DWTS: When FANS attack

My apologies, it's been awhile since I've blogged. It's been a sordid tail of home based technical do it yourself surgery on my Macbook Pro. You won't believe how annoyingly smug apple is about making their computers as inconvenient as possible for you to do a DIY job. Trust me....normally people don't have a torque 6 laying around like you would a phillips, but I digress.

Tonight, I watched round one of the Dancing With the Stars finale. This season I've been far more into it, than previous seasons. Thanks to Bill Engvall and Emma Slater's partnership on the show. I enjoy Bill's comedic genius and that same genius lit up the dance floor. It was nice to see a guy who dances like me and your average guy on the show be able to succeed and whoo the crowd.

Bill & Emma post Argentine Tango

They were eliminated in tonights show, after an amazing run filled with awesome moments, laughter and in general a good old zest for life and all it has to offer.

However through out the whole season, I always came back to this one bitter low point in a lot of things, FANS with horrible sportsmanship.



Through out this season, Bill has been the proverbial upset for many a DWTS viewer. He was the guy expected to lose, he had less skill, poorer timing, pitted against dancers far better, he still managed to win out. The little train that could, the heart the determination. Bill essentially became Dancing with the Stars " Miracle on ICE" ( 1980 USA takes Olympic Gold in Ice Hockey).

The thing of the matter was a lot of the shows loyal viewers turned into vipers. Straight up bullying Bill while being behind a keyboard. Grown adults who had nothing nice to say and no qualms about it either. Many taking their tirades to the DWTS facebook walls and the twittersphere. I let it slide through out the season, Because I grew up in the wonderful world of Hockey and fans trash talk to the moon and back. What really got me was after tonight elimination, These same people were being outright bullies to Bill, nothing but a bunch of adult cyber-bullies.

 I've grown up in the hockey arena, I'm no stranger to trash talk. I have a high tolerance for it, I've even done it a time to two. However during a tournament, when a team is eliminated you congratulate them and tell them you liked something they did right. Even if they're your least favourite team or your arch-rival. It's called honour, it's sad to see that so many DWTS fans have lost their sense of honour and integrity through out the season.

Some people might chalk this up to me, being some melodramatic arse who can't get over their youth being spent getting bullied, but it's more than that. Cyber-Bullying is a huge problem, Alarmingly so, so this isn't OK.  Especially when adults are supposed to be an example to their youth. How can we as adults berate kids for their online bullying, saying how " we didn't do stuff like that" and speak of how hopeless their generation is? when ours is just as bad, no we're worse. We are grown ups, we fully understand the consequences of being bullied, being a bully and we know our rights from our wrongs and that just makes it so much worse.

Now Everybody pay attention, Cyber-Bullying needs to stop. It's not just these young immature high school kids who think they know it all, while they're still kinda stupid. It's also all of us that call ourselves mature adults.

To Bill Engvall, I would like to step out and apologize for any of the bullying that has been extended your way. Though I was never involved with it, and at times told people off, nobody deserves to be beat down each week because they aren't the best or somebody's favourite.  I think you and Emma were amazing this seasons. Your dances both awed and amazed me and you guys did improve. You've had the best lifts, your  Indiana Jones and Argentine Tango were some of my favourites this season. Emma you sculpted the Redneck Dance King and Mayor of Dance town. Your first season as a pro was phenomenal. I hope you're here next season. I'll be watching it just for you....ok and maybe a little Bruno to!

Until Next Time

Stay Beautiful, Because I think you're beautiful.
-H

A Lesson on Bullying from Chicago Fire

I'm going to be frank, and I'm going to be simple, we were put on this planet to Love and Be Loved.  At the end of the day, that's what it comes down to. We were meant to Talk before we Judge. We're to value what we have, and share it with those who don't.  But somewhere a long the line, we really screwed the pooch on that one. Now I love the TV show Chicago Fire. With CSI New York having finished it's run. This is the show that speaks to me. It's Character Jeff Clarke has also inspired this particular blog post. so Shout Outs: to Jeff Hephner for playing him as well as the awesome cast and crew that make this show happen.

Jeff Clarke: Played by Jeff Hephner

Now I've learned that it's not all about me. My misadventures in the world of bullies, fisticuffs and badly dealt hand don't always compute. At times I need to be relevant.

Now this pretty fellah is a Firefighter named Jeff Clarke( Jeff Hephner) from Fire House 51, a character from Chicago Fire. As I've been enjoying this fabulous show and falling into the various plot points of the show. I've been looking at Jeff's character in particular and the reactions of the Fire House in general.

He's this new guy, from a shut down fire house. He's come in and upset the balance of house 51 just by being there. He's quiet and just a bit mysterious. He also does his job, he's good at what he does and without doubt the rest of the house are glad he's there on a call. But things start going wrong and evaluator tasked with potentially shutting down the house, starts finding out things that somebody from inside would of had to tell her. He's branded a snitch. As you'd imagine, Clarke in essence gets bullied by the boys and girls of House 51. He's excluded and I imagine poor Clarke ate his meals alone and was left out of the camaraderie that comes with being part of a team and family. Now in spite of all the bullying and cold shoulders, Clarke still had his less than friendly teammates backs and even covers Mills' back by bringing back a tool he'd left behind.  Now granted this is a turning point for Clarke' character on the show. But what made this character arch really stick out. Was the fact, nobody actually took the time to talk to Clarke.

At the very core, Jeff Clarke is a character that resonates with every child or adult facing bullying. A small beacon of light that things will get better. But it paints a stark lesson about judging somebody's character without ever doing your homework. So next time you think to judge somebody, because of something you maybe thought you saw, or something somebody said, Find that person and talk to them. Because they could be your Fire Fighter Jeff Clarke.

Now if you don't watch Chicago Fire....you should. It's one Tuesday Nights at 10:00PM on NBC ( America) and Global ( CANADA)