Engadget posted earlier today about a tech-related prank played on a child by his family and I had to direct anyone reading here to it.
The basic set up was that an Xbox360 box was stuffed with shirts and wrapped up as a Christmas present. The child unwraps it on camera and instantly thinks he’s gotten a swanky new 360, until he opens the box and his dreams are shattered. Cue laughter from everyone else in the room, accompanied by possibly the most genuinely hurt look you’re ever likely to want to see from a child.
The people who devised the prank, his parents I assume, can only be described as scumbags. I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say this. They’re idiotic scumbags.
It’s one thing to pull this kind of stunt with your kid if you’ve actually got the Xbox360 (or other coveted device) hidden away somewhere ready to be revealed at the opportune moment. That kind of thing can still scar but the chances are the few seconds of hurt and embarrassment they feel will be totally forgotten once they’re able to mentally shift back to the initial joy they felt.
But here there is no Xbox360 to pull the classic “gotcha” manoeuvre – just a small box full of clothes. Those in the room are genuinely tickled by his reaction – including the asshole who’s bellowing with laughter in the background from the very second he realises what’s going on. The kid is clearly blown away at first when he thinks he got just what he asked for and is clearly shattered when he realises his family are pricks.
He looks to his mother with such absolute venom and upset, after a minute of which she finally seems to show some remorse. But it’s too late at that stage. They’ve already ruined the kid’s Christmas, probably ruined every other Christmas to come and most certainly ruined a certain amount of the bond he has with his family.
This is probably how serial killers are made.
Engadget has decided to help the kid out by donating an Xbox360 of their own, assuming they can find the right guy, and even Microsoft wants to get in on the action. It’s a pretty noble thing to do and you can see their logic but to be honest I wouldn’t be surprised if his scumbag family just sold it all once it arrived – and not for the money, they’d probably do it just so they could stamp on whatever is left of this child’s soul.