UNDERAGED MOVIE-GOER
“A few days ago, my wife and I were at the Tennant Station Cinelux Theater and made disturbing observations. First, there was a teenage couple (about 15 years old) who apparently had bought tickets to a PG-13 movie and were shown by the usher to where the movie was screening. A minute later, they came out and proceeded to another screen showing an R-rated movie. Then while we were watching an R-rated movie, a group of kids, none older than twelve years, came in and sat in the front row.
“I was bothered enough that I had to fetch an usher so the kids could be escorted out. This situation is unacceptable. There should be a better theater system of control to prevent underage persons from simply buying tickets to “Pirates of the Caribbean” and sneaking in next door to watch “Knocked Up”. Maybe the theater management needs to be reminded of laws and regulations they need to follow. Thank you”
RED PHONE
You are right, Caller. Red Phone believes it’s important for theaters to monitor who sees their films. Red Phone believes it’s important for theater operators to follow and respect the Motion Picture Association of America film classification system, commonly called the “rating system” to allow the right audiences to watch films in a responsible manner.
Cinelux Theaters management says that it is company policy to restrict underage customers from seeing rated-R or restricted movies and NC-17-movies, which prohibit persons under the age of 17 from watching such films entirely or allow them watched by such youth with permission from an adult guardian. Cinelux representatives also said they do auditorium checks before a movie is screened and check them randomly throughout the day. Though representatives admitted that it is sometimes hard to monitor every individual customer due to overwhelming business, they hold frequent training sessions on effective ways to monitor their customers like checking IDs and tickets in front of movie auditoriums. Restricted films, caller, have violence, blood, strong language, sexual content and nudity, which are inappropriate for underage viewing.
COMMON E-MAIL SCAM
“I received an e-mail from someone in Nigeria purporting to be a Mrs. Mary Thomsom saying she worked for a bank in Nigeria that recently discovered $11 million dormant account belonging to one late Mark Davidson. The e-mail went on to say that the man was confirmed dead in a plane crash some five years ago and until now no trace or information about his next of kin or relations. The writer goes on to ask me to pretend to be the brother or a relative of the late Davidson to claim the funds so we can share it. The e-mail then goes on to ask me to send an empty bank account detail where the bank can transfer the funds, my full name and contact address, my phone numbers, my occupation and working status and my date of birth.
“Red Phone, this sounds like a scam and I want to alert other readers about it. What do you have to say?”
RED PHONE
These e-mail scams are very common, however, it is easy to ban them from cyberspace. All e-mail services now have a button that says something like “mark as spam” or ” report spam.” By clicking on the button, the sender is reported to service officials and they are automatically marked as a spammer or random telemarketer and could be banned from entering the service’s network if they are reported enough times. You can also report this scam with an e-mail to the Internet services’ customer service. Every service has a general e-mail contact for customers to file complaints, grievances and block senders. However, it’s imperative that you do not respond to the senders, in this case they could target you for more scams.
BICYCLISTS AND THE LAW
“I was walking with my 91-year-old father around 6pm along Monterey Road between Main and Dunne avenues when out of the blue comes this speeding biker and slams into my old man, almost knocked him to the ground. I couldn’t believe it. I’m wondering why is it that these morons think they can ride their mountain bikes on the sidewalk? Can you please mention this in your next Red Phone column so these idiots can continue to be educated?”
RED PHONE
Caller, we’re sorry that you and your father were put in harm’s way. All the Crimson Crusader can advise is that pedestrians use ample caution when walking out. However, bikers in the community need to be cautious as well. By law, they should use bike lanes when available and be aware of vehicles and pedestrians that they share the road with. Also, they should ride to the side of sidewalks or walk their bikes if there are pedestrians using the sidewalk.
Bicycle riders need to observe the rules of the road just like any other vehicle using our streets. The police can and do cite bicyclists that abuse the law.
When something gets your goat and you need to some answers, remember the Red Phone is here to help. Contact us at (408) 779-4106, ext. 206, or e-mail re******@*************es.com. Remember to leave a name and phone number when you call or e-mail. The Red Phone will not publish this information and will only use it for verification purposes.
