Having missed my usual bus today, I ended up catching one from a local company, Stanton's of Stoke.
When I sat down I noticed two small posters, one on each side of the bus. They featured a cartoon-like depiction of Freddy Mercury, along with a piece of verse which was obviously meant to be imagined to the tune of Queen's "We Will Rock You":-
"No mask on your face
You're a big disgrace
Spreading your germs all over the place"
The bus was small and quite full, with only me and another lady not wearing a mask. I spent the whole journey feeling incredibly self-conscious but later I felt very angry.
Even if someone agreed with the use of masks, they may have a legitimate health reason for not wearing one, yet these school-yard bully style posters didn't seem to take even that kind of scenario into account.
I will be contacting the company tomorrow to make an official complaint and will boycott them from now on.
Lucrecia - If you saw the original video which one of our members Laurence Shanks put up, you would have found that it was exactly the opposite.The bus company have hijacked it. Yes it is a 'big disgrace', on the part of the bus company. Especially for those who have health conditions and can't wear a mask. I feel another e-mail coming on! I don't live in Stoke, but I do visit occasionally, and may well have used their bus services.
Lucrecia - A little add on. As promised, an e-mail to the bus company. I hope you approve of it. Your comments would be welcomed either way:
Hello at Stantons of Stoke
I have heard from a very distressed lady who told me she saw a poster on one of your buses. It read:
"No mask on your face
You're a big disgrace
Spreading your germs all over the place"
Well I think this is disgusting Stantons of Stoke, and the only 'big disgrace' is yourselves. Do you not realise, there may be disabled and exempt people on your bus service who will feel discriminated against, humiliated and intimidated by this? By all means, advise people on wearing a mask but to me, this is discrimination against people with disabilities, and you should be taken to task on it. Please take these posters down. You should be ashamed of yourselves!
Yours sincerely - G C
@Grumpy Cat This is an excellent e-mail and a little harsher than the one I'd composed in my head but then they do deserve it.
I will send my own today as well. Thanks for the support.
Lucrecia - Do let me know if you get a reply, and I will do the same. I'm the sweetest, politest, friendliest 'little old dear' you will ever meet on the streets. But just don't get my back up! I've been up since 4.00am this morning giving the same treatment to 'conspiracy theory accusers'. It's now gone 9.30am and I really should be having some breakfast. Now where's that walking stick?? 😄
Grumpy C. - On the ball as ever! dealing with that lot is never ending, and there is a call from some of our own for us all to come together and join the fight. I reckon there are plenty out there who are making a good job of fighting on their own, only going in the wrong direction.
Lucrecia - Well, that was a quick reply from the bus company. Here it is, and my reply back to them. I hope they will take the posters down:
'Hi G. - Thank you for your email, thanks for your raising your concern in regards to this, due to the nature of the global situation we wanted to bring a little bit of humour to our clientele.
Mike Sanderson - Operations Supervisor - Stantons of Stoke'
'Hello Mike
Thank you for getting back to me I appreciate it. The problem was, some people didn't think it was funny, and thought you were getting at them. One person was thinking of boycotting your bus service because of it. At this moment in time, feelings are running very high over this, including mine. I appreciate you may have been trying to bring a 'little humour' to your clients, but this is very serious. I have lost all of my sense of humour since this Government have cancelled my hospital consultations for the 3rd time in a row because of the virus. I will be lucky if I survive to ever take a trip on one of your buses. Thank you for clarifying the situation though, and I will get back to the lady who you upset so much.'
G.C.
I'm sure we all appreciate your energy and vigilance. I'm still waiting for a reply but will let you know when it comes.
Lucrecia/ Grumpy C - Mike is a bungle of laughs, weird sense of humour. Well done both. Perhaps they could start with NO MASKS NEEDED HERE for clarity to the customer.
I don't know how to include email contents in a post but I just received reply apologizing for any offence caused and promising to have the posters taken down from all buses. Victory!
Thanks again for your support Grumpy. As has already been suggested, we probably all need to start supporting each other like this wherever we can. Even just two voices can be more effective than one.
