Jedidiah Thursday, September 03, 2009

Entertainment

Ban Stinky People on Public Transportation?


First it was banning dogs on outdoor patios at restaurants (which was quickly revised), now it’s stinky people on public transportation? The local ABC affiliate has a poll on its website asking readers if they support banning “stinky people” on public transportation. An overwhelming 61% of the 160+ votes are YES. I am going to make a huge assumption and say that about 99% of the 61% probably never ride public transportation in the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill area.

Next time you are on a bus in Raleigh, make sure you sniff everyone around you before deciding whether or not to stick around for your a-bit-more-environmentally-friendly ride through town. At least the stinky people are riding public transportation on a daily basis. More than most of us can say.

I think we should ban stupid polls instead. Rancid antipers(on)pirant indeed.

Bookmark: del.icio.us Favicon Digg Favicon Google Favicon LinkedIn Favicon Reddit Favicon StumbleUpon Favicon

Read More: Entertainment, Other posts by Jedidiah.

Filed Under:

  • Ron09/03 08:09 AM

    Running for this bus in the summer time will often cause stinkiness!  Along with waiting for the bus….

  • f09/03 08:47 AM

    Right on, Jed!  Our local ABC channel is, in my opinion, the worst source of local news in the Capital Area and this poll is a great example of why I am consistently disappointed in what they choose to focus on.

    Please tell me this poll was done by an 18 yr-old intern and not a full-time permanent employee.  That would be inexcusable.

    Every mindless negative comment made about public transportation, even in jest and especially through popular media, can paint a negative picture of transit for future voters on transit referendums.  Educate yourselves about transit.  Learn how to use our current systems and what House Bill 148 can offer North Carolina in building a transit system for our growing communities: http://www.ncleg.net/Sessions/2009/Bills/House/PDF/H148v6.pdf

    And besides, if someone is a bit stinky on the bus, is it really that big of a deal? Oftentimes, I would prefer a dose of straight up B.O. to, say, Clinique ‘Happy’...

  • sally09/03 09:00 AM

    I think they should ban stinky people from outdoor patios. Definitely.

  • RaleighRob09/03 09:21 AM

    Most of the busses around here are so big, I can’t see how you couldn’t just move to a different seat if it were an issue.  Bring a can of Oust if you hafta.  LOL

  • anon09/03 09:45 AM

    f - You’ve apparently never watched NBC17.

  • Sue09/03 10:44 AM

    I fart in your general direction.

  • Andy S.09/03 11:58 AM

    Don’t blame our local ABC affiliate.  Their poll is likely a reaction to the news that Honolulu, HI is ACTUALLY CONSIDERING banning excessively stinky people from public transportation.

    http://www.kitv.com/news/20679481/detail.html

  • Andy S.09/03 12:07 PM

    Seriously though, we probably *should* consider banning bloggers who would rather spend their time finding just the right snarky header image than doing the appropriate research for an article.

  • DPK09/03 12:34 PM

    This isn’t ABC’s fault.  They’re just doing a poll based off of a real issue going on in Hawaii.  I don’t see what the big deal is.  It’s not a stupid poll at all in its context.

  • f09/03 03:15 PM

    Call it what you will but I rarely hear anyone sticking up for the captive riders of transit in our local dialogue (assuming that many of the riders with offensive body odor are those who are homeless and do not bathe regularly). I realize that it’s sexier to speak of luring new riders with talk of a potpourri of new trains and Transit-Oriented Development, the spoils of living a carless lifestyle, etc.,but these riders would be ‘choice’ riders.  The ‘captive’ riders are those who can’t afford an ‘alternative’ to transit.  Currently, it is up to the bus drivers’ discretion whether or not to remove an individual from a bus if he/she is offensive to other riders in any way.  How would one even begin to enforce a ‘no stink on the bus’ law?  I think that allowing bus drivers to use their own judgment on a case-by-case basis is appropriate and fair.

    And I don’t mind NBC17 at all.

  • lrtrac09/03 04:29 PM

    A little Vicks vapor rub placed under your nostrils should overwhelm your ability to sense some one else’s body odor. Have you ever ridden a metro in Paris, a Transmilenio in Colombia, or subway in NYC? Raleigh public transit operates in an aseptic environ, relatively speaking.

  • Fate09/04 11:18 AM

    body odor? can you have an asthma attack from body odor or something? I sure get them from perfume. So, like an intelligent being, i move away from it. Now, perfume on airplanes where you can’t get away is a problem. have had to change my seats several times & it’s a pain in the whole plane’s butt. i can miserably tolerate being stuck next to body odor tho. anyway. silly!

  • KimJ09/04 02:19 PM

    maybe they should make buses with better ventilation?

Welcome to New Raleigh. We welcome your participation in the ongoing discussion. Before posting we ask that you read our Comment Policy and we invite you to register with our site. If you want to keep up with the news on our blog, subscribe to the RSS feed or get emailed every time we post.




Remember my information for next time I comment

Send me an email of follow-up comments?