Past Pranks or Facebook Pics Beware You Could Be Messing with Your Future

Do you think what you post on Facebook is harmless? What about those high school or college pranks caught on camera? What about what gets posted on YouTube? It may have seemed funny at the time, but bad idea!

It’s another case of the past coming back to haunt someone. Roger Garrison, a Georgia Sheriff, is seeking re-election this year. He has served as Cherokee County Sheriff for the past 20 years. Old photos have surfaced of him dressed in a Ku Klux Klan robe and hood. Garrison, who denied affiliation with the KKK, told ABC Atlanta that the photos, which were taken at a Halloween party more than 25 years ago, were a costume meant to depict a scene from the Mel Brooks satire “Blazing Saddles.”

He admits how stupid it was. He also said, “what 21- or 22-year-old in this world hasn’t made some stupid mistakes?”

Well, it seems someone wants to sabotage his re-election bid. His opponent, David Waters, says he wasn’t responsible for leaking the photos.

Is this a case of bad humor or did he just never think it would be an issue 25+ years later? We just don’t know. Now what’s left, is for the people to decide. This will be a huge voting factor. He’s trying to turn this into something that’s just a college prank, “it was just a costume,” but was it? How can the people of Cherokee County trust someone who would ever think to put on a robe and hood, even if it was for a Halloween party?

So, what do you think? Should what he did over 25 years ago be held against him today? Would it matter if he was already in law enforcement at the time? He has a 30-year service record, which suggests that he was working in law enforcement when the photo was taken. How do you feel about that? If he’s done a good job, and there’s no evidence he has an affiliation to the KKK, should the photo hold him back from serving? If he’s served with integrity all these years, should he be judged by what could be just a dumb lapse in judgment by a than 21-year old?

So, the next time you get drunk at a club, a party, or your friends house, you better think, someone will post it. The next time you do anything that is a serious bad behavior, offensive, and just not acceptable, you need to know, there could be sudden or future consequences. It seems there are no limits or boundaries to social media. And, word gets around. On Facebook, every friend of a friend could see what your up to, who you’re fighting with, who you’re breaking up with, and what you did in those moments you can’t remember. It took over 25-years for those photos of Roger Garrison, to come out, but these days, we don’t need to wait that long. Criminals are even being caught via social networks. So, if you want a good job, if you want to work as a police officer, go into politics, etc., be forewarned, your past will come back to haunt you. Perhaps, you won’t even get the start to the future you expect, because of a poor judgment.

Feel free to share your thoughts.

See also:

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