Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
And another reason why people are cutting way back on actually going to the movies.
I am diabetic too and i ALWAYS took my own snacks to the movies---that is when I used to go. I think this is also another example of a business owner leaving his business in the hands of incompetent and poorly trained people- usually teenagers.
Sorry, but that was a good call by the theatre manager. Alcoholism is a disease. Alcoholics aren't allowed to bring in mixed drinks. Diabetics and hypoglycemics have a wide range of unobtrusive "healthy snacks" to keep them from crashing and generally DON'T have to rely on them for the two hours a movie takes. The diabetes was just being used as an excuse to attempt to circumvent clear rules. I've had that type of whinge played on me many times before. If you had cleaned theatres covered in pistachio shells, apple cores, half-eaten burgers and other trash you might think differently.
Edit to note - if the person was caught prior to entry and was even partway reasonable, about 95% of theatres would give a refund. News media often plays stories for appeal. If my sense is still on-track, he got pulled out of an auditorium after something brought him to the notice of the staff. Working a theatre is hard enough without looking for arguments or trouble.
...and most theatre circuits are HORRIBLE at backing up valid management decisions. I've watched some repeat offenders wave their free passes in the faces of staff just to show that they got the best of them. The problem with papering over complaints is that it encourages more outrageous complaints and turns the staff into a "so he is cutting up the seats with a utility knife. If we throw him out, he'll just get free passes to come again."
For a manager to call the police - and the police to ACT - there is much more going on that is being told from one side.
Last edited by harry chickpea; 03-28-2014 at 01:57 PM..
The diabetes was just being used as an excuse to attempt to circumvent clear rules.
^^^^^ This. My BS meter was redlining before I even clicked on the link.
I've never understood why people can't sit 2 hours in a movie without eating. Don't like what's being sold at the concession stand? Then don't eat. If you're going to die of starvation in that time span, then you have bigger problems.
Thanks so much for posting this! I'd heard the headline on the radio this morning, but hadn't yet had a chance to try to track down the story.
Wow, talk about back theater attitude. As it happens, I'm fine with people sneaking in food, and do it myself. If theaters had any sense, they'd offer cheaper snacks, so that they'd sell more. I can't imagine ever spending $4 on popcorn, no matter how much I like it. Of course, I do wonder about his getting caught, since it's not as if theater staff frisks you.
But then to refuse to give him a refund? Really bad.
The guy wanted to eat a healthy snack instead of the garbage the theater offers. It's not that the man would die if he didn't eat for 2 hours, it is that his blood sugar would be affected by eating the candy, popcorn, etc. that was available for sale. Why can't he munch on something while watching the movie just like everyone else?
He should have stuck the strawberries in a backpack, snuck it in, and avoided the whole fiasco.
Carrying a backpack into the movies isn't sneaking anything. It's pretty much a neon sign.
We took the kids to the movies when our oldest was almost four. We had a diaper bag for the youngest in which we had various treats for them. We just needed drinks. The guy behind the counter took our drink order and asked if we needed any snacks. Our four year old proudly announced "No, thanks! We have some in the baby's bag!" He clearly didn't care and we were laughing so hard I almost spilled the drinks.
I was on the side of the diabetic until I read the part about him not wanting to eat the crap at the concessions. He could have found something at the concession that would have been just as beneficial as his carton of strawberries but he put up a fuss and said he likes to eat healthy. Well I like to eat healthy too but you don't see me bringing in my own salad to the theater. This guy was just being difficult and knew he could use having diabetes as an excuse to get away with something other people can't.
Does he take a carton of strawberries everywhere he goes? There are just certain places we all know in advance that doesn't allow us to bring in our own food. If we don't like it than we don't have to go.
He can eat all the strawberries he wants on his couch while watching Netflix, On Demand, or Red Box. That's what most people do when they don't want to put up with a theater experience they don't like.
Despite having snuck my own unhealthy snacks into the movies, I have no problem with a private business making rules about what can and cannot be brought in to the theater.
Many restaurants have "no outside food" rules...I don't see this as much different.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
