Stephen Fowler and his family are probably having a very, very bad day.
It seems that the entire nation hhhhhaaaattttteeeeessssss this dude.
They hate him way more than that douchbag on the BowFlex commercials that says “he gave all his fat clothes to his fat friends”.
I think that they may even hate him more than Barney the annoying as hell dinosaur.
You may not give a flip about “Wife Swap” but the HUGE reaction on the Internet to this person is fascinating to observe, if for nothing else.
I rarely watch “Wife Swap” (and blog about TV even less) but I have no DVR and was flipping through channels and watched the last episode. It angered me more than I have ever been angered watching a television program.
Actually, it angered me in general more than I have been angered in a long time at anything.
The man in question is highly educated, wealthy, fit and the biggest prick ever to walk the earth. (Just my opinion). Some of the more tame things he spewed to his replacement wife from Missouri were to call her fat, stupid, less of a person for living in a podunk town and the only way her children was to see the world was to join the military, stupid hillbilly , redneck and the stupidest person he had ever met on the earth and that he earns more in one week than her husband did in a year.
His wife, A LIFE COACH FOCUSING ON OBESITY, while showing a bit more compassion, tolerates his attitude and did not win a lot of fans by stating that she was not a proud American. The only reason she was an American was a circumstance of birth.
I have a hard time seeing how she is going to retain clients that go to her for help with weight loss after hearing the absolutely repulsive opinions her husband shared about overweight people. I would not trust they would not be regaling stories of her “pathetic clientele” as dinner table fodder, frankly.
The things that he said in front of his children were appalling. Even worse than that is that they mimicked the same statements in the final interview.
It seems like most of the nation was angered and have published every bit of online information about his job, location, business positions, etc. that they can track down. People are boycotting businesses, writing to board members, business partners and I think that every website involving him is probably recieving more traffic in one day than they see in ONE YEAR.
He has threatened to sue if that information is not taken down because his family is receiving death threats. He made the top 50 Google search and there are even facebook groups about how much this man sucks.
So far, I have seen one blog post from a friend of theirs defending them. (Really it is trying to defend the indefensible, if you ask me). She really seemed to miss the point by completely ignoring the true outrage his lack of common decency invoked and resorted to likening the people against the Fowlers to mobs with pitchforks. (I do have to say that it would be pretty hellish right now in the Fowler household, I am sure. I feel for his children. But what did he think would happen when he went on ‘Wife Swap’ throwing around his superiority and putting down EVERYTHING in such a disgusting manner while wearing a t-shirt that said, “Tree Hugger”??)
I have NEVER seen such a heated reaction from the internet against a person and I have seen a lot of shit hit the Internet fan in my time.
I do not agree with threatening a person’s safety, publishing home addresses, etc. However, if you had seen the episode? The man deserves a good deal of the backlash that is hitting him, frankly. He was absolutely the most elitist, arrogant, classless and verbally abusive man I have ever seen. It was horrifying. He said things that made my skin crawl to a woman that in her own way was just trying to help their children and family be closer.
And to me, if he felt she, her family and her entire situation was so beneath his, isn’t that even more reason to use graciousness and decency??
I have thoughts about the other family and do not think they were making the best life choices either, but they were at least willing to look at the things that needed fixing in their family. Quite frankly, what that poor woman endured at the hands of Mr. Fowler were abusive and sickening. His behavior was so odious that it totally overwhelmed anything else in the entire hour segment.
No amount of wealth, education, intelligence or social standing can make up for a profound lack of human decency.
NOTHING.
Get this! Not only is Hollis Polk a psychic and a friend and defender of Stephen Fowler, she apparently is also a real estate agent! What seller would let a “psychic” sell their home? Unbelievable! Check it out:
http://www.redfin.com/CA/Mill-Valley/178-Summit-Ave-94941/home/768925
It has been great to see the Chronicle do a story on Stephen Fowler, and to see him have to step down from the boards of several organizations.
Loralee – you know what they say about assuming…
“Sad commentary” was indeed posted from my computer – alas not by my hand though…
While I can definitely applaud her intelligent, sane and balanced comments, I cannot claim credit for them. My friend Elaine wanted to add her 2c to the discussion and did so from the most immediate and convenient computer available – mine.
Same IP, different author. No baiting, no fooling, just a couple of voices in the barren wilderness crying out for a little introspection and a return to sanity.
Amazingly, Stephen Fowler still answers his phone. Just for fun I just called him and got him. I am not going to post his number here but if you do a search for his name and 415 it’s pretty out there…
Stephen and Renee deserve each other. Really is too bad for the kids, but they appear to be totally damaged goods already.
