The Kwok has been mailing all over the place. He has complained to facebook, and to the Panda's Thumb. He has written to CFI-Michigan in advance of my visit here, telling them to throw a pie in my face. I have heard from quite a few friends in the scientific community that Kwok has written to them, as well, telling them what an awful jerk I am and how they should not ever associate with me. He has now cc'ed to me a message he sent to several of my colleagues at UMM, with an incredibly ironic title.
Internet stalking by your colleague, Professor Paul Z. Myers
Dear Professor [redacted]:
While I am relieved that your colleague, Dr. Paul Z. "PZ" Myers, survived his automobile accident without any personal injuries, I must write to you and your colleague, Professor [redacted], as the senior members of your discipline, to complain about ridiculous, quite unnecessary, harassment and internet stalking which was done by Professor Myers and some of his acolytes and friends last week at both his blog, Pharyngula, and at Facebook.
I have filed complaints with both Facebook and Science Blogs, and Facebook seems to be taking seriously my complaint, since it is in the midst of an ongoing investigation.
Here are some representative examples of the harassment and internet stalking that I had to endure from Myers and others posting at Pharyngula:
http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2009/03/the_revenge_of_kwok.php#comments
http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2009/03/survivor_pharyngula_day_four.php#comments
http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2009/03/survivor_pharyngula_day_three.php#commentsStarting on Friday night I was subjected to further abuse, such as more harassment and internet stalking by Myers and some of his Facebook friends at Facebook.
When I noted on his wall that I felt compelled to contact the organizer of an April 8th talk at Saint Katherine's College that will be presented by my friend, Brown University professor of biology Kenneth R. Miller, in light of Myers' own bizarre behavior such as his "condemnation" of a Roman Catholic, and alert her to the possibility that Myers might be a disruptive person at Ken's talk, Myers wrote this:
Pz wrote on your Wall:
"Wait...you mean I might be standing in line for Ken Miller's talk, and the organizer might send a beefy security guard over to expel me?
Please, please, please make it so. That went so well last time it happened."
Myers's behavior would be deemed unacceptable by Dr. Ruth Simmons, President, Brown University. I strongly suspect that had he conducted himself in such a fashion as a Brown professor, she would have insisted upon his immediate resignation for conduct unworthy of a Brown professor.
I think it is worth noting how Myers is perceived over at Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pz_myers
His abysmal conduct stands in stark contrast to other, more prominent, critics of creationism like Drs. Eugenie Scott, Jerry Coyne and Kenneth R. Miller:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eugenie_Scott
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerry_Coyne
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenneth_R._Miller
Regrettably, I have decided to demand from Myers some financial compensation for his egregious behavior. He will have to purchase on my behalf a used Leica M7 rangefinder camera body (The price will vary, but somewhere in the range of approximately $2200 to $2500.). I hope you and Professor [redacted] will persuade him to act favorably on my request.
Respectfully yours,
John Kwok
Kwok also sent me a little addendum.
PS: Internet stalking by your colleague, Professor Paul Z. Myers
Dear PZ -
I'm not amused at all by your egregious conduct towards me. In fact, if you've been reading PT lately, I made a thinly-veiled reference to you yesterday, observing that you are a lunatic.
I fully expect you to comply with my request, which will be in lieu of an actual lawsuit. Moreover, I don't expect you to announce this at either Pharyngula or Facebook, since if you do, I'll be compelled to demand more compensation from you.
Will you please grow up and act your chronological age for once? I also expect you to refrain from criticizing religions, especially the Roman Catholic Church.
I have an old friend from whom you can purchase a used Leica M7. Once you are ready to contact me, I'll tell you how.
Respectfully yours,
John Kwok
I leave the diagnosis of Mr Kwok's condition in the hands of the readers.
Kwok is escalating now. Just got this:
Dear PZ -
You owe me now $5,000 worth of photo equipment. If you don't have it, then ask your pal Dawkins for a loan (Since he received a multi-million dollar advance from Simon and Schuster for his next book. Incidentally, Simon and Schuster publishes Michael Behe's and Frank McCourt's books.). Thanks for demonstrating that you are indeed an internet stalker:
http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2009/03/john_kwok_sends_email.php#co…
I was hoping you would ignore me completely instead of yet another inane pontificiation of yours at Pharyngula. But instead, you've demonstrated why I believe Dr. Ruth Simmons, President of Brown University, would have demanded your resignation as a member of her university's faculty, simply for indulging in the kind of ridiculous, often lunatic, conduct that you so obviously relish.
Respectfully yours,
John Kwok
Since he does seem to be ramping up his demands, the next time I post one of his missives, it will include full contact information and IP addresses for Mr Kwok, as per my notice on the left sidebar.
- Log in to post comments
More like this
Kwok off!
"I'm not amused at all by your egregious conduct towards me. In fact, if you've been reading PT lately, I made a thinly-veiled reference to you yesterday, observing that you are a lunatic. "
Allow me to make a less thinly-veiled observation. This guy is a complete wack-a-loon.
Clearly, your worst nightmares have become real.
Will you drag us all down to doom with your blasphemy against The Mighty Kwok?
Ah, woe, for an ill fate so marshalling! Quake, PZ, quake!
I predict a long thread.
My camera died recently. Could you stalk me next?
WTF??
Critizie RCC more! They do a lot of harm. And JK is way way to loony to be saved. Quite sad.
Is one held blameless for extortion if one is mentally unbalanced?
John SKwoks.
This guy is a certifiable loon. He's the drama queen of projection!
Well damn, I think I'm going to demand things from anyone that annoys me from now on.
That's funny.
Doesn't that qualify as 'coercion' ?
IANAL, but I think you got a case here.
WTF? It takes serious brass cajones to claim that someone is a stalker and then turn around and threaten blackmail. But then, to blackmail for what...to buy a camera? Soap operas writers wouldn't accept a plot line like this, its too unbelievable.
Do these people ever read what they write?
"I made a thinly-veiled reference to you yesterday, observing that you are a lunatic."
he sounds a bit Ignatius J. Reilly sometimes.
I like most of all how he says all this without a shred of irony. What a dork.
WTF?
For anybody who missed it, Mr. Kwok made a complete ass of himself over at the Pandas' Thumb last December as a birther, that is, questioning the authenticity of President Obamas' birth certificate. It should be noted that this type of activity is now confined to whackjob sites like Worldnutdaily. It would be interesting to ask Prof. Miller if he even remembers knowing Mr. Kwok.
It should also be noted that Mr. Kwok cyberstalked Abbie Smith over at ERV and was subsequently banned from commenting there.
Clearly, Mr. Kwok is someone who doesn't have both oars in the water.
What the Kwok?
Umm... I'd like a Nikon D300. Can you email me, PZ?
Wait. Does this only work for cameras, or can I get anything?
Is there going to be an entry in DSM-V for "Just Plain Batshit Crazy"?
I like most of all how he says all this without a shred of irony. What a dork.
Also, isn't this blackmail? Even if it's only over a camera body? (Extortion deals only with money, if I'm correct)
John K:
Risperdal and Depakote
Diganoses:
Doc A: Penis envy I think, Doctor. What do you think?
Doc B: Schizoprenia with delusions of grandeur. Perhaps odeipal tendencies.
Doc C: Nah... he just wants a hug. Right then nurse, give him 100 mEq Potassium Chloride.
That's not stalking Mr. Kwok, that's well-deserved mocking. Go play in your own sandbox.
Obviously masturbation is not working out so well for him and he's decided he needs a new hobby. Could we just send him a hooker instead so there will be at least on ray of joy in the otherwise deep dark pit of idiocy that has become his life?
Who knew that a love of high school could drive a man mad? I suppose it's good that I was never into the whole school spirit thing.
"Regrettably, I have decided to demand from Myers some financial compensation for his egregious behavior. He will have to purchase on my behalf a used Leica M7 rangefinder camera body (The price will vary, but somewhere in the range of approximately $2200 to $2500.). I hope you and Professor [redacted] will persuade him to act favorably on my request."
Ok, it's clear this guy is insane. PZ, I don't think you should waste any more of your time or blog space on him.
If this works for Kwok, I'm going to get me an original Michelangelo from the Vatican. Those bastards over there annoy me all the time, exclude me from their cracker worship, and often won't print what I've written on their blogs. I need compensation.
What a Kwok.
This Kwok guy is hilarious.
He makes a "Facebook threat" and ends up guaranteeing himself banned. Then he threatens to write a novel with PZ as a terrorist in it. Now he claims that Myers is stalking him and wants a used camera as compensation?
I don't have Facebook but last I heard he hasn't even removed HIMSELF from as PZ's friend (can anyone verify this?).
Also, is anyone else confused as to how shit-for-brains siMon has been able to get past the filters here but Mr. Prestigious High School hasn't?
Despite all this, I'll still never forget that night in Madison.
Bill - you don't reward brats for throwing a tantrum. You send them to their room without their porn.
You can tell he's crazy — he didn't even ask for a really expensive lens. Besides, that's a FILM camera.
Haha, he wants you to buy him a camera? That's unbelievable. However, if you really want to annoy him I suggest that you organize a Pharyngula and Facebook based camera give away contest. Most godless post wins, something like that. I really want a nice new camera.
What the fuck does he want a camera for? This guy really is a petulant child.
Well, I guess we can add one more synonym of "kook" to Roget's..."Kwok".
Diagnosis: Acute stupidity (sadly not treatable)
Secondary Diagnoses: Low emotional maturity, unrealistic sense of own importance
There you are. My opinion is that the best thing for this case is to ignore this individual for a very long time. The subject may not improve, but your faith in humanity almost certainly will. Keep in mind that I have no medical credentials.
On a separate note did he really try to extort you for a new camera?! (shakes head sadly)
Well, at least he does have a good taste in cameras. Leica rangefinders are overpriced but certainly very nice cameras.
The best part is that he really seems to think this will work. I bet he's been making snapshot noises all day, while counting the hours until his camera arrives. Bizarre!
Is it possible, throught coating or other processes, to modify the M7 lens so that they superimpose "God doesn't exists" in every snapshot?
I think it would be a great gift for Mr. Kwok?
i think you should counter-claim and try to get him to buy you a new car.
(p.s. glad you are okay.)
I was laughing the entire time reading his e-mail, oh man "egregious" and a lawsuit threat *GASP* who hasn't gotten those before! Hey John you sad little obscurantist, go Kwok yourself!
Looks like this guy would qualify for his own show on Fox News.
Shit, I'm not even stalking PZ, but for a Pentax K1000 body in decent condition, I'll stop too.
Holy batshit Moses! Why in hell is he under the impression that you owe him a camera?
..On second thought, lets not even try answering that.
What a kwok of s%@t!
I beg of you, please please please continue keeping us up to date on this psycho. Crazy as he is, it's the kind of crazy that makes for a damn good laugh.
Funny how he forgot to mention that one of the things he wrote on your wall/status update was
"Go fuck yourself, I mean it."
I suggest you sue him for battery because of that. Makes sense in his world.
PZ, one of your posters is insane. JK!
The entire Kwok episode reminds me of my stint working with the mentally ill.
Once I began working at the agency, I was amazed at how many of my clients were people I would see every day as I walked to and from the train station or the library, or sitting behind the wheel of a car, or just conducting their business in the local convenience store.
Yes, they could function in the "normal" world, with a little help. Yet now I came to know who it was who heard voices telling him to commit murder, or who would go off on a fifteen-minute, obscenity-laced tirade before wishing you a happy Thanksgiving and nicely leading you out the door. It was a little unnerving at first, until I really got to know them and could get past the stereotypes and assumptions based on superficialities.
There are a lot of people out there, with a lot of issues. Unfortunately, not enough of them are able to get the right kind of help. If Mr. Kwok is not under the care of a mental health professional, he definitely needs to be.
"I don't expect you to announce this at either Pharyngula or Facebook, since if you do, I'll be compelled to demand more compensation from you." -Kwak
What happens if you go to the cops, he'll break your kneecaps?
What a kwok of s%@t!
I was laughing the entire time reading his e-mail, oh man "egregious" and a lawsuit threat *GASP* who hasn't gotten those before! Hey John you sad little obscurantist, go Kwok yourself!
I hate to belabor the obvious, but doesn't Mr. Kwok's own behavior constitute stalking? I realize that several posts here have already made, well, thinly veiled references to that fact, but I can't help wondering whether anyone's thought to bring this to attention.
And no, I ain't volunteerin'. I know I'm a coward, but anyone who points out to Mr. Kwok that he's the real stalker is probably going to be accused of being a stalker and probably be stalked by him as well. It may even be a mistake for me to say this.
Nowt wrong with a film camera. Just because you don't want one doesn't mean I wouldn't happily take it. (Although I've got no use for a rangefinder).
ROFL!!!
Wait -- so how did he just arbitrarily pick an M7 Rangefinder camera body? Did he drop his when you made him cry on the playground?
You better watch out or he'll get his big bully friends to not let you play kickball anymore!
FIRSTIES!!!
Lol@signing off with "Respectfully yours"
Not criticizing your bronze age death cult !? If there is any justice in the world, the Catholic church would be persecuted for genoside, Lahague tribunal style
I don't know what my favorite part is...
That the worst he could get on you was that you said you wished someone would kick you out of a line again?
That he tried to blackmail you for a camera? And sent it to your colleague? ("Hey, if this dude doesn't give me a camera, I'm gonna sue him! See, now all your friends know too. Now you HAVE to do it!") And that he apparently regrets blackmailing you before he does it?
The fact that he thinks Wikipedia is the best judge of a public figure's character?
So many choices...
"Mental wounds still screaming
Driving me insane
Im going off the rails on a crazy train!"
-Ozzy Osbourne, Crazy Train
But then this guy doesn't deserve a guitar solo from the likes of Randy Rhoads.
No kings,
Robert
Kwok me, I double posted.
PZ,
I have a 1996 Isuzu Rodeo that I need to get rid of. Since they are no longer sold in the United States, no one wants to buy it. I hereby demand that you purchase this PoS vehicle from me for $3500. If you refuse, I shall be forced to write letters to your colleagues claiming that it is you, and not I, that is the lunatic. I give you until the end of the day to make your decision.
