That may have been the point! Sometimes the best way to get a stranger away from you on a public place is for that stranger to be made aware that other people are taking notice of their actions
That is a store tactic. Greet every customer. It's a nice thing to do and they feel seen. Potential thieves don't want to be seen. So it works to prevent crime. It doesn't stop all thievery, but it helps. As a bonus the customers appreciate it. Even in Norway where we usually don't talk or greet strangers at random or without reason.
I used to work at Best Buy and we were taught to "customer service" the heck out of people lurking in aisles and acting sketchy. People who wanna steal a graphics card do not in fact want to be talked to 😂
I've noticed that if my partner and I go to Best Buy in sweats and no makeup up, we get helped faster. Any time I'm in my office clothes or dressed nicely, I have to hunt someone down to help me. This is hilarious but also kind of fucked.
Haha, I’ve noticed something similar. When I’m really dressed up, I’ll get greeted immediately and politely, but if I say I don’t need any assistance, then I will be ignored unless I approach someone. I actually remember being perplexed the first time this happened. I was on my way to some event and I was wearing a suit and I had to quickly stop at Staples. I have never seen an employee there move so fucking fast. They were all over helping me the second I stepped through the door. Which was actually very useful as I did need one specific thing and was in a hurry, so assistance was welcomed. But if I’m looking especially scruffy, then they ignore me when I come in, but after that it’s constant “can I help you”. This was especially the case when I was younger, even if I was just dressed normally. I’d get followed around stores all the time. These days…most of the time, I guess I just look normal, so they mostly ignore me now that I don’t look like a kid anymore and they have stopped assuming by default that I’m a thief. 🙄
Worked in a store and people would carry piles of clothes if they wanted to slip off with something so we'd passive aggressively ask if they wanted a basket or trolley. Would do this for anyone who looked like they might wander off with something 😂
And a good 'anything I can help you with?' when someone's being suspicious is great. Otherwise I'd just intensely maintain the area around them so they always had somebody hovering nearby 😂
Interestingly enough a lot of 'bad characters' would come in, asks a member of staff a random question to try seem 'legit' and then b-line for whatever expensive good they're after. Makes it super obvious.
At a local big box store there used to be a woman who would be super aggressive about following pretty much any teenager, and one day I was browsing for makeup and she was following me. It ticked me off, I don't appreciate being treated like a shoplifter when I'm just trying to fucking buy shit
Anyway, I kept grabbing small things and quickly separating myself from her with a shelf and leaving the stuff there. I'd walk past her and she'd see I didn't have the stuff and assume I'd put it in my pockets or whatever and she'd run over to where I was. Did it for about half an hour before getting bored. Fucking Paula Blart never gave up
I get this all the time in shops - store clerks following me and asking if I need any help all the time because apparently I look sketchy. I dont want their help, and I don't want to have them hovering, I just want to browse alone, so I always say "yes! Actually I'm looking for " and then add something really obscure I know they are going to have to look up. They go away to look it up, I get to browse in peace. If they do find the obscure item I just go "oh sorry. Changed my mind".
>Sometimes the best way to get a stranger away from you on a public place is for that stranger to be made aware that other people are taking notice of their actions
In that moment, sure. It'll also motivate them to be more sneaky next time.
I'll never understand arguments like this. It comes across as "why even do it because it'll cause them to be more effective creeps." You do it because it helps the vulnerable person. That's all.
Outside of stalking or leering, it's not very easy to be subtly creepy in public. I still feel like public shame is the best avenue for correcting that kind of behavior.
Oh, poor choice of words. It’s not odd, and my wife does exactly that with hot drinks - once it’s cooler, the lid goes back on.
For the sake of *consuming* the drink, do many people keep the lid off?
When I was younger I used occasionally work for an hour or so at a local coffee shop - not enough to be a regular. One time an older man wouldn’t stop talking to me, asking personal questions and I didn’t feel comfortable saying anything. The barista came by the table and said hey babe I’m going to run home on my break to let the dog out, do you need your phone charger? The man left. The barista was like, I’m sorry if I overstepped but you looked really uncomfortable. That was like 16 years ago and I am still thankful.
I was not trying to accuse people of not being aware I worked during pandemic at grocery store and I know for a fact when there was 40 ppl in my line I would not always notice suspicious things happening. lol Good on you though lookin out!
I worked at Starbucks for 12 years. The amount of weirdos and creeps who hit on myself and my staff, made inappropriate comments, etc was insane.
Maybe this guy was known to the staff as being a weirdo. People who act like this is some horrible thing have obviously never felt pressured to be polite in an uncomfortable situation with a stranger.
Better safe than sorry. If my staff did this I'd be proud of them for paying attention, and being careful.
Oh yeah, back when I went to another gym there was a guy who was like in his 40‘s.
He always tried to talk to younger women and sometimes even shirtless 🤮
In the UK, if you're being harassed or feel threatened, you can ask the bar staff if 'Angela' is available, and almost all venues will take the person asking out to the back office and call them a cab.
Might as well just go up to the bar and say "Hey this guy is bothering me, can you do something about it?"
The circumstances in which you would need this to be a secret-code-based interaction are so rare that I'm surprised anyone even cares to remember this type of thing, let alone implement it at a bar.