Stephen really openly articulated the private sentiments of many-if not most-in his regional community. They reduced the value of a human to net worth and educational degrees. That is their right-whether you or I like it or not.
Reciprically, it is my right to make this decision-and I have encouraged my podunk friends to do likewise-dry up the funding we make to those various environmental and alternative fuel advocacy and research groups west of the Colorado River.
They do not sustain themselves-a major portion of their annual operating budgets are based on contributions from podunk Americans. That is why dear Stephen is no longer with them; it’s limited collateral damage control BUT he only said what many/most of them think.
My husband and I give, regularly, faithfully and abundantly because we have always shared a religious devotion to global stewardship. In our podunk university town in podunk mid-America we will no longer sustaining the people we trust speak of us with such disdain, such loathing and contempt as Stephen the poster boy spewed.
It’s all I can do to effectively thank Stephen for candidly sharing his wit and wisdom. Sustain yourselves. Great economy during which to be working that trick, but with your collective intelligence I’m confident you will manage famously.
Stephen and Renee have never served anything beyond being self-serving, self-promoting and basically selfish. Ego-centric sociopaths are just that way. I must say I don’t think their existence makes the world a better place-their absence would not constitute a tragic loss but I would throw a party.
Mr. Fowler:
You have become a lightning rod by your own hand.
You wasted a golden opportunity to use your massive array of gifts to build a bridge of connection, to position your causes in a favorable light, to begin a dialogue with “the other” and offer win-win solutions that take another’s viewpoint into account while advancing your own. If you were truly creative and effective as a leader, you would have recognized the opportunity here instead of braying so much about your own status and position.
The MO wife had a gift to offer you regarding your treatment of your children – a wise view about the importance of joy in our lives – and you ignored it and worse, judged her to be of so little worth that you couldn’t countenance anything she said. But she is one of the fellow human beings that you are purportedly trying to save the planet for! Or are you only trying to save the planet for the enlightened ones and everyone else be damned?
I used to allow people like you to intimidate me – people of great culture, education, and achievement. I truly thought you were my betters. As I grew older, I learned that what emanates from the heart is far more powerful than what emanates from the mind and that no college degree can give it to you. You must find it within yourself. It is true that the heart does not generate the economic power that the mind does, but without it, life is an empty husk – meaningless and void. I am sorry for you that you cannot see this – or perhaps you can now – but it is too late for your much vaunted public reputation. You have displayed your disdain for one of the core tenets of the American landscape – that of tolerance for all viewpoints without violence. Your words were violent and undeserved and will not be forgotten anytime soon by many who hold the roots of American democracy dear to their hearts and even more, hold common decency as a sacred trust.
You have, however, inadvertently given us a gift. You have shed the light on how disastrous and uneffective attacking each other can be. As Americans, we must pull together to work on solutions to the problems we face in the 21st century. We must forget party, class, race and all other divisions and remember the genius of the Constitution – that we can create a country founded on tolerance of all lifestyles and put our shoulders to the broader vision of freedom for all – and that means for the junk-food eaters and the vegans, the smokers and the marathon runners, the high and the low, the educated and the working classes, the wealthy and the indigent, the celebrated and the scorned. Are we not all, after all, Americans? And above that, human beings who share this wondrous place we call planet earth?
I leave you with this – my favorite poem of all time – which talks about humility, something you are getting quite a lesson in these days I reckon, and something which the MO couple have mastered quite beyond you, for all of their supposed ignorance.
Desiderata
Go placidly amid the noise and haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others,
even to the dull and ignorant; they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they are vexations to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain and bitter,
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs,
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals,
and everywhere life is full of heroism.
Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love;
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment
it is as perennial as the grass.
Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.
Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be.
And whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace with your soul.
With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.
Max Ehrman
(c) Max Ehrman 1926
Did you even read the bit about forgiving sinners? Prodigal son? Loving your fellow man?
If you want to talk the talk about religious devotion then at least walk the walk.
More hypocrisy – no surprise…
You know – my comments here are less vituperative than many and offered a path forward – a path borne out of love for your fellow human. I am sorry that you cannot see that and take it in the spirit with which it was intended.
I am not religious in any sense of the word but follow my own path of spirituality which has as it’s basic tenet – love thy neighbor as thyself – and I strive to uplift the people around me – not grind them down or demean them. It is in this spirit that I offered this post.
It is not up to me to forgive you. You must forgive yourself and perhaps gain a bit of wisdom that will affect your decisions moving forward in your life. We all learn lessons of humility in this life. It is what we do with them moving forward that defines us.
