The Insane Oatmeal Lawsuit: An Update

When we last left this case, which had started as something pathetic and rocketed straight into the ridiculous and insane, Charles Carreon was trying to sue people on Twitter for making fun of him for filing a crazy lawsuit against the Oatmeal.

He has also been insisting that Matthew Inman, the guy behind the Oatmeal, has raised a vast army of thugs to go after him on the Internet, apparently unable to realize the Internet is perfectly capable of whipping itself into a frenzy without anyone’s help, especially when they see an obviously questionable lawsuit.

You’re probably wondering how it could get any worse. The answer is threefold: he’s trying to drag California’s attorney general into it; he’s writing angry poetry; and his wife is insisting that all the people being mean to them on the Internet are going to kill them.

Oh, and also that all the people being mean to them are just like Hitler. I know you think I’m making that part up. Believe me, I wish I was.

Here’s an example of his wife’s argument.

These Techdirt nazi scumbags are doing to Charles what they did to the Jewish lawyers in Nazi Germany. Accusing him of greed and being responsible for the entire economic mess that our country is in. I mean, that is crazy!

It gets worse:

These people are BAD, BAD PEOPLE, these Matt Inman people. They are true Internet terrorists. I wouldn’t be surprised if they didn’t involve a lot of the Anonymous people.

She also insists that Carreon’s lawsuit is for us, the little people. She also thinks Matt Inman is a “cancer,” a “sadist,” and any other name she can think up. We’d like to remind you that this all started when Carreon demanded $20,000 in damages for accusing the website FunnyJunk of doing exactly what Inman stated they were doing: hosting his comics without crediting him or paying him, and covering those images with advertising to make money. When Inman said no, sent him a legal response back, and then blasted Carreon and FunnyJunk on his website, that’s when this whole thing got started.

So his wife is just like himm but what’s Chuck been up to? Well, he included the Attorney General of California in his lawsuit, and is still doing his level best to keep $110,000 out of the hands of cancer sufferers and environmentalists. And he’s also writing angry poems, which we’ll spare you.

All of this is building to a head and honestly, it’s going to be an ugly one. Eventually this is going to get in front of a judge and likely be summarily dismissed. That won’t be the end of it, though. Likely Carreon will face some form of rebuke from the Bar for his actions, and possibly will be forced to pay the court fees he’s racking up.

One final word: following this case, I’ve come across some people arguing that the Carreons are a victim here. These people are obviously not used to the Internet, their feelings are hurt, and so on. Let’s just nip that in the bud, shall we? The simple fact of the matter is that they’re not victims in any way, shape or form. They’re Internet trolls in the most classical sense — they stirred up some crap, a lot of it got splattered on them instead of their intended targets, and now they’re complaining about it.

If Carreon had done his job and been a professional, he likely never would have been in this situation. He likely never would have filed the suit in the first place. Most of his colleagues are baffled he even took FunnyJunk’s money, much less the actions he took afterwards. A victim is somebody who is visited harm for no reason or justification. Any actual harm Carreon has experienced is entirely self-inflicted. If he’d just stop suing people and take a couple of kicks to his ego, all of this would go away tomorrow.

Instead he’s deliberately chosen to become a walking cartoon. Do I feel pity for Carreon? Absolutely. It’s becoming clear the man has no understanding of why he’s in this situation and will thrash and flail in a swamp of his own making before a judge or similar legal authority tells him to go away.

But make no mistake: he’s still the bad guy.

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