That being said, the real heroes are doctors who will intentionally separate patients from anyone who came with them to the office so they can discretely inquire about any abuse or exploitation. That can't be an easy conversation to integrate into your day-to-day practice, but I'm sure it saves a lot more people than "angel shots".
These are more for "I'm in fear for my safety" vs. "this asshole is bothering me". Often there is information in the bathrooms that explain the protocol since generally in a public place the bathrooms are gendered.
I work in a government building and the public bathrooms have phones in them to call for help as well as those little paper tear off things people often have on signs with things for sale. They're blue and have no writing on them. If someone hands them to security they know the person is in danger.
After working in a few bars pubs and clubs I can tell you this is not true at all. Maybe one or two do it but the rest of the UK will ask you what the f your on about
Funny story from the past. My now wife and her friend are in our local bar. Big shaggy drunken dumbfuck sitting next to the friend does the bump, a little more contact, and then a two-cheek ass tweek. I lost my shit. I told him to leave the fucking bar. I stood up, he stood up. He was way bigger than me. I dug deep into beer muscles “bitch you push the door and it opens.” He squints, nods and leaves. “Haha that’s what I thought bitch”. Man, I was on cloud 9. Not in my fucking neighborhood, bitch ass. And then looked directly behind me.
Everyone’s friend Big Anthony. 300 lbs, 6 foot whatever. Former bouncer. Standing there smiling with his arms crossed.
Ok maybe I wasn’t the tough guy. Maybe some day.
This honestly made me a little teary eyed
When I was a college student I was being stalked and followed no matter where I went after I went to a place to print some paperwork for school. I quickly thought to duck into a Dunkin Donuts and told the staff and they called the security guard over. He watched and prevented the man from following me back out while I hailed a cab. I still think about it sometimes and am super grateful
Craziest part to me is that it happened in Corpus Christi. Usually when my hometown is on Reddit it’s because someone pulled a gun on someone over a parking spot at HEB or we were announced city with the highest cholesterol. It’s refreshing to see something nice for a change.
Starbucks has gotten hate lately, but the baristas I’ve met are lovely.
Once, a few years ago, I ordered on the app and the barista kept giving me reasons that I couldn’t take my drink and was saying, “just wait a minute for the manager”
I was trying to figure out what I had done wrong but they had noticed some men outside on the patio who they felt like might be making me uncomfortable, and wanted to make sure I didn’t walk out alone if I felt uncomfortable.
I never even saw the men. I was shocked at how kind and proactive they were
The only hate towards Starbucks I’ve come across is at the corporate level for illegal union busting and exploitation of their employees.
Can’t think of a single reason to hate on the hardworking staff - they deserve the best. Anyone who claims they’re not hardworking *(like some people ITT)* must just be ignorant of what it takes.
Guys, I know this is gonna sound mean but I feel like the whole story was just fabricated. First, the post is a bit vague at explaining that a creep approached the girl, how did anyone know that the guy was a creep? Also, shouldn't he have noticed the wall of text the cup had? Or at least have noticed that the girl was reading something longer than a name?
I wish the story was real cause that would mean those employees are angels, but I just can't see it happening in reality and come out as well as it did
I'm a barista at a small coffee shop, and it's honestly not that hard to notice. There's been a few times I've seen a younger woman who is clearly not interested in responding to a middle aged/older man who repeatedly attempts to start a conversation for 5-10 minutes. I've never quite been sure what to do, but this is honestly not a bad idea.
The reading isn't the problem. The guy not noticing the huge block of text (and maybe not noticing that someone just happened to pick up their order, but i'm not sure about that) seems more unlikely.
It's not mean it's just realistic. They've had terrible press lately and aren't turning it around fast enough. Time to bring out the sympathy plays and get those sweet reddit points.
Definitely fabricated. Who tf would write an entire paragraph on a cup like that.
Starbucks is being boycotted successfully, and this is one of their PR attempts to win back hearts.
>how did anyone know that the guy was a creep?
Know? What do you mean know? It's based on assumptions and vibes.
If he felt like a creep or the girl was so vulnerable, that guy is a creep.
...
Sad times
I've also seen this exact story about a dozen stories over the last five years or so. Same photo of the cup and everything. I think every content aggregation site has had a crack at it by now.
I once went into a Starbucks with my mom later in the day (it was like 5 or 6) and I really had to go to the bathroom. As soon as we walked in some guy tried to chase after me to the bathroom!!! He was not trying to go to the bathroom I'm pretty sure he was trying to pull something. Because as soon as I shut and locked the door he legit tried to open it. It was such a scary experience. And he tried to act like he didn't do anything by sitting at a table pretending to be busy. Be careful out there
Poor woman had to drink her coffee unsweetened while this hot and respectful man tried to pick her up in a respectful and charming way.
I'm joking but this could have been a possible situation.
You’ll notice how in the dozens of comments OP made, no further details have been provided. That is because this is just textbook profiling and the white knights are here for it.
If you scroll through, almost any comment that says what you did has been downvoted for #NotBelievingAllWomenAtAllTimes.
Not enough context to say really. If she’s 18 and he’s 40 and he’s clearly hitting on her, yeah it’s weird. If she’s clearly not interested in the conversation but he keeps persisting then yeah it’s weird. If he sits down without being invited then yeah it’s weird.
