CommentsDisplaying JohnnyMidknight's 10 most recent comments.

• ‘An Imminent Threat’: 2 More Activists Charged in Separate NATO Bomb Plot

  May 21, 2012 at 3:00pm

  In reply to Buckeyesquadron.

  Please provide use evidence of entrapment when making a claim of such. The people arrested are innocent until proven guilty. Let’s not muddy they waters with additional allegations on the police that have yet to surface. I am afraid the assumption of innocence goes both was in the eyes of the court and public.

• After 49 Mutilated Bodies Dumped at U.S.-Mexico Border, Beck Slams Obama Over ‘Basically Complete’ Fence

  May 15, 2012 at 6:23pm

  In reply to megarobryder.

  Can Glenn stop eating while hooked up to a mic?!?!? It sounds like Jabba the Hutt trying to lick Leia whenever he eats and talks with his mouth full. IT IS DRIVING ME OUT OF MY MIND!

• This Group Didn’t Want to Pay an Automatic Gratuity, Restaurant Responds by Locking Them Inside & Calling Police

  May 5, 2012 at 8:30am

  In reply to MadNewYorker.

  @ demsaredumb

  Not true… It is shoplifting as the policy states the fee will be imposed. Look at it this way, do you have a choice not to pay your mechanic if they give bad service? No. If they did the work, you need to pay for the parts and labor. Even if it took longer than expected. Don’t and they can lean your car and hold until you do pay. Is that theft? No, it is 100% legal.

  Same with Plumbers and electricians. You do not have the ability to drop their wage if they are late or an unforeseen issue arises and it takes them longer or the have an attitude. Are you legally liable to pay them? Yes.

  The holding the customers for refusal to pay is like a store detaining a shoplifter, which is 100% legal. Otherwise, we would have lawsuits up to our necks regarding that policy in the countless “held against their will lawsuits”. You want to talk about a waste of government money, I think the legal system is a good place to start cutting the overspending. Maybe a loser pays all costs. Cutting overburdening government regulation would be another fine start.

  If it was illegal to hold them against their will as you state? Wouldn’t the police have addressed this and arrested the manager? It is kidnapping by your mindset, which is a felony. They didn’t and the people paid their outstanding balance… Why? Because it was 100% legal under grounds of theft, as the policy was clearly stated.

• This Group Didn’t Want to Pay an Automatic Gratuity, Restaurant Responds by Locking Them Inside & Calling Police

  May 5, 2012 at 8:20am

  In reply to MadNewYorker.

  @ loriann12

  What groups you ask? You thought I was going to say black, right? I have heard it from almost every server, so I guess it is partly true. But I am more speaking on European tourists. They are notoriously know for bad tipping. Why? Waiters make a living wage in Europe. The tips are for beyond the basic service. Unfortunately, we do not do that here, because our culture would freak at the cost of food and the food industry would pretty much fold overnight if they charged more. It was the one of the biggest industries hit after 2008. Why? Disposable income dropped, so people ate out less. Many places try coupons and discounts to get the traffic, because they are trying to survive.

  Not to mention that walkouts are charged to the server. Now I have had many jobs in retail and I never got charged from my pay if someone shoplifted. I never was deducted pay for doing a bad job… I have seen people fired, but they by law needed to make their pay. What is not tipping, but theft of the time and energy of the server? You have a right to rate the service, you have the right to not tip in many cases. The question is, is it morally correct to not tip at all? The fact remains that it is subjective scale that is biased on both sides. Not to mention if the food was slow, was it the servers fault? If it was wrong, was it that the cook didn’t cook it enough. Complain to management, that goes further than not tipping.

• This Group Didn’t Want to Pay an Automatic Gratuity, Restaurant Responds by Locking Them Inside & Calling Police

  May 5, 2012 at 8:06am

  In reply to MadNewYorker.

  @ loriann12

  It is not that they are making it mandatory on every tab. It is only on large groups. As some servers said that commented on here, a group takes time and inhibits the server from serving other tables. This reduces their tips. I have seen that most places that have this policy are ones that do not due tip pools. Look them up, it is where all tips are gathered and distributed. The idea on this is that servers help each other and it balances out the large group issue.

  Another, more free market way, is to make the group pay a minimum to insure the server doesn’t lose out on their possible earnings should they get a large group. The issue comes in that people who are complaining about this do not want to pay it. As many have suggested, it is a free market, don‘t go there if you don’t like it. Call advance. Leave when you see the sign. Tell the manager why you are leaving. If you remove the fee, what is the incentive for the server to wait the table? They will lose on their tips because they have to give up other tables. Let’s be honest here, this is 100% about a free market.

  You don’t like smoking in an establishment, don’t go there. It is the owner’s right to post whatever rules they want. You don’t like it, go somewhere else. It is a tip based system and the policy is only an “in house” one. I find it fair and necessary, especially with groups that are notorious bad tippers.

• This Group Didn’t Want to Pay an Automatic Gratuity, Restaurant Responds by Locking Them Inside & Calling Police

  May 5, 2012 at 3:15am

  In reply to MadNewYorker.

  @ stumpy68

  When you are willing to pay for a $15 burger and a $2 water, then I will take you serious with your comment. You really need to study economics and understand what paying them a living wage would do to the price of the food, especially when the restaurant would have to cover all walkouts and wrong orders (even if it was the customer’s fault). It is just easier to tip $3-4 on that $10 tab. You, and the server, will be happier and you will have cheaper prices in the end. It is the customer’s responsibility. If it wasn’t for the 18% gratuity fee, most servers would never take a large group table.
  http://smallbusiness.chron.com/average-profit-margin-restaurant-13477.html

  These are small business with a profit margin of around 3% per table under $15. Not to mention the profit margin goes down, not up when the bill raises ($25 or more) the margin drops to 1.8%. This is because the higher end food have higher costs, and they most remain relatively affordable to have them ordered on a regular basis (which is why they have specials). Otherwise you have the cost of spoilage of the food. The margin is not there to pay the waiters $10-12 an hour, nor is the volume that of fast food in order to compensate. Thus, it is a tip based job and part of the atmosphere for a higher end food compared to fast food.