If you take nothing else away from this debacle, perhaps you could learn that kindness is a grand tool and that compassion for our fellow beings on this planet is never wasted. Out of the seeds of compassion, heart is born, and heart is where we need to be to bring the future we all desire into being.
I understand your defensiveness, but being churlish solves nothing. See the gift the universe is handing to you and rise up to the challenge of being your highest self. Stop attacking everyone.
I respect the British for upholding Western Civilisation. I think the Americans have Done their part for Britain and Europe. Those same middle Americans-as well as those on both coasts died to preserve Europe and Britain and Western Civisilation. Do you hear Americans referring to Britain as “Fly over country” (Like you don’t count). Without the Midwest of America (The Industrial Center). “WE” (Meaning Europe and The U.S. would have lost WWII and/or the cold war And YOU and We would would be Seig Heiling or starving and singing the praises of Stalin . Where do you think the Great Industrial Centers were ” California, Alaskia, Maine?” Mr. Stephen Fowler is not impeccably educated. He is an ass and I for one (Who admires the Brits. Want YOU you to take him back). He claims he is educated, but does not speak or conduct himself as a educated man. I respect You as a people. Perhaps YOU need to shut up. After all I dn not have ANYTHING negative to say about any of you.
Did you see the episodes in question? May be I was wrong about you. No I’m not. You feel patriotic ? What if I feel patriotic ? Oh that won’t count….Only Europeans have pride…..Sorry…We are subordinate to you as we are to “SIR STEPHEN FOWLER” What exactly does fowler mean in Britain. Does is mean superior, arrogant, overbearing, hyper-intelligent, lord master, landed. class superior ???? Britain was once in control the areas that became the “United States of America”. Do we now have to submit to the rule Master Fowler ? I don’t think so….
Stephen Baby! We don’t need to forgive arrogant ass holes. That’s You-Baby. That’s YOUR Bag!!!!! What is your phone No. Baby?
Stephen Fowler – Yes me. says__—_
Stephen….Go away and take your family with you. By the way….You live in one of the least efficient areas in the world. Way to go Mr. Ecology.
Stephen Baby!
Oh I remember! fowler (Lower Case) has something to do with birds. Ohh That’s it! A terrific family lineage to hit a American over the head with to prove your Royal blood lines! Or perhaps it reflects your intellect…….158..BINGO.
Sad commentary says….
YOU MUST ADHERE TO MY MY THOUGHT PROCESSES BECAUSE YOU ALL ARE INFERIOR AND HAVE NO..NO..No Right to show emotion towards any hateful emotion…Only I HAVE THE RIGHT TO DO THAT….
ed, ed, ed
Xanax, Prozac – something! Take a chill pill – WW2 is over! For the record “Fly over country” is not a foreigners term – it’s a term used for the Mid West by AMERICANS living on the two coasts!
Seriously ed – get a life, you need help… five consecutive posts in the middle of the night? I worry about you… no, really, I do – you are a sick man… 158 BINGO? WTF?
Time for the meds ed (lower case, like you type your own name, you obviously think little of yourself also).
Stephen Fowler – Capitalized and proud – bye ed.
I spend a great deal of time in SF (two to three months a year) and I am sorry to say that people with this attitude are not unusual. I have seen it.
In the East Coast city in which I live, and have for several decades, I have never, ever heard anyone talk this way about or to another person.
There is an unfortunate emphasis put on status and money in that city that makes me very uncomfortable.
He speaks of his IQ. I know a great number of Ivy League-educated, extremely intelligent people who would no more speak to another human being in the way in which he spoke to this woman than pigs would fly.
Lastly, it is apalling to see how and what he is teaching his children. It borders on criminal. If something about common decency isn’t taught to them, they’re doomed to become the same socially-challenged and insensitive beasts from which they were spawned.
ed, ed, ed, (we both use lower case for you, I see)!
Prozac, Xanax? Something!
You need to take a chill pill – 5 posts in a row in the middle of the night?! WW2 is over – get over it!
And for the record, the term “fly over country” is an AMERICAN term, used by AMERICANS to describe the godforsaken bit in the middle full of mouth breathing, redneck oafs.
Gettit?
Stepehn Fowler
Somebody explain to me please why everyone seems to accept this Fowler person’s word that his IQ is 158, or whatever he says it is. I for one don’t believe him. Why should anyone believe anything that comes out of his mouth? I mean really!
He has demonstrated such idiocy and stupidity (I know, that’s redunant — so what) as to prove to the world that he doesn’t even come close to being as smart as he thinks he is, much less near as smart as the great majority of humanity.