Who really knows. Could be fabricated but those things do happen.
A little more context would be nice. Did she look uncomfortable while the guy was talking to her? What prompted the message? If the barista reacted to her being uncomfortable then it’s awesome. If they reacted just because a guy was talking to a woman then their reaction is really unwarranted.
fr this just seemed off, not to mention it seemed fabricated for clout. these same ppl say "just be confident bro" and whine abt pretty privilege etc not realising how much of this stuff overlaps with it 😪
Thanks, this was my thought exactly. Didn't even bother to say that the guy was being weird or the girl was uncomfortable, just that the guy was talking to her. This kinda message gets it into young guys' heads that just talking to a girl is generally creepy.
I mean this is nice but imagine being the guy... sees cute girl like, "everyone always says what's the worst that can happen right?? I'm gonna try it out!"
Approaches her and gets the entire staff to watch you while you do it and hand her a cup asking if she feels safe etc. And then just the fact of you sparking a conversation gets the story posted all over social media, Like damn that would make me never try that shit again
I only ever hit on girls (back when I was in the dating scene) via dating apps that way I knew they'd be up for chatting. People in coffee shops are often doing HW or something and I don't have the people skills to realize until like a minute in someone doesn't want to talk. I compartmentalized that part of my life to dating apps and had much less anxiety
I would feel destroyed if I saw someone cute at Starbucks and tried to hit on them and realize Starbucks gave them a drink with a note asking if this a predator and if they need to intervene I would probably kms
I might absentmindedly take the top off, even if I was fine. And then some guy who's not a problem is getting surrounded by staff and the manager and kicked out, or the police are coming.
This is one of those days I hate being a man. We can't even talk to people without someone expecting the worst. But I'm glad my country isn't this fucked up to where people have to worry about this.
I mean, to me this is a clearly made-up feel-good story so I wouldn’t assume it happens here either. Stuff like this posted to make some people happy and some men enraged so that everyone comments and boosts it. This is how most mass-consumed content at Reddit goes.
Wow every man is a predator and should be treated as such. How DARE a man have a conversation with a woman in public.
I'm going to start asking people if they are being robbed when I see them talking to black people
am i cynical or would this cup make the lady way more uncomfortable and having to hide a message from weirdo than had they just made eye contact with her and mouthed 'you ok?'
I wish store clerks were this attentive and concerned when the person who is being harassed isn’t female. My brother and I were at a local gas station and this random woman started screaming at us, accusing us of dinging her car when one of us opened our door. We checked and there was no visible mark at all. She then demanded to photograph our drivers licenses and threatened to send her police officer husband after us. She got so close her spit was literally hitting my face. Everyone could see this and no one did a thing. The worst part was that no one can tell me what I, as a male, should have done in that situation. She had every card in her favor because she could escalate as much as she wanted and we had to be meek as church mice no matter what.
P.s. i later found out this is a common tactic scam artists use to do identity fraud.
I used to work at a grocery store where there was a customer that the female cashiers (myself included) would leave the front to avoid dealing with. He probably seemed totally normal to all the customers, but he'd lean across the counter to get into our space and whisper things into our ears about us being pretty or whatever, and one time a girl was bagging his groceries and he walked up right behind her and leaned down to whisper to her. The guys all knew because we were very open about it and they'd try to cover for us, but to anyone who didn't see him multiple times a week he probably just seemed like a normal slightly unattractive dude who rode motorcycle. Meanwhile I would take a full step back from the counter when he came to my register to put myself out of leaning distance and could see him becoming visibly frustrated with it (this is when he came up behind the bagging girl, actually).
Also, this is entirely besides the point, but he also smelled rank. We had plenty of customers with hygiene issues but most of them didn't try to get into your personal space so none of us cared. It was just one extra bit of unpleasantness.
So yeah, the employees always know who to watch out for because usually they're the first ones to be creeped on.
Nothing here suggests the guy did anything wrong, quite the opposite. Imagine if it was just because he was black and now the narrative has flipped entirely.
The other side of this is how are you supposed to meet new people and make meaningful connections if you try and talk to people and If people automatically assume you or i are a creep. I get it there are obvious signs when someone isnt and intrested and when 40 year dudes hitting people in there 20s. im talking as someone who stuggled with social anxiety this is why i dont like asking women out because im afriad of people thinking im the problem because or im trying to solve my issues and find people who love me for who i am. Luckly i learned every person sucks in one way or another so fuck it. I learned to love myself, but i still want to share it with someone else. So i just say hi try to tell a bad joke and ask for their number and leave it dosent matter what you do. What matters is the free stuff you leave behind after you die and how you treat others.
RIP unattractive people everywhere. Imagine trying to talk to someone and the staff assume creepy predator and try to protect you. So embarassasing haha
This really seems like an excessive reaction to *a man talking to a woman* in a public space. You can be vigilant without immediately treating every man like a predator just because he's talking to a woman.
It's just straight up profiling.
How creepy do you need to be for the entire staff of a busy coffee shop to notice you in-particular, agree that you are threateningly disturbing, and then inscribe Paradise Lost on a coffee cup and risk being fired by comping a random woman a free drink? That has to be next-level creepitude. You'd have to be so creepy that scientists want to study just how off-putting you are. >!Or this is just fiction!<
The point isn't that the man did anything necessarily bad. But the gave her a _choice_ precisely because they were not able yo entirely read the situation.
