We’re gonna have another talk about why people love to call things on the internet fake.
What happened was that a waitress at Buffalo Wild Wings posted a picture on Facebook. In the picture, we can see an arm, which has a rainbow colored equal sign on it, and a restaurant receipt.
The woman, named Joelle Nicole Maish, states that her coworker, Samantha Heaton, was serving a couple that night and everything was going fine. Then, when they left Heaton noticed that not only did the couple not pay her a tip, but they left a mean (and misspelled) note behind.
The note said, “Can’t tip someone who doesn’t love Jesus,” and “Bad tatoo.”
On the Facebook post Maish stated: “I would just like to say that being gay does NOT MEAN you don't believe in God or Jesus. And people who are "religious" should not disrespect or act in such ways to other people. p.s., they spelled tattoo wrong.”
Heaton also later talked to Rock River Times and lamented saying, “I went above and beyond for this couple, and for them to leave that (note) kind of hurt.”
The Comments
Honestly, I was just going to post this story as is and state how sad it is that this couple treated this woman this way. Especially since apparently none of this was brought up when she was serving them throughout the whole meal.
But then I went into the comments of the news post where I found this story. Yes, I know what you’re thinking, “Devin, never go into the comments! That’s where all the trolls and jerks rule while the nice Samaritans try to speak sense into them only end up in an endless stream of insults and childish argument! (gasp!)”
But against better judgment I did it anyway and what do you know, I found some people calling the women liars and saying that the entire situation could be fake and fabricated to get some public attention.
(Keep in mind that I found these comments only on gay news sites, while the comments in the actual Facebook post are of well-wishers and Christians supporting the women.)
Now of course, this all being a lie could be true. It’s not hard to believe that someone would to this to get attention. Especially because it’s an easy task to just write up a few words on a piece of paper and post it online. Plus, would they really know that the picture would go viral like this?
That said, what bothers me is how many people on the internet are ready to call something fake and say someone’s just seeking attention. Especially when its LGBTQ people doing it to other LGBTQ people.
And yes, I totally just had a similar conversation a couple days ago with the post about a Dublin drag queen punching a man who snatched her wig, but since then I can’t stop finding people doing it again and again.
Now of course, this is just the rantings of an optimistic writer in his early twenties, but I know I’m not the only one who's tired of it. The hecklers, the haters, the people who always have to say something negative. It’s sad that their existence has become so everyday in our lives.
Let’s face it, wherever you go there will be hecklers and haters. Hell, if you’re doing anything right there will be people waiting to the side to shoot you down. Part of that is a compliment.
But, there’s also the fact that so many people feel the need to say, “I don’t believe you,” “I’m against you,” and “I don’t trust you.” And technically I’m doing the same by posting this article.
So, I beseech whoever is reading this (and thank you for doing so) to do something nice in the face of all that negativity. Whenever you see someone send hate, send love to balance that out.
I choose to believe Miss Maish and Miss Heaton, and I hope them well. Heaton deserved better treatment, and I’ll be the first to try.
