I Quit

I guess you could say it all started when Taylor Swift wrote that song.

Was “Mean” really about me?  I’m just an aging blogger, why did the biggest pop star in America have to pick on ME?  That hurts. You don’t know what it was like growing up.  Everybody knows I’m thin-skinned. I’ve got health issues and doesn’t she know that if I don’t consistently see my psychiatrist I’ll need MKULTRA re-programming.

Yes, I know, bragging that I see a psychiatrist, is a sign of a SIESPD mental disorder: Self-Inflation at the Expense of Sacred Psychiatry Disorder.

But what’s worse are the blog readers. It doesn’t matter what I write.  They only want to read and comment about the reality TV drama The Devils Ride.  Sure I’m “unqualified” to write a motorcycle blog, but I think it was precisely that total lack of journalism training that gave me an edge.  But, it’s doesn’t matter what wisdom flows through my fingers as I throw down editorial so magical—so right—that my fellow bloggers are moved by my artistry.  In a country where everybody’s seems to be on the take, where screenwriters whose job is to feed the character dialogue on “reality” TV, where politicians are indicted on a regular basis, it doesn’t pay to be honest.

So, I’m stopping. Giving up. I quit.  Going over to the dark side.

No, I’m not going to work for Harley-Davidson, I’m not even going to work for Honda, there’s just not enough money involved.  You can’t make it in motorcycles, you’ve got to go where the money is, Technology.

Technology is run by young people challenging all the rules.

Oh, it’s been done before.  You wake up and chuck aside journalistic aspirations and went where the real power was, Technology.

And why not. Everybody thinks I’m wealthy anyway. I make a comment about the Portland occupiers and my inbox blows up with people castigating me for being a one percenter. You’d have thought I was giving away Nike stock. I’m sick of being poor, now I truly am going to be rich.  No, I turned down the Pritikin offer to co-write The Devils Ride scripts.  We might look similar in a black vest, but do you think I still want to be in the public eye after what I’ve been through on this blog?

No, I’m not going to tell you the name of the company.  You wouldn’t know Summly anyway.  They made me an offer I couldn’t refuse.  And I’ve brought in my black book. I’m tapping every relationship I have for cash. Everybody.  If you’re wealthy, expect to hear from me.  As for the rest of you…it’s payback time.

I’ve sold my email subscription list to so many marketers I can afford a year off in Honolulu. You’re gonna be spammed to high heaven. I’m always accused of selling my list anyway, so why not do it?

I’m all about the cash now baby. I gave you that motorcycle information for free and all you did was bust my chops.  You were so busy drinking at the trough of motorcycle Reality TV that you can’t see that you’ve been sold a bill of goods.

So, I’m leaving you behind.  Going to work for Nick.

At fifteen without a driver’s license, he had a computer, an iPad and an iPhone.  Of course there were good parents that insisted he do well in school and he had a worldly view to know there are winners and losers.  He didn’t want the short end of the stick and didn’t waste time learning the guitar or riding a dirt bike?  No, he developed an app and now at 17 years old he has millions.  A teenager who sits at home and changes the world.

Motorcycling is done anyway.

The Discovery channel ruined it. They “prostituted the patch” in the name of advertising and shilling faux t-shirts.  There’s no money left.  If you’re smart, you’ll follow me.  I’m done with you, I’m going behind the tech celeb gate and throwing away the key, only flying private from now on.

Look, I get it. You can’t have people like me writing whatever they want. If I run too loose I’ll ruin all of powersports…who knows what’s next.  Blogs like NWHOG need to be shut up.  I mean who does this MacRant think he is?  There’s nobody he hasn’t written negative stuff about. He’s just a crybaby loser who is desperate to be close to fame. He’s been doing it for too many years already.

Good riddance.

I hear you. I’m done.

Photo courtesy of Superior Law Office.  Gullible motorcycle blog-lovers gather round, April Fool’s Day is upon us!

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The Laughing Devil Tickle Monster

Thomas “Gypsy” Quinn – Laffing Devils Motorcycle Club

Pardon me, but your character is showing…

Companies that support reality programming are a bell weather of the culture.  Reality TV programming is an expansive industry label, and runs the gamut from Michael “Mike” Rowe (Dirty Jobs), Adam Savage (MythBusters), Jake Harris (Deadliest Catch) to Thomas Quinn (The Devil’s Ride).  The one consistent characteristic of these type of TV shows is the dramatization of “real” events and occupations.

And in The Devils Ride dramatization, there includes an element of criminality and deviance which is posed as “entertainment” and is a constant factor in their so-called everyday motorcycle club life.

Speaking of lifestyles and the failure to realize the impact on other people…  Thomas “Gypsy” Quinn (age 43 ), ex-president of the Laffing Devils Motorcycle Club (now disbanded) and star of Discovery’s – The Devil’s Ride, was arrested August 28th on suspicion of committing a lewd act with a minor.  Specifically he was arrested on suspicion of having oral sex with his minor stepdaughter.  Mr. Quinn was arrested at 10am outside Grossmont Hospital in La Mesa, CA. and bailed out the next day.  I don’t have independent confirmation, but it’s been reported in motorcycle forums that the stepdaughter is a child of his ex-wife and that she was 10 years old at the alleged time of this event.

As all the facts come to light and if the arrest results in a conviction – I point this out because Mr. Quinn and his ex-wife have been in a contentious battle for custody of children (different children than the alleged victim), and this could be an attempt to pit one parent against the other through the kids “crying wolf” prompted by the ex-wife.  Crazier things have happened and as of Sept 5th Mr. Quinn still has not been charged. He was supposed to be arraigned on that day, however San Diego’s District Attorney is still mulling over charging him.  So, it’s prudent to maintain the innocent until proven guilty theme.

But, speaking of guilt — when a publically traded company Discovery Communications (DISCA) maintains tacit support (by its silence) of a reality TV actor accused of child molestation – its sending a powerful message.  I’m not cutting Discovery Channel any slack on this.  It’s my viewpoint that David Zaslav, CEO Discovery Communications or David Pritikin, Discovery Channel Executive Producer of The Devils Ride missed the opportunity to build a meaningful and authentic connection with its viewers.  The company should have released a formal response about the arrest/allegations, but as is often the situation the economic incentive, and publicity has them instead remaining silent.  SILENCE from the very same company who just released an award winning documentary, “Sin By Silence” to raise awareness of domestic abuse!  In this post-Sandusky era of saying nothing to avoid bad publicity… that is shameful.

The lines between culture and commerce mean companies, their Reality TV programs and the actors often blur the lines between reality and representation, where the ability to determine what is real and what is not is increasingly brought under question.  There have been a lot of critics about whether the Laffing Devils Motorcycle Club is real.

Child sexual exploitation be it fabricated or real is serious.   I don’t know how this will ultimately play out for Mr. Quinn, but clearly it’s a sad family tragedy.

References: Sin By Silence movie trailer; Fox 5 San Diego; Channel 10 News;  Channel 6 news; 

Photo courtesy of Discovery and Quiet Little Place Productions.

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