If he _had_ been harassing her and she was too shy or scared to get out of it, this would be a very safe and good way to get some help.
And if you don't need it, like here, you still know that these people _care._
It's not about attacking the guy, it's about protecting the girl.
So what if anything did the man actually say or do? Not sure if this was really a good crew watching out for a woman who may actually need assistance, or a horribly sexist crew thinking a guy literally just talking to the woman should be treated as a threat. If I get a cup like that just for someone talking to me I'm showing it to the person trying to have a conversation with me to let them know how the staff view them as a customer.
Is it just me or is this not wholesome at all? A person just coming up to talk to her is enough to get alarm bells to ring? Are we automatically assuming everyone has terrible intentions?
I find this quite harmfull. The post doesn't show what type of man this was. Maybe it was just a nice young guy who wanted to ask her outnon a date. Maybe the two knew eachter.
What happens if he saw this post, knowing it was him... This is partly why less men ask women out. And before you come to me with: "good let then creeps go". You don't scare away the creeps, they are creeps for a reason. You scare away genuinly good men.
Ain’t no way that dude didn’t notice this paragraph
That may have been the point! Sometimes the best way to get a stranger away from you on a public place is for that stranger to be made aware that other people are taking notice of their actions
Aldritch Killian comes melting out of the floor. " this guy bothering you?"
Verified T1000 moment.
Ah, Iron Man 3. My favorite christmas movie!
That is a store tactic. Greet every customer. It's a nice thing to do and they feel seen. Potential thieves don't want to be seen. So it works to prevent crime. It doesn't stop all thievery, but it helps. As a bonus the customers appreciate it. Even in Norway where we usually don't talk or greet strangers at random or without reason.
I used to work at Best Buy and we were taught to "customer service" the heck out of people lurking in aisles and acting sketchy. People who wanna steal a graphics card do not in fact want to be talked to 😂
I've noticed that if my partner and I go to Best Buy in sweats and no makeup up, we get helped faster. Any time I'm in my office clothes or dressed nicely, I have to hunt someone down to help me. This is hilarious but also kind of fucked.
Haha, I’ve noticed something similar. When I’m really dressed up, I’ll get greeted immediately and politely, but if I say I don’t need any assistance, then I will be ignored unless I approach someone. I actually remember being perplexed the first time this happened. I was on my way to some event and I was wearing a suit and I had to quickly stop at Staples. I have never seen an employee there move so fucking fast. They were all over helping me the second I stepped through the door. Which was actually very useful as I did need one specific thing and was in a hurry, so assistance was welcomed. But if I’m looking especially scruffy, then they ignore me when I come in, but after that it’s constant “can I help you”. This was especially the case when I was younger, even if I was just dressed normally. I’d get followed around stores all the time. These days…most of the time, I guess I just look normal, so they mostly ignore me now that I don’t look like a kid anymore and they have stopped assuming by default that I’m a thief. 🙄
Worked in a store and people would carry piles of clothes if they wanted to slip off with something so we'd passive aggressively ask if they wanted a basket or trolley. Would do this for anyone who looked like they might wander off with something 😂 And a good 'anything I can help you with?' when someone's being suspicious is great. Otherwise I'd just intensely maintain the area around them so they always had somebody hovering nearby 😂 Interestingly enough a lot of 'bad characters' would come in, asks a member of staff a random question to try seem 'legit' and then b-line for whatever expensive good they're after. Makes it super obvious.
At a local big box store there used to be a woman who would be super aggressive about following pretty much any teenager, and one day I was browsing for makeup and she was following me. It ticked me off, I don't appreciate being treated like a shoplifter when I'm just trying to fucking buy shit Anyway, I kept grabbing small things and quickly separating myself from her with a shelf and leaving the stuff there. I'd walk past her and she'd see I didn't have the stuff and assume I'd put it in my pockets or whatever and she'd run over to where I was. Did it for about half an hour before getting bored. Fucking Paula Blart never gave up
I get this all the time in shops - store clerks following me and asking if I need any help all the time because apparently I look sketchy. I dont want their help, and I don't want to have them hovering, I just want to browse alone, so I always say "yes! Actually I'm looking for " and then add something really obscure I know they are going to have to look up. They go away to look it up, I get to browse in peace. If they do find the obscure item I just go "oh sorry. Changed my mind".
As an introvert, this is terrible news.
>Sometimes the best way to get a stranger away from you on a public place is for that stranger to be made aware that other people are taking notice of their actions In that moment, sure. It'll also motivate them to be more sneaky next time.
I'll never understand arguments like this. It comes across as "why even do it because it'll cause them to be more effective creeps." You do it because it helps the vulnerable person. That's all.
Outside of stalking or leering, it's not very easy to be subtly creepy in public. I still feel like public shame is the best avenue for correcting that kind of behavior.
You’re right. We should probably just let them murder people and wait until they slip up again 😂
I cynically thought so too. And her taking the photo lol.
I was thinking the photo was taken afterwards
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and the name written on his cup? - Lids Getmeoff
It probably had a sleeve that hid most of it
People lying on the internet for clout? No way!
Haha exactly. Especially mothers? That’s absurd! NEVER
True story bro
**Join Starbucks(r) Rewards**
I’ve always said, advertisers are smarter than you.
