Yet another Darwin Award candidate

[lonewolf]

[
I suspect some toxic substance in the bugs.

That was my unprofessional guess too but why were the other contestants not affected?

[tandfman]

It may be weeks before they figure out why he died.

http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/10 ... perts?lite

[tandfman]

They've now figured it out. He choked to death.

http://www.cnn.com/2012/11/26/us/florid ... ing-death/

[Conor Dary]

This is the big story in Chicago. One of the dumbest things I have heard of.

• Nick Wieme, the aspiring stand-up comedian who made the fatal mistake early Thursday morning of climbing above the iconic domed rooftop of the InterContinental Hotel on Michigan Avenue to take pictures, was a “fantastic human,” his brother said.
  
  Nick was “awesome,” Jamie Wieme said of his sibling who loved his family “fiercely.”
  
  “We need a stadium to hold his funeral.”
  
  But then Jamie Wieme asked to be left alone so he could grieve with loved ones the sudden and bizarre death of the 23-year-old Minnesota transplant who fell down a chimney at the hotel at 505 N. Michigan and died after rescue crews pulled him from the shaft.

http://www.suntimes.com/news/16987022-4 ... hotel.html

[tandfman]

I have to assume some alcohol was involved in that photo shoot decision.

[jhc68]

I love this: Storage Wars (a "reality" TV show) is being sued by Dave Hester, one of the "stars", for wrongful termination claiming that he was fired after butting heads with the producers of the show because he suddenly realized that the show was fraudulent (that is to say, not "reality" at all but completely manipulated) and his objections resulted in his dismissal... there are 3 distinct manifestations of stupidity here:

1) Apparently it took several seasons of the show for Hester to figure out that the producers were supplying their own bogus versions of "reality" right before his very eyes.

2) Hester was then so dumb that he bit the hand that feeds him by pissing off the producers.

3) Best of all, masses of TV fans and media observers are astounded and outraged by the idea that "reality" TV shows are not factual documentaries!!! WTF.

I sometimes watch the show because I like to Barry, one of the regulars and a wonderfully entertaining eccentric. No rational person (and I include myself rather uncertainly in this category) could ever have believed that any of the BS that went in on the episodes was real and it is tough to digest the idea that anyone might have ever thought the show was "reality". Duh.

[gh]

Thank goodness this thread wasn't renewed for the xth revival of the "x-year Darwin Awards": have you ever noticed that every year (or more frequently) this crap stuffs your in-box, but basically it's the same stories every year? It's not like the Darwin Committee meets side-by-side with the Nobel people and they have a big annoucement in Stockholm.

This is free-form internet bullshit people. Hello!

[Blues]

This is the big story in Chicago. One of the dumbest things I have heard of.

• Nick Wieme, the aspiring stand-up comedian who made the fatal mistake early Thursday morning of climbing above the iconic domed rooftop of the InterContinental Hotel on Michigan Avenue to take pictures, was a “fantastic human,” his brother said.
  
  Nick was “awesome,” Jamie Wieme said of his sibling who loved his family “fiercely.”
  
  “We need a stadium to hold his funeral.”
  
  But then Jamie Wieme asked to be left alone so he could grieve with loved ones the sudden and bizarre death of the 23-year-old Minnesota transplant who fell down a chimney at the hotel at 505 N. Michigan and died after rescue crews pulled him from the shaft.

http://www.suntimes.com/news/16987022-4 ... hotel.html

Sad story.. As somebody with a passion for photography myself, I can understand someone taking a risk for a unique photo opportunity. It was dark, and maybe he slipped on ice or soot or encountered a sudden gust of wind, or didn't see the outer octagonal opening on top of the smokestack (see photo link below) and fell into that. I'm afraid that if I had a rare opportunity to get a few once in a lifetime photos (like a clear view of Chicago at night from a vantage point at the top of a hotel smokestack), it's possible that I might do a little climbing too.

http://blogs.citypages.com/blotter/chicago%20hotel.jpeg

[Conor Dary]

Sad story.. As somebody with a passion for photography myself, I can understand someone taking a risk for a unique photo opportunity. It was dark, and maybe he slipped on ice or soot or encountered a sudden gust of wind, or didn't see the outer octagonal opening on top of the smokestack (see photo link below) and fell into that. I'm afraid that if I had a rare opportunity to get a few once in a lifetime photos (like a clear view of Chicago at night from a vantage point at the top of a hotel smokestack), it's possible that I might do a little climbing too.

I do a lot of photography myself, but you have to use common sense, which was obviously lacking in this case.

[Blues]

Sad story.. As somebody with a passion for photography myself, I can understand someone taking a risk for a unique photo opportunity. It was dark, and maybe he slipped on ice or soot or encountered a sudden gust of wind, or didn't see the outer octagonal opening on top of the smokestack (see photo link below) and fell into that. I'm afraid that if I had a rare opportunity to get a few once in a lifetime photos (like a clear view of Chicago at night from a vantage point at the top of a hotel smokestack), it's possible that I might do a little climbing too.

I do a lot of photography myself, but you have to use common sense, which was obviously lacking in this case.

Maybe. But the area wasn't locked, and there's always a possibility that he didn't know the tower was a smokestack, since it was designed not to look like one from the outside. Allegedly he fell into the smokestack when he tripped after stepping out onto what he thought was a ledge to try to get a better photo, after climbing to the top. Since it was dark I wonder if he tripped over the octagonal opening and then fell into the 6 foot circular opening which was about 2 feet away toward the center of the structure, or if he mistakenly assumed that the entire upper surface was a solid roof or deck. Since he didn't break in, it'll be interesting to know what, if any, posted warnings he ignored.