Is it dishonest to be late (barring unforeseen circumstances)?

A good friend and fine writer, AP, recently had a blog entry to this effect, with dozens of comments. (Hmmm, I need to figure out how to put in links to other blogs).


Many of the comments to AP's blog appealed to "culture", saying that in many cultures, being "late" was a cultural thing. Interestingly, those from the other cultures who wrote in, said it was not.

I have observed the following things about India, where "lateness" might be considered a "cultural" thing:

1. The movies start on time. If you want to see the beginning of a move, you show up on time.
2. The trains leave their point of origin on time (this is not about when they arrive, but when they leave). No one in India shows up at the train station late (or if they do, they usually expect to miss their train).
3. When a politician caused a commerical airplane flight to leave late (because the politician showed up late), it nearly caused rioting, and led to a quiet resolve among airline pilots to never wait for anyone, even (especially?) a politician.
4. When a specialized doctor gives you an appointment, you show up on time. (You still might wait, but you do show up on time).
5. If an official gives you an appointment time, you show up on time.


So something to think about.