To be offended by these stickers on the back of a van?

[RosaMoline]

So I was on a day trip with a friend yesterday and this van was up ahead of us in the traffic.
I’m no prude, but I think these are really offensive (you may need to zoom in)
Is it even legal to drive around like this?

I’m astounded by the amount of internalised misogyny on mumsnet.

It’s people with this exactly mentality who don’t investigate flashing incidents properly because it’s just a laugh or a bit of a banter - even though this kind of behaviour is actually about power and control and known to lead to worse sexual offending (remember all the WhatsApp groups Wayne Couzens was in?). These car stickers are also about power and control - this man wants to shock, offend and scare women because he enjoys having the power to do so.

If he had racist stickers plastered all over his car I doubt you’d be saying he has a right to do so because we live in a democracy. Ask yourself why you think misogynistic stickers are any different. Misogyny is not a right.

Nailed it. Really good post

Hear hear. Someone else commented recently that challenging someone who had used a misogynistic term to her risked looking ‘humourless’. Because that’s obviously the key thing, women not looking like they don’t have an appreciation of a misogynist’s top bantz.

Another sign of the apocalypse

There was a documentary on Channel 4 a few years ago about the people and realities behind porn.

They featured that Fake Taxi site on there. It's basically run by an older middle-aged British man and his son (even more grim) from somewhere in Eastern Europe (maybe Czechia?), albeit a huge worldwide business with a massive turnover - coming up with new 'contexts' (that vary very little) centred around a female passenger either forgetting her purse and offering to pay in a predictable alternative way, or otherwise she just can't resist the taxi driver and throws herself at him.

As I recall, there was nothing illegal about what they were doing - but, as with most porn, they were looking for new 'models' and offering them large sums of money to sell their bodies and be filmed doing so.

All this in a not particularly wealthy country where I don't think it's unreasonable to believe that many young women may feel a great deal of pressure not to turn down the chance of life-changing sums that could get them out of all manner of financial struggles. Then, once their faces (and everything else) have been shown worldwide, and will remain online forever, many of them may just find that other more 'traditional' avenues for earning money are closed to them, so why not just keep going down the murky path to infamy?

They were open about the fact that they work on a 'freemium' business model, whereby they offer free content and spread their brand far and wide (helped by idiots like Mr Green VW here, unless he happens to be working for/with them, I suppose), then they make their money from the tiny percentage (but numerically still very large amount) of viewers who can't get enough and go on to subscribe and pay.

Nasty.

I would not shed a tear if someone were to run their keys down the paintwork and puncture the tyres.

I don't find stickers the stickers offensive - they are on a random van that you will probably never see again so why do they matter? I don't find them funny and they're not to my taste at all, but it's up to the owner what he sticks on his van. I don't think most people would take any more notice of them than the daft 'baby on board' signs that some people have in their cars.

I don't think most people would take any more notice of them than the daft 'baby on board' signs that some people have in their cars.

I don't think you truly believe this.

If a person was driving behind that van and able to read some of those smaller stickers, then they're driving too close.

The more I think about it the worse I feel about it actually. Children can see it. Teenage girls walking past it may feel scared. It's actually vile.

I do wonder if it could be covered under section five of the public order act.

Can’t believe so many women on here think this shit is ok….. it’s a sad indicator of how society is going . Can you report OP? It’s vile and if ppl want to display this shit in the privacy of their own home that’s up to them but no way should this be allowed in public.
Feel the same way about nasty ppl who feel the need to use swear words in every sentence when there out in public.

No, I can't believe that either.

Baby On Board stickers may (depending on your individual pov) be smug, annoying, pointless or whatever; but how you can compare them to these nasty stickers is completely beyond me.

Also, as for saying you shouldn't be driving that close if you can read the small writing - most vehicles spend most of their time parked and not moving at all. You can safely get within an inch away from a stationary vehicle in Asda car park.

Children who are discovering and getting a handle on the world of reading are often naturally very drawn to any words they see out and about, keen to read what they say.

Even if you don't subscribe to the 'it takes a village to raise a child' viewpoint, I personally find it abusive to deliberately display signs, pictures and messages like this in a public place (which is what the outside of a van is), where you know very well that loads of children will see them.

By no means just children, either; I can't think there are many people at all who would be delighted to see what is effectively a public noticeboard that resembles the inside of a toilet door in a seedy pub. The driver is already coming from a point of great privilege if this stuff is just a laugh/turn-on for him - it will be highly inappropriate, threatening and/or triggering to plenty of others who can't easily avoid it.

When you're in a queue you are that close to the vehicle in front that you're only an inch away? You need to back off, that's far too close.

The poster was referring to stationary cars

Yes (thanks) - I was indeed talking about properly parked cars and not those in a line of traffic that have temporarily halted.

When you look at the size of cars these days when compared to average parking spaces, you frequently have to get very close to them to squeeze past.

Distance between cars and whether you should be able to see them if you're in traffic is irrelevant. They are also visible to pedestrians. They are on the van because the person who put them there wants them to be seen.

Personally, I’d just think ‘What an absolute idiot’ and I couldn’t care less. However, I’d be very concerned about older children reading them.

Report to DVLA? Rear windscreen rules are different to front but guidance is that the view should not be obstructed

not my cup of tea by any means but can’t get worked up about it

Although I don’t think it’s strictly legal to have that many stickers

It's an offence, section 5 public order Act 1985;
5Harassment, alarm or distress.(b)displays any writing, sign or other visible representation which is threatening, abusive or insulting, within the hearing or sight of a person likely to be caused harassment, alarm or distress thereby.

Yes this is what I thought

If this offends you enough to start a social media post about it, then life is gonna be hard for you.

I have no more words. Just wow.

It should offend everyone. It's utterly vile, misogynistic filth which could actually scare some girls/women. Let's say you were walking down a quiet road on your own and someone drove past you with stickers like that on their car/van? Would you feel ok?

I don't know, it is not often that predators give you so much warning to stay away from them. I see this as same as signs that say don't feed the wildlife.

I think he has had the impact he was going for, really?