American hero goes out of his way to stop pay-it-forward campaign at local Starbucks

Peter Schorsch, a blogger, found out that a Starbucks in St. Petersburg, Florida, was conducting a pay-it-forward campaign, in which customers pay for the drink of the next person in line. The streak was going on 11 hours. And that's when Schorsch decided he had to step in.

ABC's local affiliate reports that Schorsch drove to the Starbucks with the sole intent of breaking the chain. He ordered for himself, and when the barista asked if he wanted to pay for the next person's drink, he declined.

"This is turning into a social phenomenon and I had to put an end to it," Schorsch said. He claimed that patrons were participating out of guilt, not generosity. "This is turning into something ridiculous and cheesy," he added.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

"Also, I got a $6 Venti Frappuccino. Someone might just get a $2 coffee," Schorsch said. "This is unfair to that person who paid for me."

Face it, he's got a point there. But we're scared to think of how Schorsch will react when he hears about the ice bucket challenge.