Yesterday was a long day, rising at 2AM and going back to bed at 1AM this morning. During that 23-hour day, I caught four different airplanes . . . and heard 19 different apologies from the airlines. By the end of the day, I was thinking about the purpose of apologies. Here are the definitions:
1.
a written or spoken expression of one’s regret, remorse, or sorrow for having insulted, failed, injured, or wronged another: He demanded an apology from me for calling him a crook.
2.
a defense, excuse, or justification in speech or writing, as for a cause or doctrine.
3.
( initial capital letter, italics ) a dialogue by Plato, centering on Socrates’ defense before the tribunal that condemned him to death.
4.
an inferior specimen or substitute; makeshift: The tramp wore a sad apology for a hat.
Four of the apologies were for late departures. Three were for late arrivals. Two were for not providing drink cart service. Two were for cutting the lights out and so on . . . One apology was for construction on a storefront concessionary in the hallway as we deplaned.
I think there is another definition of apology: “I’ve already used the word apology or sorry. Therefore, don’t waste my time complaining about something I don’t even care about!”
In other words, it is just a tool to maximize time effectiveness. If you think that is just a cynical view of a nice gesture, I apologize . . .