Ok, I must be in a bitchy mood but I sure as hell don’t get it. How is it that one can apply for a job as a cashier with full knowledge of what the job entails and, that due to their religious beliefs, knows there will be a conflict but fails to tell the employer when they accept the job? Customer service and faith clash at registers
Now as a cashier, from what I know, they go through a training period before being turned loose on your own. Still, throughout this training period they say nothing about a certain product/products being in conflict with their religion. It is only after they are on their own, a customer comes to their checkout station and one of their items, a “pork” product, do they suddenly remember that “pork” is against their religion and they refuse to scan the product. This, in my mind, is nothing but a plan that was intentional to begin with, one that was meant as a publicity stunt and a way to cry discrimination and cause disruption.
Trust me, this is not about pro or con regarding any one religion as I respect everyone’s religion and their own way of worship but I do resent the it when they try to use it as a way to disrupt our country. We are a melting pot but that doesn’t mean that we have to bow to everyone. We have our own country and by GOD we need to stand by her. There is no way, let’s say that Americans can go to France and demand they speak English, as an example, but yet WE are expected to change OUR way for everyone else. Now is it hard to even get a job unless you speak Spanish, yet this is America, an English speaking country. I feel we are quickly falling away from what being an American originally meant.
The fact that someone can take a job as a cashier, then refuse to scan “pork” because it is against their religion, to me is like someone becoming a barber but then refuses to cut hair as it is against their religion. I feel this was nothing short of a stunt and they probably had no intention of being a cashier to begin with.
I’d be interested to see if I’m the only one who feels this way but I’m hoping not.
My Little Corner for Thoughts and Rants 
March 26, 2007 at 9:06 am
ok, that is a NEW one for me! OMG! i’m sure there are plenty of recovering alcoholics who work as cashiers, and i bet they scan alcohol. or lactose intolerant individuals who scan milk. ya know??? nobody is making you TOUCH unwrapped pork, making you eat it, etc. get a freakin life!!
March 28, 2007 at 9:57 pm
That’s just crazy! I can undestand why they refuse to do this, but as you said, they did take a job as a cashier knowing that at some point, pork would have to be handled. It’s like if you are a vegetarian and worked there and refused to scan any meats! Hey, I’m lactose intolerant, so I’m gonna refuse to handle milk products!
March 30, 2007 at 6:51 pm
The whole thing involving the scanning of pork IS absolutely ridiculous, but I guess I find it to be more irritating than outraging, such as the pharmacists who refused to give customers the morning-after pill for “religious” reasons. There are idiots all over the world-sadly vain people with battles to pick that are clearly ineffectual and not worth even acknowledging by the rest of us.
On another topic you mentioned, I must also say that being an American means nothing more than feeling as though this country is home to you. If you want to go back to what “being an American originally meant,” then I suppose we should all start speaking in Native American tongues. The fact is that America-as well as all countries-is constantly evolving. Some of us can go with the flow and appreciate it as it happens, and some of us clearly can’t. It may be that you don’t like every embryonic transition that we find upon us, but I think you might find that many of these changes can be a great thing. Our country is becoming more and more liberal by the day; we’re becoming more worldly and open-minded. Yes, that does include Spanish-speaking citizens becoming a larger and larger demographic. In good time, you may just see that as being a true part of America…and what it means to be an American. 😉
March 31, 2007 at 1:03 pm
Thanks for your comment and I agree with you but let me explain what I meant with the words “being an American originally meant”. I probably should have explained it a better as I certainly didn’t mean going so far back as to speaking in “Native tongue”.
America is a melting pot, that is a fact and that is something America can be proud of. The fact remains that this is America and English is our National language. There was a “bill on the hill” that was to decided if English or Spanish would be our national language. English prevailed and I think it should have but I also think there never should have been that bill. I think being able to speak another language other than English is a real asset but should not be a hindrance in one’s own country. I have nothing against those who speak Spanish(or any other language) either as their native language or learned language.
My point is, and I do have one. Being an American to me means that when we go to the polls to vote, those ballots should all be in English. Why must we change everything because some have chosen not to learn the language of the country they chose to live in?
Another example:
My husband and I went to Home Depot to purchase wood flooring. They were having a promotion for all their Home Depot accounts and at that time, we were given the opportunity to apply for an account in order to benefit from the discount. We chose to do that and they handed us an application to fill out. We looked at the application and then looked at each other. The application was first in Spanish with English in parenthesis.
I definitely didn’t intend to write a “screed” here but I do feel there are certain things that should not be changed. I feel I am open-minded and I can go with the flow, for the most part, I just feel certain things do not and should not have be changed to accomodate. I think everyone will find our country more accomodating than any country, that’s America. 😉