Mona Shaw

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Mona Shaw
Born	1932 (age 75–76)
Residence	Bristow, Virginia
Nationality	American
Other names	"The Hammer"
Occupation	Retired Air Force nurse
Known for	Smashing Comcast equipment with a hammer
Religious beliefs	Unitarian Universalist
Spouse	Don Shaw

Mona "The Hammer" Shaw is an elderly Bristow, Virginia resident who rose to national media celebrity in August 2007 when she registered her discontent with Comcast customer service by smashing equipment in her local cable office with a hammer. Some regard her as an American folk hero of consumer and elder rights, while others dismiss her actions as criminal and inappropriate.

Contents 1 Comcast incident 1.1 Background 1.2 Arrest 1.3 Response 2 References 3 External links

[edit] Comcast incident

[edit] Background

Mona Shaw and her husband Don signed up for a special-priced telephone, cable television, and high-speed internet service through America's largest cable company, Comcast. The Shaws waited all day on Monday August 13, 2007 for the installation worker to arrive, and no one showed up.^[1]

A Comcast representative started the installation the following Wednesday, told Ms. Shaw that a third party would finish the job, and left, leaving some of his equipment behind. ^[2]

The next day, the Shaws weren't able to receive phone calls: without her consent the technician had changed her phone number of 34 years. Ms. Shaw called the customer service line to complain and was greeted with an automated phone tree.^[1]

The next day, the Shaws went to the local Comcast office to speak with a manager and were told to wait outside on a bench in hot mid-August weather. Two hours later a customer service representative came outside to tell them that the manager had left for the day. "They thought just because we're old enough to get Social Security that we lack both brains and backbone," she later told the Washington Post.^[2]

When they returned home that night, they discovered they had no phone service at all. Shaw, who was 75 years old and had a serious heart condition, worried about her ability to get medical attention in the case of an emergency. Using a prepaid cellphone, Shaw managed to get a hold of a customer service representative who told her Comcast would contact them on Monday.^[2]

[edit] Arrest

“	The next thing I know a police officer comes roaring in. When he said put down that hammer, well I did, right on the telephone!	”
—Mona Shaw [1]

After hearing no word from Comcast on Monday, August 20, Shaw slipped her husband's claw hammer into her purse and drove to the Manassas Comcast office. She walked past a line at the front desk, took out the hammer, and smashed a computer keyboard and then a monitor. "Now do I have your attention?" she exclaimed. ^[3]

"The next thing I know a police officer comes roaring in. When he said put down that hammer, well I did, right on the telephone!" Shaw later recounted. ^[1] "I figured, 'Hey my telephone is screwed up, so is yours.'"^[4]

By the time the incident was over, the police sergeant and two backup units had been called. An ambulance was also called for Shaw herself. "My blood pressure went up around my ears. I started hyperventilating," Shaw said. "They had to call the rescue squad and put me on a litter." ^[3]

Shaw was charged with disorderly conduct. The judge suspended her three-month sentence, fined her $345, and ordered her not to go near the Comcast office premises for a year. ^[3]

The day after her arrest, the Shaws canceled their Comcast service, but several weeks later received a letter from Comcast thanking them for subscribing. ^[2] They are now much happier with service from DirecTV. ^[1]

[edit] Response

Comcast vice president, Beth Bacha, disputes some of the details of Shaw's account of Comcast service, but refused to disclose any specifics because of Comcast's customer privacy policy. She called the incident: "truly a unique and inappropriate situation," adding "nothing justifies this sort of dangerous behavior." Bacha notes Comcast has over 25 million customers, the majority of whom are satisfied with the service they receive. ^[3]

Neely Tucker of The Washington Post compared Shaw's actions to the vigilantism of:

• The Dillinger Gang, who destroyed the mortgage records of the banks they robbed.
• Stephanie St. Clair, a mobster during the Harlem Renaissance who exposed police corruption.
• Admired outlaw, Junior Johnson, who moonlighted as a rum-runner during Prohibition before a successful career in NASCAR.

Neely later adds the caveat: "Being a responsible newspaper, we must note that this is a misdemeanor, a crime, a completely inappropriate way of handling a business dispute." ^[3]

Shaw's actions struck a chord with many Comcast customers, perhaps especially local residents. In June of 2007 the Manassas city council held public hearings about Comcast service before negotiating a new franchise agreement with Comcast and Verizon Communications, a popular competitor. According to the Potomac News, a local Prince William County newspaper, Manassas customers "had virtually nothing good to say about Comcast." ^[2]

UU World, the magazine produced by the Unitarian Universalist Association, published a short blurb about Shaw's actions on their website under the title of "If I Had a Hammer", a reference to a song by Unitarian Universalist folk singer and civil rights activist, Pete Seeger. ^[5]

Shaw claims she has been invited to appear as a guest on the Dr. Phil television show, although the show says it will not publicly confirm guest appearances until they are advertised. ^[6] Shaw appeared on Good Morning America on October 19, 2007. She did indeed appear on Dr. Phil along with other people who took 'action' against things they were against.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Official Mona Shaw Fan Club
• ComcastMustDie.com December 2007 PodCast, interview with Mona Shaw and others.
• Taking a Whack Against Comcast: Mona Shaw Reached Her Breaking Point, Then for Her Hammer, Washington Post article by Neely Tucker.