Sorry, had to get that off my chest.
WHAT AN IGNORANT S.O.B.
WHAT IS WRONG WITH A WIFE THAT WOULD EVEN THINK OF BEING WITH SOMEONE SO OBNOXIOUS.
GOD PITY HIS CHILDREN… WHAT A WONDERFULLY LOUSY EXAMPLE OF “A MAN” THIS IDIOT IS!
HE OUGHT TO BE HUNG BY HIS _____. I HOPE HE IS HAUNTED BY THE CONSEQUENCES OF HIS ACTIONS (AND BIG MOUTH) FOR THE REST OF HIS DAYS!!!
sent from: fav.or.it [FID5459667]
GO THE FUCK BACK WHERE YOU CAME FROM… AND WHAT A SHAME YOU EVER DID!
sent from: fav.or.it [FID5459729]
I’ve just watched this episode of wifeswap and I am ashamed to even acknowledge that this moronic imbecile is even british, We all know that reality shows often ask for dramatisation, but none the less, this guy is “pathetic” what made it worse is that he was being a big child himself infront of his own children mocking the lady “great example DAD!”, and yes I will call her a lady because she atleast held her head up regardless of all his insolent comments and remarks. I’m even ashamed of the fowlers wife, for not even saying a word or even a look of shock on her face when she found out what had gone on whilst she was away. Notice the final remark at the table, “don’t let your sons at me with a shotgun, and if you didn’t know, that was a final insult” so just goes to show who’s the bigger person with more intelligence. I have never been so shocked in my life, especially as I was brought up with the ability to recognise that we are all equal, regardless of colour or nationality. On a final note in response to his Final insult. if it was me, I would not have come at him with a shotgun, instead I’d give him a good old british beating.
I don’t need to do anything. You need to leave and take your pathetic family with you…..
Stevie !Baby ! The best part of you ran down your fathers leg !
Stevie !Baby ! Admit it WE hate you !
I’ve never used the derogatory them “Fly Over Country” You are a maggot…..
Hey Stevie, Baby- Shut up allready. Big Boy….
Hi Buffy, He does’nt have balls. All he has is hubris. Is’nt that correct stevie? Rennee has all the balls in the family. Isn’t that right stepheeee?
Stevie, Your so smart I thought you of all people would get it. You are a bird brain. Along with your blue blooded heritage….Actually you appear like your family intermarried (Scrawny, ugly, insane…) what more can we say ? You are a “Citizen of the world! Cause NO ONE wants you!!!!! By “sir stephan” hahahahaha…
Stevie, Baby! I don’t need to do anything you say. I don’t care about you like you don’t care about average Anericans…
Did’nt Rennee basically say you are in need of professional help?? Far be it for me to interject myself in a family squabble but I think you need the drugs. How’s the therapy going???
Stevie, I know none of your family could serve in WWII cause of your congenital insanity and under developed bodies*. But some of us lost family members in the war. You are a rat faced puke.
* Conditions you still exibit.
O.K. Stephan If this why you are so unhinged I’ll leave you alone. You hove Demons I can’t imagine. The following is a quote from Digg
Mr. Fowler is obviously the by-product of British colonialism (India?). Fowler likely came to the US because there would be nowhere to hide in England where NO amount of money or education would EVER make him socially acceptable, so he comes to the US where race and family background are less important to success. However, his deeply ingrained sense of inferiority (compliments of the British “caste” system) has poisoned his soul as evidenced by every word that came out of his mouth on Wife-Swap and I hate to think of what was edited out. Instead of enjoying the success that his intelligence and education has brought to him here in the United States, he appears to inhabit a very dark and ugly world. What a delight he must be to live with
Thought about it and I’d like to meet in “World is One” Join Me, Buddy?
Cmon Stevie I’m offering an olive branch here…..Oh never mind once an Ass…..
Cmon Stevie Talk to me! I’ll talk to you like you talk to us. And ya know what ? I don’t care about “Master Stevie” or “Life Coach – Renee” feelings…Oh guilt me! Rat faced pukes……
Stevie….Baby-bo-bo…So by your logic if the English call all Scotts “Inbred Coc* Sucking, Animal Fucki**, mold eating, Retards thats O.K. You are an ass hole. A mouldering rotting asshole puke of an rodent carcass….And your face is worse.
Ok, Ed. I’ve put up with this long enough. These comments are getting hideously offensive and CREEPY.
It’s been long enough now, that I am closing comments…the rambling going on here by one person is just too weird for me.