While in some cases that’s a good thing—I mean, there are behaviors that were once considered normal but have no place in modern society—there are other situations where it’s impossible to help but feel that our urge to police one another is gone a bit too far.
A liquor store in Oklahoma came to this decision point after putting up a sign that caused controversy.
While we all aspire to live in a world free of bigotry, hatred, and bullying, I believe we can all agree that there is a distinction between eradicating truly terrible things and acting outrage in order to stir up drama.
People becoming “outed” online these days for anything they said or did is very regular. It really only takes a few clicks to become the contentious focal point of an online storm.
One liquor store in Oklahoma, Midwest Wine, and Spirits, found this out after putting a sign up in their shop window that read: “Pull your pants up or don’t come in.”
The sign further read: “Try to have some decency and respect for others. No one wants to see your underwear.”
It doesn’t seem all that offensive at first, does it? They aren’t specifically disparaging any one group or making assumptions about its members’ political or religious beliefs, for example.
Nevertheless, the sign and the idea that the company believed it had the authority to tell customers what they could and could not wear plainly incensed a number of people.
The placard was quickly uploaded to the internet, allowing Internet users to continue the discussion in public. And they kept doing it.
As per reports, the debacle quickly went viral. One of the store’s managers, Chad Gilbert, defended the sign, saying: “I realize wearing pants low is a fashion statement for some, but it doesn’t work for me and I find it somewhat offensive.”
An employee at the store added: “Usually, when people come in with their pants sagging, it’s easier for them to steal bottles.”
A local customer of the store, Sunshine Weatherby, commented: “I can see that if it was like a church. There are families there, you might have a problem with that, but this is a liquor store. I’ve seen worse at a liquor store.”
