By Ana Billotti
Round Table web producer
A YouTube video posted in early February shot Tommy Jordan of North Carolina to fame. In the video, Jordan addresses the note that his 15-year-old daughter, Hannah, wrote and then posted on Facebook.
Jordan created the video to teach his daughter a lesson; first by discussing the note, then by proceeding to take his gun and shoot his daughter’s laptop eight times.
The note that set Jordan off was addressed to him and his wife, stating “I’m not your (expletive) slave,” “If you want coffee, get off your (expletive) and get it yourself,” and “I’m tired of picking up after you,” among other things.
Jordan was not pleased to discover this posting from his daughter for several reasons which he stated in his video. He said that his daughter did something similar to this a few months prior and that she is not expected to do any more than any other child her age.
The video has acquired over 20 million views since it was first posted and Jordan has received both positive and negative feedback due to it.
Jordan, according to the Los Angeles Times, was visited by both Child Protective Services and the police, neither of whom found anything wrong or concerning (although a CPS social worker did review some parenting tips with Jordan).
Jordan has also been the focus of many news and talk shows, receiving numerous offers to appear on them. MyNorthwest reported that Jordan took to Facebook and responded with, “While we appreciate the interest you’re all putting forth to get in touch with us regarding the video, we’re not going to go on your talk show, not going to call in to your radio show, and not going to be in your TV mini-series.”
Jordan stated that if there is anything he and his family have to say, they will say it on Facebook. He posted his response to an email from Jason Rice, WSOC TV reporter, on Facebook.
In response to Rice’s question about Hannah’s reaction to the video, Jordan stated, “It was what you’d expect I suppose… She was mad but in the end got over it pretty quickly…” Jordan also answered, “Oh yeah” to whether his daughter is still grounded.
Jordan clearly does not regret the decision to shoot his daughter’s laptop, even going so far as to say he’d “do the whole thing over again.”
As shocking as it may seem to some, the majority of the public agrees with Jordan’s actions. A poll done by NBC’s “Today” show reported “72 percent agreed with Jordan’s actions.”
Jordan doesn’t regret making or posting the video and his daughter hasn’t been emotionally scarred in any way, so let’s give this family a rest already. They’ve had their 15 minutes of fame, so let’s go back to talking about the clothes that celebrities are wearing and move on with our lives.
