Last week a coworker sent a group email about a computer glitch some people were seeing and how to fix it. Yesterday he mentioned it to the group again. Today a different coworker asked me for help because they were having that problem. They said they didn't pay attention before because they weren't having the problem then. It really annoys me, first because understanding the glitch was an opportunity to learn something even if it never affected them, and second because they wasted my time because of their apathy. It feels selfish. "This doesn't affect me so I don't care, and if I need to care later I'll just ask."
"I wasn't told I should run from the zombies" with a shrug meant to gather sympathy over the flaw of someone else not giving them a step-by-step instruction is totally something they'd do. It's disappointing because I know they're capable. I think some of it comes from a fear of making a mistake, so they put blinders on to anything not immediately pertinent and focus on just the task at hand.
ROFL. There is an odd passivity to the upcoming generation(s). "Nobody told me (not) to..." is seen as a perfectly reasonable response to failure to execute on something, or self-harming actions. It seems like this is a new thing, and not just me with my old-man glasses on...