Wednesday, June 29, 2011

On Fire but Blacked Out: The Thomas Ball Story

I have an article up on the Ball case at PJM. You can read it here.

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26 Comments:

Blogger Steve said...

Great piece Dr. H.

And of course the usual aplogists who want to blame the dead man (since he can't defend himself), have already crawled out of the woodwork to comment there.

Did you by any chance happen to see any of the comments on this over at the manboobz site directed at you? They were pretty insulting, in the normal "disagree with our position and we'll attack personally, not debate the issue" kind of way.

7:40 AM, June 29, 2011  
Blogger Helen said...

E. Steven Berkimer,

No, I have never read the manboobz site. I expect to have nasty comments directed at me, that's just par for the course when you treat men as human beings.

8:11 AM, June 29, 2011  
Blogger Zorro said...

Excellent article, Doc.

9:10 AM, June 29, 2011  
Blogger Steve said...

I had to laugh. They said the only reason you posted the original article was to get approval from the boys. Couldn't stop laughing at that.

12:54 PM, June 29, 2011  
Blogger Toysoldier said...

Dr. Helen, Ball's Wikipedia page is back up. The explanation of what happened is provided in the history tab under the link "Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Thomas James Ball".

1:20 PM, June 29, 2011  
Blogger Helen said...

E. Steven Berkimer,

Yeah, because the "boys" love me so much. Somehow, I don't think so. Most don't. But I write the articles and posts because they mesh with my experience with treating men over the years as well as because I believe in fairness regardless of sex.

1:23 PM, June 29, 2011  
Blogger Helen said...

Toy Soldier,

The link doesn't work. I searched for his page and it didn't come up.

1:33 PM, June 29, 2011  
Blogger peternolan9 said...

By the way? Here are two comments from Australians about the estimated 4,000 men in Australia who commit suicide from the criminal abuse of the FC.


“Michael Warwick I never thought of it to be honest and peter, my views on suicide are that it is a selfish cowardly thing to do”

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1024761765

Kirsty Elisa Warwick IF THEY KILL THEMSELVES WHO GIVES A FAT RATS ARSE??

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=657137681

3:52 PM, June 29, 2011  
Blogger peternolan9 said...

I posted a comment over on the article....but I'll also put the links here.

As a man who was suicidal I was amazed at the hatred and indifference shown to me by EVERYONE. Only THREE people really bothered to even find out how I was and two stood by me. If a woman has a FLAT TIRE men appear from all placed to help her out. But a suicidal man is on his own. Right.

So I go into places and point out that an estimated 4,000 men kill themselves from the FC every year in Australia. And HATRED ensues. Don't believe me? Three these three links.

Some days I think the Illuminati idea of killing these people seems a good one.

http://www.facebook.com/MichaelLukesArmy/posts/219230604784361

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=group_202699683093973&id=227376997292908

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=group_202699683093973&id=228421717188436

3:59 PM, June 29, 2011  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Lots of women are using shaming language against Ball and any other man who commits suicide.

Seems not even death is an escape from these harpies.

3:59 PM, June 29, 2011  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I think the deal is that the man who committed suicide "got out of" being a slave to these women.

There is going to be payback for that, even after he is dead. She is going to tell everyone he is a deadbeat scum for committing suicide.

I wouldn't believe it if I didn't see it with my own eyes.

4:01 PM, June 29, 2011  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

And then there is the chivalrous "real man" component.

They haven't been there, but they want to play the hero and grind other men into the dust. In so far as young women will buy it. No empathy, it's all some kind of peacock display for young, stupid women.

There was a Colorado (I think? - anyone recognize this?) legislator who introduced a particularly onerous divorce / alimony bill for men. His wife unexpectedly then filed for divorce a year later, and he was trying to rescind HIS OWN BILL after it bit him in the butt.

That's what we're dealing with.

4:07 PM, June 29, 2011  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Sigh. The shit you gotta go through just to get a blow job every now and then, you know? No sarcasm intended. No sarcasm implied.

4:58 PM, June 29, 2011  
Blogger Dr.Alistair said...

suicide is not the answer, no matter the issue.

you can call me intolerant if you wish and suggest that i`m somehow supporting a woman`s position in divorce settlements as a result, if you are that stupid...but think for a moment what the children of this guy must be going through right now.

as a father myself that was my first thought.

blame the victim? come on.

7:18 PM, June 29, 2011  
Blogger mickeypavic said...

I guess killing yourself makes you a 'beta', at least if he shot up a couple of judges he would have gotten female groupies while he waited on death row....

7:42 PM, June 29, 2011  
Blogger Michelle said...

@Helen:

"I expect to have nasty comments directed at me, that's just par for the course when you treat men as human beings."

It's kind of par for the course on your site, too, Helen.

9:46 PM, June 29, 2011  
Blogger JJW said...

@br549 --

I think you have arrived at the definition of "more trouble than it's worth."

6:31 AM, June 30, 2011  
Blogger peternolan9 said...

Seems my comments didn't make it to the pajamas media site...so glad they at least made it here.

1:34 PM, June 30, 2011  
Blogger peternolan9 said...

This is how women talk about men like Thomas Ball.

"I agree completely; Ball’s writing indicates he was a nutjob and his family is better off without him as he seemed so unstable, even before his family court problems began."

And they wonder why men have no respect for them now. Where are the women who will denounce bitches like this?

1:37 PM, June 30, 2011  
Blogger AmPowerBlog said...

Suicide is not acceptable, but critics of men's rights advocates have attacked Ball and ignored the issues that drove him to suicide.

Just posted: "Dr. Helen Smith — 'On Fire but Blacked Out: The Thomas Ball Story'".

And follow the links to Rob Taylor's article at Red State, where he writes:

'He set himself on fire to avoid paying for his own child’s expenses.

But he’s a “warrior” fighting for “men’s rights” against an unjust system according to some. A man who thinks nothing of breaking open a 4-year-old girls lip for “licking him” (which is clearly either something he dreamt up or taught her himself) is a “warrior” to people on the right. A man who commits suicide is now an idol to people who otherwise will tell you they believe in Christian morality.'


I goes on like that, and I even come in for a slur toward the end of his piece. And this a right-wing website?

1:40 PM, June 30, 2011  
Blogger Helen said...

Donald Douglas,

Thanks for writing the post.

2:33 PM, June 30, 2011  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Chivalry rears its ugly head.

I'm really getting sick of Chivalrous Men and Real Men.

3:48 PM, June 30, 2011  
Blogger Grim said...

"suicide is not the answer, no matter the issue."

I'll take suicide over jail rape and beatings anyway of the week.

9:59 PM, June 30, 2011  
Blogger Dr.Alistair said...

get another poster boy, this ones a little crisp.

8:54 PM, July 01, 2011  
Blogger cma said...

JG said, "Chivalry rears its ugly head.

I'm really getting sick of Chivalrous Men and Real Men."

We really need to come up with a different term, as , "Chivalrous," still carries a positive connotation for too many people.

I like the term, "Mangina's." But, really, we need something other than, "Chivalrous."

11:28 AM, July 02, 2011  
Blogger Zorro said...

I've never liked the term "manginas." It sounds disgusting. The whole visual component makes me want to hurl.

I agree, however, that chivalry needs to be re-investigated. If you want to be equal, then chivalry needs to die.

Personally, I kind of get off on a small amount of the stuff. I don't want to think of chicks as being the same as guys. But I'm 50, so you need to make allowances.

11:08 PM, July 04, 2011  

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