Miscreants on a Train
Discussion
On my way out to a jolly yesterday, I jumped on a train from my local station and walking through the middle to find a seat there was an electric scooter in the way which, if I wanted to continue walking, would have had to step over. It belonged to one of a pair of youths who were sprawled across four seats facing each other.
I glanced at the pair of them and there was absolutely zero effort to move the scooter or make an apology for it. I carried on with a deadpan face but one of them pipes up with, "wot you say?" I really didn't want to bite as in my estimate they couldn't have been a day over 18 but I may have been wrong, though I did reply as I carried on with my walk to a seat telling him he must be hearing things because I didn't say anything. "But you iz lookin at me like you wanna say suh-ing and I going to prison in 3 days so I don't care innit". As he did this he made a gesture of lifting his jacket up from over his trouser pocket. At this point I have to think about my next move, and just as I replied to his 'going to prison in free dayz' comment with, 'do you want a lift' I found myself thinking: they're a couple of teenage d
heads; do I really need to risk ruining my day by engaging them, and I'm not really that bothered by them at all however, one of them has indicated that he might be carrying a weapon (or certainly wanted to make me think that way). "Enjoy prison," I said as I sat down a couple of rows away from them but I was itching to do something more.
In one way it was a comforting thought that I know there is no way my two teenage sons would act anything like it. But then I thought, what if one or both of them encountered these two scumbags? What if they did have a weapon and wanted to add having used it on their CV? They were now in my head and I had to convince myself not to act upon the rage I was feeling. Then I thought, perhaps alert the BTP and let them intercept them at a station.
Looking through my phone, there was no way of discretely alerting anyone. It appears that the only way to get emergency assistance was by dialing 999. Meanwhile, the two cretins were discussing how they were going to exit their destination station (which was clearly about not paying). They didn't give a flying fk that there were about 12 other passengers privy to their conversations. This wound me up too and the urge to get up drag the pair out onto the next platform was growing stronger and stronger. Two stops later, they got off. My stop came after theirs.
When I walked out of the station there just so happened to be a police officer by the exit. I told him what happened and asked if there was a way to send a message discretely if you felt you couldn't make a 999 voice call. He didn't know. He added that IF I SAW a knife, he would want to know ALL the details but as I didn't see a weapon he couldn't help me. I didn't really want his help as such but was curious about how someone who might genuinely feel threatened by such a situation, how could they reach out for help?
I glanced at the pair of them and there was absolutely zero effort to move the scooter or make an apology for it. I carried on with a deadpan face but one of them pipes up with, "wot you say?" I really didn't want to bite as in my estimate they couldn't have been a day over 18 but I may have been wrong, though I did reply as I carried on with my walk to a seat telling him he must be hearing things because I didn't say anything. "But you iz lookin at me like you wanna say suh-ing and I going to prison in 3 days so I don't care innit". As he did this he made a gesture of lifting his jacket up from over his trouser pocket. At this point I have to think about my next move, and just as I replied to his 'going to prison in free dayz' comment with, 'do you want a lift' I found myself thinking: they're a couple of teenage d
heads; do I really need to risk ruining my day by engaging them, and I'm not really that bothered by them at all however, one of them has indicated that he might be carrying a weapon (or certainly wanted to make me think that way). "Enjoy prison," I said as I sat down a couple of rows away from them but I was itching to do something more. In one way it was a comforting thought that I know there is no way my two teenage sons would act anything like it. But then I thought, what if one or both of them encountered these two scumbags? What if they did have a weapon and wanted to add having used it on their CV? They were now in my head and I had to convince myself not to act upon the rage I was feeling. Then I thought, perhaps alert the BTP and let them intercept them at a station.
Looking through my phone, there was no way of discretely alerting anyone. It appears that the only way to get emergency assistance was by dialing 999. Meanwhile, the two cretins were discussing how they were going to exit their destination station (which was clearly about not paying). They didn't give a flying f
k that there were about 12 other passengers privy to their conversations. This wound me up too and the urge to get up drag the pair out onto the next platform was growing stronger and stronger. Two stops later, they got off. My stop came after theirs. When I walked out of the station there just so happened to be a police officer by the exit. I told him what happened and asked if there was a way to send a message discretely if you felt you couldn't make a 999 voice call. He didn't know. He added that IF I SAW a knife, he would want to know ALL the details but as I didn't see a weapon he couldn't help me. I didn't really want his help as such but was curious about how someone who might genuinely feel threatened by such a situation, how could they reach out for help?
Edited by Glassman on Sunday 5th May 10:50
They're annoying and disrespectful, but a bit like bad drivers, it isn't your job to correct them, much as you would like.
Relax and don't worry about it - If you work out how, please let me know because scrotes like this make my blood boil!
Laugh to yourself safe in the knowledge that you don't have a silly pseudo-rapper-come-mockney accent and a stupid tracksuit (you didn't describe that but I'm willing to put ten pence on one of them wearing 'joggers').
Relax and don't worry about it - If you work out how, please let me know because scrotes like this make my blood boil!
Laugh to yourself safe in the knowledge that you don't have a silly pseudo-rapper-come-mockney accent and a stupid tracksuit (you didn't describe that but I'm willing to put ten pence on one of them wearing 'joggers').
I've filed a report online just now.
