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Ottawa Bus Driver Berates, Swears At 'Mildly Autistic' Passenger Matthew Taronno (VIDEO - WARNING: LANGUAGE)

The Huffington Post Canada   First Posted: 11/07/11 07:47 AM ET Updated: 11/07/11 10:29 AM ET

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UPDATE FROM CBC NEWS: The young autistic man who was apparently the target of an expletive-filled tirade from an Ottawa bus driver says he was reading from a script he had written when the driver lashed out at him.

Matthew Taronno, a 20-year-old who describes himself as "mildly autistic," said the script contained some "inappropriate language" and said he went to the front of the bus to apologize. The driver was in no mood to hear it, Taronno told CBC News on Sunday at Algonquin College, where he is studying script writing.

The 55-second cellphone video of the exchange, shot on the No. 96 bus from downtown Ottawa to Kanata, has attracted hundreds of views and many angry comments since it was posted to YouTube.

WATCH A VIDEO INTERVIEW WITH TARONNO


Ottawa's mayor says he's disturbed by a YouTube video in which a city bus driver appears to swear and berate a passenger described by witnesses as having a mental disability.

The cellphone video, which was posted last week, captures the driver yelling at a passenger on an OC Transpo bus.

"Shut the f---k up!' the driver yells. "Shut your ignorant f---king cake-hole! Don't say another f---king word!"

The verbal abuse continues for nearly a minute.

"If you don't shut your f---king face I'm going to stick my fist in it!" the driver says.

The man who shot the video told CTV News the incident happened on Route 96 from downtown Ottawa to Kanata early Thursday morning when there were only a few people on the bus. He said the passenger was rambling, appeared mentally ill and tried to apologize to the driver.

Another passenger familiar with the young man said he's believed to have Asperger's syndrome, The Ottawa Sun reports.

Alain Mercier, OC Transpo's general manager of transit services, said the agency is taking the incident seriously, QMI Agency reports:

"Customer relations is always a priority for us and we take this situation very seriously," Mercier said. "... Appropriate action will be taken based on the findings."

Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson said the video was troubling.

"Like anyone I am very disturbed by what I have seen and heard and want to see a thorough investigation conducted," he wrote on his Twitter account Sunday afternoon.


Jim Watson
Regarding OC Transpo video- like anyone I am very disturbed by what I have seen and heard and want to see a thorough investigation conducted

Transit commission chairwoman Diane Deans said on Sunday appropriate action will be taken pending the outcome of the investigation, but any disciplinary action won't be disclosed, The Ottawa Sun reports.

It's not the first time an OC Transpo driver's behaviour has been videotaped, CBC News reports. A YouTube video posted earlier this year showed a driver complaining about the smell of smoke on a passenger riding the bus to Kanata. The driver then lost his temper with a passenger who objected to his rudeness.

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UPDATE FROM CBC NEWS: The young autistic man who was apparently the target of an expletive-filled tirade from an Ottawa bus driver says he was reading from a script he had written when the driver lash...
UPDATE FROM CBC NEWS: The young autistic man who was apparently the target of an expletive-filled tirade from an Ottawa bus driver says he was reading from a script he had written when the driver lash...
 
 
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AdamONeill
29 Fans
02:00 PM on 11/16/2011
The driver's reaction (especially the threat of violence) was inappropriate. However, there clearly was provocation with the "victim" sitting right behind the driver admitting to loudly rehearsing a play which contained numerous swear words. Bus drivers get spit on, threatened, verbally and physically attacked every day. If I were a driver and someone decided to sit directly behind me (in a nearly empty bus) and proceed to yell disgusting and offensive things, I to would be offended and probably react with anger. That is abusive. How many of the angry posters here have had someone come in and sit behind them in their office and yell offensive abuse next to them? As for the "victim" having "mild" autism, he seemed to be able to understand that his behavior was inappropriate (admitting it later on and apologizing). How mild is mild, and since when did having autism confer a right to behave wildly inappropriately. If you have a mental illness, then identify it as such, especially if you repeatedly engage in behavior that is potentially abusive, offensive and dangerous to others. Would anyone's opinion be changed if his mental condition had caused him to be masterbating while yelling obscenities behind the driver?
Bottom line is, the driver overreacted and inappropriately threatened violence. But, he was clearly provoked and as imperfect as his reaction was, lets try to empathize with the driver as well as the "victim" here, because both deserve it.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
ConDsenXieN
The Right is usually wrong.
352 Fans
 
