In an 8-minute rant on YouTube, Tommy Jordan, an IT specialist in a cowboy hat and boots, responds to his 15-year-old daughter's nasty letter she posted on Facebook about being her parents' slave.
This was not the first time they had a showdown over social media, but this time, the day after Tommy spent $130 to fix and upgrade his daughter's laptop, he'd had enough. He read her letter aloud then shot her laptop with his 45 mm gun nine times, using hollow-point bullets.
His YouTube video, posted Feb. 8, has more than 25 million hits so far. His video has not gone viral; it's a veritable pandemic.
On NPR on Wednesday, some folks were discussing the pros and cons of Mr. Jordan's solution to his daughter's ingratitude and lack of respect expressed on Facebook. By his YouTube social media communication, using and quoting uncivil language and then using a 45 mm gun to shoot his daughter's laptop, what is he saying about his parenting skills?
According to Matt Pearce, blogging Monday for the Los Angeles Times, Child Protective Services paid a visit and interviewed father and daughter separately. Apparently, the visit went well.
A pastoral worker for the Archdiocese of New York told me in 1997, "Parenting is the most single important ministry in the church today."
Tommy Jordan and his daughter's dispute isn't about social media, it's about parenting and character, respect and understanding -- interpersonal communication.
A gun will not silence social media, but good parenting might go a long way to improving what kids -- and gun-toting dads -- put on social media.
Plus, Tommy wants his daughter to pay for the bullets. They cost $1 each.
What's wrong with this picture?