Lucrecia - I remember you now. Were you the lady who was verbally abused on the bus by two people, even though you were wearing a disability badge? Not much fun riding on buses where you live is it? Come on to the X43 in Burnley near where I live. No such hassle here. They are also double deckers so you can watch the cows and sheep from up top! Are you still at the charity shop? My hubby went back to his today for the first time in nearly 6 months, but I'm still grounded. Keep strong, and remember, we are all here for you! ❤️
Yes that was me. I still often walk home, even though I have health issues that make it very tiring for me, because I feel like riding the bus has become such a potentially unpleasant experience (as is the case with many things now). It sounds like you live in a lovely area.
I'm still at the charity shop,we started back about 5 weeks ago. I'm sorry you haven't been able to return yet, you must really miss it.
When will people learn to think outside the box before they open their mouths. It stinks of the me, myself and I mentality which has taken over in the last few years. I have always believed in live and let live as we are all different, thank goodness, but that in itself becomes a target for the bully. Living now with the invasion of technology into our lives and being willing to give up our privacy, literally, sends a message to some to take it one step further into the outside. No matter where or who you are they think it gives them the right to be hostile if you do not fit their criteria, failing to see the consequences. I gave up my car some years ago to do my bit and took to taking the bus when needed. Long before the problems facing us right now I came to the conclusion there were a few who I would not like to cross and haven't chanced my arm by finding out. Recalling an incident, in my youth while travelling by tube in Central London being petrified as 2 men constantly pestering me went totally ignored by fellow passengers before and after they finally got off. I have a long memory.
(This was supposed to be a reply to Twinkle Toes but it seems to have come out as just a general topic reply)
I sometimes wonder if it's just me getting older but it does seem to me that in the past 5 -10 years or so people in general have become less considerate of others. It's usually small things like playing loud music in what is supposed to be a peaceful place like a park or letting their kids run screaming around in busy cafes etc but when you're encountering several such annoyances all in the same day it can get really wearing. The few times I've actually spoken up and said something to such people, I've either been given a mouthful of abuse or they've reacted as though I'm some sort of unreasonable weirdo.
Live and let live is a good life philosophy when applied with reason and respect for others but I think people like these translate it as 'I'll do what I want and tough if it affects anyone else.'
I don't really know where I'm going with this (probably away from the original point of your post), I just wanted you to know that I share your despair at many people's attitudes these days.
As for being abused for being different, I've known that for most of my life,as there are many things in which I don't conform to the norm. The best I can say about it is that it's made me all the more tolerant of differences as I know how tough being different can be.
Correct me if I am wrong but I go back to the liberation that flower power brought and the disappearance of discipline and self-discipline and just about everything that has changed since we recovered from the war. Not that life before was perfect by any means but we pulled together instead of against which overcame a lot of shortfalls and we didn't do it through having all the trappings of today. I personally wish technology hadn't happened, progress is of course necessary and technology has its place but as we are now experiencing at a cost, and what a cost. Live and let live used in the context of not at any cost is what I really mean because inevitably there are many on this planet who fall into the category evil overcomes good, not the other way round.
Traveled with Stanton's today to check posters had been taken down, which they had.
Unfortunately, another passenger (masked of course) was complaining to the driver about how someone with no sense of humour complained about them. The driver seemed to be on his side, sneering about people who had nothing better to do.
I confronted them both, saying that I had sent one of the emails and trying to explain why they were offensive. Not surprisingly, they didn't get it and just badgered me about my reasons for not wearing a mask, moaning about how "just anyone" can get hold of an exemption badge.
I was so angry by the time my stop came that I shoved my inhaler in front of the bloke's face and asked him if he still wanted to complain now.
I've had it with this company. The only thing that's stopping me from actually telling them I'm done with them is that I have a funny feeling those posters would be back up in no time.
Brainless, brainwashed people, ugh 😠😠
Lucrecia - Yes it's true. 'just anyone' can get hold of an exemption badge. The only decent thing this Government has done for us during the 'pandemic' was to give us a lovely list of 'get out clauses' in their legislation.😅
Lucrecia - Sorry to hear of your experience I too would have been furious. Didn't you do well taking them on and then getting your own back with the ultimate 2 fingers in the form of your inhaler, nice one!
Twinkle Toes, Grumpy, thanks for your comments. I could feel a tension headache coming on from all the bother but feel a bit better now 🙂. Mind you, according to one of those blokes I will soon die from covid, due to not wearing a mask, so may as well be happy while I can 😄.
Lucrecia. -'God doesn't always pay his debts with money' - he may go first as a result of wearing HIS mask. As I mentioned earlier about turning hostile because you don't fit into their criteria, a fine example! Take care out there.