Journal contributor Terrence McNally writes:
I, Terrence McNally, recognizing that by several legal definitions I am a total jerkwad, hereby offer my apology to District Attorney Paul Gallegos’ political operative, Richard Salzman.
Facebook friend-request terror victim Richard Salzman.
When I received a phone call from Arcata Police Department Officer Altizer today, Nov. 2, telling me that Mr. Salzman had filed a complaint with APD, I realized that my Facebook friendship requests were undesired and that Mr. Salzman, despite his lack of response, had no desire to create a Facebook friendship relationship with me. And that despite Mr. Salzman relaying to law enforcement that I had made “annoying and harassing phone calls,” which never happened and I totally never called the guy and don’t have his phone number, I understand that this is a Facebook issue. Oh, actually I did e-mail him once, and that was terrible.
Since leaving my employment at the Arcata Eye newspaper, I have felt entirely too free to comment about issues such as the District Attorney race, which I have witnessed over some 14 years.
So when Arcata City Council Candidate Dave Meserve is promoting his mission to create a public restroom, something he bungled during his previous tenure, I was flummoxed and stated so via Facebook. And when Meserve positioned himself as the savior of the bicycle trail movement, despite the current council’s ability to create and pass, in his absence, the Arcata Pedestrian and Bicycle Master Plan, the document from which all of the city’s bike and pedestrian trails will emanate, I was too quick to complain via Facebook. And when Dave Meserve appropriated AC/DC’s font and motto, despite my complete distrust of his enthusiasm for rocking, I was too quick to judge.
Likewise, my offer to Richard Salzman to vote for his candidate, Paul Gallegos, on the condition that he accept my Facebook friendship was abusive, cruel and meanspirited (a term that seems to have gone out of style, but which I am attempting to bring back in place of the overused “douchebag,” which for some reason is back in play).
And despite Mr. Salzman’s proven track record of using the Internets unethically and for the purposes of political bullying, I now see that I have become that which I, uh… like, didn’t want to be and stuff.
And that’s bad.
So: Sorry ’bout that, Dick. I will not seek your Facebook friendship again, as it has caused you considerable emotional distress. Best of luck at the Lost Coast Brewery tonight.
Cheers,
Terrence McNally
This article appears in The Creepy Carson.
Awww Terrence. Im vuhklempt.
I know you aren’t meanspirited, just spirited.
I, Sir, have seen Magnum in action. That’s spirit.
Too bad you and Richard can’t be friends.
I <3 you both and will still invite you both to my birthday parties. But not to play pinata.
Everyone is receiving harassing calls this time of year. Some are polite enough to identify themselves as “political call” on caller ID. Others just list “private caller” and give me silence and a click because someone else in the dialing queue picked up their phone faster than I did.
My mother called me yesterday to report her phone is broken because she keeps getting dead air when answering calls. I’ll advise her to call the police.
I have worked with Terrence for many years and it is true that he often misunderstands the difference between obnoxious and funny.
This, clearly, is hilarious.
And like who gives a rats ass?
Terrence can be a nice guy, but he does have some issues with social etiquette, especially online. He thinks he is being funny when he is really just being a jerk and a dumbass, as he describes in this story. Of course, even this story about him apologizing or regretting what he did to Richard Salzman has a jerky tone to it. We get it Terrence, nobody is funnier, wittier, smarter, etc. than you. Maybe it’s something that happens to folks who work at the Arcata Eye as Hoover seems to suffer from the same affliction.
I can’t remember whether you ever Facebook-friended him or not, David.
Oh, DL – I recall your boring Eye criticism from Robo’s Boycott the Eye facebook movement last year.
Certainly, you have no problems with handling yourself in public properly.
Wait, is this THE David Lawlor? You got really upset on the Interwebs and were not funny at all.
Consider my Facebook friendship request hereby revoked!
Go Prop 19!
I think people have different purposes for Facebook.
you mean on this one, Carol?
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Paul-Gallegos-Humboldt-County-District-Attorney-2010/308359553817
Now, this is funny!
Terrence, you bad boy! Never tease Mr. Salzman unless he has had his haldol. You should know by now, that he lives and dies by the fortunes of the Moron, otherwise known as the DA.
It’s comments like Josephine Blowe’s that make blog reading such a truly shitty experience.
Thank-you Joel! Oh, and Bite Me!
Reading this blog is like being in anger management with a bunch of passive-aggressive college graduates but I like the intensity from Josephine!
Looks like I picked the wrong week to shave my beard into a goatee.
J-Blo is a sharp knife is a drawer of spoons compared to Milky and his watermelon friends.
The true face of Terrence McNally was revealed months ago by none other than Nick Bravo:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=boyYenYjsDQ
So that’s what he looks like!
Love it!
Thanks, Charles Douglas.
Bang-up job on Humboldt Access Tuesday night.
Assured. Confident. Suit looked sweet.
T
So Terrence, is yer buddy Hank gonna put you on the payroll so you don’t end up just another stumblebum in an alley behind tavern row (oops! already happened). Nevertheless, you’d make a great liability for the NCJ and it’d be fun to watch you be put down by more politicians who won’t submit to your bullying tactics the way the pussies in Arcata did.
Saturday morning… Nick are you thinking about going with the Superman or Batman t-shirt for the ol shopping cart pull today?
Oh, the possibilities!
Now go take on the day!
I will be your facebook buddy