Also, I could add multiple, irrelevant links to this message if it would assist in your decision making.
With kindest regards,
Deepsix
So let me get this straight - if I make obnoxious comments, draw the vile of the posse here, and then get all in a tizzy about it, I can get a nice camera?
In that case God is going to smite all of you for your immeasurable sins, you bigoted, left-wing, gay child molesters.
This whole ordeal is so surreal... I really feel for you, Prof, having to deal with crazies like this. Let us hope in all cases common sense prevails.
John Kwok = the new Larry Fafarman
DRAT! I forgot that that window had been open for over an hour.
Now for my slightly more mature second post:
Why does Kwok want a camera from you? An odd sort of compensation. And when did you stalk him? He came to Pharyngula!
While we're asking for things, please may I have a new MacBook, Professor Myers? They're only about the same price as his camera... And since I haven't been even slightly threatening, how's about making it a MacBook Pro? Please?
I'm confused. If you're doing something obnoxious on facebook, all Kwok has to do to get rid of you is unfriend you and you can't access his page any more. (And refuse to friend anyone he suspects of being in league with you.) So, what's the problem?
Also if you're handing out cameras, I'd like one attached to an iPhone. My stupid treo's camera died.
Regression
Projection
Denial
Reaction Formation
And that's just in the Freudian defense mechanisms. I sincerely hope he is joking, because otherwise I just lost some of the precious little faith in humanity I have left.
I call shenanigans!
This is a charade, a trick, a ruse, a parody, a put-on, a performance by this guy called Kwok.
This guy is unbelievable. I certainly hope none of the recipients of that email actually took it seriously.
And 'stop criticising catholicism'?! Does he not understand the concept of free speech? Anyway, criticising religion is the most fun a girl can have!
Clearly, professor Myers, you have gone quite mad. Kwok says so, and he's an expert!
He is close to being taken to a place where everyone speaks softly and he has to ask someone to scratch his nose, isn't he?
He is delightfully crazycakes! The turn to extortion was unexpected. Also, I believe it's a federal offense to do it using the internet. Go you, Kwok! Aim high, you nutter!
But I think what tickles me most is that he's claiming you are stalking him but all the evidence he provides are links to your own blog. "Yes, officer, that man is stalking me! I've been peering through his windows and hiding in his closet. He talks about me with friends! And when I jump out of the closet and run around the house crapping on the carpets he tells me to leave and not come back! Stalker!"
Wow, is Kwok trying to start another round of Survivor?
If this little bit of pathetic behavior isn't grounds for banning, I don't know what is.
That man really wants a camera, doesn't he?
He was treated mighty shabbily and he agreed with you after all. At least you can't pass him off as a religious "nutter," oh no. He belongs to your phylum. It is fair to say that you drive, to near madness, even those among your ranks with arrogance, condescension and meanness.
Funny how he forgot to mention that one of the things he wrote on your wall/status update was
"Go fuck yourself, I mean it."
I suggest you sue him for that. Makes sense in his world.
(I really hope the comment didn't post twice)
I would engage a counter suit for a new (squid) car!!
Wow, crazy.
Jim, I love your comment
Is there going to be an entry in DSM-V for "Just Plain Batshit Crazy"?
Film cameras? WTF? I was in film processing and photo printing for 25 years and I can tell you its DEAD DEAD DEAD. The chemicals, the film, the paper, all outdated and completely bypassed by modern "imaging" techniques. Good riddance, it was a polluting and trash-making technology (many Kodak manufacturing facilities are now Superfund sites). Silver halide printing is gone! And I'm unemployed, any ideas on what an old mural printer can do in this modern era?
I've been way too busy to keep up with this blog lately. I've caught some glimpses of this, but I honestly couldn't say I really cared or followed it... Then I see this. Holy cow.
I strongly suspect he is literally still in high school. I don't know if there is evidence to the contrary, but I picture that being his age range from the naivete in the letter. To be honest, I feel embarrassed for him.
On another note, PZ, if I send you a camera body to very publicly give to someone other than John Kwok, will you PLEASE please please please please please please please pleaseplease please please please please PLEASE! Please stop using comic sans. Please. With a cherry on top.
I understand why you do it, but I can't begin to tell you how much I despise that font. There has to be an equally legible cartoon font out there somewhere.
BTW I'm glad you're OK. No more reckless endangerment!
Pete Rooke, you probably picked the wrong thread to chime in on. I vote for a new round of Survivor.
Rooke,
Yeah, because he was clearly quite sane until he started posting here....
I demand to be emailed by Kwok and share in the absurdity!
Wait, no I don't.
Is there any way I can get a plasma-screen tv out of this?
Now I'm having mental image of people sitting on PZ's lap, a la Santa Claus, asking for presents. Happy Monkey to all, and to all a good night.
Damn! I used up all my black candles yesterday conjuring a curse on Simon. Now I have to run down to the corner occult bookshop for more. If you are reading, Kwok, the fun and games are over. Your threats and cyberstalking and general douchebaggery have earned my wrath, and that of The Dark Father. If you felt vexed by PZ, that's nothing compared to being hexed by BZ! Prepare to squirm, pathetic vermin.
That's extortion. Threatening to continue to libel someone continuously until remuneration for "protection" - that's pretty classic extortion.
This guy - he's got a severe narcissistic/paranoid vibe going on, complete with delusions of grandeur and persecution.
Wow.
Just, wow.
Lay you odds that comment in Wikipedia was done by him or an associate...
I think this qualifies as actual blackmail, or at least attempted monetary coercion.
Wow, is this guy for real?
Nice. I needed some quality entertainment this morning. XD
Dude, this guy is messed up! I friended him over at Facebook as a lark, but he is quickly becoming scary. I might have to un-friend my first person.
Oh noes! He is going to make more demands! I’m about to crap my pants with terror!
Yes, Rookey, he was treated shabbily. He blundered in here, made insane threats, gave us all a huge laugh, and was finally - oh, the horror! - banned from telling us about his schooldays any longer.
No. You, however, are.
Shouldn't you be praying? Somewhere ther's a little girl being raped by her dad - unless you get on your knees, she'll be allowed to have an abortion. Genuflect, you catholic fuckwit!
The 'W' in his name is silent, right?
HAHAHAHHA! So instead of suing you for INTERNETS HARASSSMENT, he's going to force you to buy him a Leica?
This will be SO fun to watch.
Kwok, you are a delusional idiot, like all of your ilk.
Quite clearly Kwok does not exist. A character such as this can only be a dissociated projection of PZ's inner demons, or something to keep the traffic flowing.
Because, really, no one could be that hilariously insane in real life...
Oh wait. Rooke just joined in. Disproved again.
Is it wrong I read this and felt better about my own life situation? At least I don't have crazy people attempting to blackmail me for a camera.
Thanks for the laugh this morning, PZ.
AnthonyK @92 FTW!
That guy is nuts. He needs help.
JT
Let's see if we can get James Randi involved, so Kwok and David Mabus can tag-team.
Five bucks on the Skeptical Squids, two falls out of three! I want blood! Bring out the steel chairs!
"It is fair to say that you drive, to near madness, even those among your ranks with arrogance, condescension and meanness."
Are you calling yourself crazy?
Personally, I hope he does turn it into a "real" lawsuit. Judges rarely get the change to literally laugh someone out of the courtroom.
LMFAO @ Katie #71
Holy cow. How's life in your parallel universe, Mr. Kwok?
If anybody is on personal terms with him that is reading this, please get the guy some professional help. His mania is getting more acute.
Pete Rook, Kwok had an established reputation of being nutty before getting lambasted here. And this blog is not capable of helping seriously an mentally imbalanced person.
"a used Leica M7"?
Haha, he's pulling one over on you!
I remember similar treatment of someone called "Steve Fuller" on this blog. Here is a video of a debate featuring him:
http://fora.tv/2007/10/28/Battle_of_Ideas_Debating_Darwin#chapter_01
Now he doesn't appear to actually believe that ID is scientifically valid.
He was making an extremely subtle sociological point relating to that history of science and paradigm shifts.
He was summarily dismissed as a creationist, a loony Christian ad infinitum.
When someone who adopts even a subtly different world-view to your own (assuming you are mostly Darwinists) you treat them with the same levels of courtesy, respect and, most importantly, consideration that the same "fundamentalists" you claim to oppose grant others.
Christie
At this stage I should point out that I wasn't expecting anyone to take me up on my offer. So -um, seeing as how I have no money to speak of, would you settle for a smallish stuffed animal, perhaps? Or a new set of headphones? :)
Nice blog BTdubs.
we really shoudn't encourage him.
it's also not fair to make jokes on special needs persons like him
This guy reminds me of Carlin's distinction between a maniac and a crazy person. "A maniac will beat nine people to death with a steel dildo. A crazy person will beat nine people to death with a steel dildo, but he'll be wearing a Bugs Bunny suit at the time."
Wonder what kind of fursuit is in Kwok's closet. Any guesses?
"Good riddance, it was a polluting and trash-making technology (many Kodak manufacturing facilities are now Superfund sites). Silver halide printing is gone!"
Yeah, but wasn't it always a bit of a thrill to see your pictures slowly fade into existence on a piece of photo paper in the developer tray? Haven't done that since high school, and I suppose I never will now.
You don't understand. See, our Rooke himself was once a sensible, competent, gifted young Catholic nuclear physicist with a brilliant career ahead of him. He was on track for a wondrous life: papers in Nature... Inspiring disadvantaged youth from the inner city to collaborate on a grand unified field theorem... All through his internet youth ministry. DiCaprio was gonna play him in the biopic.
And then he started reading PZ. Drawing thereby (as he so evocatively describes here) 'near to madness'...
... Becoming the Peter Rooke you know today.
Don't you people see what you have done?
And for what, I ask you? Cheap laughs? Y'all oughtta be ashamed!
(Also, gimme a camera...)
Somewhat more seriously, re Kwok: Kwok, or any of his friends, if you're reading this: y'know that fifteen minute rule for email? Write, wait fifteen minutes, think about whether you really want to send that?
I respectfully suggest Kwok should be encouraged to consider a 48 hour rule.
Someone close to him: please suggest this. This is a man who desperately needs to know when to stop typing, seems to me.
Oh, so Kwok is serious about this stuff. I thought it was social-networking Poe.
You should send him a bear hug on Facebook. That's all he really wants. He needs Facebook love y'all.
That would be a rather dumbass assumption considering that that word is used almost exclusively by evolution deniers as a pathetic and somewhat strawman-erecting attempt at an insult.
Man, a whole bucket of crazy!
Actually, Kwok reminds me of some colleagues. I've often said that Abnormal Psych. was the best physics course I ever took.
Don't buy him a Leica!!! This is perfectly good material. I'm sure he will waste it by taking crappy snapshot. I mean, it's very likely that he is as competent as a photographer as he is in anything else, including polemics.
On the other hand, PZ, you could buy him a cheap, disposable camera. I'm sure he'll love it.
I also expect you to refrain from criticizing [...] the Roman Catholic Church....
because our chief weapon is surprise...surprise and fear...fear and surprise.... our two weapons are fear and surprise...and ruthless stalking.... Our three weapons are fear, surprise, and ruthless stalking...and an almost fanatical devotion to the Pope.... Our four...no... amongst our weapons.... amongst our weaponry...are such elements as fear, surprise.... I'll come in again.
"...of the harassment and internet stalking that I had to endure from Myers and others posting at Pharyngula..."
Wow! I'm a stalker!
Question: I tried to go to Dr. Myers Facebook page, and only got a bare minimum of content. Is there something else I have to do to see his "wall", etc? Or has Facebook done something to his page?
OMG OMG!! 2 whole emails from kwok without a single reference to a certain prestigious high school or any of its alma mater?!!
progress.
Sorry PZ I missed this part of the Oscars
"3rd most popular blog by a Minnesotian" (wiki)
Was it between pope 4th most likely to be mistaken for a potato and and 17th most popular Tree Frog?
So what, he's basically doing the old "Nice blog you have here. Shame if it got broken" routine?
He claims a "friend" of his has one of these camera wotsits. Since we can reasonably be skeptical that such a whackaloonie has "friends", I think we can read between the lines here and work out that he wants you to nick it on his behalf. "Used camera for sale; it's only had one previous owner and he won't be back till Thursday."
I dunno, I reckon if you don't do it he'll probably tell his Mummy on ya.
You couldn't make this stuff up.
Seriously, WTF is wrong with this guy?
Rookie,
Steve Fuller testified for the defense in the Dover trial. He deserves harsh words thrown at him for trying to roll back science. The only good that came from it was that he probably hurt the defense more than he helped.
Postmodernist and Fundamentalist make strange bedfellows.
HAHA, his strange affinity for "egregious" reminded me of this scene in Talladega Nights with Ricky Bobby's (Will Ferrel's) father, Reese Bobby, being thrown out of school on career day. (Audio Only--couldn't find a clip on YT)
http://www.moviewavs.com/php/sounds/?id=bst&media=MP3S&type=Movies&movi…
And I think the statement, "I have an old friend from whom you can purchase a used Leica M7," is also a blatant falsehood. Kwok doesn't have any friends, only companions in crazy.
I do however, disagree on the request for a new (new used) camera. He also seems to be making a claim for an upgrade: from his Amazon profile he states that he uses Leica M6 camera and Zeiss 28mm Biogon lens, not an M7 . If he does succeed in any lawsuit (which seems unlikely - poor treatment =/= unlawful treatment) he would not appear to be entitled to such a camera, which is an odd demand anyway.
Rey Fox@109
Yeah, it was so cool I spent half my "professional" life in the dark. I still have great nightvision, and an incredible color eye (I can still tell a half-unit of color change, and badly corrected color prints still get my goat).
I'd love to be at Ken's talk - partly because I'd love to see him anyway, he's a clever, witty man, and does, perhaps, even more to battle creationism than PZ - but which of two possible outcomes are most likely:
a) PZ disrupts Ken's talk, labels him as a stupid creationist, is widely condemned by the whole audience and is eventually escorted out, yelling obscenities, by security; or
b) PZ greatly enjoys Ken's lecture, asks a very sensible question or two, and shares a happy pint with Ken later (both laughing their arses off over JK) while the school-obsessed madman is himself hauled off by security?
