Woman Pulled Mask Aside to Cough on Me

[jackthehammer]

As I approached the machine checkout line at Walmart a woman suddenly jumped back. I smiled at here and told her to go ahead. Back and forth a few times, she and I insisting the other go first, and I finally acquiesced. As I got in line, I saw her very slyly slide her mask down, literally sneak closer and cough on my back! I moved away, faced her and laughed, asked her if she is OK, noting that she had a bad cough. She said "Yes, I'm OK." replacing the mask.

The gentleman following her (wearing a mask also) spoke up "She coughed on you! She purposely coughed on you!" he kept on. I just laughed it all off and said "We're all gonna catch this!" A few minutes later, after I checked out, he approached me again, repeated himself and said "You should take a picture of her! She coughed on you!" I don't carry a cellphone and I told him so. I explained that I thought it was fruitless.

The young lady appeared to be middle eastern and had a middle-eastern accent. I'm fairly sure the security cameras at Walmart caught the whole transaction.

I know times are tough for Middle Easterners, they're doing their best everywhere, but sometimes such symbolic, socially destructive and futile behavior that arises from the political events of the last 20 years and also from Muslim fundamentalism are in play.

Has anyone else seen behavior like this? I think someone must be truly desperate if their thought when they are ill is to "cough on the others!" whether the "others" be Cristians, Jews, Muslims, or infidels (such as me!8-)