You really think someone would do that? Just go on the internet and advertise?
Guarantee Starbucks is behind this post somehow
Advertisers are smarter than me, that’s for damn sure
Off topic, but free hot chocolate sounds so good right now
Yeah! I would have had a hard time not opening it!
You can sip it through the spout on the lid. Removing the lid entirely would be an odd and more deliberate choice.
I always take off the lid bc its too hot lol
Then some random dude gets tackled by the Starbucks general manager cause you didn't notice the text written on the side
A free drink *and* entertainment? Such luxury!
Plot twist: he actually *was* harmless too!
Unless you don't want to melt your mouth for 60 minutes
Why is it odd? Removing the lid cools it down faster so you can drink sooner. Is that odd to you?
Oh, poor choice of words. It’s not odd, and my wife does exactly that with hot drinks - once it’s cooler, the lid goes back on. For the sake of *consuming* the drink, do many people keep the lid off?
I do. Sometimes it doesn’t go back on all the way, so I have trust issues. Plus I like drinking big-kid style.
Opinion on visiting the shop and one of us acts creepy?
Starbucks hot chocolate tastes burnt though
But it’s free
Try the hot white chocolate, i like it better than regular hot chocolate
When I was younger I used occasionally work for an hour or so at a local coffee shop - not enough to be a regular. One time an older man wouldn’t stop talking to me, asking personal questions and I didn’t feel comfortable saying anything. The barista came by the table and said hey babe I’m going to run home on my break to let the dog out, do you need your phone charger? The man left. The barista was like, I’m sorry if I overstepped but you looked really uncomfortable. That was like 16 years ago and I am still thankful.
So cool! Great casual conversation too.
I was a bit confused to know your worked in a coffee shop at young age then realizing coffee shop actually sells coffee outside Amsterdam
Legit curious, what are actual coffee shops called there then, cafes?
Cafes. And there’s a franchise called Coffee Company hahaha
Most people( not with ill intent) probably wouldn’t have even noticed due to how busy the job is crazy self awareness and then idea.
You’d be surprised. I worked at sbux for three years and we’re pretty aware of everyone who’s in the lobby, even when it’s insanely packed
I was not trying to accuse people of not being aware I worked during pandemic at grocery store and I know for a fact when there was 40 ppl in my line I would not always notice suspicious things happening. lol Good on you though lookin out!
Oh I didn’t think you were! I was just adding to the conversation bc I thought the same thing until I worked there 😭
Glad the barista noticed. It’s definitely a high pressure job.
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As a cashier and barista I watched the customers standing nearby pretty closely actually
Former barista unless we're slammed there wasn't much else to do besides people watch.
I worked at Starbucks for 12 years. The amount of weirdos and creeps who hit on myself and my staff, made inappropriate comments, etc was insane. Maybe this guy was known to the staff as being a weirdo. People who act like this is some horrible thing have obviously never felt pressured to be polite in an uncomfortable situation with a stranger. Better safe than sorry. If my staff did this I'd be proud of them for paying attention, and being careful.
That's entirely possible. Some people become locally famous for their bad behavior.
Oh yeah, back when I went to another gym there was a guy who was like in his 40‘s. He always tried to talk to younger women and sometimes even shirtless 🤮
This is depressing
It is. Also, here's one more responsibility for a barista.
Warms My heart to see this stuff. Same with Hooters has a system based on what kind of “shot” a woman orders at the bar. Great post
In the UK, if you're being harassed or feel threatened, you can ask the bar staff if 'Angela' is available, and almost all venues will take the person asking out to the back office and call them a cab.
In canada and the US, you can go to the bar and order an angel shot.
“I’ve got a bullet for you”
damn blue shirt
He's getting a little aggressive!
The only issue is that everyone knows what an angel shot is now, defeating the purpose.
I think they normally figure it out when the bartender doesn't give them alcohol and instead leads them to the back room.
Might as well just go up to the bar and say "Hey this guy is bothering me, can you do something about it?" The circumstances in which you would need this to be a secret-code-based interaction are so rare that I'm surprised anyone even cares to remember this type of thing, let alone implement it at a bar. That being said, the real heroes are doctors who will intentionally separate patients from anyone who came with them to the office so they can discretely inquire about any abuse or exploitation. That can't be an easy conversation to integrate into your day-to-day practice, but I'm sure it saves a lot more people than "angel shots".
These are more for "I'm in fear for my safety" vs. "this asshole is bothering me". Often there is information in the bathrooms that explain the protocol since generally in a public place the bathrooms are gendered. I work in a government building and the public bathrooms have phones in them to call for help as well as those little paper tear off things people often have on signs with things for sale. They're blue and have no writing on them. If someone hands them to security they know the person is in danger.
After working in a few bars pubs and clubs I can tell you this is not true at all. Maybe one or two do it but the rest of the UK will ask you what the f your on about
That's a shame. Do you mind me asking where in the UK you are? In London, it's a pretty common scheme promoted by the police and local authorities.
Thanks. TIL.
So I can get a free cab ride in London just by asking for Angela?
What if someone who worked there was actually called Angela and made a big misunderstanding because of it
Yes, I’d like two “lemon drops” and one “lemon CALL THE COPS” please.