I'd say...ummm...a). What reckon ye?
If he spent as much time working as he does writing letters and annoying people, he could afford the damn camara himself. That is, assuming he has any skills people are willing to pay for.
Maybe the advance on that next novel of his came in the form of coupons to Denny's?
No, he was almost certainly crazy and delusional before he came here. Like you. Only without the god-botting.
Is there some reason why he's specifically after a camera? Does he consider PZ somehow responsible for the untimely demise of his own photographic equipment?
I would genuinely appreciate an answer, other than the obvious "He's batshit".
No, the demand is so specific, I'm sure there really is someone he knows with this camera. I suspect "old friend" means "friend from a long time ago" rather than "a friend for a long time". I also rather suspect he uses the word "friend" in a way we can't even imagine.
W.T.F.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Kwok wants a camera because you banned him from your blog?
BWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
AHAHHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
AHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
AHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHA
And Rooke is defending Kwok because of Teh Meanness (but not the camera part)
BWAAAAAAAAAAAHA AHAHAHAHAHAHA BWAH BWAH BWAH
BWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
AHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
{FARTS}
AHAHAHHAHA...
Oh damn, I appear to have soiled myself. I'm off to clean up.
Louis
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAHAAAAAHAAAAAAAHAAAAAAAAAAAHAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAHAAAAAHAAAAAAAHAAAAAAAAAAAHAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAHAAAAAHAAAAAAAHAAAAAAAAAAAHAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!
****tears of laughter begin****
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAHAAAAAHAAAAAAAHAAAAAAAAAAAHAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAHAAAAAHAAAAAAAHAAAAAAAAAAAHAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAHAAAAAHAAAAAAAHAAAAAAAAAAAHAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!
"Oops...got to change my pants...laughed so hard I peed."
I like the idea of sending Kwok a disposable camera from CVS with "Leica" written on it in green sharpie marker.
Louis-
you stole my line...damn slow internet. Oh, wait, I was laughing too hard to type it. and still am.....truly, I shall chuckle about this all day. My colleagues will think I'm as batshit crazy as the Kwok!
PZ,
I wish all the people that annoyed me would openly admit to felony extortion on the internet and in emails directed to my friends. Man you have all the luck.
KJB
Wikipedia is hardly an authoritative text. I suggest a countersuit for defamation plus time and money lost on the ravings of this person.Anybody know how much a UM professor is paid these days?
PZ, I didn't know you were at UOregon! I went there myself for a 2 years. Fun school, but some of their science courses are a bit touchy-feely. I do remember the campaign to free the zebrafish. :)
Hahahaha NO
He must have tried to take a picture of PZ, and when the camera realized that PZ had no soul to steal the camera broke.
Shame on you PZ!
Also, you owe me a drink. Not just a beer though, I want a cask ale, and if you don't know what that is, shame on you.
LOL Evangelatheist:
Sick minds think alike 'twould seem.
Louis
P.S. AnthonyK in #128: I'm going with b). Not only have I actually met PZ, but I went to school at a very prestigious school, several very prestigious universities, and the list of my classmates and friendly alumni is pure A-list. I have shares in Facebook, I own Minnesota and I will be rescinding PZ's permission to live there forthwith, if not fifthwith. Therefore I am right and you are wrong. Take that you hairy arsed fuckknuckle! ;-) (Lest we forget)
So I was playing drinking game last night while reading this post. I call the game "Wait, what?" As the name implies, every time you say or think to yourself "Wait, what?", you drink. If you have to reread a section everyone drinks. By the end of the email we were all thoroughly plowed. I suggest you play with beer.
He should change his name to John Quack.
Kwok must have been raised in the grand old mafia tradition. The second "request" letter sounds like extortion to me. I wonder why such a well connected man like Kwok can't get his camera for free as a gift if he needs it that badly. If Kwok does bring on a lawsuit against you, he'll go down in flames in court, too. Maybe you should consider getting a restraining order against him; he's moving to a whole new kwokky level of creepy.
Oh yeah, and before I forget, because I was laughing so hard I pooped my pants, therefore PZ owes me a new office and a car. I like Ferraris, but they must be hybrid engined and get good gas mileage. Whilst PZ is at it, I want the moon on a necklace and a PONY DAMMIT!
Louis
Not sure if anyone has pointed this out yet but his reference to PZ's Wikipedia page containing criticism of his "abysmal conduct" in comparison to others such as Scott, Coyne and Miller is bogus. No such mention or comparison of such is there, at least not on the main page. That he has to distort an already problematic source to suppport his opinion shows how tenuous a hold on reality Kwok really has.
Latest in the series of "they named it with their own name":
Once we had egnorance.
Today we have... kwokkiness!
Thank you aratina #144
Pledge “Kwokscam”
"I will pay 1 cent to buy The Kwok a Kodak Max 35mm Single Use Camera w/ Flash but only if 794 other people will do the same."
Deadline to sign up by: 1st April 2009
More details
This is the camera:
http://www.amazon.com/Kodak-35mm-Single-Camera-Flash/dp/B00004SU73/
Price: $7.95
Pete "total fool" Rooke
Kwok is very much like you Pete. He forced himself upon us, he wouldn't respond at all to sage comments trying to make his behavior less obnoxious, and by sheer persistence on his part turned everybody off to his repeative message of I attended a certain high school. As a result, he ended up getting banned for behavior unbecoming a Pharyngulite. Your behavior is similar, and if you profile ever gets as big as Kwok's did, you would be voted off the blog too. You want kindness, stay away from where people tell you to buzz off. Nobody requires you to read or post at this blog.
Correction: The original post. That's the adverse side effects of aldehyde production talking.
From now on we should refer to making ridiculous claims and demanding compensation "Kwokking". This only applies if the compensation is as ridiculous as the claim.
Example:
As a result of your email, I became pregnant. I will be forced to pursue legal action to secure child support payments unless you buy me a bacon cheeseburger and a nintendo power glove.
With god's deepest blessing,
Mike BaconFace III
p.s. Consider yourself Kwokked.
"He should change his name to John Quack. "
He doesn't need to. Kwok i now the new internet meme for CRAZY STALKER. Spread it around!
Does Kwok seriously...SERIOUSLY....expect PZ (or any of us) to stop criticising religion?
Even if the islamically inspired proposals go through the UN I will still criticise religion making myself a damned test case if necessary. The man's mind has clearly lost it's anchor on reality. Quick, Nurse! The large hypodermic full of sedatives!
Louis
It would be funny to file a complaint, and get a restraining order against this Kwok character. Not because you need or want one, but because of how insane it would make him. It seems clear that he is emotionally fixated on you to the point of obsession.
His behavior tells me that he puts you at the center of his persecution fantasies. This may well be homoerotic, which would be completely unsurprising from a Fundie.
Being banned from this blog seems to have unbalanced him further than he was already. A normally functioning person would simply, delete this blog from his favorites and forget about it. Kwoks compulsive need to keep your attention, and his apparent interest in receiving presents from you is enlightening. He did not ask for monetary compensation, he asked for something personal, probably something he has wanted for a long time. He likely feels aroused by the idea of you providing for his needs. It is also interesting that he asked for something phallic in nature.
I think if he were further removed from attracting your attention, by a restraining order for instance, he would likely suffer a major breakdown.
Jeus H. christ on a Stick ...This is the funniest shit I've seen in a long time. I can only hope that PZ will stalk me next (Pick Me! Pick Me!) I'm needing a new Stratocaster.
He never said what condition the used camera has to be in. Sadly, all of the ones on eBay are in good shape and therefore expensive. It would be great to send him one that you got dirt cheap because it is broken beyond repair.
Head -> Desk *thudthudthudthud*
Fuller is a second-rate philosopher turned sociologist, is way out of his league, and was a surrender-monkey-for-hire with his post-modernist, lunatic views on the subject and earned his derision.
Fuller's position, by his writings and statements, is summed up as he quite believes that scientists, by adhering to reality, are "intellectually deformed."
Do you understand that?
It is the ultimate in ignorant hubris to declare that by adhering to reality scientists are "intellectually deformed." Science is about reality. Not woo. Yet, because they won't incorporate religious and spiritual beliefs into science Fuller, whose an idiotic piece of crap, starts his war on science and scientists. For not including that which is properly not included -- the supernatural.
And, of course, scientists and science are EVIL. Or, as Fuller says: "It is "an arrested social movement in which the natural spread of knowledge is captured by a community that gains relative advantage by forcing other communities to rely on its expertise to get what they want."
In other words, not only does science not contain enough woo, but scientists are evil thugs raping the community at-large.
And, for the record, Fuller is a bad choice to fling in our faces as he is a sloppy, new-age/post-modernist woo-thinker. Not only is he's not that bright. But he is a product of his own relentless self-promotion. Even going so far as to start his own sociology journal to publish all his brilliant "insights." Sort of the Al Sharpton or Ron Paul of the sociology/philosophy world. A crank, at best, and revered by the sloppy-non-thinkers among us...
Sorry for the Family Guy reference, but after Loius' post @133, I just had to.
@ Ashman;
Perhaps the camera overheated from constant use in stalking notorious columnists of the interwebs?
@ Al Jeremy;
Apparently he didn't realise that he could just change the source to say whatever he wanted about PZ. Not that it would have helped his argument, wiki's reputation being what it is, but he would have at least seemed a bit less wacky.
I admire his creativity... demanding that you purchase a camera from him as compensation, and that will make things all better. It's like a bizarre version of confessing one's sins.
Am I the only one that thinks Kwok is actually trying to be funny? 'Cause man, that's funny.
WOW, you have your own Wiki-page. And reading that... even more WOW, you have an asteroid named after you :-)
And what an utter idiot is this Kwok. It seems to me he owes somebody bigtime and now he tries to have you pay of his debt. Probably promised to buy that camera but it turned out he can not afford it. Quite remarkable, by the way, calling people that you owe something "old friends"...
Come on people. This is a huge ongoing joke. Man on the Moon.
Kwocking hell...the lad is going into meltdown...maybe China can sort him out..or not!
Several amino acids short of a protein there methinks!
I've seen pathetic internet begging, I've seen insanity and I've seen deluded, self-centered morons, but I've never seen all three pile on top of eachother in this sort of 'perfect storm' of narccisim.
I really don't understand why because he keeps coming back and subjecting himself to abuse he finds himself entitled to a gift. If I make enough of a fool of myself will you buy me a present, too, Mr. Myers?
I think Kwok forgot several rules. Some are internet rules, some are just every day rules.
Like, if you don't want to be criticized for your opinions, don't share them. Or how about: It's the internet, it's made for mockery, get used to it or log off.
And on top of forgetting shit, he's just plain fucking insane.
I really wish PZ had refrained from posting more of his vile nonsense, I'd like to forget that people like John Kwok even exist.
@Jon Anderson: "It would be great to send him one that you got dirt cheap because it is broken beyond repair."
I have two lying around! One is a dirty old crappy VHS camera which eats the tapes half the time, and the other one is a digital camera with a broken flash. That one makes creepy noises.
Oh I think I also have a camera in my basement that records on them old films without sound. But that's a fun antique that I'd never give to anyone so lame.
He's plainly unstable. I'd probably drop the whole thing for the safety of all parties involved.
Kwok needs to get ambitious. If it were me, I'd be asking for something like a Toyota Prius, or a private island in the South Pacific. I mean, really. Dream big, or stay off the internet.
Kwok Pot said,
Right, because in this day and age, thirst is nothing and image is everything.
so, let me get this straight, this guy is going to sue PZ for "hurt feelings" unless he buys him a gift of some kind? that's fucked up.
Dear Professors [redacted] & [redacted],
Regrettably, I too have decided to demand from Mr. Myers financial compensation for his egregious behavior regarding something or other. He will have to purchase on my behalf a 132" plasma screen HD television set with surround sound theater seating and a popcorn machine. I hope you will persuade him to act favorably on my request.
Respectfully yours,
jimmiraybob
The criminal mind is always looking for a Payday.
PZ you could get the University's legal staff to issue a cease and desist order to Mr Kwok. It might also be wise to notify the Sherrif's dept of Mr Kwoks town just to alert them to the fact that Mr Kwok tried to scam you.
I've always found it interesting how quickly a young person will change their behaviour. Especially when they are pulled out of class or work and asked to accompany the Sherrif or a deputy just for a chat.
This is hilarious. It was worth banning that guy just to watch his little baby temper tantrums! Anyway, as I'm pretty sure banning someone from a blog is not illegal and is actually the opposite of harassment and stalking, I doubt his legal threats will get very far. At first I thought this guy just an immature name-dropper, but after this I genuinely believe that he suffers from megalomania.
This guy is a legitimate psycho.
Btw, PZ, you're a dick! Buy me an Xbox 360! That makes sense, right?!
...right?
Stalking??? Does Kwok not recall dropping every conceivable detail of his life here repeatedly and publically, and all of us telling him to just shut up? Stalking him is the LAST thing any of us would want to do.
Somehow, he also thinks his demand will be taken seriously by anyone.
Strange, sad little man.
Blackmail and extortion are serious crimes, no matter how pathetically attempted. Dr. Myers, I urge you to report to the police that this individual is attempting to blackmail or extort you (I'm not sure which this would be).
Sorry, WHO is John Kwok?
I love how you can 'stalk' him by him coming to your blog, and then you posting about what he did on your blog.
The equivalent would be me complaining that someone was 'stalking' me because other people argued with me when I went to a party at this guy's house, and then he refused entry to me when I tried to go back to his house, and made fun of what I did to all the other people at the party.
Caveat: I am NOT a mental health professional, or in the field in any capacity. My diagnosis of Kwok's mental illness: borderline personality disorder (See Wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borderline_personality_disorder).
#78: I'm sure there are equally legible cartoon fonts out there, but if the user doesn't have the font it'll fall back to whatever has the most similar metrics, and in most cases for a cartoony font that's going to be Comic Sans.
You can go find a nice cartoony font and then set it as your fantasy font type (you'll need to dig through browser options) and then ask PZ to use the fantasy font class instead of Comic Sans.
I'm still scratching my head over why anyone is supposed to give a flying fuck about what Wikiblabbia says about anything.