• This Group Didn’t Want to Pay an Automatic Gratuity, Restaurant Responds by Locking Them Inside & Calling Police

  May 5, 2012 at 3:03am

  In reply to MadNewYorker.

  @ CptStubbing

  My guess is you worked for the Military and never had to server the public in a way like a waiter or waitress. Nor do you commonly associate with them, else you would know and understand the issues of the job, the stresses and the bonus (IE THE TIPS). Read every post by a server (or once server) on here, they 100% agree with me. Tipping is mandatory, even with what you call bad service. You started treating me and others rude when you first posted by calling us liars and idiots with you elitist statement. So I know for a fact that you never had your livelihood dependent on others’ judgement of your performance and how ungrateful society actually is. Heck, I am not tip based when I am running karaoke, and people have the same mentality as you. That they are so much better than everyone else. You obviously think all servers are stupid, else they would be working somewhere else. 95% of all servers I met were in college and working hard to pay for school and living in the one JOB that can give them the wage to do that. They are really smart people. They do tend to be a little socialist, but when people like you hide behind minimum wage as an excuse to be a cheap ba$tard, cn you really blame them.

  Maybe they would be more capitalistic if you actually were a capitalist you progressive hack.

• This Group Didn’t Want to Pay an Automatic Gratuity, Restaurant Responds by Locking Them Inside & Calling Police

  May 5, 2012 at 2:54am

  In reply to MadNewYorker.

  @ CptStubbing

  Keep lying and tell yourself you are for freedom. You are only for yourself and feel that workers are your servants. LMAO… Honestly, you are the stupid one if you honestly think I am for regulation or support it. I am simply stating the responsibility is on the customer to take care of the staff. You want the restaurant to pay them more? Well the $9.99 burger will raise to $15. Economics is my thing daddy-o… You think the boss will take the hit? No… It is like when they are taxed more, the have two choices layoff people or raise prices. So they will raise prices, and beyond the 18%. You forget that the tips also include FICA and SS, which is not out of the Employer’s pocket and now will be. They will have to pay more than $7.25, so waiters would have to make $10-12 minimum for anyone to due the work. Why would they work as a waiter with more responsibility when they could work at McDonald’s? Oh and that kills small businesses and increases Big Business which pays for lobbyists to push more regulation… But hey, as a “liberal” according to you, I believe in that. Yet I am speaking 100% against that. It is the customer’s responsibility. I don’t know of ANY establishment that does not give the gratuity to the servers, not one. I have many friends who are servers too. NOT ONE in over 150 bars/restaurants. But they hold walkouts against the server.

• This Group Didn’t Want to Pay an Automatic Gratuity, Restaurant Responds by Locking Them Inside & Calling Police

  May 5, 2012 at 2:44am

  In reply to MadNewYorker.

  @ CptStubbing

  As someone stated earlier, waitress use to be paid ONLY in tips. When minimum wage came, nearly all lost their jobs until FLSA allowed for the establishments to credit the wages to adjust for the tips. You claim it is a cheap boss and the need for more regulation. Minimum wage is not a liveable wage, which makes me wonder how long you lived out of your parent’s basement. Do the math, $15,080 a year. With $200 in utility bills, $500 rent, $300 a month for gas/maintenance for the car, $200 for food a month (which is pretty much Ramen Noodles), $60 for car insurance, and they have about $90 or $20 a week to have fun. Meanwhile, they work harder than any fast food employee ever has in his life. Mostly for ungrateful people like you you look down on them in an elitist view. You have no respect for others. Sorry man, I am calling you out. You can call me liberal, but I am not asking for more regulation. I believe in the FREE MARKET that demands you pay them based on their service to you. Which is customary in AMERICA in the form of TIPPING. It is the MOST FREE MARKET anyone can get. But you are the one hiding behind the regulations of minimum wage as justification. I may be a liberal, but you my friend are a progress through and through. You don’t want to pay people their fair share for the work the offer and give the progressives the strength they need.

• This Group Didn’t Want to Pay an Automatic Gratuity, Restaurant Responds by Locking Them Inside & Calling Police

  May 5, 2012 at 2:31am

  In reply to MadNewYorker.

  @ CptStubbing

  First off, know that the founding fathers were liberals….

  Learn your history dumba$$:
  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iU-8Uz_nMaQ

  It is called CLASSICAL LIBERALISM. You tool of a conservative have been fooled in thinking conservative MEANS LIBERTY. It doesn’t, it stood for CONSERVING POWER TO THE STATE. The progressive hyjacked the name and you uneducated keep falling into their lies.

  Secondly, I like how you think I work for Applebee’s yet I never served a table in my life. I have my degree in Business Management and I work as an SEM analyst with Google, Bing /Yahoo!, and other vertical and search distribution sources. My knowledge comes from the SECOND job I hold as a karaoke jockey for 12 years for Centerstage Entertainment. You are a tool and a buffoon. LMAO

  You are the one who claimed WE WERE LYING. You are just justifying yourself being a cheap person. My quotes were from a movie, yes… The point was to show you have something in common with a cliche. Sorry if you were too daft to pick that up.

  You are the dipsh!t that is claiming to raise minimum wage… not me. You are stating we should ask for them to raise it. That is MORE REGULATION. The point is, the job is, and always has been, a tip based position. It is part of our culture. The only thing you are defending is your inability to PAY the staff what they are worth and the service they provide.