Rona Y. wrote:
> Damsel wrote:
>
>
> That ranks right up there with "I'm not prejudiced...some of my best
> friends are (fill in the ethnicity here)." Which, by the way, is
> quite similar to an argument she has made before.
>
> It isn't that she mentioned the people were "foreign born" (which in
> itself is a contentious phrase) that shows her prejudices, it's the
> implication that because he was foreign born, he couldn't read or
> understand that the pasta should have been refrigerated or frozen
> (and was therefore stupid--implied, not stated by the tone of the
> post--she's so lucky to get free pasta because some dumbass foreigner
> couldn't read). That and the implication that the foreign-born boss
> is literate *because* he was educated in England (why mention the
> latter were it not important?). I know many North American born
> people of European descent who are illiterate or not very competent
> readers. Should the pasta have been shelved by one of them, would
> Jill have mentioned the staff member was "American-born" or even
> Caucasian? Or that the person might not have been literate?
>

I'm not prejudiced either, but I would have probably included some sort of
ethniticity in explanation to the story if I told it too. The fact remains
that the store attendant couldn't read English and the pasta wasn't put in
the refrigerator. His partner/boss *could* read English, however.

Ultimately, to thank her for pointing out their faux pas, she got some free
pasta! What's the big deal? Kudos to Jill!

kili