John "the Facebook Menace" Kwok,
Anyone else find it funny that the next post after this PZ criticizes the Pope?
Well, I guess that would do. I was rather busy today anyhow, and a stuffed animal is better than nothing. I'll have to piss off the pharyngulites and get a free camera some other day.
and thank you :)
^^^Thank you. My best LOL moment in this thread so far*.
*With the possible exception of Kwok's own material, of course... But let's face it, how can any of us compete with such... greatness.
(Also: sir, your posting caused me inadvertently to send embarassing emails containing photos of myself in compromising positions with Don Knotts to several prominent persons in the Dutch cabinet. I. Demand. Steak!)
Hi Kwokie,
(We know you're reading even if you can't post.)
Here's a suggestion. Why don't you start up your OWN BLOG to compete with PZ? What better revenge than to become more popular than him, with thousands of adoring fans, and the power to banish douchebags who talk incessantly about crap like, oh, I don't know, where they went to high school. That sort of thing.
You could crank out erudite posts all day long praising the Catholic church, and enlist a veritable A list of guest bloggers from your personal connections to the powerful and famous. Who knows, you might be bigger than Arianna some day! It's a sure bet!
And I even have a suggestion for a name for your blog: pharynguleica! What do ya think!?
Surely, Kwok was (almost) normal when he arrived. I think, however, that he was hit in the head with some fundy dumb-chuks while he was here.
*borrows Kwok's helmet*
Wikipedia -- because we all know how inviolate and unbiased a source that is, and how seriously it's taken in academic research.
Heck, high school teachers don't even allow its use, and Kwok thinks it can serve to support a legal claim?
If his friend wants to sell a Leica, why doesn't he just put it on eBay?
@ Feynmaniac;
I find it funnier that he demanded that PZ grow up after weeks of 'threatening' to tell his friends not to be friends with PZ no mo'.
Pete I think Kwok is a Holy Roller too. He loves him some trinity.
WTF?
Kwok is a nutter - he is uber loooooon, totally underpants-on-head and pencils up his nose tonto mad!
He is like the toddler in the department store having one of those proper, on the floor, arms and legs everywhere, red face and bawling far too loudly tantrums all cos he can't have things his own way!
Poor Diddums.
Yes Kwok, if you are reading this you can quote me!
Precisely how does one "internet stalk"?
Still, a very typical sort of email from him - name dropping etc but this bit made me howl with laughter
"I don't expect you to announce this at either Pharyngula or Facebook, since if you do, I'll be compelled to demand more compensation from you."
OOOPS
PZ How could you do this to him? Are your pockets so filled with money that you would risk more than just the camera?
;)
And to think I was a little sad at Kwok's departure. Here I thought we were losing a petty, confused, but entertaining little oddity. And now look. He's blossoming into even higher levels of pettiness and confusion, and he's transcending odd and headed straight for deranged.
So he got banned in Pharyngula Survivor, right? Does "banned" mean he just can't comment, or does it also mean he can't view this blog? (What if a banned person just comes in from an internet cafe's IP address?)
PZ is clearly stalking me, too. I keep finding his posts inserted directly onto my computer, in my RSS feed aggregator. This is harassment, and I demand he compensate me with cake and cookies.
Evangelatheist @ 134
Now known as lizzing!
This is stalking and/or harrassment. Whether it rises to the level of a civil tort or criminal offense is debatable. Not all playground disputes end up in court.
More to the real point, Mr. Kwok seems to be having some sort of mental health problem. Disproportionate response to minor events and stalking are signs something isn't right.
Does anyone know if he was always like this? I would guess some sort of age related dementia or an acquired neurosis/psychosis.
Everyone needs to take a big step back and JK needs to see some health care professionals for his own good.
I would call Poe's Law on Kwok, except that he puts so much energy into his malarkey that this seems to be increasingly unlikely.
I am left with the hypothesis that he is a nutter. This is probably more troubling, as this kind of thing can escalate, with unfortunate resulsts.
On a related topic, for all of the scorn poured on information gleaned from Wikipedia, I would echo Richard Dawkins, in that whenever I check the entry on a subject I actually know something about, the entry is pretty good. Specifically on the topic of PZ, for instance, I thought the wiki on him was fair and accurate. It certainly did not protray him in a negative light, as implied by our friend Super-K.
Well, it seems that Kwok is much more delusional than I had given him credit for; he's gone well over the edge into paranoia and delusions of grandeur with this stalking of PZ. It's not really illegal, of course (just very, very sad), nor is the rather bizarre attempt at blackmail. In order to blackmail someone you actually have to be able to harm them in some (non-physical) way if they don't comply with your demands; otherwise it's not blackmail. Kwok has nothing: no secrets, no shameful or illegal conduct, nothing that he could actually (except in his own mind) use to cause PZ the slightest bit of harm in this way. So, despite the temptation, it's probably best not to involve the law on that point.
Two other quick things I'd like to note:
First, Capital Dan @ #17 may well have coined a new expletive for us here at Pharyngula: "What the Kwok?" for something someone says or does that would normally get a "WTF?" because it's just too stupid and weird to be real, but is anyway. I think from now on, in honor of Kwok's permanent exile to the Pharyngula Dungeon(TM), we should always respond to like posts with a hearty "What the Kwok?" or "WTK?"
Second, I know it's a bit early for this, but I'm going to jump the gun anyway and nominate jim @ #18 for the next Molly Award for this extremely funny line:
Finally, I have to take PZ to task for holding out on us. PZ, you never told us you had an asteroid named after you. Now you have to tell us all about it (I figured since everyone's making demands today, I'd get one in too.)
Fucking moron.
Hooray for killfile.
At least you can't pass him off as a religious "nutter"
Uh, Pete, what part of "I also expect you to refrain from criticizing religions, especially the Roman Catholic Church" did you kinda sorta miss there? He's one of yours, whatever his opinions about evolution.
I doubt we could afford the hazard pay.
I think this is the funniest thread I have ever read.
I am for sending him the disposable camera with Leica written on it.
Now Louis....we all know where this is going to end...go fuck someone you love, repeatedly, as a penance...or it's insults at the crack of Dawn for you meboy (that is her name, right?).
What? You mean you didn't go to school with him? Shit, that must be tough...
You know what would make a *fascinating* undergrad psych course? The Psychology of Trolls. Well, maybe it would only merit a class or two.
(Sorry, the first line of #199 was supposed to be blockquoted, since they're Pete Rooke's words.)
BTW, I note that someone calling himself "Auspex1729" tried, earlier this month, to add John Kwok to Wikipedia, but the entry was deleted.
Lol. Comeplete whack-job. Usually I think to think about the thought processes someone goes though to come to a conclusion, and I think, "I would like to be inside that person's head for 5 minutes because I just don't understand it."
The only analogy that I can come up with for how is brain works is some transistors got fried, and somehow with some cross wires his brain retained functionality to keep it running. But trying to execute certain funtions (pretty much anything associated with reality) end up with results like "1 + I'm going to blackmail someone = pie."
Sheesh. I was thinking your Wiki page would have been created by someone that hates. If fact, it was just an outline of your life and work. Whats the rub?
Why is that putz saying you need to give him a new camera body?
with all brush fires we're having here in Daytona Beach, I haven't had time to keep up with Pharyngula. Frack!
At this rate, within a few days, Kwok is going to be curled up in the fetal position down at the Jiffy Lube, wearing only a tutu and a Mexican Wrestling mask, rambling something about PZ is contolling the mole people into eating his brain waves.
Hilarious.
Shorter John Kwok: "I want a pony!"
PZ, will you please stalk me next? My computer's been acting up. Or can I only try to extort cameras?
So, the existence of anything of value is evil. Gotcha.
I'd previously said that Kwok had a serious mancrush on Ken Miller, but now I suspect his heart really yearns for PZ. But PZ had to go break it, and the posters here made fun of him, and now he wants revenge!
I think it's playing on Lifetime at 8:00.
Serious WTF time.
@AnthonyK #202:
Go fuck someone I love? Repeatedly? As a penance? WhaaaAAAAA?
Oh yeah, 'cos that sex stuff is SO unpleasant, especially when it's with someone you love and repeated. :-)
Hmmm. I have decided to go for the other option. Since this thread can only be further examples of: WTF ROFLCOPTER Kwok FTL etc I feel that we should derail make it more interesting with a series of ever more less creative insults.
So at Dawn's Crack, if she is amenable, we shall commence!
Louis
I think we should replace the expression with "what a crock..." to "what a kwok...".
Ummm, now let me get this straight. Kwok comes HERE to PZ's blog to leave insane comments and accuses PZ of stalking? Am I missing something? I thought stalking is when the stalker goes over and invades the territory of the stalkee. Not the other way around.
My Crack is not at your disposal, horrid boys. Behave. I am not amenable.
Dawn
Huh, that's funny. Auspex1729's first contribution to Wikipedia was calling Steve Fuller a "silly spaz".
Small world.
Hey I still shoot slide film, with a near totally manual* Canon A1. The thing is just about bullet proof. There's a Fujifilm digital sitting in the cupboard that I bought the wife, CCD is dead after 4years of careful ownership.
I get the films processed and scanned to multi resolutions on disc at the same time so I get the best of both worlds, able to tweak and print from digital and still have the very high res original slides. My kit is likely to continue working, and there are lots of parts for the rest of my life. Sure I can shell out a small fortune for a camera with an interchangeable back meaning failure of the CCD doesn't make it a brick but they have lots of tricky, delicate electronics as well that are prone to breakage.
*It has a battery for the meter/shutter but that is all. No autofocus, no motorwind (I have hands).
Yeah PZ, it's so unfair of you to stalk poor Kwok by...following him...here...to your own...blog...
...never mind...
Ummm, now let me get this straight. Kwok comes HERE to PZ's blog to leave insane comments and accuses PZ of stalking? Am I missing something? I thought stalking is when the stalker goes over and invades the territory of the stalkee. Not the other way around.
(I based this conclusion on the evidence he presents. All the links lead to PZ's blog.)
PZ isn't stalking me in the normal way. Rather he's been giving me the cold shouder. In all the time I've been reading here he never has written anything to me. I find this treatment incredibly painful and I won't be tolerating it anymore. PZ, you will find a list of the various lenses and battery equipment I would like to purchase for either my digital camera or for my digital camcorder. You may purchase any one of the pieces of equipment over $1000.00. You may also purchase from my music recording list, but you will need to arrange for shipping of any amps. You may also purcase 3 or more of the lesser priced items. I feel this would be a fair trade considering the infinate damage done to me in all of the posts thus far. I reference: your blog, a stop sign, my mother.
If you do not meet my demands I will be forced to write incoherent letters to anyone affiliated with you.
Sincerely,
blueelm
My diagnosis: Too much free time on his hands. Although the idea that John Kwok is a long running prank, utilized by scienceblogs to get more traffic and/or comedic effect certainly seems like a valid hypothesis at this point.
I doubt you'll be able to find a prostitute who needs the money that badly.
I also would love a new camera! Shame I'm not clinically INSANE. Having met Dr. Ruth Simmons while she was still at Smith College, I'm pretty positive she'd call the burly security guards for Mr. Kwok like any sane, rational person would. Seriously, did this guy run out of his meds or what?
Awwww shucks, Dawn. I'll just have to call AnthonyK a mammamering, man-boobed, beribboned, monkey smuggling, goat licker of my own accord then.
Louis
No Louis, you are not worth the methane from my farts. Responding to you would be as pointless as a nun's nipple.
Tell Dawn the fiver's in the post.
"I fully expect you to comply with my request, which will be in lieu of an actual lawsuit. Moreover, I don't expect you to announce this at either Pharyngula or Facebook, since if you do, I'll be compelled to demand more compensation from you. "
During my divorce, my attorney reminded me there is a fine line between negotiation and extortion...
From Wiki "Making a threat of violence or a lawsuit which refers to a requirement of a payment of money or property to halt future violence or lawsuit is sufficient to commit the offense"
IANAL but he seems to have crossed the line... Twice.
You are too kind. Fuller and the other PoMos believe there is no objective reality. So we can all make up whatever we want and it is all true and no worldview is better than any other.
This is solipcism, of course.
That settles it. Kwok is just plain old mentally ill. Maintaining a persecution complex while persecuting someone else is a great example. I just feel sorry for him. He needs help.
@78: The rants he goes on would certainly make more sense if Kwok were simply a precocious and obnoxious high school student. Regrettably, however, easy-to-find evidence online indicates that he graduated from college in 1982 and high school in 1978.* This would make him around 48 years old, give or take early or late graduation.
(*For obvious reasons, I'll not mention the names of either school.)
Louis - wasn't that your photo on "Britain's Least Wanted" last night?
Sad and off-putting to see this thread full of people who could make more worthy use of their time and talents than making fun of and mocking a person for his mental conditions.
Hey KWOK - you're a fuckin' lunatic. Take some meds why don't you. Are you seriously thinking that you can control someone's speech? Well control this:
The Catholic religion is a false disgusting piece of shit, and anyone following it is a complete moron not deserving of any respect.
Ditto for Christianity, and any other cult-think organization that favors dogma over reason.
KWOK, you are a genuine moron.
Oh yeah, also, deities are not real, including the ass-wipe Yahweh from the xtian desert cult, and Jesus is fable.
This Kwok character is a real piece of work. I declare him insane. You see, this is the only strategy the creationist robots have against their unfailingly deficient logic: Censorship. That's what it's all about. We can't actually show that you're wrong, so we're going to go cry to our authority figures, and see if mommy or daddy can get the big bad scientists so shut up.
Well, this strategy simply will not work. The light of reason will forever vanquish the self-righteous, haughty, ineptitude that is creationism.
apologies for the all caps, but I'm gonna speak its language
DEAR JOHN KWOK,
SON, YOU NEED TO STEP AWAY FROM THE COMPUTER. YOUR BEHAVIOR IS BORDERING ON CRIMINAL. IT'S ONLY A MATTER OF TIME BEFORE YOU ACT ON ONE OF YOUR URGES AND ACTUALLY HURT SOMEBODY PHYSICALLY.
