If I'd realised he was a psychotic gun-toting pyromaniac, I would never have called him a nerd
Whatever you do, watch who you call a nerd on the internet.
The Age reports:
"A US Navy technician who got mad when someone mocked him as a "nerd" over the internet climbed into his car and drove 2100 km from Virginia to Texas to teach the other guy a lesson.
"The feud started when Anderson, who runs a haunted house near Waco, joined a picture-sharing website and posted his artwork and political views. After he blocked some people from his page because of insults and foul language, they retaliated by making obscene digitally altered pictures of him, he said."
After driving across the country with the alleged aim of shooting his chat-room rival, instead
...Tavares burned the man's trailer down. This week, Tavares, 27, was sentenced to seven years in prison after pleading no contest to arson and admitting he set the blaze.
The Age goes on:
"He lost everything - all over an internet squabble," the investigator said.
1. The use of the phrase "nerd", in anything more than a self-derogatory fashion
2. Long-distance highway driving to exact revenge
3. The lighting on fire of personal property
4. Seven year jail sentences
So I guess I'm not trying hard enough really.
The Age reports:
"A US Navy technician who got mad when someone mocked him as a "nerd" over the internet climbed into his car and drove 2100 km from Virginia to Texas to teach the other guy a lesson.
"The feud started when Anderson, who runs a haunted house near Waco, joined a picture-sharing website and posted his artwork and political views. After he blocked some people from his page because of insults and foul language, they retaliated by making obscene digitally altered pictures of him, he said."
After driving across the country with the alleged aim of shooting his chat-room rival, instead
...Tavares burned the man's trailer down. This week, Tavares, 27, was sentenced to seven years in prison after pleading no contest to arson and admitting he set the blaze.
The Age goes on:
"He lost everything - all over an internet squabble," the investigator said.
I've seen some pretty heated discussions on the old internet, but I'm glad to say that my experience is yet to involve
1. The use of the phrase "nerd", in anything more than a self-derogatory fashion
2. Long-distance highway driving to exact revenge
3. The lighting on fire of personal property
4. Seven year jail sentences
So I guess I'm not trying hard enough really.
posted by gigglewick at
1:41 pm
8 Comments:
Some similarities with the case of the woman who wore a nappy so she could drive non-stop across the US to shoot her astronaut ex-lover's girlfriend. You'd think the trip would calm them down. But then again, if I ever got called a nerd by some smartarse in WA, I'd be donning the pullup pants, tooling up and heading across the Nullarbor.
Yikes, and to think that this guy is in the Navy. He probably wouldn't have liked being called a navy brat if his parents were in the forces as well...
Some people are just way too sensitive, I think.
Sephyroth
http://www.sephyroth.net
How does one run a 'haunted house' I wonder? Sounds like a pretty neat gig, although probably leaves one in need of fulfilling interpersonal relationships...
new commenters...welcome!
Ladlitter,
That is very focused of you. I lack the willpower for this kind of vendetta. Lucky for Killerrabbit, that.
Sephyroth,
yes, it's yikesville isn't it?
KR,
* narrows eyes *
* goes back to reading Phantom comic *
Actonb,
I know. I wondered that that wasn't a bigger feature of the story. Also wonder how the tag "nerd" doesn't apply to some one for whom that is a meaningful career.
Oh make no mistake. It applies to us as well: the only reason we careerists don't attack people is that we get called nerds so often. We can't go traipsing across the Nullabor every half-hour to knock somebody else off.
Harpo,
Interesting. I was referring to people who run haunted houses for a living. Do you do this also?
Well, actually no. I don't run haunted houses for a living. I'm a professional nerd. I misunderstood you probably due to the overwhelming desire I have to relate the entire universe to myself. It's one of those failings I have.
But now that you mention it, running haunted houses professionally doesn't sound that bad a lifestyle to me. Who wants to go halves in a new business venture?
Would "Geek" exact the same revenge?
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