Posted on 04/07/2006 5:53:07 PM PDT by SteveMcKing
TROIS-RIVIÈRES, QUE. As Ghyslain Raza recalled, whenever he walked by his high school's common areas, other students would jump on tables and chant, "Star Wars Kid! Star Wars Kid!"
There would be a commotion as they shouted and poked at him, trying to get a reaction. "It was simply unbearable," he said.
An otherwise ordinary teen in this Quebec small town, Mr. Raza had become a worldwide object of ridicule when schoolmates put on the Internet a video of him clumsily pretending to be a Star Wars character.
Three years later, Mr. Raza and his parents this week reached an out-of-court settlement with the families of three former schoolmates they had sued for $351,000 in damages.
The settlement annuls a civil trial set to begin on Monday that would have scrutinized one of the world's first and most-publicized cases of cyber-bullying.
However, documents filed in the case at the Trois-Rivières courthouse give new details about how a mean-spirited high-school prank turned into a global Internet cause célèbre.
Specifics of the settlement remain confidential.
(Excerpt) Read more at theglobeandmail.com ...
I understand the mixed emotions. Really. I thought, "You poor kid." I still do. But then I saw the clips and began laughing.
Absolutely! He could have and should have parlayed his "fame" into endorsement deals and television ads. He could have made a whole lot more than $351,000, and made it a whole lot quicker than this dragged out court battle.
Teasing can be annoying, but 1. most of us have been ribbed for something silly and/or stupid we did as a youth and 2. most of us got over it.
In other words: Mr. Raza, while I symphathize with you, please GROW A PAIR!
He's just GOR-geous!!!
But, most people say you should just suck it up. It's part of the real world. I'm not one of those people, though.
We all got razzed over something in high school. The rednecks in my small town Texas school used to taunt me by calling me "Walking Encyclopedia" because I made good grades. It galled me until I started turning around every time I heard it and saying, "Yes, I am smarter than you, thanks for noticing." After that (and my offer to take one of them outside and kick his a*s), it stopped pretty quick.
The bookworm high school cheer: "That's all right. That's O.K. You'll be working for me some day."
"That video is totally inappropriate. It's lewd, vesivius, salacious, outrageous!"
"Gary Brolsma and "Numa Numa!"
YES! YES! Thank you for posting this link. Now I can watch it yet again.
This is a classic of internet performance art. People will be watching this 100 years from now.
I'm series, it stunes my beeber!
http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/206373
Here is a link to watch several version of the Numa Numa video. Evidently it is the "official" site of the video, though I've seen cleaner versions.
I must agree with the poster on newgrounds, for me too, it "never gets old"
"Or the Fat Chinese boy."
His face is an icon, it is just perfect.
Looter man is also an icon now. Where is he today? Does he even have a clue that he appears daily on Freerepublic, often with some of the most famous and powerful people in the world?
And look at that crazy kid from American Idol, who sang (butchered) "she bangs", he was on a McDonald's commercial or something the other night.
Andy Warhol sure was right about the 15 minutes of fame thing.
Wow - thanks for the ping! My supervisor at work is a big star wars fan - I have to make him a copy of the clip.
My thoughts exactly!!
My thoughts exactly!!
They likely got tired of paying lawyers and settled for something close to what their lawyers fees would be to continue this.
Happens all the time.
Especially if a judge won't dismiss a meritless case at the outset.
Fortunately, she was already married.
If that fat little priss is a weight-lifter ...
that kid is an internet legend, I remember seeing it when it first came out. and then the remixes! he could have made appearances on TV like you wouldnt believe. he definitely did NOT play it right...
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