- Washington Free Beacon - https://freebeacon.com -

2017 Man of the Year: Dude Who Sued Date for Texting in Theater

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We are surrounded by petty rudeness in our every day lives. Folks who fail to use their blinkers on the roads. Loud-talkers in elevators subjecting us to their drab day-to-day lives. People who stand on escalators, impeding the flow of traffic.

The worst of all these petty offenders, of course, is the movie theater scofflaw. You know the sort. The girl who spends the movie on Instagram, seeing who liked her latest food pic. The guy who answers text messages throughout, oblivious to the action unfolding on the screen. The impolite hordes who don't understand that their cell phone use is the equivalent of holding up a bright flashlight in a darkened room, an action that damages the experience of literally everyone sitting behind them.

In these dark times—an age when basic manners have been jettisoned—one man had had enough. Brandon Vezmar paid $17.31 for his date to join him at a 3D screening of Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2. And then he sued her for $17.31 when she proceeded to spend the entirety of the evening on her phone, distracting everyone around them with her piggish thoughtlessness.

"After the movie started, defendant activated her phone at least 10-20 times in 15 minutes to read and send text messages, in direct violation of the theater's policy," CNN reported.

Mr. Vezmar was annoyed not only for himself but also for those around him—good, decent folks who hoped to watch a movie without having to deal with the light pollution from some jackaninny's cell phone.

By standing up for himself and for the rest of us theater patrons tired of common, everyday discourtesy, Mr. Vezmar has earned himself a place in the pantheon—and the appellation Man of the Year. We at the Free Beacon salute you and hope you never stop doing what's right.