The only non-verbal way to report it at the time was by doing what I've just done. Given the time it took there's no way I would have seen it out on the train. One of the questions was, "is it happening right now?" and the footnote to that was to call 999 if it was.
I also hate the 'how did it make you feel' questions. There was also one that asked why I think it affects my travel on public transport. Umm...
The only non-verbal way to report it at the time was by doing what I've just done. Given the time it took there's no way I would have seen it out on the train. One of the questions was, "is it happening right now?" and the footnote to that was to call 999 if it was.
I also hate the 'how did it make you feel' questions. There was also one that asked why I think it affects my travel on public transport. Umm...
Glassman said:
…
…As he did this he made a gesture of lifting his jacket up from over his trouser pocket…
When I walked out of the station there just so happened to be a police officer by the exit. I told him what happened and asked if there was a way to send a message discretely if you felt you couldn't make a 999 voice call. He didn't know. He added that IF I SAW a knife, he would want to know ALL the details but as I didn't see a weapon he couldn't help me. I didn't really want his help as such but was curious about how someone who might genuinely feel threatened by such a situation, how could they reach out for help?
There’s your answer, and we can all learn from this. If a scrote threatens you like this, call the police and tell them you’ve just been threatened by a an aggressive scrote who indicated he had a knife/weapon. It’s ok that you didn’t stop to check or ask for proof.…As he did this he made a gesture of lifting his jacket up from over his trouser pocket…
When I walked out of the station there just so happened to be a police officer by the exit. I told him what happened and asked if there was a way to send a message discretely if you felt you couldn't make a 999 voice call. He didn't know. He added that IF I SAW a knife, he would want to know ALL the details but as I didn't see a weapon he couldn't help me. I didn't really want his help as such but was curious about how someone who might genuinely feel threatened by such a situation, how could they reach out for help?
Edited by Glassman on Sunday 5th May 10:50
If you’re right and there was knife then you may save someone else from being stabbed. How would you feel if you didn’t report it and later learned that someone had been stabbed?
languagetimothy said:
Well if the scrote really is going to prison soon then be happy in the knowledge that he may find out quickly and abruptly how hard he really isn’t.
Is that even a thing? To be out and about, free to potentially commit more crime, before going to prison? I say he was talking bks. Glassman said:
languagetimothy said:
Well if the scrote really is going to prison soon then be happy in the knowledge that he may find out quickly and abruptly how hard he really isn’t.
Is that even a thing? To be out and about, free to potentially commit more crime, before going to prison? I say he was talking bks. I've had a youth drop his hand and theatrically rest it inside his jacket as if holding/about to produce a knife.
I was on a fairly quiet train in London last year with my wife when a gobby teenage (female) refused to turn down her music - which was on speakerphone, not headphones. She was very offensive and threatened violence.
An equally young inoffensive chap sitting nearby immediately got up showing a police badge announcing himself as BTP. Wonderful timing. It shut her up and she got off at the next stop.
He said he was on his commute but that he never lets things like that pass and if needed would arrest the person.
He didn't look past 18 himself!
An equally young inoffensive chap sitting nearby immediately got up showing a police badge announcing himself as BTP. Wonderful timing. It shut her up and she got off at the next stop.
He said he was on his commute but that he never lets things like that pass and if needed would arrest the person.
He didn't look past 18 himself!
i4got said:
when you want to contact us about an issue that doesn't require an emergency response. For example, you can text when:You want to tell about an incident that has already happened
You want to tell us about issues affecting your rail journey or your local station
You have a general police enquiry
They shouldn't even be allowed to bring the electric scooter on the train.
I did overhear a rather funny conversation a while back at the turnstiles at Leeds Station.
A guy that should have known better (he was circa 40) was remonstrating with the staff because they wouldn't let him through with his scooter.
He was demanding they plug it in for him because he now had to ride it home because they'd apparently let him on for the inbound journey.
The guy was clearly comfortable with his sexuality.
I did overhear a rather funny conversation a while back at the turnstiles at Leeds Station.
A guy that should have known better (he was circa 40) was remonstrating with the staff because they wouldn't let him through with his scooter.
He was demanding they plug it in for him because he now had to ride it home because they'd apparently let him on for the inbound journey.
The guy was clearly comfortable with his sexuality.
Unpopular opinion maybe, but I think the more of us that gave these little sts a good slap, the better. Be damned the consequences.
I remember in the early nineties as a yoof myself. Ashamed to say we were being disrespectful to an old guy just walking through the park. One of us took it too far and started following him and getting in his face. Whereupon the old guy suddenly stopped and absolutely clubbed my mate right in the jaw.
The complete look of shock on my mates face will always raise a giggle. We/he never did that again.
A good sharp shock isn’t going to do them any harm, quite the opposite in fact. Although these days the old guy would have probably been hauled up in front of the beak for “child” abuse…
ts a good slap, the better. Be damned the consequences.I remember in the early nineties as a yoof myself. Ashamed to say we were being disrespectful to an old guy just walking through the park. One of us took it too far and started following him and getting in his face. Whereupon the old guy suddenly stopped and absolutely clubbed my mate right in the jaw.
The complete look of shock on my mates face will always raise a giggle. We/he never did that again.
A good sharp shock isn’t going to do them any harm, quite the opposite in fact. Although these days the old guy would have probably been hauled up in front of the beak for “child” abuse…
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