06:40 PM on 11/08/2011
Hey, people. Here's your "victim", and a multitude of his uploads seemingly disappeared.

http://www.youtube.com/user/10thDimensionMatty
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youhavetobekiddingme
533 Fans
 
11:24 AM on 11/08/2011
I am the mother of an autistic male that takes the bus two hours each day back & forth to college. My hope is that he will someday be what we all want our children to be productive members of society.
He has quirks he sometimes talks out loud and sometimes he paces. I would pray that those he meets are more tolerant than most of the people commenting here today. The kind gentleman that suggested that these "types of people" should not be out in public on their own (guess I will quit my job but than how would I support us) or perhaps these people should be in "institutionss" well as far as I know these are govn't funded and I am sure you will be the first people to complain about your tax dollars being spent. I also know that karma exists and I hope you receive it back ten fold :)
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youhavetobekiddingme
533 Fans
 
11:23 AM on 11/08/2011
"I witnessed quite a few threats by the bus driver before I had a chance to take out the iPhone and get this video," wrote the user. "... it's just me, a mentally ill 20-something male, and the bus driver."

DartPak wrote before the driver lay into the man, the passenger was talking louding on his phone as if it were a microphone and he were a game show host.

This man was saying he "sleeps on the ground, run around with no clothes on, tries to be as spontaneous as possible, that he hates pregnancy and loves nudity," DartPak wrote

this was taken from a full article so all the people here justifying the bus drivers ridiculous over the top reaction by saying they dont know what was said there you are. The driver had the opportunity to tell the young man to stop or he would have to get off the bus. Instead he used profanity and a physical threat. If you can't work with the public DON'T.
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tan2123
+ sec 2 123°
340 Fans
12:01 PM on 11/08/2011
I know this not going to be a popular comment, but, it is psychologically trying to hear someone in a very loud voice continue on and on while you are trying to drive. It is similar to finger nail on a chalk board. The driver asked him to keep his voice down time and time again before he blew his top.
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youhavetobekiddingme
533 Fans
 
12:06 PM on 11/08/2011
where did you hear that he asked him time and time again. The person that took the video said the driver actually went off earlier
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trutheau
156 Fans
10:40 AM on 11/08/2011
When will people learn? These drivers and police and other belligeren­ts have to understand that there are always people with the means to post video on YouTube. If you act like a fool, it will end up on the internet. From what I saw, the student was controlled and the driver was not. And I wouldn't want to be on a bus driven by an out-of-con­trol person. The same people that defend the bus driver in this situation are the same ones that would defend the driver of the van that ran over the little girl in China.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
ConDsenXieN
The Right is usually wrong.
352 Fans
 
