On the rare occasions when DeCamp wants to communicate some bit of (inevitably bad) news to customers, there is a paternalistic tone to the message that I find hilarious. It's seemingly benign but really cold and rather brutal. And totally obvious in its dishonesty -- that's the funny part. Whether they are raising fares or killing a student discount program, what they are saying is, we're choosing profit at the expense of what little comfort you have left as a commuter on our buses. But they can't be direct and just say, "Here's what we're doing and why. We hope you understand." They have to wrap it in a kind of phony, cliche-ridden familyspeak. Imagine you're the Beaver and Hugh Beaumont is placing his hand on your shoulder and saying something like, "I know it doesn't seem fair, son, but life isn't fair." That will give you the gist.
Sometimes the voice of the father/oppressor includes some preemptive "Hey, we're the victims here" martyrdom for good measure. The message about high fuel prices and a coming 6 percent fare surcharge, currently on the DeCamp home page, is a good example.
It's never easy for any of us to discuss such things....
These prices are literally out of sight.... (invisible?)
We'll get through this together....
We're a family, damn it!
Yes, father.
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