted in my banking app being disabled, forcing me to visit the bank on a Monday morning. I was dismayed by the lack of customer service, as the service consultants were engaged in chewing gum seemingly as part of some sort of training exercise.\n\nMy experience at the bank was further marred when a large man cut in front of me, without acknowledging my presence or apologizing for the inconvenience. This prompted me to question the deterioration of our societal manners, as few people seem to say \"please\" or \"thank you\" anymore. Children are not being taught to be polite and courteous, and many disregard basic courtesies such as queuing appropriately.\n\nThe week took a darker turn when news of the Cornel 57 incident broke. The young woman who was drugged and raped for 7 hours, along with the seven rapists, has received a relatively lenient punishment, with some even facing only expulsion from school and writing essays. The contrast between the treatment of the young woman and the rapists is jarring and has left me feeling despondent about the future of our society.",
  "summary": "We’ve lost our humanity and I sob. I’ve had a difficult week. It’s been filled with disappointment and anger at what we have become, and my frustration is not knowing what to do about it.",
  "key_points": [
    "Despondent author notes decline in manners and social etiquette.",
    "Scam attempt disables banking app, leading to frustrating bank visit.",
    "Cornel 57 incident sparks outrage over lenient punishment for rapists."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}