Remember a few weeks ago when that fake news story about herpes and beer pong was misinterpreted as real? Suddenly everyone was talking about how beer pong players were at risk of catching any number of VDs from their sport. Well, we now know that one isn’t at significantly higher risk of catching a disease from lofting ping pong balls into cups of beer but there is a chance of death.

Yup, death.

A recent game of Beirut led to a fatal shooting when Joseph B. Jimenez and Scott Riley began arguing. It’s not clear what point of the game they argued over. Nevertheless, they wound up in a nearby alley where they continued to argue and, finally, Jimenez, pulled a gun and shot Riley in the throat.

Over beer pong.

Beer pong.

It would be pointless for me to call this absolutely stupid. No doubt we all agree on that, even Jimenez. Getting so worked up over a game that you’re willing to shoot someone is clearly the act of someone who needs to work on his critical thinking skills. But I think that the really dumb decision happened much earlier in the evening.

Let’s think about the game of beer pong for a moment. It’s fun, right? But it’s also a game with many different interpretations of the rules. It is also highly competitive and strategies often focus on trash talking the other player. Add that the to the copious amounts of alcohol that can sometimes be consumed during play and you have the potential for tempers to flair. Indeed, this might be the first beer pong fatality but it is hardly the first time a fight broke out over a game.

No doubt Jimenez had played before so he knew all of these things. So why the hell did he bring a gun to the game? Here was the really stupid decision that he made that evening. When you are entering into a situation that may bring out your temper and, at the same time, lower you capacity for good judgment leave the damn gun at home!