- Aug 16, 2011
- 128,178
- 24,202
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...you're white.
So, I stop on the way home from work to gas up. There I am filling up, when this guy walks over to me. Middle aged guy like me - though bald and out of shape. The first thing he says is "I only ask you because you're a white guy like me. I mean, not too many of us around here, right? I mean, look around." He's got an expectant grin on his face which fades as soon as he sees my reaction. The blatant racism and very obvious fact that he was about to beg money were not winning me over. When this starts to sink in, he says "I didn't mean to get racial" but it was way too late. He starts to go through his prepared schpeel anyway (some version of which I've heard a million times before) but stops halfway through and gives it up. It was the typical "I just need $8 to put gas in my Mercedes and get home to my (fill in the blank with some highly paid professional) wife" story. He then shifted over to the next guy at the station - who in fact was Latino but spoke English more than well enough to see through his BS. He didn't get his $8, at least while I was there.
So, I stop on the way home from work to gas up. There I am filling up, when this guy walks over to me. Middle aged guy like me - though bald and out of shape. The first thing he says is "I only ask you because you're a white guy like me. I mean, not too many of us around here, right? I mean, look around." He's got an expectant grin on his face which fades as soon as he sees my reaction. The blatant racism and very obvious fact that he was about to beg money were not winning me over. When this starts to sink in, he says "I didn't mean to get racial" but it was way too late. He starts to go through his prepared schpeel anyway (some version of which I've heard a million times before) but stops halfway through and gives it up. It was the typical "I just need $8 to put gas in my Mercedes and get home to my (fill in the blank with some highly paid professional) wife" story. He then shifted over to the next guy at the station - who in fact was Latino but spoke English more than well enough to see through his BS. He didn't get his $8, at least while I was there.