JOHN, PLEASE FIND YOURSELF A GOOD MENTAL THERAPIST TO TALK TO, AND BE PREPARED TO HEAR THINGS THAT YOU DON'T WANT TO HEAR. IT'S EITHER REALITY, OR A PADDED ROOM FOR YOU.
I ALSO THINK THAT IF YOU CHOOSE REALITY, THERE WILL LIKELY BE THORAZINE IN YOUR FUTURE.
I'VE ONLY SEEN A FEW OF YOUR POSTS IN THE PAST WEEK, BUT IT'S OBVIOUS THAT YOU HAVE ILLUSIONS OF GRANDEUR, AND PARANOIA.
I'M NOT TRYING TO MAKE FUN OF YOU HERE, I'M ACTUALLY TRYING TO HELP.
LOVE,
NEWFIE
Kwok's emails are an unambiguous case of extortion. It's fine to send a demand letter of there's a claim that you have done something actionable, but demanding compensation for doing something legal but unwanted by Kwok is simple extortion. Wow, what a dim bulb.
I didn't really consider Kwok to be a troll on this site, until he started making threats in anticipation of being banned. I didn't vote for him to be banned, as there were worse examples judging only from their comments on this site.
But the threats that actually got him banned, and the way he's tried to carry them out since, demonstrate that he is a cyber-stalker who deserves to be banned everywhere he goes online. There's ample evidence of his stalking and harassment and it sounds like he's accumulating a trail of witnesses against him.
Unbelievably juvenile, and a tragic waste of time.
..., and I forgot to say: childish.
Peter@217
Good for you man, but are you using E-6? We only have one lab left in Mpls that will process it, otherwise it gets sent to Chicago with about a three-day turnaround. We used to be able to turn it around and get it back to the photog in two hours, so they could do color tests and final shoots on the same day. Soon digital will surpass even silver halide for resolution, and the cameras will be so cheap that they will be, for all intents and purposes, disposable.
I still love my 4x5 bellows, and I can't figure out how to make non-standard (long exposures, pan-for-smear, interesting mistakes) with a digital. It's like recording music - if it isn't perfect, there's nothing, instead of a failure that can be learned from or taken advantage of (Brian Eno called them "happy accidents").
I'm just an analog luddite, I guess.
Concerned Minion, your concern is noted. But keep in mind PZ is on the receiving end of this crap. He has every right to post any harrassment sent to him, which this clearly was, and we have every right to have fun mocking the crazy. So your concern is rejected.
Maybe if Kwok receives suffient mocking he will actually consult a mental health professional. We can only hope so.
I'm neither a lawyer nor a psychiatrist, so my opinion isn't worth the pixels it's written on, but those with borderline personality disorder (as in, borderline psychotic) often act out in bizarre, paranoid ways and then accuse others of doing precisely what they themselves are doing. I happen to know this because my borderline sister stalked me and then filed a restraining order against me for stalking her (which was quickly thrown out).
If that's the case, as tempting as it is, it might be more responsible to ignore this possibly disturbed fellow until he goes away. I don't know if he is mentally ill, but if he is, taunting him does nobody any favors as he may not have any control over himself.
Kwok really is DELUSIONAL. Wow.
He is quite detached from reality. Sad.
AnthonyK @ #229 and, previously on Pharyngula: The Mental Health Episodes, #224:
No it was....{drum roll}....your mother.
{sound of sirens and divers alarums}
{balloons fall from ceiling cavity, dancing girls enter, trumpets fanfare}
Yes folks it was the thread's first mother joke. Well done to Louis who wins "A Long Hard Look At His Life! and !A Good Long Think About What He's Done!.
I've been your host for this evening, thank you and good night!
Louis
P.S. AnthonyK: You are still a Slack Jawed, Whey Faced Poltroon (oh no I didn't just go Shakespeare? Like a fiend I did) with large pit-stains and an unfathomable lack of aptitude at turning the bath taps with your feet!
P.P.S. Concerned Minion: Your concern, rightly, is noted. Mental heath is not a funny issue. However, Kwok IS a funny issue, but not that funny. Hence why Kwok mockery is soooooo last few posts, now the cool kids are all about insulting AnthonyK for no apparent reason {Dun dun dunnnnnn!}. It's the new thing I hear. I refuse to take any of this seriously. I suspect it won't last long (rather like AnthonyK I'm lead to believe).
Concerned minion: as some one who has dealt with the mentally ill quite a lot I don't agree with your that we all have to put up with their behavior when it is clearly inappropriate. While I do agree that something seems wrong with Kwok, it doesn't give him the right to stalk, and it doesn't make him too "special" to receive a harsh critique from the people he spews his crap at. There's no way to diagnose him from here, all that we can say is that he's an asshole. The last time I checked, that wasn't a valid defense for much.
Kwok likes to do this, look at this from a few years ago (Bill is Bill Dembski):
"12/12/07
Dear Bill:
You have until NOON EST tomorrow to have Amazon.com reinstate my review of the 'The Design of Life'. If you do not, then I will write to Dr. Robert Zimmer (Stuyvesant HS '64), formerly Provost, Brown University, and currently, President, University of Chicago, to insist that he initiate a course of action that will result in having you stripped of your 1988 Ph. D. degree in Mathematics for an ongoing series of actions - of which this is but the latest - which demonstrate that you lack the moral turpitude to retain possession of this degree.
You should also be aware that I have bcc'd copies of this e-mail to two reporters from prominent USA newspapers : The New York Times and The Washington Post. I have also bcc'd a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, and a fourth journalist as well.
Respectfully yours,
John Kwok"
"He is quite detached from reality. Sad."
Not quite, just a part of reality, and his egocentricity detaches himself from reality. It might just be a tendency of people who have a hard life to be egocentric and lash out against others, and if this person is a king, the consequences can be deadly, but if not, then this person would merely be a laughing stock.
First, way to take a bullet for ERV, PZ. You've now managed to redirect that creepy cyber-stalker's attention from her on to yourself. You're chivalry is admirable.
Second, is that the first time Kwok has written anything without using the word "mendacious" (a word he became obsessed with after PZ used it once in pharyngula post)?
The poor man is obviously Kwoked-up.
Tell ya honestly, tho', I am now occasionally experiencing mild pangs of guilt over Kwok mockery. There's a certain obligation to mock (and, natch, defy) those who try to control stuff like this the way he does (I mean: not mock the RCC? As if), but it is beginning to look more and more like he seriously can't help himself on certain other issues. Had the same weird feeling watching him dig himself deeper and deeper and deeper on the Survivor threads--you'd think almost anyone not seriously messed up would start to realize he had to stop that, but it was almost like watching someone with Tourette's--almost like the name-dropping stuff wasn't even voluntary.
Hey PZ, while you get right on the task of buying Kwok that $2000 camera that is totally going to happen, I could use a Tesla Roadster.
Oh, and I expect you to stop criticizing libertarians.
Pfft.
I wonder: If Kwok holds his breath on that, and dies of asphyxiation, could he sue?
Fuller drinks his own kool aide. No one forces anyone to rely on science and scientists. Anyone is free to live a subsistence agricultural or hunter gather existence. Virtually no one but the Amish and some indians hiding out in the SA jungle bother.
The truth is the exact opposite. Scientific knowledge is available to anyone with reading knowledge and an internet connection. And any group is free to acquire advanced degrees, buy lab equipment, and do science. Liberty U. could set up their own evolutionary biology program in a heartbeat if they wanted.
Shorter Fuller. "I have a humanities degree and take cheap shots at successful and critical sectors of society for attention and money."
Probably after he has rung out his meager advantage by attacking science, he will go after medicine, law, and agriculture. "Farmers are arrested social deviants who have captured the natural spread of food production to gain relative advantage by forcing people to buy their damn food just to survive."
Hey PZ, if I post comments to your blog does that mean that you're stalking me?
Perhaps I should forward you my mailing address, so that you can send me a fully specced, Sinar large-format camera plus the usual accessories. Thanks ever so...
LOL!
I also expect you to refrain from criticizing religions, especially the Roman Catholic Church.
At least that is a reasonable expectation.
If this is real, it's hilarious.
If this is scripted comedy, it's gold.
Either way, it's making my hangover a little easier today.
I can't get enough Kwok. I love this crazy guy.
On the fine legal point:
It is not blackmail to threaten to do that which you have a legal right to do. Anyone can file a lawsuit and there is no requirement ahead of time that it be meritorious. So his threat to start a suit is not blackmail. It could, however, constitute an "abuse of process" or a "frivilous lawsuit" (depending on the circumstances), either of which could result in PZ collecting damages against Kook ... er ... Kwok.
John Kwok is the illegitimate bastard child of the Roman Catholic Church!
I guess that makes him evil personified.
So much entertainment from Kwok, the mentally disturbed fool. I enjoy laughing at his juvenile antics and I hope PZ Myers collects up all the nonsense and produces a book called:
John Kwok: The Mentally Diseased Mind in the 21st century"
A litte bit of advise for you, PZ-- it might be fun to poke at a mad dog with a stick-- but it might not be a good idea. A paranoid, delusional, obviously mentally ill person like this is EXACTLY the type of person who would actually take the time to come to where you are and try to kill you.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Tager
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Mary_Ray
Don, since religion is also batshit insane, we mock it too. Religion should have no special privileges in society, and should be subjected to the same scrutiny as any other idea.
Out of curiosity I went to wikipedia and looked up
PZ Myers. The article I found was not insulting or defamatory at all. I won't vouch for the accuracy of anything said there, but I don't see anything on it that would make me wish to throw away PZ's resume' were he applying to work for me.
Not that I'm hiring biology professors right now, but hey, you never know!
Sorry, Kwok, but you don't get to demand rewards for bring opprobrium down on yourself, but you know, they say infamy is it's own reward.
PZ, thanks for using the word "ironically" correctly (in that it is was exactly *opposite* of what is the case, in that he is stalking you, not you stalking him).
This is getting too rare lately.
I agree with Darren Garrison. The only real reason I see for dropping the subject altogether is that some one this disturbed may actually retaliate. Most crackpots are just venting their agression, but Kwok has genuine creepiness that goes beyond the typical emotional rant.
KWOK has offended me. I have decided to demand $75,000 in compensation from Kwok, sent to my University's Research and Sponsored Programs office and earmarked for me.
DON'T CALL ME DELUSIONAL BECAUSE THIS IS A SERIOUS REQUEST!!!!!
There, I feel better.
this reminds me of that Canadian Creationist that went irate and butthurt over some posts at Atheist-experience blog, in a reverse-internet-stalking kind of crazy.
How so?
This seems like a desperate need in Kwok to convince himself that he's relevant in PZ's affairs. PZ's affairs specifically: it seems focused on the person rather than any issue or point.
The post is pure pigtail-pulling, akin to putting a frog in a girl's satchel because you don’t yet understand how to tell her you like her. This is odd because otherwise Kwok seems to wear his heart on his sleeve:
•I’m telling on you
•I know your friends and I’m going to tell them you smell
•You rejected my advances so it turns out I never wanted you in the first place
•You rejected my advances so I’ll badmouth you around town because I believe this will hurt you
•But it will be ineffectual because I don’t *really* want to hurt you after all. I can’t stay mad at you.
•I want you to give me a specific and (to me) deeply personal item to either: a) act as a weird sort of dowry so I can forgive you (oh, YOU) and go back to batting my eyelids at you and writing our names inside a heart in my exercise book and/or b) so I can claim that it is a symbol of my independence of you. I can brood upon such a symbol endlessly in my rocking chair, pretending that’s how I want it.
Mr. Kwok is bordering on: libel, blackmail, mail fraud, defamation, amon other things. I imagine PZ will just ignore this nutcase; but there may be grounds for the law to get involved here. I'm sure al this stuff is now in the "send to the police in case" file.
Kwok seriously needs meds or something.
I love how he spews on about PZs "behavior towards me" and how amazingly horrible that behavior is ... but never provides any specifics.
Kwok hits almost every category for expulsion. What the hell does he expect?
I hereby demand that Myers cuts down the mightiest tree in the forest, wiiiiith... A herring.
In leiu of that, I will accept a Zuiko Digital ED 90-250 F2.8 lens.
Do you need my mailing address, PZ?
Erm... So... If I'm following this correctly: moral turpitude is required for one to retain possession of a degree?
Geez. I had no idea...
(But then, I guess I should take this as reassuring... Apparently I was just never in danger of coming up short, there...)
"...I made a thinly-veiled reference to you yesterday, observing that you are a lunatic."
Oh god, the irony, it burns.
#259: as for ignoring him completely: I disagree.
The actions this loathsome person has undertaken more than justify getting an actual restraining order againt the guy! Were I PZ, I would seriously consider this.
It's too bad that he manages to make minor problems into major ones. My sense is that he could be an all right guy, if he just could put matters into perspective.
He's just ending up on lots of "watch out for these cranks" lists with these latest antics.
Glen D
http://tinyurl.com/6mb592
Clearly you atherists are too stupid to understand.
I have a degree, KNEEL BEFORE ZOD!
You really know how you can tell John Kwok is crazy?
He wants to spend (or have someone ELSE spend) ~$2200 on a camera - that uses FILM!!!
Actually, that's not such a bad idea, PZ - if he shoots film, he'll spend more time in the darkroom, and less time on a computer.
I'd ask Ben Stein to buy it for him - he can pay for it out of the 60K$ he just got paid from his recent speech!
Oh, and a new term for acting nuts on the internet - going off "half-Kwok-ed"... you're welcome, John!
Lamest... blackmail attempt... ever...
ps. Glad to hear you're ok!
243#
Kwokking hell...I kindda support that idea...tis the only sensible thing he has done!
stealing from "Cheers"....Get you head out of your Kwok!"
Ahem:
"You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."
The human mind is an amazing thing. Consider that here we have someone sufficiently grounded in part of reality to mount this kind of letter writing offensive, yet at the same time is completely oblivious to the ridiculousness of his claims.
It's like... oh. It's just like a creationist. Nothing new here. Move along.
He even follows PZs law of the respectful closing:
"Respectfully yours,
John Kwok"
What a fool/moron/disturbed person
Wait, he wants you to buy him a camera? What a fucking loon.
What? Wait a minute, not only does he expect you to buy him a camera part, but he even tells you to buy it from a friend of his, for a price no doubt named by the friend. And he expects this to actually work because?
