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Animavore wrote:As if men don't have similar stories (hell I even gave one myself). It's one thing to be considerate to another person. It's another thing to pander.
As for the crossing the street lark - not many of us like walking behind lone women at night. Especially if they start acting nervous. That makes me nervous. I have crossed the road myself on occassion or turned a corner and took a detour just so I could relax so let's not pretend to be considerate men here. He more likely did it so he won't feel awkward.

EDIT: to add 'at night'.

Yep, done the same myself. I'm a big softy and people who know me would find the idea of me being threatening as laughable, but, to people who don't know me... well, I'm hefty enough and I have a 'skinhead' cut. I did once catch up to a female colleague walking in the street from work and she practically had kittens as I overtook her before she realised it wasn't a dangerous stranger - and that was in the middle of a city centre full of people.

Given that women (and men, too, for that matter) do have reasonable cause to be apprehensive of men they don't know, it's just a question of good manners to not unnecessarily spook people.