This, this right here, is why a wise man once said nothing at all.
One second, you’re celebrating your dank new internship on Twitter with your internet friends, and the next second, it all comes crumbling down because of your own ignorance.
Twitter user Naomi H. (who is apparently a furry, just to make this story even weirder), knows exactly what I’m talking about.
A couple of days ago, the following Twitter exchange went viral:
Twitter
And according to reports, Naomi lost her precious NASA internship because of it. Talk about ‘life comes at you fast.’
However, surprisingly enough, it had nothing to do with Homer Hickam, the former NASA engineer and member of the National Space Council advisory group who Naomi told to suck her dick AND balls.
In fact, this Hickam guy actually seems chill AF (unsurprising considering he’s a big space nerd), as he said in a blog post that he is doing making sure there is “no black mark” on her record and doing “all he can” to secure her an even BETTER gig than the one she just lost.
via Homer Hickam’s Blog:
I’m a Vietnam vet and not at all offended by the F-word. However, when I saw NASA and the word used together, it occurred to me that this young person might get in trouble if NASA saw it so I tweeted to her one word: “Language” and intended to leave it at that.
Soon, her friends took umbrage and said a lot of unkind things but long after I was gone as I immediately deleted my comments and blocked all concerned.
Later, I learned she had lost her offer for an internship with NASA. This I had nothing to do with nor could I since I do not hire and fire at the agency or have any say on employment whatsoever. As it turned out, it was due to the NASA hashtag her friends used that called the agency’s attention to it long after my comments were gone.
She reached out to me with an unnecessary apology which I heartily accepted and returned with my own. After talking to her, I am certain she deserves a position in the aerospace industry and I’m doing all I can to secure her one that will be better than she lost. I have also talked to the folks that had to do with her internship and made absolutely certain that there will be no black mark on her record.
So, let that be a lesson, kids: if someone random old guy approaches you on Twitter, never answer, no matter the circumstance.
Also, maybeee don’t tell strangers to suck your dick and balls, that would probably help too.