Royal "prank", nurse is dead

[seamusTX]

At least that kind of stuff is over in five minutes and soon forgotten.

I still haven't figured out what actually happened with the prank that is the subject of this thread, but apparently it was on Youtube and mentioned in every newspaper on earth outside North Korea.

Some people find that kind of publicity humiliating. Even when it's positive some people can't handle it.

- Jim

[WildBill]

At least that kind of stuff is over in five minutes and soon forgotten.

I still haven't figured out what actually happened with the prank that is the subject of this thread, but apparently it was on Youtube and mentioned in every newspaper on earth outside North Korea.

Some people find that kind of publicity humiliating. Even when it's positive some people can't handle it.

- Jim

A couple of Australian DJs called the hospital where Kate Middleton [wife of Prince Williams] was staying for her bout with morning sickness. The radio station had people posing as Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip asking the condition of their grandchild's wife. The nurse thought it was a real call and answered some questions. Later she found out they were impostors. Of course giving out medical information to unauthorized people is against hospital policy. That's about it.

If you really want more details, go to Outlaw Dave's radio show website where he has an audio of the call.

Incidently, many years ago Outlaw Dave [or his radio station] was fined $100,000 by the FCC for doing crank calls on a radio station. Appartently there is a rule that both parties of a recorded call need to approve it's release to the public.

[nightmare]

The Columbine murderers were allegedly bullied. Should the students who allegedly bullied them be prosecuted for the mass murders?

[seamusTX]

Bill, thanks for the summary.

I knew the basic facts. What I don't know is how the deceased nurse's role was viewed in the U.K.

The Columbine murderers were allegedly bullied. Should the students who allegedly bullied them be prosecuted for the mass murders?

No, and you can come up with outlandish analogies all day.

No one is suggesting that these DJs be prosecuted (unless impersonating people that way is illegal in the appropriate jurisdiction). The issue is more about what constitutes socially unacceptable behavior. A lot of people in public positions have lost their jobs and/or reputations for saying things that were mean-spirited, cruel, tasteless, racist, etc.

- Jim

[nightmare]

If we wonder why many people think it's acceptable to be jerks, we can look at public schools. When the administrators look the other way at mean spirited behavior (bullying, pranks) they send the message that kind of behavior is acceptable. Right or wrong, they're sending that message with crystal clarity.

[seamusTX]

I observed that in school (Catholic school, a long time ago). The children of the "right" parents could get away with anything short of assault that put someone in the hospital.

The only difference then was that a kid who fought back wasn't punished, or not much.

There's a huge amount of this garbage in popular culture, with shows like "Beavis and Butthead" (which I have never watched more of than I could possibly avoid) and Howard Stern (likewise).

Then again, this kind of humor has always been around. Fools or village idiots were basically mentally retarded or mentally ill people who were ridiculed for fun. There was a lot of mean-spirited stuff in vaudeville. About all we have left of that is "The Three Stooges."

- Jim