RB @243 If someone lacks moral terpitude, does that make them O.K. folks? That what Krok says - Bill lacks moral terpitude.
Actually, I'm getting to the point that this sad case is actually, really mentally ill and not so much funny as just sad. The guy needs help. I'm kind of at the same place as AJM @246
Kninja Knitters attack!!
It's amazing how sporadic Kwok's comments were at PT prior to his bannage here and how much his posting numbers have increased since then. Purely coincidence, I'm sure. (ahem) The last few have been shockingly lax on mentions of his HS, but more comments about his "Ivy League alma mater". I'm kind of hurt; evidently he felt his HS was good enough to impress the audience here, but feels he has to up the ante to be considered good enough for PT.
PZ, I am also sick of your egregious behavior. I demand one (used) Porche 911 turbo, a (used) Fender Telecaster, and a (very slightly used) hooker.
If you don't meet my demands, I'll be forced to ... ?
Wow. This guy is almost as unhinged as Jack Thompson.
Please keep on posting those mails, though, his follies are highly entertaining! :)
Okay so here it is: I've only been commenting on here a short time, and I've had some insults thrown at me. I'm smart enough to know that those insults are meaningless. In the grand scheme of things what another commenter on a blog I frequent for my own amusement, thinks of me is worthless. You gotta be out there mentally to be like Kwok.
if I had any reason to think Kwok was doing this as a joke, it would be hilarious. i think it's much more likely that he's just nuts, which is only funny for a while (see Fafarman, Larry).
You don't owe Kwok a used kamewa, but Kwok owes me a new keyboard...
New, preferably...
Kwack is actually asking a pretty reasonable price for the camera equipment.
So anything which labels itself religion should reasonably held to be immune from legitimate criticism in your mind? And you have no criticism of any religion yourself? If it feels good, do it, as long as one is being "religious"?
Also, please expound on why the RCC should be particularly exempt from criticism.
I love watching the trainwreck that is mental disorder. That probably makes me evil, but I'm ok with that.
KWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOK!
He wants.... a camera? After months of [alleged] abuse, libel, and the grave insulting of the RCC, he wants.... a camera???? That's just sad. Somewhere out there, there has to be an [extremely patient] attorney who can explain to this poor boy that getting his widdle feelings hurt does not a lawsuit make.
Also, this thread made me laugh so hard that I cracked a few ribs, fell off my chair, and broke my elbow. I want a pony and a spaceship. Somebody pay up immediately or I'll write an email campaign bcc'ing everyone I've ever met.
You don't understand...Kwok lives in his own little world. I've had to endure his personal missives myself, and if it's a put-on, he's the most brilliant satirist/prankster of all time, hands down. Alas for poor Kwok, I think it's fairly certain that he is, indeed, batshit crazy. But functionally batshit in the same way that Bush is functionally illiterate.
Hmm... I think I'm getting an idea for how to furnish my house. I think I'll start complaining about PZ too. Maybe I can get him to get me that HDTV that I've been trying to justify buying for quite some time.
Seriously though, could Kwok actually make it any easier for people to poke fun at him?
It strikes me that this exchange--and especially PZ's (properly) contemptuous manner of dealing with Kwok's threats--is a real testament to PZ's feeling of security in his professional position. Clearly PZ feels entirely confident that this guy's ravings are not going to result in negative consequences to his job, his professional reputation, etc.
Sure, Kwok is a loon and a half, but it seems to me that a lot of us are in positions in which even crazy rants like his, sent to particular powerful figures in our lives, could have serious repercussions. Would my employer enjoy receiving messages accusing me of outspoken anti-religious expression? Hell, no--I might be in big trouble. And I suspect that goes for many Pharyngulites.
I'm not remotely criticizing PZ; I'm just voicing envy of his position. And a sort of disgusted realization that Kwok's attempts at blackmail are, in at least one sense, not really very funny at all; in too many personal contexts, they'd represent very credible threats.
I haven't seen this much projection since Cannes.
I demand one (used) Porche 911 turbo, a (used) Fender Telecaster, and a (very slightly used) hooker.
I do hope you're planning to use a seatbelt and (new, each time) condom when you receive your gifts.
@#194 COTD!
WTF?! Kooky Kwok is trying to extort (and I use the term advisably) a second hand Leica from PZ? To take pics of his pain and suffering, no doubt.
What a twat...
Dr. Myers:
You naughty little chicklet! How dare you express your first amendment rights!
While you're at it, though, with compensating people, I'll take any car with a manual transmission from this century. Also, I need cruise control and it has to get at least 30mpg.
I know you've yet to do anything wrong, but that seems to be completely beside the point.
I think there is some evidence that this John Kwok character is a DI plant. I haven't seen anyone post this yet, but a quick google search brought this example: http://www.uncommondescent.com/intelligent-design/john-kwok-the-jekyll-…
For all the name dropping, and with such big time "friends" from his illustrious high school, where is this guy's PhD, or Nobel prizes? He reminds me of my father-in-law: lived a mile from Stanford, praised it as the only university worthy of the name, named dropped all the big time profs that were his friends (although none knew who he was), yet he never completed a single college semester anywhere.
This is one of the benefits of tenure. The flip side is it also protects loons like Behe and J.A. Davison.
WTF?! Kooky Kwok is trying to extort (and I use the term advisably) a second hand Leica from PZ? To take pics of his pain and suffering, no doubt.
What a twat...
Wow, citing wikipedia as a way to determine what kind of person you are. Yea....that's rigorous evidence of your "abysmal conduct".
Let's see here... "Asteroid 153298 Paulmyers is named in his honor."
I believe that there is undeniable proof that you are a baby eating anti-christ with no morals and are insulting your profession. I only hope he does try to sue you, I need an image of a judge doing a facepalm.
Kwok
We refer you to the reply given in the case of Arkell v. Pressdram.
Best Regards
I'm particular amused by Kwok's statement that "I also expect you to refrain from criticizing religions, especially the Roman Catholic Church." I'm a but confused as to why he expects this other than that PZ criticizing religion apparently makes him uncomfortable. Kwok accepts evolution so I wonder he if would object to PZ criticizing religions that don't accept evolution. I suspect that Kwok really just doesn't want PZ to criticize things that Kwok doesn't like.
John Kwok is certainly an interesting case. His main problem seems to be a complete lack of self-awareness.
Aha, perfect idea!
Once upon a time, there was an eBay scammer who contacted someone on SomethingAwful (or one of those forums) outside of eBay and tried to buy a PowerBook laptop using phony escrow companies and other shady techniques.
Long story short, he ended up getting a "P-P-P-PowerBook!" instead:
http://www.zug.com/pranks/powerbook/ (SFW, pics at end of page)
I think John Kwok needs a "L-L-L-Leica!"
Wait a minute. Your posts on your own blog are "stalking"?
This is a setup. He has had a woody for this camera for some time.
Imagine my surprise. I think I am going to submit a "report this" to Amazon. Who's with me?
JC
Amazing how someone who is so clearly stalking you is accusing you of stalking him. If you had gone to HIS blog or HIS website, then maybe he'd have a leg to stand on, but he's here on YOUR blog at YOUR website. Of course, logic seems to escape nutbags like him.
Demanding money and equipment from you? Dang, he's delusional.
Haha, pwned.
I once had one of those Kodak Disc cameras in the 80s. Can you buy me one of those? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disc_film
Yeah, this Kwok guy sounds bat shit crazy. Extortion, must not be something he's familiar with.
Heh, heh, Pharynguloid pigs, I make veiled
references in your general direction!
What is with his obsession with the President of Brown? I mean, I understand that name-dropping is one of Kwok's trademarks, but exactly why should anyone care how an administrator at a totally irrelevant institution would react to this situation? Or, more precisely, why should anyone care how someone as loony as Kwok thinks that that administrator would react?
I feel kind of bad about making fun of someone who is so obviously mentally ill, so I'll refrain.
Meanwhile, I promise to refrain from suing PZ if he sends me a Fender Twin Reverb guitar amp. You should be able to get one for less than $1000, so quite a savings over the camera lens Mr. Kwok wants.
People are criticizing him in the comments of your blog. Quel dommage!
Look on the bright side: Before the Internet, he would have been wasting perfectly good paper.
The Kwoksucker thinks you are stalking?
Hahahahahahhahahaha.......
Just a thought...
If it gets to the point where Kwok's snailmail addy is published, howzabout we spam him with cheap cameras? A Fuji QuickSnap is about $3.50 a piece bought in pairs...
@Monado #314: Yea but now he's bothering poor electrons AND he's wasting disk space.
Psycho.
Stwriley:
Actually, he told us about it here: http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2008/03/look_up.php
I don't really need a camera, PZ. Please, just talk to me. Please. TALK TO ME!! GOD DAMMIT, GIVE ME THE FUCKING ATTENTION I DESERVE!!! I WENT TO THE BEST HIGH SCHOOL EVER!!!!
What a loon.
Seriously, PZ, you really should send him something for his troubles. A camera is out of bounds, though--how about a box of crackers? :)
Wait, what?
Kwok (persistently) comes here, into Dr. Myers' house, so to speak, relentlessly buttonholes any and everyone here about the general wonderfulness of his high school (which he seems completely unable to leave, emotionally) and the vast number of his alleged celebrity acquaintances, and somehow he construes that he is being stalked??? He then attempts, by slander and/or libel, to take Dr. Myers' reputation hostage, and demands ransom?
Day-amn. Poor grasp of reality, there, but big, big cojones.
Rieux,
Brown is most certainly not an irrelevant institution!
I'm glad PZ sees the humor in this, because this guy is hilarious.
Why do I get the feeling that this guy mails vials of his semen to women he's stalking?
Brian X @316
Yebbut only ones with all the film used up :-)
Pete, you missed the point. Why is Kwok harping on this one individual? And what real power does this one individual have? Absolutely none outside of his institution. Just another delusion by Kwok.
My goodness, one of our resident loons has noticed me....
In fact it is. Brown is not the University of Minnesota - Morris, which employs PZ. Brown is also not the College of St. Catherine (brutally misnamed and misspelled by Kwok), the school hosting the Ken Miller presentation--and the school that, until recently, employed another fine atheist blogger, Dale McGowan.
Brown is thus irrelevant to this exchange.
Heh. It's not that hard to dismantle those things either, since the film all winds into the cartridge instead of the other way like in a typical camera. I used to do it all the time (but be careful with the flash capacitor -- that's a nasty shock in those things).
*taps his toes impatiently*
I'm still waiting for my cake and cookies.
Geo_Rich @ #303 wins teh internetz. He gets all prizes and a camera and a PONY DAMMIT.
If anyone doesn't know why, then look up the case in question.
Louis
Kwok means business. Maybe you can negotiate. Do you think he would settle for a disposable camera?
I'm mildly surprised that dr Simmons is not a Close Personal Friend (tm) of Kwooooooooook. According to him that is.
Dear PeeZed,
I'm much cheaper to placate than Quaaaaaaaaaark. Just stop post those damn snails.
Yours in palaeo-Christ,
- Sili
Kwok: Jack-of-Fuck-All, Master of Numb.
Classic example projection.
The P-P-P-PowerBook scam story is awesome. But I wonder what happened to Jeff...
cluelessness, narcissism, and ignorance all combining into a swirling vortex of ridiculousness.
PZ Myers stalked me all over the internet--or, more specifically, sites he owned and/or administered--ranting and raving about all this " biological science" stuff until I could think of little else. I was therefore forced to return to college to pursue higher learning in this "biological science" that had been so unmercifully force-fed to me by Myers. Due to his harassing behavior, I hereby demand that PZ Myers pays for all the college loans I have accrued!
@ #256 & #262
Sarcasm. Expecting PZ to stop criticising religion is as likely as...um...something really unlikely.
Extortion:
"Making a threat of violence or a lawsuit which refers to a requirement of a payment of money or property to halt future violence or lawsuit is sufficient to commit the offense."
"In the United States, extortion may also be committed as a federal crime across a computer system, phone, by mail or in using any instrument of "interstate commerce." Extortion requires that the individual sent the message "willingly" and "knowingly" as elements of the crime. The message only has to be sent (but does not have to reach the intended recipient) to commit the crime of extortion."
PZ isn't stalking, but it sure sounds like Kwok is committing a federal crime.
Maybe we should remind Kwok that blackmailing PZ for camera equipment to avoid a lawsuit is illegal. Further, as Kwok posted his comments on PZ's blog, PZ is well within his rights to provide interpretation and use those very comments as examples of that interpretation.
So the score so far is: 1 illegal activity for Kwok, 1 unsubstantiated lawsuit (should he choose to file one), and 1 big old nothing for PZ who is under no legal obligation to bow to any of these ridiculous demands.
I want an official Red Ryder carbine action two-hundred shot range model air rifle with a compass in the stock.
Scholar:
You'll shoot your eye out. But you knew that.
Am I seeing a contest in the future where a camera is given away? Diagnose Kwok in 500 words or less.
Perhaps someone should keep aware of John's whereabouts. I have this mental image of him being pulled over for speeding while wearing an adult diaper and his trunk (boot) filled with large jars of Vicks VopoRub, Stuyvesant High yearbooks, duct tape and a machete beside a portable candle strewn shrine to Ken Miller that has some very odd stains.
Kwok needs to start a blog and name it John Squawked.
WTK?
TGAP Dad @179
You (and us other amateur Intarweb psychologists or fans of Abnormal Psychology) may also want to take a look at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schizoaffective_disorder
Flea @ 148
How about we each buy a cheap-ass disposable camera and overwhelm his mailbox with ‘gifts’ complements of Pharyngula and/or The Evil (tm) Dr. Myers.
Anyone have a mailing address for His Kwokiness?
I don't know, PZ. First you were reported to the Internet Police by Jonny-Boy, and now Facebook is conduction an investigation!!!!!111!!!one!!!
Thanks PZ for this, the latest episode of the hilarious Stalk-A-Kwok.
Kwok seems very confident that his, uh, cyberpistol is bigger than PZ's.
I could be wrong, but I thought Pete was displaying (very unexpectedly) a sense of humour.