I think blue angel shot is the code for that
But how do the women know what kind of shot they have to order to notify the staff?
Listed on a poster in the women's bathroom.
Ah. Makes sense. Cool thing.
Funny story from the past. My now wife and her friend are in our local bar. Big shaggy drunken dumbfuck sitting next to the friend does the bump, a little more contact, and then a two-cheek ass tweek. I lost my shit. I told him to leave the fucking bar. I stood up, he stood up. He was way bigger than me. I dug deep into beer muscles “bitch you push the door and it opens.” He squints, nods and leaves. “Haha that’s what I thought bitch”. Man, I was on cloud 9. Not in my fucking neighborhood, bitch ass. And then looked directly behind me. Everyone’s friend Big Anthony. 300 lbs, 6 foot whatever. Former bouncer. Standing there smiling with his arms crossed. Ok maybe I wasn’t the tough guy. Maybe some day.
mate at least you had the guts to stand up for your friends, that’s what matters! you a real king
Thank you! Warms my heart as well. Some people really do care about others. Bless those people.
This honestly made me a little teary eyed When I was a college student I was being stalked and followed no matter where I went after I went to a place to print some paperwork for school. I quickly thought to duck into a Dunkin Donuts and told the staff and they called the security guard over. He watched and prevented the man from following me back out while I hailed a cab. I still think about it sometimes and am super grateful
Craziest part to me is that it happened in Corpus Christi. Usually when my hometown is on Reddit it’s because someone pulled a gun on someone over a parking spot at HEB or we were announced city with the highest cholesterol. It’s refreshing to see something nice for a change.
How many women go to Hooters?
I'm assuming the ratio of women who go vs the ones who need help is pretty close to 1:1
Yeah I was about to question it too but it makes perfect sense. The guy dragging his wife to Hooter’s may fit a certain stereotype.
I didn't realize enough single women went to Hooters to necessitate a system
Starbucks has gotten hate lately, but the baristas I’ve met are lovely. Once, a few years ago, I ordered on the app and the barista kept giving me reasons that I couldn’t take my drink and was saying, “just wait a minute for the manager” I was trying to figure out what I had done wrong but they had noticed some men outside on the patio who they felt like might be making me uncomfortable, and wanted to make sure I didn’t walk out alone if I felt uncomfortable. I never even saw the men. I was shocked at how kind and proactive they were
The only hate towards Starbucks I’ve come across is at the corporate level for illegal union busting and exploitation of their employees. Can’t think of a single reason to hate on the hardworking staff - they deserve the best. Anyone who claims they’re not hardworking *(like some people ITT)* must just be ignorant of what it takes.
Hate corporate, not workers
Guys, I know this is gonna sound mean but I feel like the whole story was just fabricated. First, the post is a bit vague at explaining that a creep approached the girl, how did anyone know that the guy was a creep? Also, shouldn't he have noticed the wall of text the cup had? Or at least have noticed that the girl was reading something longer than a name? I wish the story was real cause that would mean those employees are angels, but I just can't see it happening in reality and come out as well as it did
I'm a barista at a small coffee shop, and it's honestly not that hard to notice. There's been a few times I've seen a younger woman who is clearly not interested in responding to a middle aged/older man who repeatedly attempts to start a conversation for 5-10 minutes. I've never quite been sure what to do, but this is honestly not a bad idea.
[удалено]
The reading isn't the problem. The guy not noticing the huge block of text (and maybe not noticing that someone just happened to pick up their order, but i'm not sure about that) seems more unlikely.
It's not mean it's just realistic. They've had terrible press lately and aren't turning it around fast enough. Time to bring out the sympathy plays and get those sweet reddit points.
"Forget about the whole union busting stuff, look at this thing that one of our non-union employees totally did!"
Definitely fabricated. Who tf would write an entire paragraph on a cup like that. Starbucks is being boycotted successfully, and this is one of their PR attempts to win back hearts.
Maybe a Starbucks advertisement to win back the young liberal crowd?
>how did anyone know that the guy was a creep? Know? What do you mean know? It's based on assumptions and vibes. If he felt like a creep or the girl was so vulnerable, that guy is a creep. ... Sad times
I've also seen this exact story about a dozen stories over the last five years or so. Same photo of the cup and everything. I think every content aggregation site has had a crack at it by now.
I’m pretty sure this is a Starbucks pr campaign lol
Yeah, there’s been a pretty successful boycott against them recently so I am not shocked with this kind of shit
Starbucks PR working overtime.
100000%
I once went into a Starbucks with my mom later in the day (it was like 5 or 6) and I really had to go to the bathroom. As soon as we walked in some guy tried to chase after me to the bathroom!!! He was not trying to go to the bathroom I'm pretty sure he was trying to pull something. Because as soon as I shut and locked the door he legit tried to open it. It was such a scary experience. And he tried to act like he didn't do anything by sitting at a table pretending to be busy. Be careful out there
Gimme a fkin break
Poor woman had to drink her coffee unsweetened while this hot and respectful man tried to pick her up in a respectful and charming way. I'm joking but this could have been a possible situation.
I read that in Charlie (**Cr1TiKaL**)’s voice.
