babble is rabble.ca's discussion board but it's much more than that: it's an online community for folks who just won't shut up. It's a place to tell each other — and the world — what's up with our work and campaigns.
Michael Bryant to write book.
October 17, 2011 - 1:23pm
http://arts.nationalpost.com/2011/10/17/former-attorney-general-michael-...
According to the press release, “28 Seconds will chronicle the fateful aftermath of that late summer evening in August 2009, an evening when everything changed for the Harvard-educated lawyer, politician, and CEO. In the book, Bryant speaks publicly for the first time of personal challenges and his own battle with some of the very demons shared by Darcy Sheppard.”
"He has been humbled by what happened, but more important, wants to rededicate himself to public service and to overhaul the justice system. And he has never lost sight of the fact that a man died.”
Did you puke too when you read that?
Shame.
Yeah, the missing part of the narrative is when Bryant "bizarrely" tried to run Sheppard into mailboxes and trees as he fled the scene of an accident. What a "tragedy."
I wonder how much of the proceeds from this travesty will be going to Sheppard's family?
Is he at least donating the profits to charity? It would be really crass for him to make money off of this tragedy.
I jsut read the article and it says that a "portion" will be donated to a charity that deals with mental health and substance abuse issues. I wonder how big that "portion" is. I stand by my above statement that it's really crass (nicest descriptor I can think of at the moment) for him to make so much as a dollar in profit off of this.
While I agree with you, Mr. Tea, I think it's even crasser to donate to a charity which deals with "mental health and substance abuse issues," because it's as if Bryant is drawing a line under why this "bizarre altercation" happened: that is, it had nothing to do with Bryant's actions, but could be chalked up to the energetic media smear job done on Sheppard hours after his death.
I thought the same thing actually when I read the choice of charity, catchfire. It seems like such a PR move (and remember that after his arrest, his first call was to his lawyer, his second was to a PR agency) to try to remind people thaat the victim had substance abuse issues and fit that into the narrative.
Personally, I would have hoped that maybe the money could go to some sort of cycling-related cause, maybe building bike paths, maybe providing bikes to needy kids, something like that.
And given that it merely says that a "portion" is going to charity, I have my doubts as to how much. This guy is out to make money off of someone's death, a death in which he was directly involved (some would say for which he was responsible).
I am struggling to be fair with this, because you know my knee jerk reaction.
Because I think people can redeem themselves. And I think we should always be prepared-- not suckers or gullible or whatever-- to allow people the opportunity for redemption and restitution.
But Bryant has a long way to go in my view.
I've been in road rage incidents. And I know it takes two to tango in those situations. I will never believe that Bryant didn't do anything wrong at all in that situation. I could believe a lot of things in that situation, but I can't believe either party was blameless.
For his part, Sheppard died.
Bryant ran like a coward. He ran from the scene. He ran from justice when his former colleague appointed an infamous protect the establishment "special prosecutor" that acted more like a deffense attourney than prosecutor. And his bizare press conference after did nothing but reinforce his cowardice.
That's a lot to redeem one's self from.
I suspect this is nothing more than a P.R. stunt in an attempt to resurct his reputation enough so he can continue in business-- or worse yet as indicated above, an attempt to resurect a political career.
But. In fairness...
I agree with a lot of what you say, Tommy. And my interest here isn't in re-trying the case.
If anything, I have some sympathy with Bryant over the accident, itself. I've only been in one car accident in my life (I bike almost every day for about 8 months of the year). I was coming to a stop sign, slid on a patch of ice and slammed into the car in front of me. Luckily, I hit a pickup truck and nobody was injured. But it could have gone very differently. If, for example, a little kid was crossing the street and I hit them instead of the truck, who knows? It could have ended in tragedy. So, I appreciate how things can happen very suddenly and everything can change in an instant. But IF I had tragically killed someone with my car, I imagine that I'd work out my grief over teh incident privately, with my family, maybe with a psychiatrist, maybe my rabbi, etc. It would be about healing, NOT about getting my story out to the public. And, IF, for whatever reason, I did decide to write a book over it, I certainly wouldn't want to make any money off of it. Everything I bought with that money would be a constant reminder of somebody's tragic death. I really just have to wonder what sort of person Michael Bryant is to be doing this...
How much money does Michael Bryant stand to make from this book? Does anybody know?
What portion of the profits from this book will go to the publisher, Penguin Viking? Does anybody know?
Is Michael Bryant publishing this book in order to make income from it? Or does he have other easier and more lucrative means of making an income?
I haven't seen anyone ask how much money Conrad Black is going to make from his latest book. Black (unlike Bryant) is a convicted felon, and hasn't offered to donate a portion of the profits from the book to anybody that I know of.
Is there any possible benefit (e.g. educational) to society from the publication of this book? Does anybody know?
The case was never tried in the first place.
This was my first thought, Tommy. Speculations about cashing in are reasonable, but I don't think he needs the money and in any event, I don't think a book of this sort tends to be a massively lucrative best-seller. What it's really about, IMV: Michael Bryant is a relatively young man, an ambitious alpha male who chaffs to get on with his career, but the ghost of Al Sheppard continues to loom over his reputation.
For everybody in this thread: I offer a choice between allopathic and herbal.
Great idea. The justice system that let him off the hook, needs a complete overhaul indeed.
Petition on change.org: Penguin Canada: Stop Publication of Michael Bryant's Book
Michael Bryant: How to Get Away with Murder and Become a Hero at the Expense of the Victim.
What, not a marketable title?