I haven't been paying attention to this blog for the past few weeks as I typically have...but from a quick googling I gather that this Kwok person actually has a graduate degree in paleobiology or something of the sort? Would that be a PhD or what? What uni?
I couldn't find any peer reviewed articles by him.
I'm quite shocked that he's actually on "our side" and he's so frackin nuts!
I do not grok Kwok ...
PZ! you have ruined my career as a Graphic Designer by making me spend all day on your blog instead of actually doing any design! Therefore, I want a Tesla Roadster
Best Regards,
Jadehawk
JBlilie (#294):
"The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could, but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge. . ."
OMGZ! I DEMAND THAT EVERYONE ACT THEIR CHRONOLOGICAL AGE IMMEDIATELY! OR ELSE I WILL CONTINUE TO MAKE AN ASS OF MYSELF!
& Leica-M7 is such a bizarre request: It's not even that nice of a camera.
PZ you've ruined my career as a Art Director! I'll ignore the whole incident if you buy me a Mini Cooper. I may even settle for a pair of tickets to the Doves show in NYC.
Oh, dear. We have escalation. Take us to DEFCON 2.
I call Poe!
Rieux @ 327,
Thanks for pointing out that Kwok couldn't even name St. Kate's properly. After I graduated from the U of MN I used to work for that institution. While I'm an open atheist, I will say that for the most part, my time there was one I look back on happily.
Louisssssssssssssssssssssss.....oh Louissssssssssssss
It's not fair to criticize your parents. How else could your mum fund that crack habit?
*apologies at this stage, if I am ever too rude - I realise that your current condition is partly a result of a lifetime of teasing, however justified*
Hey Louissssssss..have you ever heard of the 4 kinds of female orgasm? The positive, the negative, the religious and the false?
The positive: "Oh yes, yes, yeeeeess...yes.."
The negaitive: "Oh no, no, no.........NOOOOOOOOOO!"
The religious: "Oh God....oh God....oh GGGOOOOODDDD!!!!"
and
The false: "Oh Louis....oh Louis..."
Take that, you overqualified sperm!
John Kwok, via e-mail:
Fuck the heck?! "I was hoping you would ignore me completely"??
THEN WHY DID YOU KEEP WRITING AND DEMANDING HE BUY YOU SHIT?
Add a few extra dollars so he can buy a dictionary and look up the meaning of the word "egregious".
But he can't be a real loon (or should that be "kook"?) because he persistently refers to Prof. Myers.
As any fule kno, the correct name to be used by all loons in comic sans emails is Meyers. Without that, he's No True Loon.
Scholar @ 339 :
You'll put yer eye out!
For the love of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, Blake!
How about turning his name into an adjective. This has happened in the past, and surely it will happen again. So the next time it does, it will be referred to as being Kwoked. So it follows that there should be a place in the dungeon for Kwokkers who got caught Kwokking.
It would ensure that this asinine lunatic's behavior lives in infamy on this blog.
Kwok: That's right, I killed your Master! And now I'm going to kill you too...with your own sword no less. Which in the very immediate future will become MY SWORD!
PZ: Bitch, you don't have a future.
Where the f**k did the camera crap come from? Did kicking him off Pharyngula cause his camera to implode as well? He's more Kwokers than I thought.
"I'm gonna sue ya! For camera parts!" I'll have to ask what my legal friends friends think of this.
PZ, GO BUY YOURSELF A REALLY NICE SLR! GET A NIKON OR CANON, JUST NOT A LEICA JUST TO RUB IT IN A BIT MORE! THEN TAKE SOME PICTURES OF YOURSELF TAKING PICTURES OF A LEICA WITH YOUR NICE NEW CAMERA AND POST EM! KWOK WOULD PROBABLY EXPLODE! It's immature but I'd giggle my ass off.
"You owe me now $5,000 worth of photo equipment."
*lol* outright whackadoo. So the more he begs for your attention, the more fabulous cash and prizes you owe him? What a kwok.
The problem is, which type of weird behavior should the word "kwokking" attach to? Pathetic name-dropping? Ridiculous demands? A fundamental misunderstanding of what "stalking" is?
It can't be the combination of all of the above, because only the True Kwok could possibly hit that trifecta.
Snoof @ #83
Now I'm having mental image of people sitting on PZ's lap, a la Santa Claus, asking for presents. Happy Monkey to all, and to all a good night.
Heathen!
It's "A Merry Squidmas to all, and to all a good night!"
I'm so emotionally traumatized now that you need to buy me a complete Vasari's Lives as reparations.
I hadn't noticed this guy until the first day of your "Survivor" posts. He reminds me of David Mabus (or whatever his actual name is), and it makes me wonder whether there really is something wrong with him.
So how did your colleagues react? Did they shit their pants laughing?
PZ Myers should take the appropriate steps to initiate conciliatory talks.
I would be happy to act as an impartial intermediary in any discussion that takes place.
Were this to end in a lawsuit, or in the publication of anyone's personal details, it would be a totally unnecessary/undesired outcome.
@ Screechy #367
Quite true. I was thinking the ransom/lawsuit threats.
Oh yeah, and a Happy Monkey to all.
Oh shit Rooke is threatening to act as an "impartial intermediary"!
You'd better lawyer up quick PZ, you're going to get SO SUUUEEEEED!!!!!11
Pete. What have you been smoking?
I wish I would have known about the pie thing. I would have asked you what kind you preferred before you got to Michigan. I think you'd look good in pumpkin.
Speak for yourself. That's not my position. Actually, it's the opposite. Kwok has exposed himself to, shall we say, legal risk, not PZ.
Pete "total fool" Rooke. Any peace talks start with John Kwok STFU. Until then, your inane services aren't required. In fact, if we ever require your services, we will ask. Don't wait by the phone.
It's always fun to drop in, now and again, just to see what kind of wackjob the good Dr. has dragged out of the shrubberies.
Diagnosis? Hilarious!
So, to distill this down to basic element:
1)Making fun of people on YOUR website (not even on theirs) = stalking. I also "stalk" my coworkers by b*tching about them to my wife....
2)Wiki is an authoritative voice on ....anything?
3) Extortion is a perfectly natural response to 1) + 2) + a bit of hurt feelings.
Which is why PZ owes someone a camera.
And to think that they dare say that creationists don't make sense.....
1. Troll blog
2. Get banned
3. ?????????
4. Receive free camera!
Hey Rooke, I've got a need for a couple of your "services". Care to help me? One has to do with target practice and the other with impalement.
I would like to remind Mr Rooke (and also Mr Facilis) that the survivor challenge last week was only an opportunity for commenters to have a voice in banning obnoxious twits. Any bannings in the near future will be because you have directly pissed off the all-powerful proprietor of the blog.
In other words, butt out, you pompous pipsqueak.
Brown? My incarcerated businenss partner's retarded gay neice went to Brown too. What year did you graduate?
I think Pete Rooke was joking about the Insane One.
Pete, don't.
First, we don't expect that of you – from experience we expect you to make arguments from ignorance and actually mean them.
Second, you… just… can't pull it off. You need a lot of practice in matters concerning humour. Please don't try to get it here; that would only piss everyone off, yourself included.
I'm pretty sure Pete is just funnin'.
Right, Pete?
Right?
I would love to see the arbitration with Rooke as the intermediary. The transcript would either cause me to laugh uncontrollably or my head would explode. I'm not sure which...
"Were this to end in a lawsuit, or in the publication of anyone's personal details, it would be a totally unnecessary/undesired outcome."
I couldn't agree more. At least for one party. That's why if I were Kwok (thank Jebus that ain't true) I'd shut the hell up and be going off into a corner to sniffle to my pet hamster right now. Or whatever he does with hamsters.
Whoops. Classic example of projection.
Blake? No, Poe, The Cask of Amontillado
or did I miss the joke?
...
*blinks*
... the fuck?
I'm not following the train of thought here. Did he smash his camera in anger at PZ's ebul treatment of him? Did PZ steal his leather belt?
or did I miss the joke?
yes, I guess I did. I did not see Blake Stacy's use of the quote.
In other news over at PT, I see that Dembski is having the "chief programmer" at his ID tank analyze a BASIC program Dawkins wrote in the 1980s. LOL!
Kwok, I don't have any class of a camera to donate on PZ's behalf (let alone $5000-worth of such) but you can have the panties* I've been wearing all day**. For free.
* UK size 12 (US 8), bikini-style, white cotton with lace trim, brand: Sloggi, Made in Italy.
>No products pertaining to menstruation, candida albicans, gardnerella vaginosis, crabs, pox/clap/assorted STDs added.
>>Warning: faint whiffs of Daz washing powder, Pears soap and E45 body lotion may be detectable. The donator is in no way responsible for any incidental product inadvertently deducting from your pleasure.
Yowza. Next time I suggest the Klingon ritual of discommendation.
This is extortion. Call the cops.
I just hit upon an idea that might be more fun than sending dispoable cameras to teh Kworrrrk (or shoes to Bush or condoms to the pope).
Searching just for "camera" on Donors Choose gives 1056 hits.
PZ,
Would you like to select $5000 worth of projects that need camera/microscopes/optics - perhaps for biology in some sort, please? Then link us in and let's see how fast we can pharyngulate your selections.
This is not the first time that J*hn Kw*k has demanded camera equipment as payment for perceived internet insults:
http://scienceblogs.com/erv/2008/07/a_glimps_into_the_personal_lif.php#…
So I'm guessing that Kwok wants a camera so he can follow PZ around, take pictures of him, and thereby prove that PZ is stalking him?
If John Kwok did not exist, I think PZ would have to invent him. Comedy gold.
Hey, here's another one! (scroll down to #9)
Pete Rooke @371: "Were this to end in a lawsuit, or in the publication of anyone's personal details, it would be a totally unnecessary/undesired outcome."
Yes, Mr. Kwok in particular is very circumspect about his educational background and alleged friends and acquaintances.
Batshit demand #14
PZ, I want a lefthand crank for a 1960's Raleigh Sports bike.
I WILL CONTINUE TO READ YOUR BLOG UNTIL MY DEMANDS ARE MET!
...and a third.
Maybe it works?
Nah.
#404 Didn't he just change the quality of the camera? It said in your previous link that it should be new, and this last one was "near mint".
I missed something. Why does he think PZ owes him a camera as compensation?
What a strange, strange man.
@K1
I have always sent my films away, about a 3day turnaround, post willing. To these fine folks down south in England:
www.lab35imaging.com
But then i'm an amateur so time is not an issue. i used them when I shot print film too, but that has been overtaken by digital. Sure the absolute highest end digital is approaching the resolution of Velvia, but not the dynamic range and the cost . . .
IOW I don't consider my system to be broken and with scanning to disc as part of the processing I get into the digital world at the same time.
Oh and last I looked good wide aperture FD fit lenses are holding their prices on eBay here in the UK, mores the pity as far as I'm concerned and Lab35 and their sister Lab120 are still working. So intimations that film is dead are premature at best.
Kwok wrote:
How does Kwok know this? Has he asked Dr. Simmons? Or is it just wild surmise on his part?
Never mind, I really don't care what the answer is.
PZ, you may want to invest in some hearing protection. I predict an ending to the Kwokurbation may turn out like this:
http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/qld-news/stalkers-howls-of-anguish-at-v…
@398
Good one, Sven.
"...Zeiss Biogon 21mm f4.5 lens with lens hood and a 21mm viewfinder as sufficient compensation for calling me the "Jekyll and Hyde of Paleobiology"."
I am actually starting to have pity on him. Honestly, I am.
P.K.
pz's Wikipedia entry is not unfavourable as Kwok suggests.
It's just factual and dispassionate.
I'd be proud if it was mine.
On the plus side reading his letters caused me to fall into a fit of near life-threatening uncontrollable laughter which cheered me up immeasurably. Some mothers do ave em!
With the silliness last week, I googled him and found a photo display for Leica users in NYV, and *every* picture he had there was basically the same - crowds at different protests.
I'm sure he will have all sorts of ideas about the finer points and major differences in the shots, but *they were all the same!*.
They were not even really striking. Plain, in fact.
Wow! Who's stalking whom?
PZ,
You realize, I hope, that if you keep this up you're eventually going to owe him a movie studio.
Drat - "NYV" = "NYC", and I should have added I am still quite happy to have my old Nikon FM2.
(A Nikon N60 might be nice for Christmas, but the FM2 is a keeper.)
Maybe he'll settle for an ice cream? Everyone likes ice cream.
I say Narcissistic Personalty Disorder. Here's an abbreviated list of symptoms from PsychCentral:
An exaggerated sense of one’s own abilities and achievements.
A constant need for attention, affirmation, and praise.
Persistent fantasies about attaining success and power.
Exploiting other people for personal gain.
A sense of entitlement and expectation of special treatment.
A lack of empathy for others.
Whattaya think?
I particularly like that he just makes up a "damage" amount, and determines that it must be photo equipment.
Don't US bills explicitly say they're valid for the resolution of all debts, public and private? That would seem to mean (pretending that Kwok's demand had any merit, which it clearly doesn't) that PZ would be able to pay a cash equivalent and be done with it.
Mostly, though, I'm just very confused about how internet stalking works. I've clearly been going about it all wrong in the past!
AnthonyK @ #357:
{wiping a tear from my eye}
Beautiful, beautiful. I love the classics, I haven't heard that one in years.
Anyway, since originality is clearly beyond your meagre talent, I shall be kind. Let's see, I've covered man boobs, your emission of spittle and lack of sexual prowess, I've also covered Yo Mama and sundry variants, hmmmm, lemme see now, oh I know:
You're a creationist.
Louis
P.S. Did I go too far? ;-)
P.P.S. You could never be too rude. This is, after all, not in any way serious.
JohnT @ 364-
"Kwok: That's right, I killed your Master! And now I'm going to kill you too...with your own sword no less. Which in the very immediate future will become MY SWORD!"
In a list of impossible things that could never happen....
@410 ('Tis Himself):
And equally importantly, why does Brown's code of conduct, real or imaginary, even matter to a professor not employed there?
Forget the Leica.
We want you to bring us...
(dun dun DAH!)
... a SHRUBBERY!
Ni!
See, the problem with banning Kwok is that now he can't come back and make even more comedy for us. Let him back in!