10:13 PM on 11/09/2011
My my my, aren't you just full of generalizations. Why don't you research your precious little "victim" and see what he really is...a fraud who is pretending to have autism.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
trutheau
156 Fans
10:39 PM on 11/09/2011
OK I did. I saw no articles saying that Matthew Toranno "is pretending to have autism." Here's one link: http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/Canada/20111107/oc-transpo-profane-bus-driver-video-reaction-111107/. Would you care to provide one?
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country girl15
Signs Of The Time
183 Fans
08:11 AM on 11/08/2011
I dont care what brought all this on.The Bus driver is suppose to be the Responsible Adult with other students in his care. He showed none of that in the video i watched and heard at all. He should be arrested for child abuse, threatning a minor and for his vulgar mouth in front of all his other student riders whom he is responsible for until they reach their destination.This student may have said something he wasnt suppose to but the Driver should have went through the proper channels with that and not have took it upon himself to use filty language and threaten this student Period.
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hoeslappaent
10 Fans
08:27 AM on 11/08/2011
*sighs ...funny how you can be rational abouta situation you've never dealt with before so what if the person or child is autistic?...they have plenty of sense and can be very rude they are people too ..so putting "disabled" in the story is only looking to stir outrage there is no telling what was said or done before recording started or days prior ...yes we should have self control as adults but we all know there are times when we don't ...since when is verbal abuse punishable enough to send someone to jail?....shut up already ...if anything at the most he should lose his job of working around children if he cant control his anger....lets be rational here no one lashes out in anger simply because someone is well behaved and nice child or not this "kid" was not in diapers and probably used just as much foul language
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tan2123
+ sec 2 123°
340 Fans
12:02 PM on 11/08/2011
public bus- the man was 20 years old. Read the article before you watch the video.
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country girl15
Signs Of The Time
183 Fans
01:36 PM on 11/08/2011
I didnt say it was a PUBLIC Bus
Again someone misqouting what i posted. All i said was Bus Driver. Read my post before you reply please.
Thank You
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GiaMTL
119 Fans
08:01 AM on 11/08/2011
So I guess I have been duped...When I first saw the video, I was really angry and thought the bus driver deserved a beating and a firing. But then some bloggers told me I this was a set up.
With all the bullying leading to deaths, I have zero tolerance for a grown up bullying and threatening to beat up a minor. If this was a set-up by the minor and he is an actor, I hope there are consequences for him because this kind of thing is too serious to mess with. And Huffpost should have done their due diligence to ensure the authenticity of the story.
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ghurka307
0 Fans
06:50 AM on 11/08/2011
Smells like a set-up to me. First, Matt Taronno is listed in IMDB as a professional actor. Second, the video conveniently does not include the initial part of the exchange so we have no way of knowing what led to the alleged driver's reaction. Finally, the sound on the cell phone video seems remarkably clear for a coincidental taping of the confrontation. At least do a little digging into the actor & so-called witness. Isn't that what a news organization would do?
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
trutheau
156 Fans
10:36 AM on 11/08/2011
I don't think you're too bright. If it is a set-up, then they succeeded. I heard the student apologize and I heard the driver threaten him with physical violence. Why a set-up? What would be the motive in a set-up? I don't know why you would bother defending the driver. Why you bother to check the name "Matt Taronno" on IMDB also seems peculiar to me. So before you commented you researched the name "Matt Taronno"? It says in the article that he's in scriptwriting class. Of course he would do some acting.

You know what? These drivers and police and other belligerents have to understand that there are always people with the means to post video on YouTube. The truth is, no one has to set anyone else up these days. If you act like a fool, it will end up on the internet. From what I saw, the student was controlled and the driver was not. And I wouldn't want to be on a bus driven by an out=of=control person.
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tan2123
+ sec 2 123°
340 Fans
12:09 PM on 11/08/2011
A student? He's 20 on a public bus, student is irrelevant unless you've assumed this is a school bus. Read the article people.
You don't have one clue how it all started. Did you know the 20 y/o apologized a coupkle times but then started yup again with his very loud talking/screaming??? You should try and be responsible for a bus in the evening, driving while someone is yelling loudly the whole time, when you ask them to stop nicely they do for a moment then continue on again...try it!
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ghurka307
0 Fans
06:46 PM on 11/08/2011
Thanks for providing your feedback to my comments. The free exchange of ideas is one of the things that makes this country great for sure. However, it was certainly disappointing that you had to resort to a personal attack to commence your comments.

It's also disappointing to have someone refer to the profession of bus drivers, police, and I assume other public servants as "belligerants". It would seem your mind is already made up on whether such folks are doing a tough job under a lot of stress or are simply wrong in their dealings with the public.

