Could be nothing

No doubt everyone in this class has at least heard of the onion and I'm willing to bet that at least a few of you are regular readers of the site. The irreverent satire can be hilarious, but there are definitely times when sites like this may cross the line.

http://www.theonion.com/content/opinion/when_i_die_im_going_to_haunt

Above is a link to a column that was posted yesterday. There is likely no correlation to the shootings which took place on monday, but in the wake of that tragedy something about this column feels a little off.

It is titled, "When I die, I'm going to haunt the f--- out of you people." For people who find such titles humorous (like myself) it immediately looked like a must read. That was until I read the first line of the column which said, "As long as I can remember, my life has been a constant stream of insults, condescension, and humiliation at the hands of you people. I may be too cowardly and weak to do anything about it in this lifetime, but I promise I'll have my revenge just the same." If you read the rest of the column, it pretty much follows this premise that when this writer, Bryon Roth, dies he is going to haunt all of those who have mistreated him so badly over the years.

Now I know nothing of Roth, and I know just as much about the context in which he was inspired to write this column. But coming just 2 days after yet another troubled (to say the least) young student decides to go on a rampage, to make up for all the times he or she has felt wronged by society, this piece feels a little sour. What I drew from it was that Roth was really mocking anyone who feels they have been mistreated as badly as they claim. He wrote, "You probably won't even remember me by then. But that won't save you. I'll remember you to my dying day and beyond, and I'll spend my entire afterlife making what remains of your life a living hell."

Like I said, there may be no relation at all, but if there is I definitely think this column went a little far... even for the onion.