Did I mention that former major league pitcher Mike Trombley sat next to me in advanced writing class, senior year at Minnechaug Regional High School? No, really. I can haz camera?
Sili (397) has the right idea. I second the motion.
@394 Thunderbird5, as a fellow panty wearer, I salute you!
Yeah, here's the gallery referenced by marc @#415.
Judge the "fine art" for yourself.
Shrubbery!
Wow, PZ! You've got your very own Yomin Postelnik.
Hey PZ
If this ever came to trial I would personally will fly over there at my own expense and pro bono defend you. I would give Mr Shrek's left nut to get to cross examine the Kwokster.
Funny thing about that Leica M7 offer. Kwok demanded that "the mendacious pornographer IDiot Borg drone" Bill Dembski, of the Discovery Institute, also needed to buy him a Leica in order to win back favor, several months ago. He really seemed to believe it was owed to him for something Dembski said in an exchange, online.
Evidently, as component of his name dropping craziness... Kwok is nearly as impressed with certain types of expensive European camera gear as his is with his former high school.
What a strange guy!
Is he actually a kook, or does he just play one on the internet?
So, he's contacting you and e-stalking you yet you're the one doing it to him? OMG, I think my brain just exploded. Can I be a wackaloon too? It sounds like fun - like being a dog who chases their tail all day and gets treats, with no responsibility *sigh*
In all seriousness though, I can't believe the volume of insanity you deal with. Some of these people wouldn't survive 5 minutes without attention or validation. You're actually providing them with a service lol THEY owe YOU! hmmm will payment be in desecrated crackers or cameras? *strokes chin* What does life-saving go for these days?
I have 50 year old Russian copy of a Leica rangefinder. It's broken. I'll chip that in :)
What a complete moron!
I haven't been following the Kwok thing - what is this fixation he has with photographic equipment?
"I also expect you to refrain from criticizing religions, especially the Roman Catholic Church"
Especially? Roman Catholic church? The last shred of respect I had for this guy is gone.
Kwok's mind works in recurring loops. Anything he types once gets recycled for months, whether or not it is appropriate or relevant to the subject at hand. Phrases are repeated endlessly with little or no variation. Extremely odd and interesting, yet annoying.
After checking out Krok's photography, Sven @429, I can honestly say that his work is about as amateurish as any I've seen. The boy needs to I - SO - LATE. Man does not need a new camera, he needs serious schooling.
If you would like to see some really strong stuff from a real photographer, check out:
http://jamesnachtwey.com/
Oh, Johnny boy, the Kwoks, the Kwoks are calling...
What a Kwokaloon!!
To be scrupulously fair to Kwooooooook, I'd be somewhat leery of accepting US dollars as payment for anything as well these days. I think Patricia's eggs have a better chance of keeping their value.
Now, go away, or I shall taunt you a second time!
If you do not agree to my demands, then I shall -- (twong! Moo!)
The Leica is precious to us, and it is ours. We had the precious, and the dirty filthy stinking little Meyers, they took it from us and we wants it. It's our birthday, and we wants it, because it is precious to us. Precious. Where is the precious? We had it and now we don't and we miss the precious.
I think Kwok's brain has been replaced by topiary...and its a little rough around the edges. Time for a pruning, Kwok!
@K1: I have only a low end digital SLR, but it can be set to manual in order to achieve all kinds of interesting mistakes effects.
@Sili: you are not silly at all. Great idea!
@PZ: your blog forced me to laugh, which forced me to spill toast crumbs down my shirt, which then caused the cat to climb on to me to lick off the crumbs, which caused me to try to lift him off, which caused him to stick out his claws in an attempt to hold on, which caused his claws to put holes in the shirt.
You now owe me a new "caffeine" T-shirt from thinkgeek. Since I have a demonstrated chain of causality, you'd better get on it or I'll sue you. And I'll take a pony in compensation for the mental distress.
don't know if anyone has posted the link to the PT thread where Kwok's dissing PZ, but for more entertainment:
http://pandasthumb.org/archives/2009/03/creationism-is.html#comment-pan…
Kwok has a LONG history of intractability combined with completely inane arguments, in case anyone was wondering if his insanity is a recent thing.
He even name drops in the description of his work. The equipment and who he studied with seems more important than the subject matter or what he wants to express through his work.
The printing looks inconsistent and the cropping a bit arbitrary. There's people in the photos but you don't get to their humanity. Know his politics and the subject matter... that may have been his intention.
Posted by: gillt @ 67 "I call shenanigans! This is a charade, a trick, a ruse, a parody, a put-on, a performance by this guy called Kwok."
I've been thinking the same. It just all seems overdone. Either that or he's really ill (mentally).
Isn't "Kwok" what they call a subatomic particle in New Hampshire?
To be clear, I have not followed the history about that Kwok (that apparently exists) on this website, so what I am about to say is completely unbiased:
What the hell is wrong with that dude?! He has some serious effin problems!
I can't wait to see what Kwok's going to do next!
Dear John,
Ha-ha-ha!
-- Me
P.s. Few people ever better illustated the truth of the traditional dismissing comment "Good riddance to bad rubbish" as well as yourself.
P.p.s. He's not mentally ill. He's just something like the Platonic asshole (See the current Onion for an example.)
Now, now, I'm more than a little ashamed of all of you. "PZ! I want this!" and "PZ! I want that!".
The only sensible request is, "Ponies for EVERYONE!!!!"
KI@237:
You might look into CHDK, a firmware enhancement that operates on a number of Canon digital cameras. It allows for a great amount of control of the hardware including exposures from 65 seconds down to 1/60,000th of a second.
Uhclem: (shouldn't that be 'Ah-clem'?) Ayuh!
I would point out that PZ's disclaimer in the sidebar reserves the right to post emails with full identifying information if they contain threats of violence. I bring this up because if Kwok is reading, he surely will.
It is an empty protest, though -- PZ is now giving specific public notice of his intentions, and Kwok has no reasonable expectations of privacy.
I'm really looking forward to the next Kwokisode. It just keeps getting funnier. PZ, if you don't publish further emails from Kwok, I expect you to provide me with Kawai electric piano. If you don't, I'll imagine away your Facebook friends and write annoying letters to the secretaries of people who probably really wish I'd stop contacting them about every random person I got into an internet dispute with.
Can we bring Kwok back? This is freakin' funny!
The only sensible request is, "Ponies for EVERYONE!!!!"
Johno Winfrey:
"That's right... look under your chair! Ponies for everyone!"
I have not felt a more potent combination of pity and disgust since JAD.
I call it pitysgust and it makes me ill.
Looking at Kwok's photographs, I'm completely unimpressed. There's no evidence he did more than point the camera at people, focus, and shoot. The pictures are bland. They don't say "I'm telling you something about these people."
Hmmm... Is Kwok trying to sell these photos? If so, I wonder if he got a signed release from everyone in the picture?
That guy is plain nuts. It makes me wish I had the time to learn more about the situation since the first time I even heard of him was during Survivor Pharyngula Day 1. If you really want to get to him though you should instead buy me "a used Leica M7 rangefinder camera body" and then casually mention that you did so. That would be great.
Believing that the other person is the one doing the stalking is actually one of the signs of the stalking behavior. People superimpose feelings or beliefs on a person that are really their own towards them.
Pharoah Roux: I (and all my friends) have always heard it as "Uhclem". You are the first person that I know of who hears it differently. Well, that's shoes for industry...
"I was hoping you would ignore me completely..."
Usually when people do not want attention... Yeesh, that's just too funny.
Jim said "Is there going to be an entry in DSM-V for "Just Plain Batshit Crazy"?"
I predict the DSM-VI will have diagnostic criteria for something called "Kwokotypal Delusional Dissociative Personality Disorder" as follows:
- narcissism
- excessive name-dropping
- delusions of power
- delusions of friends
- delusions of persecution
- escalating delusions of entitlement
- too much time on their hands
- delusions of... whatever else one might imagine...
Who could predict so much laughter from one tiny, insignificant basement dweller?
I have nearly given up reading comments of any sort anywhere because there is always some complete idiocy or viciousness that depresses me considerably.
I just want to enjoy the Big Pictures at boston.com or the clever postings on Scienceblogs and anything written by Cuttlefish. When I scroll, I look for the comments of regulars and OM winners whom I can count on to be bright and funny.
But y'all seem to have fun skewering the weirdos, for which I do thank you.
Now, now, children, this is quite enough!
I know you're having fun, and you're certainly creative, but it isn't polite to taunt the unfortunate mentally deficient, however tempting a target. You can take pictures of him, but don't poke him with pointy sticks; it's not nice to trigger frothing, foam-flecked fits. Just walk past with dignity, and I'll buy you a lollipop.
PZ is fine until Kwok finds the bugs in his apartment and the hidden cameras. So far he hasn't found them, so I think PZ has nothing to worry about.
So let me get this straight. He's claiming that you are an internet stalker, by being an internet stalker?
How the hell does that work?
Dear Mr. Kwok,
I thought masochists liked abuse.
You owe P.Z. and his acolytes $23,679.54 for your pleasure, as services rendered, payable immediately on receipt of this notice.
We'll take a certified check made out to PZ.
Come again. We aim to please.
Your devoted servant,
astrounit
We've been waiting for someone to tell us all day. So far, nada.
SSSHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!....Cripes!...You're gonna give all away!
PeterS #434 asks, "Is he actually a kook, or does he just play one on the internet?"
If he's just playing, he blows Stephen Colbert out of the water.
I love projection.
I also love that merely acknowledging his wackaloonery = stalking, while his emailing everyone under the sun and obsessing over you 24/7 is just the behavior of an honest victim.
Fucking nutjob.
His sister Susan is nuts.
HE'S nuts.
Clearly it runs in the family. Wonder what the FOLKS are like??
Frankly, we expect better behavior from our paleontologists.
This is quite fascinating. I may have missed it in the flood of posts, but what's the deal with the demand for a used Leica M7 rangefinder camera body? Where did that come from??
Steve_C #469: you are a wicked wicked man.
You forgot to mention the bug in his cell.
Does this asshat have his own blog?
Don't worry PZ, you don't have to waste precious blog space telling everyone the asshat's IP. He's just taken a dump on your Wikipedia entry as an . I leave it as an exercise to the reader to figure out which one he is.
Man, with this much stupid, I have to wonder what region of Texas he represents.
How do we even know that Kwok went to his magical school of make believe? Is he just the next Unibomber?
That IP seems to be from Texas A&M university. Being a graduate of UT Austin, I don't find that very surprising.
This just gets sadder and sadder.
I think you're all very lucky that Kwok didn't go to Hogwarts
....or did he?
No, no he didn't. Whew! But I bet he has friends who did...PZpayupemus!
Kwok needs his own episode of South Park.
Kwok needs a blankie, some pie and a serious adjustment of his meds.
Get Kwoked...an IP address in Texas and in the heart of Aggieville. Go Figure. Anybody have a GOOD Aggie Joke?
Nepenthe @480, thanks.
For the lazy, here's the revision:
(note: [link] represents a link removed by me)
What on earth does Kwok think he's doing - adding to PZ's Wikipedia entry??????????
That's actually against everything he says he stands for! The only other people who do that are creationists.
I really hope I never have to read about him in a newspaper..creepymad.
18 U.S.C. § 875 (d). - Interstate communications:
"Whoever, with intent to extort from any person, firm, association, or corporation, any money or other thing of value, transmits in interstate or foreign commerce any communication containing any threat to injure the property or reputation of the addressee or of another or the reputation of a deceased person or any threat to accuse the addressee or any other person of a crime, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than two years, or both."
Mothership to Kwok: To prevent permanent neural damage, place foil cap on head prior to reading this secretly encoded message.
!lleh sa yzarc si kowK nhoJ
This message will self-kwok after decoding.
I was about to say the fool has bit off more than he can chew but then realized chewing is difficult for the toothless. ;) What a maroon ....
John Kwok's idiotic addition to the wiki article:
The most amusing thing about this pathetic attempt at a wiki-smear is that he chose to quote himself (from a facebook comment no less) first and foremost as an authority on PZ's assholeness. And in the quote, he accuses PZ of being friends with a famous person only in his own mind.
Narcissism + Psychological Projection + irredeemable pettiness = Entertainment
Interestingly "Hey! You offended me. Therefore you are a stalker and you owe me a camera." is the same kind of mental gymnastics required to conclude that god is real, and he is inordinately concerned with the minutia of your life.
It's simply the ego of a puny person refusing to comprehend that they are just not as special as they think they are.
The legendary Earl Gordon Curley, who won Usenet Kook of the Month so often they retired the UKotM trophy (yes, I am making that part up) seems positively rational when compared to JK.
#487 - not an Aggie joke, but a story. Waiting at a Renaissance Faire, raining, cold day, injured shoulder. I set up a simple frame canopy, by myself, in about 10 minutes time. Then I went back in the car to warm up, and watched a group of 4-5 Aggies take over 30 minutes to set up the same canopy. We were laughing at these morons at work.
Hell, I've driven by A&M and lost IQ points. Luckily I drove by fast enough and suffered no permanent loss.
Seriously, who the hell is this "Susan Kwok" that I've heard mentioned twice. A search I did showed up nothing unusual, as far as I could tell. Has she posted here, or elsewhere?
I did go to the PT post. Pretty lame. At least he didn't mention his High School, Ken Miller, or Brown University, though, so that could be seen as an improvement.
Hmm. I wonder why Kwok thinks your Wikipedia article is such good evidence? Could it be that he edited Wikipedia, (as IP 128.194.15.14 - these things are logged and public knowledge, you know) and added in... himself and Vox Day criticising you?
http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=PZ_Myers&diff=prev&oldid=2801…
Only to be reverted two minutes later, ruining his grand plan?
http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=PZ_Myers&diff=next&oldid=2801…
Yep, looks like he did. Idiot.
re:#494
ok, that is just NOT healthy. the man REALLY needs help :-/
Y'know, we're all playing into his hand here. There are 500 comments having to do with Mr. Kwok. If we REALLY want to punish him, we should all STFU...
SuzieGirl, #495...
Very well said, indeed. And, it may be the ego of a puny person refusing to comprehend that anyone else rates as highly as they think they do. ;)