G-A-Y owner Jeremy Joseph condemns Super Saturday as a Disaster

[eastofeden]

Ah - probably a long post here. 

As some of you already know - I was a bartender in a very busy gay club back in the 70s=80s-90s - almost 20 years and five nights a week for almost all of it.

I rarely have told anyone this next part because I was so damn mad it took me probably two years to stop ranting about it - my poor husband is a saint - really - and I did thank him for letting me go on but told him next time just slap me and tell me to STFU  I have calmed down now enough to talk about it without getting enraged. 

Bars and Clubs have their own dynamics as does everything else in life and people who have no idea what the dynamics are really shouldn't make any rules for them. If you are gonna take the time to play Ms Nancy you could easily find someone who is suited for the role. - and that is the source of my anger then - and now after reading this.  

Back then we got two punches in a row. The first punch - no one is allowed to smoke. While I agreed with the rule - try telling someone who is drinking and used to smoking they can't do it anymore - especially when you are already tired and worn out from too many years at a job NO ONE should do over 2 years - it is almost like being forced to eat shit because you are going to get abuse - and we all got lots of abuse bartending. BUT - that wasn't even the breaking point. 

The fine people in Sacramento decided as a "gift" to the LGBT and Minority communities we would be the lucky first ones to go to a class training us all for a week how to cut people off because the new law states that if a person leaves your club and crashes into a car or kills someone the bartender and bar is now responsible - and our reward was to get CERTIFIED (in other words we are now officially responsible) HUH? WTF! Half of the people come in after already having drinks and then alot of others are on drugs of some sort which impairs them so even one drink and they have an accident means we lose everything. THAT was my last straw. 

Not only that - I asked my friends who worked at restaurants or hotels or straight bars if they had been told of any such rule and they said NO and of course NO RULES = NO CERTIFICATION = NO RESPONSIBILITY - and then I wondered if you were only responsible IF you got the week long class? But again - how nice it was to educate just the LGBT and Minorities and make us solely responsible.  I never forget that there are people around who want to undermine us because we are LGBT and "sinning in the eyes of god" - I never forget because they don't let me.

So FF to today - 

There is NO WAY ANY BARS SHOULD BE OPEN RIGHT NOW - PERIOD! 

There is NO WAY ANYONE DRINKING IS GOING TO RESPECT SOCIAL DISTANCING! Bars are NOT a place where social distancing is gonna happen.

Cases of Covid-19 traced to bars here are insane - through the roof - and the obnoxious people STILL don't care. 

I am now convinced that anyone who thinks that masks and social distancing are not relevant are either narcissists, sociopaths or psychopaths because essentially you are saying you don't give a damn if you kill someone else. 

Bars and Gyms and Movie Theaters and Concerts - NO - JUST NO. This is a pandemic - they have been around since the beginning and there will be more to follow. Some things are just going to have to change and keeping bars closed is one of them.

I pity the poor bartenders who try to enforce any of the rules with people who clearly don't give a damn and are dangerous if they are drinking or on drugs. 

Gay bars would especially be prudent to keep closed as they are highlighting them. There have been alot of cases of straight bars reported here as well BTW

END OF RANT!