Curt Schilling deals with trolls attacking daughter

[gunnarthor]

http://deadspin.com/curt-schilling-goes-dadmode-on-twitter-trolls-bashing-h-1688969687

 

Don't really care about Schilling but this is a good story - he tweeted his congratulations to his daughter for getting into college.  Several people tweeted some pretty bad things in response and a lot of sexual references to his daughter.  He outed two of the jerks and they are now dealing with their new fame.

[Mike Sixel]

Sometimes I think I'm a jerk here......but then I read this, and realize I'm not so bad.......ymmv.

[JB_Iowa]

Those were just 2 of them.  He also said:

 

Worse yet? No less than 7 of the clowns who sent vile or worse tweets are athletes playing college sports.

 

I knew every name and school, sport and position, of every one of them in less than an hour. The ones that didn’t play sports were just as easy to locate.

 

I’ve kept every tweet like the ones above;

 

;;;;;

 

This is a generation of kids who have grown up behind the monitor and keyboard. The real world has consequences when you do and say things about others. We’re at a point now where you better be sure who you’re going after.

 

If I was a deranged protective dad I could have been face to face with any of these people in less than 4 hours. I know every one of their names, their parents, where they go to school, what they do, what team they are on, their positions, stats, all of it. I had to do almost nothing to get ANY of that information because it is all public.

 

What part of talking about a young woman, my daughter or not, makes you even consider the possibility that this is either funny or makes you tough?

 

I found it rather funny at how quickly tone changed when I heard via email from a few athletes who’d been suspended by their coaches. Gone was the tough guy tweeter, replaced by the “I’m so sorry apology used by those only sorry because they got caught.

 

It was EXACTLY like the Scared Straight episodes you watch where “tough” kids get brought to tears when they face the real world.

 

I don't agree with Schilling on much but on this I say "Go, Curt, Go".

[Brock Beauchamp]

I think Schilling too often plays the role of ignorant douche but in this case...

 

http://img3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20110705203442/glee/images/3/38/Orson-welles-clapping.gif

[Thrylos]

My daughter is 3 years older than his daughter. Junior in College.

 

I might be able to get his issue there, but

 

if you are a somewhat controversial person both politically and personally and you are a celebrity, do you really think that congratulating your daughter for getting into College on twitter will do you (or her) any good?

 

ok

 

I am taking this back a tad: Anyone who has to congratulate their kid on twitter for getting into College (or for anything else) deserves what they get. Famous or not. And this is spoken as a parent.

 

Go hug your kid and take care of your kid and get her a cool prezzie she would like. But make it be for her and not for the world (or you). Period.

[Brock Beauchamp]

There's nothing wrong with being proud of your kid and celebrating a life milestone with a short, innocuous tweet.

[Mike Sixel]

My daughter is 3 years older than his daughter.  Junior in College.

 

I might be able to get his issue there, but

 

if you are a somewhat controversial person both politically and personally and you are a celebrity, do you really think that congratulating your daughter for getting into College on twitter will do you (or her) any good?

 

ok

 

I am taking this back a tad:  Anyone who has to congratulate their kid on twitter for getting into College (or for anything else) deserves what they get.  Famous or not.  And this is spoken as a parent.

 

Go hug your kid and take care of your kid and get her a cool prezzie she would like. But make it be for her and not for the world (or you).  Period.

 

What a sad, pathetic post.

[Seth Stohs]

Yeah, there is no excuse for those comments. I don't get people who just tweet like that, or comment on sites like this like that. It just benefits no one. If I'm one of the presidents of a college that those idiots go to, I'd consider kicking them out of school. 

 

I don't mind Schilling at all. I probably agree with about half of what he says/writes... But anyone who think that the responses he (and his daughter) got on twitter are OK or can come up with excuses for them... I can't ever get that. 

[TheLeviathan]

if you are a somewhat controversial person both politically and personally and you are a celebrity, do you really think that congratulating your daughter for getting into College on twitter will do you (or her) any good?

 

Since when did anything anyone posted on Twitter accomplish a god damn thing?  It's the reality we live in that people post things like this to reflect the things they are saying and feeling in their life.