It's also confusing as to why you might find it odd that as a curious reader wishing to be better informed I might do some rudimentary research on the alleged victim. Seems quite an obvious course of action to me & I would wonder why more readers have not done so and/or demanded that our journalists do likewise. Not to nit-pick, but is it your contention that all script-writers are professional actors with IMDB profiles? If so I'd be interested to get your references for that.

The real truth is that you have no idea what percipitated the confrontation as the alleged witness was unable or unwilling to capture the entire exchange.

Sadly your desire to leap to a quick conclusion in the absence of many of the critical facts is all too common in our society.
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Maryanne Slater
20 Fans
10:44 AM on 11/08/2011
Two short films as writer, producer, etc., both this year. He's a film student. Obviously he or a friend posted the IMDB page.
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ghurka307
0 Fans
06:51 PM on 11/08/2011
Thank you for confirming that Mr. Taronno is in fact a professional actor with acting, writing, directing and producing credits. However, I didn't see anything in his bio stating he's a film student, just his CV as a film professional.

You're correct that we can never know who created the IMDB page, but clearly it was someone sufficiently familiar with his work to believe it was merited.
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tkondaks
75 Fans
10:56 PM on 11/07/2011
The article describes the young man as having "a mental disability". Yet further in the article his condition is described as "Asperger's Syndrome". If that's true, many "Aspies" would take issue with their condition being described as a "disorder".

For many, it is an advantage: Stephen Spielberg, Bill Gates...and according to Dr.Temple Grandin about half of Silicon Valley.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
trutheau
156 Fans
10:45 AM on 11/08/2011
So what?
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Manny1983
8 Fans
10:51 PM on 11/07/2011
Having spent four years at Carleton University, I am well aware how rude the OC Transpo drivers can be. They were very cruel, harsh and rude to passengers, especially students.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
pjlowry
138 Fans
 
08:57 PM on 11/07/2011
He threatened to stick his fist in the kid's mouth... how is that legal? Forget the bus company, why is the police not charging this man with making threats?
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Wendy Stewart
306 Fans
05:56 PM on 11/07/2011
Bad day at the office. Oops.
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SouthStJo
240 Fans
05:28 PM on 11/07/2011
also, note what the driver says: "
“Shut up. Shut your ignorant (expletive) cake hole"

the use of the word "ignorant" implies that the guy said something that was personally offensive and clearly got to the guy.
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clarke90
Not sure what to say here...
153 Fans
05:36 PM on 11/07/2011
Yes, but some people don't understand the meaning of certain words and use them in the wrong situations.
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SouthStJo
240 Fans
05:52 PM on 11/07/2011
No doubt.

Like the bus driver, who is also only human.
Frankly, unless we know what happened and was said in the minutes leading up to the event one cant make a decision on justification.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
GiaMTL
119 Fans
08:04 PM on 11/07/2011
SouthStJo, you are actually defending this vile driver?
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Somerglesias
5 Fans
09:52 PM on 11/07/2011
its called being open-minded to what may have truly happened.
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ghurka307
0 Fans
06:54 AM on 11/08/2011
I agree with Somerglesias. You have no idea what initiated the confrontation. You have no idea whether the driver is vile or not. The "student" is actually a professional actor you can google as "Matt Taronno" on IMDB. Think the driver was provoked to get a reaction for taping....
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SouthStJo
240 Fans
05:17 PM on 11/07/2011
Not for nothing, but it's not as if the bus driver just saw this kid and started yelling at him because he was autistic.
The guy has to drive a bus, he has to concentrate on driving the bus. You arent supposed to bother the bus driver, and that would include reading him your script, so there is a good chance there is more to the situation than the article lets on.
What was this "script" that he was reading to the bus driver? Why didnt he shut up the first time the bus driver told him to leave him alone.
Frankly, if I was busy working, and someone would not stop talking in my ear (about what, we dont even know), I'd yell at him to.

In that sense, there is a possibility that a working guy looses his job over a something that may very well not be worth the outrage it deserves.
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cdnman
Still a free spirit...
2275 Fans
04:36 PM on 11/07/2011
Ottawa is becoming well known for it's screwed up bus drivers, that never get punished.
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