Reader: Douchebags who yell homophobic slurs at pedestrians deserve things thrown at them

The story of drivers Zachary Kocman and Joseph Murphy, accused of attacking a pedestrian who threw a soda at them after they called him a "faggot," stirred plenty of discussion about the incident, and bias-motivated crime in general. One reader says abusive slurs aimed at people walking is all too...

By Michael Roberts

August 3, 2011

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The story of drivers Zachary Kocman and Joseph Murphy, accused of attacking a pedestrian who threw a soda at them after they called him a "faggot," stirred plenty of discussion about the incident, and bias-motivated crime in general. One reader says abusive slurs aimed at people walking is all too common.

Jesse writes:

Good for the couple. As someone who takes public transit everywhere, it is pretty routine for douchebags in cars to yell things at me while I am walking. I think anyone who has ever had unintelligible yelling directed at them from a vehicle as they are a pedestrian, or took some homophobic bullshit from some frat dude would LOVE to throw something at these imbeciles.

For more memorable takes, visit our Comment of the Day archive.

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Michael Roberts began his career with Westword in 1990 as music editor. In 1999, he took on a new role, full-time media reporter, as author of a column called The Message. In 2008, he became the lead writer for Westword's news blog, The Latest Word, a position he held until January 2023. Michael continues to freelance for Westword, covering everything from business to sports and the media; he also contributes to Jazziz, a national music magazine. He holds a bachelor's degree from what is now Colorado Mesa University and master's degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles, and Northwestern University.

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