While I don't disagree that he sounds, in general, like a bit of a douche, you can hardly say that this rider makes him an asshole.

He lays out, reasonably, the conditions under which he will speak. He asks for tea, and Pepsi, not Coke.

Seems utterly reasonable to me.

So if Coca Cola is the only thing available, he will just refuse. I personally prefer Coke, but I'm not going to walk off stage if I am offered Pepsi. A bit rock-starish if you ask me.

I think it's really too harsh to criticise him like that—He's obviously autistic, so people who deal with him should be more forgiving of this kind of behaviour.

Plenty of vegetarians would refuse meat on moral grounds, why not this?

> A bit rock-starish if you ask me.

If you read the riders of actual rock stars, you will find that RMS's rider isn't that extreme. He doesn't even require M&M's sorted by color[1].

Most hired performers have specific riders that detail exactly what will be provided by the venue/etc. Detailing your interactions as specifically as possible in an actual contract removes ambiguity and prevents mistakes and misunderstandings.

[1] http://brianlord.org/2014/08/21/the-surprising-reason-rock-b...

I can't believe there's anywhere he'd speak where Pepsi isn't available. Just go and buy some from the store.

His objection to Coke is a moral one, not one based on taste.

`A supply of tea with milk and sugar would be nice. If it is tea I really like, I like it without milk and sugar. With milk and sugar, any kind of tea is fine. I always bring tea bags with me, so if we use my tea bags, I will certainly like that tea without milk or sugar.

If I am quite sleepy, I would like two cans or small bottles of non-diet Pepsi. (I dislike the taste of coke, and of all diet soda; also, there is an international boycott of the Coca Cola company for killing union organizers in Colombia and Guatemala; see killercoke.org.) However, if I am not very sleepy, I won't want Pepsi, because it is better if I don't drink so much sugar.`

Hmmmmm