Why do we qualify rejections?

"You're a pretty girl, but...."
"I think you're a great guy, but..."

How many times have we said these things or had these things said to us?  Why do we have to qualify why we are rejecting someone?  I mean, why can't we just say "I just don't dig you."  We don't need to lay out some bullshit line to pick someone up, just to bring 'em down.  To me, tossing out that little caveat at the beginning makes rejection sting a little but more, mainly because it seems like a load of, well, bullshit, and you felt the need to throw out a condescending remark.  Often times, this makes the person feel low, used, and like shit.

I get it, we don't want to hurt someone's feelings, and we think that giving the person a little piece of warm and fuzzies will make rejection go down smooth.  In actuality, it makes it a little sugar high into a major sugar crash.

Just be honest about it: "I don't dig you, sorry dude." If there's a reason, or they ask you why, say it: "you're too wild" or "you're a Yankees fan" or "there's just no spark."  Honesty people, just throw it out there without some nonsense line to start the conversation.  I am not saying being a dick about it, but adding on a load of sugar isn't going to make it any better, either.  And really, honesty up front, without a load fluff around it, will make things a whole lot easier.  We accept it, we stay buddies (or move on to the next one).

Seriously, a spoonful of honest sugar helps the medicine go down; adding a little "but...." at the beginning turns it way too sour.