Meet The Extra Reading Company, a "library of unique and amazing educational documents to which users can subscribe for access." Unique would indeed be the word, as Bridget Scanlon recently discovered (note: contains ableist slurs). Her price offer for a subscription to their website was met with ruder and more bizarre responses that probably took far more effort to write than a simple 'no. thank you' would have.

Bridget doesn't take this unprofessional behavior well, and word spreads. A post about the issue is made on Reddit, where it is discovered that the company has also been taking artwork from DeviantArt to use in their content. Joshua Mason, head of the company and increasingly suspected to also be the entirety of its staff, makes a post to the thread in an attempt to justify himself. It...does not so much justify as explain a few things about this company's PR policies.

( Cut for length, more minor use of slurs and misogyny. )

It's very, very hastily deleted. But who is this fearsome hag they call Deborah Markus? She's the editor of the magazine Secular Homestchooling who's been the target of both insults and bizarre paranoia by ERC, to the point that they vandalized her magazine's Wiki page (note bottom paragraph). That saga could be a FW post in itself, but she's summarized the matter nicely. It seems they've got a habit of posing on message boards as enthusiastic teachers who talk up the company.

An anti-ERC facebook page is formed. Further plucky girl detective work turns up at least two more blatant self-promotions by alleged teachers who are most likely Joshua Mason in a flowered dress and sunhat.

The company website itself is down for about 48 hours after the story breaks, but when it returns it reveals even more problems with their idea of customer service. The only content is image files (even of their text, no idea why), but I've helpfully transcribed some of their Q&A section to demonstrate their dedication to customer service.

( No slurs, just rudeness. )

And they'd really like to help you nurture your beautiful young children's developing minds. Charming little business.

Over in bad_service, beccaweccavt makes a post about some "bad service" she receives from a mechanic who charges her less than they should have but OMG doesn't cash her check immediately! The denizens of bad_service are confused. beccaweccavt then proceeds to let the community know that she's unable to keep track of her written checks because she's a bookkeeper for a large corporation and has a credit score of 800.

Keep on truckin', beccaweccavt. Keep on truckin'.

ever_abstract makes a post to bad_service about a trip to the grocery store involving an incredibly obnoxious cashier-manager duo who give her a hard time about WIC.

This prompts starliteunicorn to tell the community that she thinks welfare is absolutely ridiculous. She goes on to inform us all:

I'm all for getting rid of it entirely. People used to help each OTHER out, instead of begging the government. And it bothers me. A lot. I don't get paid to just exsist-I have to work. I know some people CAN'T get jobs... but it seems extrodinarily unfair. Too many people leech off the welfare system without even ATTEMPTING to find work or get themselves to a better position. The stereotype of the drug addict mother to 6 different kids all with different daddies is true for about 65% of people coming through the various types of welfare (taken from a friend who does, indeed, work in a WIC office).

And it just snowballs from there.

thexphial posts in bad_service that she was charged $4 for sitting at a table in a tex-mex restaurant and not eating. Her family finds this unreasonable, because she had just had her tonsils out and couldn't have eaten the free chips, etc. Yes, the policy is on the menu, but the type is tiny. Also, she thinks they wouldn't waive the fee because she's fat. Cue the special.

FREE MEANS FREE ZOMG
Don't blame the waitress
Not everyone hates fat people
It's definately because you're fat (Further down this thread, there is something about her having posted wankiness in the past)
You are imature and I want to ground you
Don't waste food

And don't share your thoughts on fat people or food wasting in the comments.

ETA: I'm having to turn off notifications for this post with the amount of serious teal dear now that OP has shown up and responded to everything ever.