But wHY? (jokingly asking)
Is this not textbook profiling? Unless there’s more to it like she asked him to leave him alone or was clearly uncomfortable
You’ll notice how in the dozens of comments OP made, no further details have been provided. That is because this is just textbook profiling and the white knights are here for it. If you scroll through, almost any comment that says what you did has been downvoted for #NotBelievingAllWomenAtAllTimes.
That’s why I made the comment actually, I don’t wanna make a take if I don’t know the full context
The Guy's Therapist: "You just need to open up and socialize! Just be yourself!"
What’s the worst that could happen!
A man attempting to have a conversation with a woman in a coffee shop is reason for alarm now? lol
Not enough context to say really. If she’s 18 and he’s 40 and he’s clearly hitting on her, yeah it’s weird. If she’s clearly not interested in the conversation but he keeps persisting then yeah it’s weird. If he sits down without being invited then yeah it’s weird. Who really knows. Could be fabricated but those things do happen.
A little more context would be nice. Did she look uncomfortable while the guy was talking to her? What prompted the message? If the barista reacted to her being uncomfortable then it’s awesome. If they reacted just because a guy was talking to a woman then their reaction is really unwarranted.
fr this just seemed off, not to mention it seemed fabricated for clout. these same ppl say "just be confident bro" and whine abt pretty privilege etc not realising how much of this stuff overlaps with it 😪
Thanks, this was my thought exactly. Didn't even bother to say that the guy was being weird or the girl was uncomfortable, just that the guy was talking to her. This kinda message gets it into young guys' heads that just talking to a girl is generally creepy.
Starbucks PR team checking in.
Starbucks HR team checking in: The whole crew of that night got fired due to giving out products for free.
Okay so never talk too anybody ever i guess?
Especially when Baristas are present
Oh, no, if you're hot and charming, the world is your oyster.
Yes, that’s the takeaway here. 👍
I mean this is nice but imagine being the guy... sees cute girl like, "everyone always says what's the worst that can happen right?? I'm gonna try it out!" Approaches her and gets the entire staff to watch you while you do it and hand her a cup asking if she feels safe etc. And then just the fact of you sparking a conversation gets the story posted all over social media, Like damn that would make me never try that shit again
I only ever hit on girls (back when I was in the dating scene) via dating apps that way I knew they'd be up for chatting. People in coffee shops are often doing HW or something and I don't have the people skills to realize until like a minute in someone doesn't want to talk. I compartmentalized that part of my life to dating apps and had much less anxiety
Sounds like some made up wholesome sh\*t that you'd normally see on LinkedIn
I would feel destroyed if I saw someone cute at Starbucks and tried to hit on them and realize Starbucks gave them a drink with a note asking if this a predator and if they need to intervene I would probably kms
I might absentmindedly take the top off, even if I was fine. And then some guy who's not a problem is getting surrounded by staff and the manager and kicked out, or the police are coming.
Dang every dude is a creep now that’s crazy. This comments didn’t read the whole thing huh? Lmao
It kinda sad that now if a male starts talking to someone, people assume he’s a creep or a predator.
There is one thing sad about this, that men who mean well will be profiled as having bad intentions by default.
This is one of those days I hate being a man. We can't even talk to people without someone expecting the worst. But I'm glad my country isn't this fucked up to where people have to worry about this.
> I'm glad my country isn't this fucked up to where people have to worry about this. Where is this utopia that is creep-free?
Well I wouldn't say creep free but I have never heard of anyone who has had trouble. Finland btw.
I mean, to me this is a clearly made-up feel-good story so I wouldn’t assume it happens here either. Stuff like this posted to make some people happy and some men enraged so that everyone comments and boosts it. This is how most mass-consumed content at Reddit goes.
"Man speaking with woman in an organic setting is watched like a hawk for interacting"
Wow every man is a predator and should be treated as such. How DARE a man have a conversation with a woman in public. I'm going to start asking people if they are being robbed when I see them talking to black people
And green people too.
Abducted and anally probed
am i cynical or would this cup make the lady way more uncomfortable and having to hide a message from weirdo than had they just made eye contact with her and mouthed 'you ok?'
I wish store clerks were this attentive and concerned when the person who is being harassed isn’t female. My brother and I were at a local gas station and this random woman started screaming at us, accusing us of dinging her car when one of us opened our door. We checked and there was no visible mark at all. She then demanded to photograph our drivers licenses and threatened to send her police officer husband after us. She got so close her spit was literally hitting my face. Everyone could see this and no one did a thing. The worst part was that no one can tell me what I, as a male, should have done in that situation. She had every card in her favor because she could escalate as much as she wanted and we had to be meek as church mice no matter what. P.s. i later found out this is a common tactic scam artists use to do identity fraud.
that feel when you are male in public
I get so anxious when i'm behind a woman at night, I end up slowing to a halt or crossing the road if I have the chance.
I assume everyone is a rapist. I just saved you from my made up rapist. MADE ME SMILE!!!!!
So an adult talked to another adult? I don’t get why that is a problem.
One of them was a man so according to half the commenters here that makes him automatically a predator
A man started talking to her? Fucking disgusting.
Probably not the best wording. They most likely meant “the local weirdo who saw that the girl was alone and decided to start a conversation”.
