Websites that get down and dirty

Kelley Marble

Thursdays are the new Fridays. So what are you going to do this Thursday night?

Whatever it is, it might be in your best interest to make sure you aren’t doing anything to embarrass yourself because Perez Hilton isn’t the only Internet blogger out there to attack people these days.

There is a new predator out there with a mission to massacre the common folk. His name is Nik Richie, or so he claims, and the domain he uses to trash you is called Thedirty.com.

Richie has a cast of individuals who frequent his site on a daily basis, which he has fashioned in almost a cult-like nature, running from bar to party to myspace.com in order to find embarrassing pictures of anyone. It does not seem to matter who is victim is. His group of sheep are referred to as his “dirty army.”

This scandal site focuses on major cities such as Las Vegas, Los Angeles, San Diego, or more locally, Newport Beach. Pictures arrive in his inbox anonomously, and the research as to where to pictures are really taken is non-existent. He just puts his trust in whoever e-mailed him the picture.

It is hard to put the sole blame on the site’s moderator, who ironically refuses to reveal his true name. But who can blame him? He is slowly making his way to becoming one of the most hated-yet successful-Internet bloggers on most college campuses and party scenes. But blame truly lies within yourself or your “frenemies” who are sending your picture in to “The dirty.” So you might just want to think twice before you have the fifth drink instinct.

Anyway, it is rather childish to be talking smack via the Internet anyways. What is the point in calling someone out and not backing it up.

In order to lure people to send their pictures in, Nik Richie often focuses on certain individuals, giving them nicknames that mocks their physical appearance.

It seems sadly obvious that in his opinion, no one is perfect, no one is above being humiliated on his site. I guess, that is, except for him.

A recent picture posted on the site of a girl using narcotics was followed by a note saying: “I thought if you do blow you become automatically skinny? Isn’t that why people do it. DIRTY ARMY don’t be afraid of sending drug use is life abuse pictures… People need to know the facts about their neighbors and co-workers.”

It seems like a sad, pathetic excuse for an online site to out someone, unless it is a ploy to make you feel better about yourself. But at the same time, who would be ignorant enough to put themselves in a situation that could basically ruin their lives.

Thedirty.com is an ongoing trend spreading worldwide now. Other websites of this stature are out there focusing on college campuses such as San Diego State University.Iit just seems this one has built itself a reputation for being one of the dirtiest.

Suspicions are rising about who Nik Richie really is. All that is known of him is that he is from Scottsdale, Arizona and supposedly he runs the site on his lunch breaks.

It is hard to say whether the trend of humiliating or hunting people will ever die down, but hopefully it does for those out there who don’t do much thinking while drinking.

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