Teens cited for rapping their order at the local McDonalds

[IamKira]

another way u could look at it is they were ordering something in an artsy/ interesting way and got fed up that the clerk could not fill their order and left... i do that all the time when i get tired of incompetence on the part of the staff of wherever i am.. it's not illegal to leave w/ out ordering or to order to a rhythm... that's all i'm saying.
w/e, we'll have to agree to disagree on this one eh?

[MMM]

Originally Posted by IamKira

another way u could look at it is they were ordering something in an artsy/ interesting way and got fed up that the clerk could not fill their order and left... i do that all the time when i get tired of incompetence on the part of the staff of wherever i am.. it's not illegal to leave w/ out ordering or to order to a rhythm... that's all i'm saying.
w/e, we'll have to agree to disagree on this one eh?

I think you are now trying to justify what they did by rewriting the "history" of the incident.

[IamKira]

now do you see my point?? i'll bet, or at least i hope it's gotten tiring hearing me write all the while you know i am twisting information in order to make my case sound better
now imagine if you were criminalized because of my posts

[MMM]

Originally Posted by IamKira

now do you see my point?? i'll bet, or at least i hope it's gotten tiring hearing me write all the while you know i am twisting information in order to make my case sound better
now imagine if you were criminalized because of my posts

The only problem with that argument is that the employees of the fast-food joint didn't initiate the prank. The kids that did it did.

Why would I be a criminal because of your posts?

If you can justify what they did, then do it, otherwise accept that what they did was not justifiable.

[noodle]

Wow, really? It takes this little to get in trouble in the US? When I used to work in a games shop, I had people talk to me in rhyme and were dressed like gangsters etc. It was a hassle and an annoyance, but never worth a phone call to the police.

[Nyororin]

I am truly amazed that this "debate" has gone on as long as it has.
I find it easy to think that some people may not agree with the punishment, but have a lot of trouble seeing how one could think that they did nothing wrong. Inconveniencing others for your own amusement is not a right, and is not acceptable. Why is this so hard to understand?

Originally Posted by noodle

Wow, really? It takes this little to get in trouble in the US? When I used to work in a games shop, I had people talk to me in rhyme and were dressed like gangsters etc. It was a hassle and an annoyance, but never worth a phone call to the police.

But were they making it impossible for you to do the rest of your work, and ultimately making you lose money by saying they were buying something and then leaving without paying? (And leaving you with something you couldn`t sell to someone else?)

[noodle]

Originally Posted by Nyororin

I am truly amazed that this "debate" has gone on as long as it has.
I find it easy to think that some people may not agree with the punishment, but have a lot of trouble seeing how one could think that they did nothing wrong. Inconveniencing others for your own amusement is not a right, and is not acceptable. Why is this so hard to understand?

If people need to be punished for inconveniencing others, then I'm sure everyone will be punished at some point in their life... They spoke in rap! The worst "punishment" I'd give for that is simply, "Get out of my shop"

Originally Posted by Nyororin

But were they making it impossible for you to do the rest of your work, and ultimately making you lose money by saying they were buying something and then leaving without paying? (And leaving you with something you couldn`t sell to someone else?)

It's a McDonalds... what could have they made that's impossible to sell on? Difficult customers are a part of retail. You deal with it, or don't bother working in retail, because you can't avoid them.

[Nyororin]

Originally Posted by noodle

If people need to be punished for inconveniencing others, then I'm sure everyone will be punished at some point in their life... They spoke in rap! The worst "punishment" I'd give for that is simply, "Get out of my shop"

They WERE told to stop and to leave and did not. Apparently they were not in the shop but in the drive-through line. According to the store side, they were blocking other people from advancing and placing their orders... So, it wasn`t just a matter of inconveniencing the person they were rapping to - it was blocking other customers, refusing to stop and leave, and then running off after placing an order without paying for it.

It's a McDonalds... what could have they made that's impossible to sell on? Difficult customers are a part of retail. You deal with it, or don't bother working in retail, because you can't avoid them.

I think the key point here is not that they were rapping, but that they refused to leave when asked. Unless things have changed in the US drastically since I was there last, a business can ask anyone to leave the premises as it is private property. They were asked to leave, but did not do so and continued to be an annoyance and block the drive through. I think rapping is a very small issue.

Either way, I can see not agreeing with the severity of the punishment (which really isn`t that severe, it`s not like they were actually arrested. It was a citation, a minor fine.) But I cannot see saying that they were justified in being annoying, or that they were in no way in the wrong for their actions.

[noodle]

I'm not justifying their actions... I'm disagreeing with the punishment. I thought "the customer is always right" applied to the US, this is why I think that it's a huge overreaction by the manager. I've experienced worse when working in a games shop and have never called the police. The only time the police came anywhere near our shop because of a customer was when a customer spat a a colleague of mine and tried starting a fight! And we've had it all... Customers kicking down our shelves, swearing and even threatening us!

[Reavyn]

Originally Posted by noodle

I'm not justifying their actions... I'm disagreeing with the punishment. I thought "the customer is always right" applied to the US, this is why I think that it's a huge overreaction by the manager. I've experienced worse when working in a games shop and have never called the police. The only time the police came anywhere near our shop because of a customer was when a customer spat a a colleague of mine and tried starting a fight! And we've had it all... Customers kicking down our shelves, swearing and even threatening us!

I am sorry, but the customer is NOT always right. This is a very big misconception that people have these days thinking they can get away with anything in a store. The problem with America these days is that people feel they have a freedom to get away with absolutely everything they want to without fear of consequence. If you want to pull a prank on someone, do so to a friend, not someone that is working.