Cavalcade of Idiocy.
So, do you remember that story about a guy who got shot by muggers while waiting in the PS3 launch line in Putnam, Connecticut? One of the area newspapers did a follow-up interview.
"Michael Penkala, 21, of Webster, was shot in his right chest and right arm, just below the shoulder, shortly after 3 a.m. Nov. 17 at Wal-Mart
on School Street (Route 44), Putnam, Conn. He was first in a line of 13 people waiting for the sought-after PlayStation 3 at the time he was shot. Wal-Mart had imposed a limit of one per customer.
"Mr. Penkala had also enlisted three friends, paying them $75 each, who were second through fourth in line to buy the game console. He planned to sell the PlayStations later at a profit."
...
"Mr. Penkala had $2,600 in cash on him, $900 of which came from his grandmother. He was determined not to give it to the robbers at any cost."
...
"Mr. Penkala described the sensation of being shot as feeling like a beanbag being thrust hard against his chest. And while he was coughing up blood and becoming lightheaded from his injuries, his only concern was not his well-being, but buying those PlayStation 3s.
“When they let us in the lobby there at Wal-Mart, I was on the floor coughing up blood and telling the workers to take the wallet out of my pocket and give it to my friends so they could continue waiting in line and purchase the PS3s,” Mr. Penkala said. “For some reason I wasn’t thinking about my wound, I was all about those PlayStations.”
"Mr. Penkala began waiting in line for the PlayStation 3 game system at 1 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 15, 42 hours before Wal-Mart was going to open its doors and sell them to the public at 7 a.m. Friday, Nov. 17, not because he’s a fan of the popular game system but because he saw a business opportunity."
...
“First off, it’s really sad to see kids that young committing that kind of crime,” Mr. Penkala said. “They’re (expletive) scumbags … They don’t deserve to be on the streets. They’re the kind of scumbags that are going to continue doing this if they don’t get caught.”
"A former worker at the Wal-Mart where he was shot, as well as a regular vendor at the Grafton Flea Market, Mr. Penkala is unemployed. In addition to the PlayStation 3s he plans to sell on eBay, his only means of income at the moment is selling T-shirts, Beanie Babies and New England Patriots plush toys on his front lawn at 30 Ash St.
"Mr. Penkala has no health insurance and expects to be facing a hospital bill in the hundreds of thousands of dollars by the time his medical treatment is over. With that in mind, a “Michael Penkala Fund” to help cover his medical expenses has been set up in care of Commerce Bank..."
There is absolutely nothing involved in this entire story that isn't completely, utterly, fucking retarded.
But the really scary part is that this guy apparently lives just a couple miles away from me. I mean, I knew this town was pretty low-brow when I moved here, but Jesus fuck. Way to lower the bar.
"Michael Penkala, 21, of Webster, was shot in his right chest and right arm, just below the shoulder, shortly after 3 a.m. Nov. 17 at Wal-Mart
on School Street (Route 44), Putnam, Conn. He was first in a line of 13 people waiting for the sought-after PlayStation 3 at the time he was shot. Wal-Mart had imposed a limit of one per customer.
"Mr. Penkala had also enlisted three friends, paying them $75 each, who were second through fourth in line to buy the game console. He planned to sell the PlayStations later at a profit."
...
"Mr. Penkala had $2,600 in cash on him, $900 of which came from his grandmother. He was determined not to give it to the robbers at any cost."
...
"Mr. Penkala described the sensation of being shot as feeling like a beanbag being thrust hard against his chest. And while he was coughing up blood and becoming lightheaded from his injuries, his only concern was not his well-being, but buying those PlayStation 3s.
“When they let us in the lobby there at Wal-Mart, I was on the floor coughing up blood and telling the workers to take the wallet out of my pocket and give it to my friends so they could continue waiting in line and purchase the PS3s,” Mr. Penkala said. “For some reason I wasn’t thinking about my wound, I was all about those PlayStations.”
"Mr. Penkala began waiting in line for the PlayStation 3 game system at 1 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 15, 42 hours before Wal-Mart was going to open its doors and sell them to the public at 7 a.m. Friday, Nov. 17, not because he’s a fan of the popular game system but because he saw a business opportunity."
...
“First off, it’s really sad to see kids that young committing that kind of crime,” Mr. Penkala said. “They’re (expletive) scumbags … They don’t deserve to be on the streets. They’re the kind of scumbags that are going to continue doing this if they don’t get caught.”
"A former worker at the Wal-Mart where he was shot, as well as a regular vendor at the Grafton Flea Market, Mr. Penkala is unemployed. In addition to the PlayStation 3s he plans to sell on eBay, his only means of income at the moment is selling T-shirts, Beanie Babies and New England Patriots plush toys on his front lawn at 30 Ash St.
"Mr. Penkala has no health insurance and expects to be facing a hospital bill in the hundreds of thousands of dollars by the time his medical treatment is over. With that in mind, a “Michael Penkala Fund” to help cover his medical expenses has been set up in care of Commerce Bank..."
There is absolutely nothing involved in this entire story that isn't completely, utterly, fucking retarded.
But the really scary part is that this guy apparently lives just a couple miles away from me. I mean, I knew this town was pretty low-brow when I moved here, but Jesus fuck. Way to lower the bar.