None if everyone does what I intend to. Leave it on the store shelf and just walk away. Don't encourage the asshole in his attempt to make money off of this tragedy.
who on earth, other than his close relatives, and newspaper reporters, would buy such a book?
For that sort of book, the money made by the author tends to be very little indeed, maybe 5k or so unless it becomes a runaway best seller and even then the money doesnt pour in.
Hes writing it so that his version will stand as the true one, especially as the other participant is dead
"As the crazed drugged manaic held on to the car he screamed ' I may beat my ex but I will kill and rape your wife and you and you cannot stop as I am drugged and drunk and in a unreasonable rage'. I screamed 'you wil not hurt my wife' as I desperately tried to get aweay from this madman without hurting anyone. Unfortunately, totallyu due to the actions of this drunk drugged abusive enraged madman, he caused his own death."
Hmm think that sums up the story in a nutshell for him?
There are book publishers that give out "advances" to certain people for books that are in fact campaign contributions. Every candidate for president in the States goes through this, and the revenue generated by the book is beside the point. Rupert Murdoch ownes a number of publishing houses and this is one of the reasons they exist.
I am not sure-- I googled around a bit-- if Penguin engages in this kind of activity. I could find nothing to suggest it does.
I do remember from following the Toronto Mayoralty race, that Bryant worked for Smitherman. But his name wasn't on any endorsement list, and his activites were very much under the publicity radar, according to one Globe and Mail article I read.
This suggests to me that outside of a tight circle, maybe Bryant is persona non grata. Maybe this book is intended to address that.
michael bryant's business card reads
"Have BMW Will travel!"
As noted in a post, above, one of most hideous aspects of the tragedy was the almost kneejerk reaction of mister pig and co. even regardless of bryant being a dalton mcgunity liberal! No one here listens to mike stafford or j. okley etc on T.O. hate radio, but, mygod, the guy on the bike was literally subhuman, and bryant was just 'defending the blood' killing him! It went on and on....day after day. I stopped listening to talkradio about then.
(fyi, with all spare time in my delivery truck since last year, i say the Holy Rosary, daily for, among others, Joe Stalin...)
Just been thinkernatin' on this a bit further.
One of the aspects of this event was how Bryant's phone call to Navigator P.R. changed the tone of the news overnight, to the point that even CBC radio was dragging Alan Sheppard through the mud.
And we can make a smart bet that the National Post's Mark Medley from the above link is working for them, given what a puff piece that was on this subject.
Who will read this book?
Not many, I presume.
Mostly, it will be read by Navigator picked book reviewers, and their reviews will be read more widely than the book itself.
I think Rabble.ca should get an advance copy for purpose of review, to counter the P.R. company horseshit.
And I think I know just the person to do such a review, too.
fyi to all:
MARCH 29: Protest Michael Bryant at the ROM
weblink: http://bemuhe.com/bryant/
mask from same page: http://bemuhe.com/bryantmask/
facebook: http://www.facebook.com/events/394907670519688/
may he never, ever, forget what he did.
Really? The ROM? That's literally about A BLOCK from where this tragedy occured.
I'm having trouble pasting images this morning; anyway, here's a picture from the event:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/martinreis/6881932682/in/pool-1881924@N20
My husband and I were both at the protest and in this picture (he's masked, I'm not). We never saw Michael Bryant.
Here's the picture set:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/martinreis/sets/72157629697927683/with/6881...
From the organizer's press release:
Thank you, Sineed, for being there.
Thanks, Sineed. I'd have gone if I'd been in Toronto.
The real kudos belong to our friend Ben, the organizer of this event.
Since the justice system failed so spectacularly in this case, all we can do is prevent Bryant from getting what he wants more than anything, which is a revival of his political career. This protest was a reminder to him - and the Ontario Liberal party - that we remember.
http://www.thestar.com/news/insight/article/1243483--michael-bryant-s-memoir-28-seconds-recounts-tragic-death-of-bicycle-courier
Michael Bryant’s memoir 28 Seconds recounts tragic death of bicycle courier
Star writer Jennifer Wells then goes on to relate an account by Darcy's stepfather, Allen Sheppard, of Darcy's first stay in a psychiatric facillity at age 11. The portrait painted of Darcy in the article does nothing less than demonize him.
Well, I guess it's a real advantage to tell your side of the story about what happened when the other person in the altercation is dead, and there was no court case or inquiry to investigate the facts of the matter.
This article could have been written by Navigator. Weren't they the PR firm that Bryant called before he even called the police?
And the reason he claims to have written the book - "an offering". Yes, an offering towards the rehabilitation of his reputation so he can return either to public life or maintain those high-income appointments that most politicians get after leaving politics if he chooses not to return to public life again.
That article made me seethe. First, framing it as some fateful encounter (e.g. "That night." etc.) removes any agency Bryant had to, you know, not kill him. Second, that the encounter has some sort of larger allegorical significance for Bryants own demons and troubles -- like his rocky marriage, his alcoholism -- incorporates Sheppard's death into Bryant's life story. it signifies Bryant as the undeniable protagonist and Sheppard as the bit player who gives his life meaning. Which is to say, Bryant makes it all about him. Third, and as Steve points out, the great detail that the Star reporter gives in order to underline that Sheppard was a psychopath from at least the age of eleven, while obviously following the familiar strategy of demonizing the victim, makes an automobile accident in which someone died a fucking metaphor for the clash of two worlds. Not only is this story about Bryant and not Sheppard, it's now elevated to the level of a poignant ilustration of two opposites coming together in a world historical conflict, where, of course, our "brilliant" but troubled hero comes out on top. It's an utterly false "they're not so different after all, you know" and it's fucking galling.
What a monster.