# Scare Tactics: I'm SO glad they're getting sued **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 23, 2003, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scare-tactics-im-so-glad-theyre-getting-sued/163654 "2003-03-23T23:57:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Riboflavin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f1d935/32.png) [@Riboflavin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riboflavin)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2003, 6:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scare-tactics-im-so-glad-theyre-getting-sued/163654/21 "2003-03-24T06:53:49Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by AtomicDog \* > 's funny. I thought Tremors **was** Sci-fi. Tremors is Sci-Fi - I suppose it’s arguably horror, but I always thought of it as SF. The problem is, what are you going to do in a series about it? I know they managed a sequel to the movie, but I can’t figure out how the series is going to avoid being absurdly contrived to keep everyone in town, the worms not wiped out, and something happening every week. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2003, 7:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scare-tactics-im-so-glad-theyre-getting-sued/163654/22 "2003-03-24T07:00:53Z")
C’mon, don’t be a Stiffly Stifferson. ---
**Author:** ![Balance](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ccd318/32.png) [@Balance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balance)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2003, 7:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scare-tactics-im-so-glad-theyre-getting-sued/163654/23 "2003-03-24T07:07:19Z")
I’ve wondered the same thing on and off, **Chronos**. I can’t see any safe way they can do a series like this. Even if they can be sure the mark isn’t armed, s/he could still be dangerous. They don’t even have to be trained fighters. I saw a 12-year-old boy crack two of a HS senior’s ribs when the older boy ambushed him for a “scary prank”. \ Not just “a” sequel, **Ribo**. There was a _Tremors: III_ featuring stage 3 of the graboid life-cycle…“ass-blasters”, which fly using…ahem…“chemical propellant”. No. I’m not kidding. \ ---
**Author:** ![betenoir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/258eb7/32.png) [@betenoir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/betenoir)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2003, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scare-tactics-im-so-glad-theyre-getting-sued/163654/24 "2003-03-24T07:32:22Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Reeder \* > \*\*That actually is a real rape. Sexual intercouse without permission is rape husband or not. \*\* Umm…Reeder, I’m aware of that. That it would still be a terrifying assault and not joke was kind of my point. ---
**Author:** ![betenoir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/258eb7/32.png) [@betenoir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/betenoir)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2003, 7:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scare-tactics-im-so-glad-theyre-getting-sued/163654/25 "2003-03-24T07:34:55Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by BlackKnight \* > \*\*Stop giving FOX ideas. Stop it right now, or humanity is doomed. \*\* Well, see, that’s where the second half of my post comes into play 😃 . ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2003, 8:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scare-tactics-im-so-glad-theyre-getting-sued/163654/26 "2003-03-24T08:56:36Z")
I can see an objection to a realistic situation being hoaxed. But any adult idiotic enough to actually believe he or she is being pursued by monsters from outer space deserves every moment of it. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Death](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ecccb3/32.png) [@Evil\_Death](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Death)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2003, 9:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scare-tactics-im-so-glad-theyre-getting-sued/163654/27 "2003-03-24T09:08:05Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Riboflavin \* > \*\*Tremors is Sci-Fi - I suppose it’s arguably horror, but I always thought of it as SF. The problem is, what are you going to do in a series about it? I know they managed a sequel to the movie, but I can’t figure out how the series is going to avoid being absurdly contrived to keep everyone in town, the worms not wiped out, and something happening every week. \*\* They managed two sequels to the movie, Ribo. I’m given to understand that the graboids and their spawn are not going to be restricted to Perfection, Nevada. ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2003, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scare-tactics-im-so-glad-theyre-getting-sued/163654/28 "2003-03-24T12:53:59Z")
_Tremors II_ was set in a Mexican oil field, so it would seem that the the Graboids have already gotten out of that box canyon in Nevada. I haven’t seen _Tremors III_ yet; I’m gonna have to cruise by Blockbuster tonight. ---
**Author:** ![Riboflavin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f1d935/32.png) [@Riboflavin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riboflavin)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2003, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scare-tactics-im-so-glad-theyre-getting-sued/163654/29 "2003-03-24T17:16:43Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Walloon \* > \*\*I can see an objection to a realistic situation being hoaxed. But any adult idiotic enough to actually believe he or she is being pursued by monsters from outer space deserves every moment of it. \*\* Nope, gullible, even outright retarded people don’t deserve to be assaulted. It’s pretty sick that you believe that attacking people who fall for a trick is justified, but this isn’t the BBQ pit so that’s all I’ll say on it. Someone doesn’t need to believe in monsters from outer space to be seriously scared by the kind of stuff Scare Tactics does. For example, the woman suing them was told she was invited to a party at a desert resort, then the car broke down enroute, then the costumed creature ‘attacked’ her two companions and she ran into the canyon. It doesn’t matter whether she believed in monsters from outer space, as far as she could see there was an attack by an animal/costumed person/space monster and she had to get away from it. ---
**Author:** ![jacquilynne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/67e7ee/32.png) [@jacquilynne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jacquilynne)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2003, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scare-tactics-im-so-glad-theyre-getting-sued/163654/30 "2003-03-24T17:34:32Z")
I have to wonder about any of the “unwitting victim” reality shows. This one sounds particularly bad. This is not a difficult concept to understand. Doing things to people without their permission is bad. I’ve been watching What Not To Wear, where friends set someone up for a makeover type thing. But they tape the victim for a couple of weeks in advance. That’s fine for the on the street stuff, but they also film them in their bedroom, for example. If someone was secretly filming me in my home, on the authority of only my friends, lawsuits would be flying. ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2003, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scare-tactics-im-so-glad-theyre-getting-sued/163654/31 "2003-03-24T17:50:48Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by jacquilynne \* > **This is not a difficult concept to understand. Doing things to people without their permission is bad.** Just “doing things to people”? What is your opinion about _Candid Camera_? ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2003, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scare-tactics-im-so-glad-theyre-getting-sued/163654/32 "2003-03-24T18:04:28Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Lizard \* > \*\*Something else ocurred to me about the episode I mentioned above. What if one of the two people not in on the joke had produced a gun nobody knew about and emptied it into the guy playing the “monster”? \*\* What if? REALLY BIG RATINGS, baby! Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2003, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scare-tactics-im-so-glad-theyre-getting-sued/163654/33 "2003-03-24T18:15:30Z")
I don’t recall any _Candid Camera_ stunts where the victim might think their life was in danger. Startled? Yes. A touch of the surreal intruding into your life? Classic. But a your life may soon end or here is your deepest fear was not really a [I}Candid Camera\* staple, and that is all this show has to offer. ---
**Author:** ![jacquilynne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/67e7ee/32.png) [@jacquilynne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jacquilynne)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2003, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scare-tactics-im-so-glad-theyre-getting-sued/163654/34 "2003-03-24T18:17:01Z")
Walloon, insert ‘unpleasant’ in between ‘doing’ and ‘things’. ---
**Author:** ![Lizard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dfb087/32.png) [@Lizard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lizard)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2003, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scare-tactics-im-so-glad-theyre-getting-sued/163654/35 "2003-03-24T19:08:13Z")
Best Bert Gummer quote (from _Tremors II_): “I am _completely_ out of ammo. That’s never happened to me before!” ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2003, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scare-tactics-im-so-glad-theyre-getting-sued/163654/36 "2003-03-24T21:12:29Z")
No, they might not believe it’s an alien. Perhaps they realize it’s a human being-but they’re costumed to protect their identity? Talk about disgusting. So, is this show going to air or not? (And no, I had no plans, nor do I know-to watch it). ---
**Author:** ![The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/74df32/32.png) [@The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Devil_s_Grandmother)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2003, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scare-tactics-im-so-glad-theyre-getting-sued/163654/37 "2003-03-24T22:21:52Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Walloon \* > \*\*Just “doing things to people”? What is your opinion about _Candid Camera_? \*\* _Candid Camera_ was out when I was a kid, so I don’t remember much of it. But IIRC, it was mostly leaving odd things on clerk’s counters to see if customers would play with them. Or a little boy pretending to be lost was asking strangers for help. I don’t think that’s even remotely the same as the descriptions of _Scare Tactics_. Given people the opportunity to mildly embarrass themselves is far different from frightening them badly. ---
**Author:** ![Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troy_mcclure_sf/32/4150_2.png) [@Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troy_McClure_SF)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2003, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scare-tactics-im-so-glad-theyre-getting-sued/163654/38 "2003-03-24T23:40:22Z")
I’m picturing a former victim of the show coming by the producer’s office, climbing upon the desk, dropping trou, and defecating. He gets down, pulls his pants back up, turns around, and says, “You wanted to scare the shit out of me, right?” ---
**Author:** ![yosemite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/3ab097/32.png) [@yosemite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yosemite)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 9:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scare-tactics-im-so-glad-theyre-getting-sued/163654/39 "2003-04-05T09:17:17Z")
I just saw part of “Scare Tactics” a few hours ago. What a repugnant show. It is cruel, unfunny, stupid, cruel—good grief. SciFi needs to pull the plug on this fast. And I’m glad to hear that someone is suing. This show is a lawsuit waiting to happen. It seemed to me that the premise was to find stupid, gullible people and manipulate them. And be cruel to them. What a horrible, horrible show. ---
**Author:** ![Road\_Rash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a8b319/32.png) [@Road\_Rash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Road_Rash)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scare-tactics-im-so-glad-theyre-getting-sued/163654/40 "2003-04-05T14:03:25Z")
I get this vision of a Porky’s style prank, where PeeWee gets lost after the prank is over. A couple of miles down the road, the local police find him running scared and naked down the road. This MUST have been the Sci-Fi channel’s inspiration. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scare-tactics-im-so-glad-theyre-getting-sued/163654.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scare-tactics-im-so-glad-theyre-getting-sued/163654.md?page=3)