It was only a matter of time before this Twitter madness leapt from merely hypnotizing the masses and bastardizing the language to causing real-world mayhem for those (like me [1]) caught in its seductive clutches.
Here's what happened: Curt Monash, a technology analyst [2] and Network World blogger, was twit-chatting at 1:30 a.m. with actor LeVar Burton [3] -- Lt. Commander Geordi La Forge on "Star Trek: The Next Generation" and Kunta Kinte [4] on "Roots." For the fiery details we turn now to my Q&A with Monash, which Twitter users should note approvingly consists of questions and answers stretching no more than 140 characters, putting aside the windier blog excerpt. (Update: Burton responds in first comment below [5] ... and, yes, it's really him.)
Buzzblog: Please describe the sequence of events, beginning of course with telling us your Twitter platform of choice.
Monash: I still Twitter from the Web interface [6]. Tweetdeck's [7] data corruption is intolerable.
From a "The Monash Report" blog post [8]:
On the whole, I'm not apt to be particularly celebrity-struck.... I thought it was cool to be Twittering back and forth [9] with LeVar Burton, of Roots and Star Trek fame, especially when he sent a direct message [10] that read, in its entirety, "Exactly!!! Well said." But unfortunately, that wasn't the most interesting part.
While I was tweeting away in the middle of the night, I heard a shout from (my wife Linda Barlow [11]). It turned out that we had a fire on our 49-year-old electric stove. A burner had failed to turn off, a plastic cutting board had fallen onto it, and flames had started.
... The fire left a small part of our house destroyed, a large part uninhabitable, and the rest uncomfortable. The insurance company happily feels obligated to set things to rights.
Buzzblog: How would you rate Twitter's combustibility risk alongside those associated with, say, laptop batteries [12] and indoor barbecuing?
Monash: Twitter is entitled to hum a few choruses of "We Didn't Start the Fire" [13]
Buzzblog: How seriously do you see this fire hampering Twitter's ability to fashion its long-awaited revenue model [14] and/or attract a buyer?
Monash: Any excitement could serve as a distraction.
Buzzblog: Given that it was tweeting with a celebrity that ignited this blaze, should we all stick to Twitter nobodies from now on just to be safe?
Monash: You're confusing correlation with causality. Are you a chiropractor?
Clearly smoke inhalation has clouded the man's appreciation of how seriously he's been wronged here and I presume liability lawyers will be lining up to set him straight.
In the meantime, Twitter owes Curt Monash a new kitchen ... and LeVar Burton might want to think about tossing him one of those Hollywood fundraising galas.
(Update: Reader/Twitter chum Julia @kindlejunkie [15] Taylor alerts me to the fact that Burton, in addition to contributing to kitchen fires, has recently become embroiled in a "Twitter war" [16] with funnyman Michael Ian Black. My money's on Burton, who has declared that "It may be necessary to go Kunta on his ass!")
(Later update: Confronted with the "Twarson" allegation by one of his 130,000 Twitter followers, Burton hides [17] behind Clintonian obfuscation.)
Welcome regulars and passersby. Here are a few more recent Buzzblog items. And, if you'd like to receive Buzzblog via e-mail newsletter, here's where to sign up [18].
2009's 25 Geekiest 25th Anniversaries [19].
Google's new "Tip Jar" offers only small change [21].
40% of geeks surveyed admit to working [22] ... how many hours?
New EFF site helps you keep government snoops at bay [23].
A few clean words from the creator of Cursebird [24].
Want to close your LendingTree account? [25] Sorry, no can do.
Girl's 22,795 text messages in a month nothing to celebrate [20]
Twitter limits searches on its site [26] ... Why?
Links:
[1] http://twitter.com/buzzblog
[2] http://www.monash.com/
[3] http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000996/
[4] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kunta_Kinte
[5] http://www.networkworld.com/community/node/39695#comment-202488
[6] http://www.twitter.com/
[7] http://www.tweetdeck.com/beta/
[8] http://www.monashreport.com/2009/03/12/interesting-times-in-the-monash-home/
[9] http://www.networkworld.com/community/node/39681
[10] http://help.twitter.com/forums/10711/entries/14606
[11] http://monash.com/barlow.html
[12] http://www.networkworld.com/community/node/20501
[13] http://www.teacheroz.com/fire.htm
[14] http://www.networkworld.com/community/node/35916
[15] http://twitter.com/kindlejunkie
[16] http://www.michaelianblack.net/blog/2009/02/lewar-rages-on.html
[17] http://twitter.com/levarburton/status/1329561432
[18] https://www.networkworld.com/nl/Signup.do?call=instant&k=NAad005&n=75
[19] http://www.networkworld.com/slideshows/2009/010509-buzzblog-2009-25th-anniversaries.html
[20] http://www.networkworld.com/community/node/38278
[21] http://www.networkworld.com/community/node/39261
[22] http://www.networkworld.com/community/node/38854
[23] http://www.networkworld.com/community/node/39157
[24] http://www.networkworld.com/community/node/38304
[25] http://www.networkworld.com/community/node/38694
[26] http://www.networkworld.com/community/node/37209