Bell: Stampede bartender's sob story of drunks and long hours — oh please!
It's not often I take on one of our own stories.
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But this latest doozy takes the cake and it was front-page news.
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In the Woe Is Me file this one goes right to the top of the pathetic pile.
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A bartender signs up to work during the Calgary Stampede, at one of the tents that pop up around town.
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She works long hours. She encounters drunks, some of them acting like idiots. Like that's never happened to a bartender before.
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It attracts many eyeballs. Many. Could well be the top-read story of the month.
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Now, folks, there are injustices in the world. Big injustices, smaller injustices. They often becomes stories. Some become headlines.
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You see, there are stories to tell. Stories where wrongs need to be made right.
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There are also stories that are just interesting or entertaining. They might make you laugh or make you cry or make you laugh and cry.
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Or think. Or feel.
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There are other stories providing you with news you can use.
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This is not one of any of these stories.
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This bartender story is what was once called a sob story. It is an open invitation to a pity party.
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It is self-indulgent crap in an age of self-indulgent crap.
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Here goes.
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This story tells us this bartender believes drinking around Stampede contributes to deteriorating mental health.
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Quite the statement to make when she is the one serving the drinks and no doubt getting a pretty penny for doing so, driving all the way from Edmonton to take the job.
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As the days go on she says people get more aggressive and demanding, even hostile.
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What she means by this is not explained.
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Having hit the bottle hard in my day and patronized far too many watering holes there isn't much you don't see with alcohol in the mix.
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Thank you, Captain Obvious.
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Enter a scientific study in a medical journal. It shows a spike in emergency visits during Stampede time by men and an increase in substance misuse cases.
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The study was from about 10 years ago and was done so emergency rooms could know how much they should staff up during Stampede.
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Bell: Stampede bartender's sob story of drunks and long hours — oh please!
Article content It's not often I take on one of our own stories. Article content But this latest doozy takes the cake and it was front-page news. Article content Article content In the Woe Is Me file this one goes right to the top of the pathetic pile. Article content A bartender signs up to work during the Calgary Stampede, at one of the tents that pop up around town. Article content She works long hours. She encounters drunks, some of them acting like idiots. Like that's never happened to a bartender before. Article content Article content Article content It attracts many eyeballs. Many. Could well be the top-read story of the month. Article content Now, folks, there are injustices in the world. Big injustices, smaller injustices. They often becomes stories. Some become headlines. Article content You see, there are stories to tell. Stories where wrongs need to be made right. Article content There are also stories that are just interesting or entertaining. They might make you laugh or make you cry or make you laugh and cry. Article content Or think. Or feel. Article content There are other stories providing you with news you can use. Article content This is not one of any of these stories. Article content This bartender story is what was once called a sob story. It is an open invitation to a pity party. Article content It is self-indulgent crap in an age of self-indulgent crap. Article content Here goes. Article content This story tells us this bartender believes drinking around Stampede contributes to deteriorating mental health. Article content Article content Quite the statement to make when she is the one serving the drinks and no doubt getting a pretty penny for doing so, driving all the way from Edmonton to take the job. Article content As the days go on she says people get more aggressive and demanding, even hostile. Article content What she means by this is not explained. Article content Having hit the bottle hard in my day and patronized far too many watering holes there isn't much you don't see with alcohol in the mix. Article content Article content Thank you, Captain Obvious. Article content Enter a scientific study in a medical journal. It shows a spike in emergency visits during Stampede time by men and an increase in substance misuse cases. Article content The study was from about 10 years ago and was done so emergency rooms could know how much they should staff up during Stampede.
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