 

Schilling posted an expression of love and saw it turn into a series of vile, offensive, degrading responses.  It's disgusting and I'm glad his actions resulted in some real consequences for these clowns.  You should look in the mirror about how you just defended that clown behavior.

[gunnarthor]

And to add to what Levithan said, this doesn't just happen to famous people.  Tons of young people - mostly girls - are harassed horrifically by people over the internet.  The attitude shouldn't be "don't let girls on the net unless they are ready for sexual innuendo" - the answer should be to shame and punish the asshats who act like that.

 

Here in MN just a few weeks ago a dad learned that his 11 year old daughter was being harassed by two idiot bullies at her school.  The school didn't do anything until he went public. 

[nicksaviking]

Good for Curt.  I disagree with most of what he says but nice work on this one.  At some point social media vigilantism will probably go too far, but I'm fine with these dirtbags getting what's coming to them. 

 

Is it just me or is Deadspin kicking Twitter kind of like watching the Cowboys beating the Packers? Both are 99% BS and phony as hell so while I'm glad the lesser of the two evils came out on top, I'd prefer they both just disappeared.

[D. Hocking]

I am so glad I did not have to deal with social media as a kid and entertainment on the computer consisted of playing Oregon Trail.

 

I remember people passing paper around where you would grade what you thought of classmates.  This paper would circulate to everyone, so people who were not popular would see that they were graded with a bunch of Cs, Ds, and Fs.  I can only imagine what kids have managed to do via twitter, snap-chat, facebook (although I think they have moved on from FB) etc   Not to mention worrying if you did not have enough followers or "friends".

[TheLeviathan]

I am so glad I did not have to deal with social media as a kid and entertainment on the computer consisted of playing Oregon Trail.

 

 

Yeah...but then you had to deal with digital dysentery.  

[gunnarthor]

And a footnote to the story, the Yankees fired a kid for some of his responses.  It's not clear if he was one of the two guys Schilling outed or another idiot.

 

http://www.si.com/mlb/2015/03/02/yankees-fire-worker-tweets-curt-schilling-daughter

[jimmer]

The digital age has empowered people to be more of an a-hole than they would be if they had to face the person they were talking to.  Most of the time, they think they can do it with complete anonymity and without any repercussion. Sometimes, as Schilling has proven, that's not always the case.  IMO, what he did, was a very good thing.

 

While Schilling seems to be a jerk a good amount of time in his public life, his family doesn't deserve to be collateral damage 

[diehardtwinsfan]

I think he did the right thing personally. I'd go after each and every one of them. It's really nothing more than depravity at its core, but you can see real quick how people behave when they think no one is looking. Problem with a lot of people is that they don't realize just how much of their information is available on the internet. You really aren't anonymous. As for the kids, they had it coming. Hopefully they learn something.

[iTwins]

I don't like Curt Schilling. But I like what he did here. People need to realize that they are accountable for the things they say. Sometimes, they need to realize the hard way.

[ashbury]

Yeah...but then you had to deal with digital dysentery.  

At first I thought this was your euphemism for what Schilling chose to combat.

[Seth Stohs]

I often wonder how my life or life in general would have been different if there had been Facebook at Twitter when I was in high school. I know there are negatives to it, but I don't think people should generalize that they are bad because there are bad apples. 

 

Facebook has a way of bringing people together that can be positive. And, Twitter is the greatest invention ever... if used for what you most enjoy. For me, it's baseball, the Twins and sports in general, as well as some news sources and more. It's replaced the newspaper.

[dxpavelka]

Sometimes I think I'm a jerk here......but then I read this, and realize I'm not so bad.......ymmv.

don't sell yourself short bud

[jimmer]

I often wonder how my life or life in general would have been different if there had been Facebook at Twitter when I was in high school. I know there are negatives to it, but I don't think people should generalize that they are bad because there are bad apples. 

 

Facebook has a way of bringing people together that can be positive. And, Twitter is the greatest invention ever... if used for what you most enjoy. For me, it's baseball, the Twins and sports in general, as well as some news sources and more. It's replaced the newspaper.

I don't do Facebook or twitter, and I'm perfectly happy :-)