Over at the Capital Times, there’s a story about a bus passenger who became angry, disruptive, and disorderly when the bus driver told him to pull up his pants. In Bus Rider’s Low Ride Pants Lead to Dispute, Arrest, reporter Bill Novak writes that
Larry Wilks’ low ride pants on a Metro bus got him a slow ride in a police car, authorities reported.
Wilks, 20, didn’t take lightly a request by the bus driver to pull up his pants, which apparently were low enough to allow his underwear and buttocks to be seen by others on the bus, including several elderly passengers, Madison police said.
His refusal to comply escalated into a shouting match, police were called, and Wilks eventually was taken to jail in handcuffs….
Wilks told police that he “didn’t have to do anything” and allegedly got into a fight with the officer before being put into handcuffs, under arrest.
If the account’s right — and there’s no reason to think otherwise — Wilks did everything wrong. Wanting to wear one’s clothing a certain way does not justify arguing with a bus driver, disrupting the ride of other passengers, or fighting with police. Wilks could have complied with the driver and later written a complaint to Madison Metro Transit. Alternatively, he could have left the bus, maintaining his style of dress, and later written a complaint to Madison Metro Transit.
Nothing Wilks did advances any positive claim about how one should, or shouldn’t, dress. On the contrary, his alleged conduct departed from any reasonable contention about sartorial freedom, and was simply a disruptive and violent outburst.