Breaking the Rules

The way things normally go down when we have an altercation in our bar is usually like this: We're at the door, or on the floor, and we call a customer on their behavior or something that goes against a policy or rule that we have. 9 times out of 10 we do so as nicely as we can, but if you know a thing or two then you'll know that the nice doorguy finishes last.

And so the customer bitches and throws a fit, or continues to do whatever it is that caused us to confront them in the first place. These kids are so caught up in their own nascissistic self indulgence that they haven't even given a moments thought to anyone elses comfort besides their own.

God forbid that we have an actual job to do which along with it comes with a set of rules and policies that we, as a floor and door staff, have to follow and enforce. We're doing our job, which isn't always partying and drinking and allowing the customers to do whatever the fuck they want to when they want to do it.

Take, for example, last weekend. The night was finished and everyone was leaving the bar. Two gentlemen apparently thought that they could stop and hold up the line that was exiting the bar momentarily in order to light their cigarettes. They did this shoulder-to-shoulder and thus, stopped the forward momentum and inconvienienced everyone but themselves.

When we called them on their behavior and pointed out that people behind them were waiting to get outside in addition to the fact that they were not allowed to smoke until they were outside the building, they told us in no uncertain terms to chill out; Jesus Christ!

Because the night was over and I wasn't in any mood to exacerbate this relatively minor altercation by pointing out to them that they're not the only people in the bar, the event reminded me that most people coming out downtown just don't give a fuck about anyone else around them besides themselves. Absolutely no thought is given to anything on any level besides what's best for themselves right now, regardless of how it affects the world around them.

And that, on the most basic of levels, is what's wrong with most of the kids coming downtown these days. Plenty of them come from priviledged families and hardly ever hear the word no. And when they do finally hear it, they rage against the perceived injustice that's been so unfairly placed upon them.

God forbid I tell someone they can't smuggle beer inside. I'm the asshole if I tell them they need to smoke outside instead of in. They yell and scream and demand to be served the moment they approach the bar, despite the fact that the place is packed beyond capacity. If they are made to wait or don't get exactly what they want, when they want it, at a price that's reasonable to them, then the finger pointing begins. If their fake ID is pointed out to them or taken up, they simply can't believe this is happening to them.

What the hell? Are you serious??, they exclaim. That's fucking ridiculous!, they'll finally concede as they storm off, cursing at me and to themselves.

They're so wrapped up in their own little world that they'll never admit to anyone, especially themeselves that their actions and missteps have led to the position that they're in.

They came downtown. They used a fake ID. They got drunk and they broke the rules, which caused them to get thrown out and arrested. Yet somehow it's our fault for doing our job. It's our fault for rejecting them or telling them to wait in line like everyone else. It's our fault that they ran their tab up to $100 dollars, but they'll continually point at us and complain and scream and rail against the wrongs that have allegedly been committed against them.

And in the end, I'll never be able to right all the things that I find defective with the behaviors of college kids who come downtown. I realized that last weekend in the worst way possible because the turn-over rate for the college students is just too damn great and happens too damn quickly for anything I do to even be somewhat effective.

It's not my job to educate the fuckers before they come out and break the rules that society has placed upon them - I've given up on that for sure - but I'll certainly continue to call them on it while they're actually breaking them in the form of a headlock and a quick trip out the front door.