This week the TV show 48 Hours will cover the infamous Sun Gym Gang, which was the inspiration for the new movie featuring the Rock and Mark Wahlberg, called Pain and Gain. The video will be available online here, after the airing.
I am not sure you could do justice to this story, in a mere hour-long show, but it should be interesting, nonetheless. I read this very long story about them, back when it happened, and obviously was struck by the humor of a bunch of cement-headed, sociopathic juicers who were all “Go!” and no “Think!,” as they just went around trying to kill people, succeeding with some, and failing comically with others (only to head off to a strip club every time to regroup and plan for the next one).
I reread it recently, and saw it totally differently. This was a case study in how stupid, mentally-damaged people can take down the smart, by exhibiting a level of stupidity that is not plausibly believable. You would never think someone would do things that are so stupid. You can walk out the door with them, thinking they would never kill you, because they were just seen with you in front of your neighbors, your cleaning lady, and your personal mechanic. Who would kill you after being seen with you in front of all those witnesses? The answer is, they would, because when dealing with the mentally damaged, there are no rules, and there is no logic. Next thing you know, your headless torso is sticking out of a chemical drum, while these tools argue over whether the chainsaw which is clogged with all your hair is returnable, since it did advertise that it would handle all of a customer’s cutting needs, and it clearly failed to effectively dismember your body.
How could these morons get over on you? They were actually so stupid that you didn’t believe it was possible to be that dumb, so you assumed you misread things, and you got caught sleeping. You could not make this story up.
The lesson of the story is, be cautious, even when logic says it doesn’t matter. Don’t talk about your guns, don’t flash too much wealth, and never drive a yellow Lamborghini – unless it is goblin-bait for your secret life as some sort of cross between Charles Bronsen and Dexter.
Check your listings, and watch the show. It will be interesting.
Addendum. The ringleader will be a subject of a future reading faces post, though you won’t need to have seen the show to get the post.
