Quote:Did you just use the "N" word? :)
I wonder what the publicly acceptable BDSM limit is? Shackles? That weird leather head gear with the zipper mouth I saw in Pulp Fiction? How about a whip and the guy yelling, "Get on the bus b_tch!"? >Crack<
As a veteran reader of Savage Love, I feel fully qualified to answer your question.
Because you can't get the consent of everyone in a public space, social context (what everyone consents to by entering that space) is the determining factor. Lots of women and men choose to be (or keep) submissives/slaves/pets. One of your friends or co-workers might be eating out of a dog bowl right now, in fact;). But you'll never hear about it because they keep their behavior in line with the social context.
For example:
--They could go out to dinner where the top decides what the bottom will eat. The top may not bring a dog bowl and make the bottom eat off the floor.
--Or, they could go to a BDSM club / dungeon and use a whip or a flogger on the bottom. They can't do anything that violates the rules of the club, such as "No blood play,"
So, wearing the gimp's hood on the bus is highly questionable, shackles is out of the question, and cracking a whip and shouting would be WAY over the line. Halloween, of course, changes the social norms and some of this stuff becomes more acceptable.
As for these kids in Britain, it's the driver who went over the line. He didn't just deadpan, "We don't allow pets over 20lbs on the bus," (which would have been really funny), he's repeatedly going after these kids, even when he's off duty. He's allegedly become violent as well. The bus company is there to make money and provide a public service. The driver needs to spend less time and energy on keeping people off his bus, period. There's clearly a quick link on that leash--Make 'em disconnect it if that's the problem and get on with your day.