Gift shop worker

I'm under the impression that, given the nature of customers to
overexaggerate, perhaps the clerk simply did say "no." I'm a cadet in
the USAF and have been called a "liberal fascist" to "un-patriotic"
because my store didn't have a military discount.

I thank your son for his service, but understand that our job is to
protect the rights of all citizens; even the ones who spit on us and
call us names. If they're allowed to do that, it means we've done our
job.

V/R,
Hobbs,
C/Capt. AFROTC

It's one thing if they don't give a discount, it's another for the
employee to voice their opinion about the military.

I just thought of this... and in a way it's very ironic.



First of all, I have to praise the son for going out of his way to
prevent any possible altercation over the incident. He could have
easily have turned it into a fight, including spinning up his father.


Instead he held his peace.


That's the irony really.


The military man, the man who's been to war and who knows how to
fight... is the one who chose a peaceful response.


But the anti-military employee, the one against war... chose to fight
and attack without provocation.

talk about hypocrisy!





I hope you receive a reply from the hotel regarding this employee's
inappropriate behavior.

is it bad that the first thing that came to mind was.... was this
worker from Berkley?

That's beyond the pale and I say that as a pacifist. No matter my
feelings towards the military (and they aren't nice, I'll be honest)
when I'm on the job, my political, personal and religious beliefs stay
at home.

Maybe it's a side-effect of the internet where everyone has a blog
where their own opinion is king and they can ignore or delete any
comment that disagrees with them or just our 'everyone is a winner'
culture, but people really need to get over the idea that their
personal opinions trump someone else's rights, freedoms and options.
Like pharmacists who refuse to fill prescriptions for birth control
and like that bus driver in Austin, Texas who refused to drop a woman
off at a Planned Parenthood, people need to remember that their own
rights end where everyone else's begin.

That's awful. And I agree - this is a very big deal and I hope the
hotel does something about it.

Please thank your son for his military service. My dear brother is
heading to Afghanistan as we speak. He's a soldier, but he's also a
doctor and he doesn't kill people, rather he puts people back together
after they've been wounded.

He is my hero. And frankly I'd spit on anyone who says he's a
killer.

They certainly do owe your son an apology.

Thank him for his service and thanks to your family for the scarifices
you made while he was serving. I'm glad he is back home.

The gift shop worker can me anti-military all he wants, that is his
right. He should feel fortunate that he is in a country in which he
can express such views and not be thrown in prison.

ON HIS OWN TIME

Someone working in the public needs to keep their mouth shut when it
comes to their political beliefs (among others) They are there to
service the customer, not judge them, period. I am sorry your children
were subjected to this beghavior. I wish your son would have said
something sooner and had it brought to the attention of hotel
management. Even if they could figure out who it was at this point,
I'm sure he'd just deny it.

My son is also serving in the ARMY right now. I can understand if he
didn't want to tell me something like this happened until we left. I'd
have been irate.

I saw a bumper sticker that i LOVED the other day:

If you can't stand behind our soldiers, stand in front of them.

He seems to be quite proud of his cleverness

His poems from a few years back were the best, he doesnt do those
anymore though.


Good Day

There are people who feel very strongly about such things, on both
sides. I can empathize with both.

HOWEVER, there is no call whatsoever to push such views onto a
customer. This would be like telling someone what they should and
shouldn't eat. It is nobody's business.

The gift shop may be run by a separate entity. I hope this is looked
into, and the gift shop employee is given some basic training.

Cindy M.,

Clarion Hotels, as I remember, are all independently owned and
operated. In plain terms Clarion simply "rents" them the sign.

I hope that the folks at Clarion Corporate do see that the gift shop
issue,. to name one, is very important and make contact with you and
the owner of that hotel.

Stop back when you hear back and give use an update, please.

BillR.

That is completely uncalled for. In some hotels, the gift shop is run
by a separate entity, and leases the space. The employees do not
actually work for the company, but own the shop themselves. Even
though they are in the hotel, they are a separate, independent
business. Hopefully they get back with you.

Honestly, I don't see what they could do to make it right, can you?
Would an apology matter from such a rude person? What a horrible
thing to say. It really needed to have been dealt with then and
there. After time passes, it's harder to deal with.

And know that your daughter's opinion of her brother won't be ruined
by that jerk.

If this is truly what the gift shop employee said, why on earth did
your son or anyone else in your party report it immediately to a
manager of the property? Stopping at the front desk or calling from
the room would have been options to get the situation addressed
immediately. At the very least, mentioning this when checking out
would have been a viable option. Why did you sit on this for almost a
month? I bet that if you spoke to the manager about this at the time,
you, your son, and your 12 year old daughter would have gotten an
apology.

I agree, a simple "no" would have been acceptable, and this was
certainly not the place for the clerk to interject their own political
beliefs. His words were hurtful, out of line, and simply not
necessary.