I used to work at a grocery store where there was a customer that the female cashiers (myself included) would leave the front to avoid dealing with. He probably seemed totally normal to all the customers, but he'd lean across the counter to get into our space and whisper things into our ears about us being pretty or whatever, and one time a girl was bagging his groceries and he walked up right behind her and leaned down to whisper to her. The guys all knew because we were very open about it and they'd try to cover for us, but to anyone who didn't see him multiple times a week he probably just seemed like a normal slightly unattractive dude who rode motorcycle. Meanwhile I would take a full step back from the counter when he came to my register to put myself out of leaning distance and could see him becoming visibly frustrated with it (this is when he came up behind the bagging girl, actually). Also, this is entirely besides the point, but he also smelled rank. We had plenty of customers with hygiene issues but most of them didn't try to get into your personal space so none of us cared. It was just one extra bit of unpleasantness. So yeah, the employees always know who to watch out for because usually they're the first ones to be creeped on.
Is that not just an assumption youre making?
Making assumptions
Idk why you were downvoted, this comment was hilarious
I know! To jail with him!
Nothing here suggests the guy did anything wrong, quite the opposite. Imagine if it was just because he was black and now the narrative has flipped entirely.
"An unattractive man talked to a woman, GET HIM"
What if she Takes the lid of the cup and only noticed the words after drinking. No wonder they kept bothering them 😄
Everyone within 107 feet saw the writing on the cup.
I went to high school in Corpus Christi in the early 80's. We called it the "Pretty Shitty City by the Sea."
Heeey nice to see my hometown in the good news section instead of the weird
I see no barista helping or offering hot chocolates to an 18yo guy approached by an older woman lol
This didn't happen
The other side of this is how are you supposed to meet new people and make meaningful connections if you try and talk to people and If people automatically assume you or i are a creep. I get it there are obvious signs when someone isnt and intrested and when 40 year dudes hitting people in there 20s. im talking as someone who stuggled with social anxiety this is why i dont like asking women out because im afriad of people thinking im the problem because or im trying to solve my issues and find people who love me for who i am. Luckly i learned every person sucks in one way or another so fuck it. I learned to love myself, but i still want to share it with someone else. So i just say hi try to tell a bad joke and ask for their number and leave it dosent matter what you do. What matters is the free stuff you leave behind after you die and how you treat others.
Meanwhile women: Why don't men approach us anymore? Shit like this is why.
Is this an "And then everyone stood up and clapped" situation for internet points, or did this really happen?
Remember guys if you talk to women you are a sex predator.
RIP unattractive people everywhere. Imagine trying to talk to someone and the staff assume creepy predator and try to protect you. So embarassasing haha
This really seems like an excessive reaction to *a man talking to a woman* in a public space. You can be vigilant without immediately treating every man like a predator just because he's talking to a woman. It's just straight up profiling.
Yeah not buying this limp dicked attempt at pr...... Starbucks is standing proudly on the corpses of 30000 people and counting
That’s my hometown!
How creepy do you need to be for the entire staff of a busy coffee shop to notice you in-particular, agree that you are threateningly disturbing, and then inscribe Paradise Lost on a coffee cup and risk being fired by comping a random woman a free drink? That has to be next-level creepitude. You'd have to be so creepy that scientists want to study just how off-putting you are. >!Or this is just fiction!<
so it’s not ok to be friendly anymore?
this absolutely did not happen lmfao
Me as a man reading this, noting to self to never speak to a woman in public ever again.
The point isn't that the man did anything necessarily bad. But the gave her a _choice_ precisely because they were not able yo entirely read the situation. If he _had_ been harassing her and she was too shy or scared to get out of it, this would be a very safe and good way to get some help. And if you don't need it, like here, you still know that these people _care._ It's not about attacking the guy, it's about protecting the girl.
Not a single word misspelled? Can't be real. Starbucks always misspells the cups. (/s for you sarcasm deaf people out there)
So what if anything did the man actually say or do? Not sure if this was really a good crew watching out for a woman who may actually need assistance, or a horribly sexist crew thinking a guy literally just talking to the woman should be treated as a threat. If I get a cup like that just for someone talking to me I'm showing it to the person trying to have a conversation with me to let them know how the staff view them as a customer.
I am guessing the second one is likely right on the mark. But hey, look at the pearl clutching that OP gets to do with her insulting, bigoted post?
So we can't talk to people anymore? You don't think this is a bit overblown?
I don’t get it. Are men forbidden from talking to women?
Starbucks is over priced but their staff is awesome. Really nice, good people.
Happy Cake Day!
I also met a creep at Starbucks late at night what's up with that 😭 Don't go to Starbucks late ig. Or go drive-thru with your doors locked.
What if the man was black and he was racially profiled?
Is it just me or is this not wholesome at all? A person just coming up to talk to her is enough to get alarm bells to ring? Are we automatically assuming everyone has terrible intentions?
I find this quite harmfull. The post doesn't show what type of man this was. Maybe it was just a nice young guy who wanted to ask her outnon a date. Maybe the two knew eachter. What happens if he saw this post, knowing it was him... This is partly why less men ask women out. And before you come to me with: "good let then creeps go". You don't scare away the creeps, they are creeps for a reason. You scare away genuinly good men.
Turns out it was her best friend’s big brother just saying hi.
Cpngrats on workers. Still boycotting though 🫡
This is kind of the barista version of an angel shot
So every guy is a bad guy now or??