The idea was to shock and show the harsh realities of suicide and get people talking about something that I don't think people are talking about much -Logan Paul
Up until late December-early January, I had never heard of Logan Paul, and I was perfectly content and blissfully ignorant of his existence. Sadly, that came crashing to an end. Paul and his brother Jake became famous for their short videos on Vine. They parlayed their success into a Youtube channel that boasts over 16 million followers. The videos Paul posts on his are derivative of the same humor that made the MTV show Jackass so successful by being loud, obnoxious, emotionally stunted men making total asses of themselves and then mugging into the camera. Paul is a narcissistic 20 something, running around with a camera and a juvenile sense of humor, generally making an ass of himself (when he is not mugging for the camera), doing everything short of setting himself on fire in pursuit of the sacred "like" clicks that feed his already bloated ego. After forcing myself to watch a couple of his videos, I can see why I never heard of Mr. paul, but I can also understand why he would appear to a younger generation.
What brought Mr. Paul to my attention was a video he posted to his Youtube channel shortly after Christmas. Paul and his sycophants were in Japan doing what they do best, acting like dumbasses and uploading the content to Youtube for the entertainment (not enlightenment) of others. One of the videos that he uploaded was shot in Aokigahara, an area near Mt. Fuji in Japan. Sadly, Aokigahara, also known as the Sea of Trees, has become internationally known as one of the most prevalent suicide sites in the world. Because of this reputation, signs have been put at the head of some trails urge suicidal visitors to think of their families and contact a suicide prevention association. When Paul and his band of merry idiots entered the forest, they were allegedly there to camp and "make an entertaining piece of content in a forest." However, what they found was not a night of hijinks in the forest, but the body of a suicide victim. Instead of killing the camera then and there, they kept rolling while Paul called out “Yo, are you alive?”and “Are you f*cking with us?” This was followed by his nervous laughter and continued cracking of jokes. Not only did he continue filming, he then edited and uploaded the video.
This is where I have a problem. First of all, I lost my 13 year old son Peyton to suicide in October of 2014. Peyton came home came home from school one day, went in his room and hung himself. Needless to say, I have issues with people who make fun of those that choose to take their lives. Peyton actually dreamed of being a Youtube star himself. Perhaps he saw some of Paul's antics and wanted to be like him, but we will never know.
Instead of deleting the video, Paul chose to post it. Paul chose to show his 16 million, young, impressionable viewers the body of a man that made the hardest decision of his life. Paul chose to laugh like a little school girl while this man's body hung from a tree. Paul chose to do this, in his words, "not for views" (because he gets views), but to "raise awareness for suicide and suicide prevention." He even went so far as to put a warning at the beginning of the video, as we all know how effective that is in getting kids to not watch something. Then, when the sh*t hit the fan, Paul pulled the video, but not before millions had a chance to view it. Not surprisingly, people were outraged, and they made Mr. Paul aware of this through social media.
After the backlash, Paul followed the script from the celebrity playbook, waited a couple of days and issued a poorly written apology where he seemed to extoll his own virtues while perplexed as to why people would b angry. After all, according to Paul, he does "this sh*t every day. [He's made a 15 minute TV show EVERY SINGLE DAY for the past 460+ days." Paul took the next step by posting a rehearsed and scripted apology. In the video, he tries to sound remorseful, says that he was wrong, tells his legions of followers not to defend him, and promises us that he will be a better person in the future. He then made a video called Suicide: Be Here Tomorrow. Mingled in between the slow motion shots of Paul walking and tossing a rock back and forth in his hands, he sits down and talks to suicide attempt survivor Kevin Hines and Dr. John Draper, Director of the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. We see Paul paying rapt attention and nodding his head. At the end of the video, Paul pledges one million of his own money to various suicide prevention organizations. Finally, this past week, Paul began his national apology tour on Good Morning America. Of course he promised that he has learned from his experience, that he will be a better and more sensitive person in the future. You will have to excuse me if I appear skeptical, but I have to wonder if these are the actions of a repentant person, or those of a narcissist desperate to stay relevant and in the limelight.
Are there people in this world that have done worse things than Paul? Of course. Does Paul deserve a second chance? Of course. Let's give Paul a chance to see if he can become a better person. Let's give him a chance to follow through on his promises. In fact, I wold like to offer Mr. Paul a chance to show how sincere he really is. On June 2, 2018, I will be taking part in the American Foundation of Suicide Prevention's Overnight Walk In Dallas. Mr. Paul, would you consider sponsoring me? I am required to raise $1,000 in order to take part in this event. Would you be willing to help out? Or even better, please join me and hundreds of others as we walk to raise awareness of suicide. Come and listen to the stories of those that have lost loved ones. Meet people that know the pain of knowing that their husband, wife, daughter, son, sister, or brother will never come home again. You want to be a better person Mr. Paul? Here's your chance.
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