Heroes and Villains

I was perusing the Gold Rush site the other night and one of the stars of that Discovery Channel show posted a screenshot of a derogatory comment some random internet goon had made about his daughter. You know how it goes. People get pretty mean behind the safe comfort of their keyboards. It's amazing how casually so many people can shine a dim light on darkside for the faintest of reasons. There's rarely a good reason. They just want to mouth off.

I've probably been threatened with death a dozen times (that I know of) on the internet. Most recently a degenerate motorcyclist took umbrage when he thought I took the name of a famous Hell's Angel in vain. He promised to tell the Angel's what I had done and that I'd be killed. Sure. Is that how that works?

Maybe he was looking for thread cred? Don't mess with him! He knows guys who know guys who kill at the slightest provocation. I pointed out that, if you threaten to kill someone on the internet, you're leaving an electronic trail for the authorities to follow if your intended ever does wind up murdered. If you live outside the lines and kill outside the lines, you better consider that societal lines will certainly close in on you. It usually behooves a person to do their own killing, as well, as there are certainly less loose ends in the form of witnesses and co-conspirators. Were some guys to actually kill me at this asshole's behest, they probably wouldn't want to go to prison for it. A good idea would be to kill the degenerate scumbag who *ordered* the hit. They'd have to figure that the sort of jagoff who solicits cyber blowjobs from women on the internet (who are quite likely penis-bearing) is the same kinda fucktard who might boast about having had a Ferrerman killed. A loose end. The cocksucker ought to be a little more thick-skinned when it comes to casual remarks about other people on the 'net.

Which brings us back to Tony Beets of the Gold Rush show, and the comment that set him off. I won't post it here but, it was an ugly comment about Tony's daughter. It was creepy and, as most comments on the internet go, completely unnecessary. Tony is one of those rare celebrities who have Facebook pages that they actually use to engage fans. I admire that he will actually answer questions from fans and like comments, showing that he actually pays attention to his page. In real life, Tony seems to be as rough and tumble as he is portrayed on the show. With a face and head full of untamed salt and pepper hair, you know he's as seen on TV. He gruff and blunt but I gained an appreciation for him after seeing a special episode telling of his youth back in the Netherlands, his coming to Alaska and raising a family while becoming a major gold miner. He knows what he's doing. Reality TV stars are subject to a lot of editing so, try and read between the lines with the characters. It's Storytelling 101 and heroes and villains are at the whim of the producers.

Personally, I think Tony should have ignored the comment- deleted it- and wrote it off as what it was; the socially retarded spewing of an unimportant idiot on the internet. As a Ferrerman, I know full well that you don't have to respond to every taunt or jeer from every piece of shit troll with an IP or IP's. It empowers them, at least in their feeble minds. Sheesh- I've got a few people stalking me whose entire lives seem to be about Ferrerman. Them stalking me says far more about them than me. "They don't boo nobodies" said the great Reggie Jackson.

Where Tony went wrong, I believe, was the re-posting of the filth, including the name of the scumbag. People who hadn't seen the original post are now able to see it. Tony's fans responded with the usual ire of internet fans on pretty much any site and most came to his rescue while some echoed the creeps sentiments about his daughter. Threats were made against the guy and there will likely be more to follow. Perhaps the worst that might happen is the prick gets trolled by other pricks with their misguided loyalty to Tony. But, the worst could happen too. It would only take one heroic asshole to kill the guy. Not likely but, have you met people? It's rare when someone is killed in the world for what intelligent people might consider a good reason. It always seems to be about taking a life for lost money, lost love or (on a larger scale) the pursuit of money via war.

This isn't Trump's America- and it never will be- but, every minute of every day, the lines of some people sensibilities get more blurred. There are a lot of Lee Harvey Oswald's out there waiting to prove themselves to be all that they can be. And for most, that's nothing to aspire to.  And for some miscreants, they are someone to inspire. Cowards the lot of them!

The Waiting Dead

Well, dammit, add me to the list of The Walking Dead fans miffed about last Sunday's Season Finally. Cliffhangers are weak. I'll tell you why in 6 months. It's gonna be AWESOME!

The "who did Negan kill ploy" was unnecessary for the most popular show on cable television. TWD fans are loyal folk who love the show and are well used to series breaks in all programs. No one loses interest over the months while waiting for new seasons to begin. From Gunsmoke to M*A*S*H, to Friends to Grey's Anatomy there has always been breaks in popular shows and viewers always came back. Did you even know Grey's Anatomy was still on? It might not be. I'll let you know next winter.

Some of those shows may have done cliffhangers too. I'm not sure. Can you imagine though, how lame MASH would have been if they had had Radar O'Reilly break into the OR and announce that "Col. Henry Blake's chopper went down in The Sea Of Japan and-" And nothing until next season? Fuck that. Months of wondering if he was dead, alive or captured by the North Koreans? No. They didn't do that. The shock of the unexpected death of a beloved character was awful enough and interesting enough to keep viewers coming back for more.

As it was, viewers were shocked out of their shorts but they mourned Col. Blake and quickly warmed to Henry Potter. People are very adaptable- if you give them a chance to be.

What would have been wrong with mourning the death of _______? I have NO idea who was killed Sunday night. It was just most likely not Carl or Rick because both live on in the comic book series upon which the show is based. And neither producers or Negan would kill Rick Grimes because he's the star of the show and, a Negan needs to defeat hearts and minds and that is accomplished by defeating a leader like Rick via his acquiescence rather than a barbed baseball bat to the noggin. Killing him is too final. Many people think Glenn got the bat treatment because that's what transpired in the comics. Maybe. But, maybe not because, there's no la that says you have to follow the book. Have you seen our Bible and our Christians? Sometimes the book is just a suggestion.

So, maybe I do have an idea after all. My bet is Abraham. He's a big fella who showed his spirit after capture- something that rulers feel prudent to suppress and make an example of. Negan seems to like worker bees who will profit for him so, Eugene could be the victim because Negan might see him as expendable as viewers see him.

The thing is, who cares? Producers have the ultimate control over the story and they are why things happen in the story. Readers or viewers can either like it or lump it. I find it odd though, that in a show that kills off popular characters on a regular basis, that they have to resort to cheap ploys like cliffhangers, thinking that viewers need or will respond to that favorably to tune in months later. The gang getting captured is enough of a cliffhanger. Add knowing that Sasha or Maggie were brutally murdered at the end of the season and you have water cooler convo to last for months. What they have now is internet chatter about how fucked up the finale was. That's not must-see TV. But, maybe fans will forget by the time the show returns? Maybe Negan killed a producer? I'll tune in for that!

Oops! I forgot Daryl! "Hmmm... maybe Ferrerman forgot Daryl on purpose?" We'll find out this summer.... Maybe? Maybe not....