I will be heading back on the bus tomorrow, but in the meantime I wanted to share a couple of news articles with you.

First is that two councilmen in Honolulu proposed a bill that would outlaw offensive body odors on buses. I know that many of my readers have experienced rides on the bus next to people who would be violating this law. It is a problem to decide what is deemed “offensive,” and there are, of course, many civil rights considerations to be made.

In the end one of the cosponsors decided to drop the bill after it received nationwide attention.

The other story is a rather frightening one. Last week an 11-year-old boy was attacked on a MUNI bus in the Mission District during broad daylight on his first bus ride ever. A homeless man stabbed him and he was in critical condition for a while. Thankfully he’s now in good condition and will recover, but it is horrifying that this happened.

To make matters worse, the camera on the bus didn’t work so the surveillance film the authorities wanted to use to broadcast his image in order to catch this creep doesn’t exist. I bought mace (I do know I have to be careful because if I use it on the wrong person they may be able to overpower me and use it on me), and I will keep my eyes out for anyone matching his description, getting off the bus promptly if I see anyone like him.  I am also staying out of that side of town on the bus until he’s caught. He’s still at large.  He is described as an African American man, 6′2′, in his 20’s or 30’s. He aslo has – can you guess what’s coming – strong, offensive body odor.