The topless teen boy in front of the 7-11 line, slurping a Big Gulp, put a $1 bill down on the counter. It was August 1981, Vancouver BC. He had a temporary Queen tattoo on his upper arm. A sign on the cash register said "No Shirt, No Shoes? No Service!" I was 7, and I stood patiently waiting my turn to return some empty cans to pay for a pack of hockey cards.
The young man was tanned all over, clearly not having put a shirt on since high school let out in mid-June. It had been a hot summer.
I remember thinking the clerk was going to refuse to sell the drink because the guy wasn't wearing a shirt, and didn't seem to have one with him. But a moment later, he handed back some nickel and copper, and the shirtless customer was on his way.
Sure, that was 40 years ago. Things have changed, right? Most places really do refuse service to people without shirts or shoes, nowadays. And perhaps for good reason, in a lot of cases (although I disagree with it being a blanket rule for all places of business). That teenager would be lucky to get served in most places today. You could say that shirts and shoes have been made mandatory, essentially across the developed world.
One more article of clothing now required
Masks (aka "cloth face coverings" aka "face diapers") are currently going mandatory (whenever near others / outside the home), all around the world. Now it isn't just muslim countries making exposed faces illegal!
How long until we see the old signs located, dusted off, updated with the latest required clothing article, and displayed at the cash register? (Or should I say, at the point of tracked digital payment via chip or device?)
I think back to that young guy walking out of the 7-11. The 1981 world he walked out into that day was so free compared to this one today. Just a few decades have passed, but it is literally a different society. In 15 years, what kind of world will it be, when my baby son is old enough to go out to shops on his own? What else is going to be required of him, to be acceptably dressed and covered to appear around others, and what will be required of him to make a purchase?
DRutter
I remember seeing that sign at a restaurant (but it had no punctuation) and I stared at it forever because I thought you had to take off your shirt and shoes AND the restaurant was self-serve lol
Interesting. I have never heard of such rule ",No shirt, no shoes, no service" and I work in a 7/11 xD
We serve everybody as long as they are nice. Thats the other criteria for our 7-11 i Denmark.
Hahah, cool. What about topless women?
Canada/USA are very afraid of nipples, even on men. Europe and much of the rest of the world has less of a problem with upper-body nudity.
I don't think we would care, most of us is men, so we would just find it awesome haha!
In the summertime there is a lot of women with either see-through shirts or just walking around braless, is fairly normal now.
Nobody bats an eye :D
If you love allah enough you will find a way....wait that's what the muslims say about the niqab (face veil). We mean, uhm, if you love the system enough you will find a way to wear a mask while eating out at a restaurant or working out. What the fuck has this world come to?!
Don't give them more ideas to refuse us.
I support the use of masks in public places due to the current pandemic. If not for the pandemic, masks would not be necessary...
"I support the use of masks in public places"
EVERYBODY supports the voluntary use of masks in public places, though. People have been voluntarily wearing masks in public for decades here in Vancouver. The Chinese here are known to wear masks to the corner store and back. Nobody tells them they can't wear masks in public for health reasons.
What I'm talking about here is forced masking - the opposite of voluntary.
And yet, here in Murika, people get cussed out for wearing a mask in a public place...
People should be more tolerant of others right to do as they please. It's not directly harming anyone else if you want to wear a mask (as long as you don't pass out while driving or something). In Vancouver, the Chinese population has been wearing masks for decades, on and off. I think they do it more during winter flu season, but I never really paid much attention.
If masks work, why do you think EVERYBODY needs to wear them? If they work, won't yours protect you, even if other people aren't wearing one?
Heheh, and now the mainstream media says that face SHIELDS are interchangeable with face MASKS. One is as good as the other, they say. Wear whatever suits you!
Is this reality? Let me off this ridiculous ride!!
Yes, my mask will protect me. But what about all the other people who could get it because they are unwilling to wear a mask? People die from that...
In a free country like the U.S., I guess it is an individual's choice to make if they want to expose themselves to a virus such as covid-19...sometimes freedom brings needless death.