Hall of Shame Moment: Jonathan’s Anger Goes Too Far on ‘The Amazing Race 6’

Dwight D. Eisenhower once said, "Leadership is the art of getting someone else to do something you want done because he wants to do it." Thomas Jefferson wisely noted, "When angry, count ten before you speak; if very angry, one hundred." And Benjamin Franklin is quoted as saying, "Any fool can criticize, condemn, and complain, and most fools do."

Since the sixth season of The Amazing Race began, emails have been pouring in about Jonathan and his boorish behavior toward his wife, Victoria, and calling for a Reality TV Hall of Shame induction. Until now, the Hall of Shame staff have read the missives and believed that Jonathan was just wound a little too tight. It's a competition. His behavior had not risen to the level of the Hall of Shame.

That was, until this week.

It seems that Jonathan has a quote as well, which he posted on his website: "If you're going to lead, lead. If you're going to follow, follow. Anything else get the f--k out of my way." At the start of The Amazing Race, Jonathan told us he was a dictator, a Type-A personality. He yelled at his wife so much in the first episode she said she wanted to change her name. And who can forget his raising his hand as if to backhand her in another episode? (Disclaimer: I am a prosecutor specializing in domestic violence cases. However, my comments here are in no way to be considered an accusation of any illegality on Jonathan's part.)

So why hand him a Hall of Shame Moment at all? Some of you may have seen that he can be nice to locals, handing out candy to children and bonding with villagers. It's true that his treatment of his wife does not speak to the whole of the man. However, his behavior at the finish line of this week's episode crossed the line from competitive to combative.

There were some harsh words from Jonathan earlier in the episode, but nothing prepared us for what ultimately happened. He called Victoria lazy for not getting into a taxi fast enough, and he threatened to "lose it" if she couldn't get things right. However, that's par for the course with Jonathan.

It wasn't until the final few yards of this leg of the race that Jonathan's behavior crossed over from boorish into shameful. As they approached the pit stop (Brandenburg gate in Berlin), Jonathan whined to Victoria that he couldn't carry his bag and run at the same time. Victoria was still running with hers. Jonathan tried to convince a street vendor to watch his bag, but Victoria had a pace going and didn't stop. At this point, Freddy and Kendra were nipping at their heels.

When Victoria passed him, Jonathan took up his pack again and ran. Victoria tried to explain that he could do it, as she was running with a pack that was heavier than his was. Jonathan wasn't listening. He stashed his bag behind a construction site wall and took off. Victoria shouted to him that someone might take his stuff, but Jonathan never looked back and Victoria made the ill-fated choice to pick up his bag and run with both her bag and his. She was hysterical, sobbing and shouting for Jonathan, who was yards away. When they finally caught up to one another, Jonathan was livid. "WHY DID YOU PICK UP MY BAG?!" Jonathan yanked his bag off Victoria and again shouted, "WHY?!"

Victoria continued to sob and didn't answer. As they walked, Jonathan demanded to know "how you could f--k me up like that?" Then came the moment that landed him smack dab in the Hall of Shame. Instead of counting to ten, or walking away, or just talking about it later, Jonathan chose to slam his hand, full force, into Victoria's backpack. The force used was enough to send Victoria stumbling sideways, spilling the materials in her hand and almost causing her to fall.

Victoria tried, in vain, to explain that she was worried about his bag being stolen, but Jonathan would not be mollified. When they got to the mat, Jonathan flung his pack down at Phil's feet and berated Victoria in front of Phil. Victoria walked away sobbing. Before going to Victoria at Phil's request (the first time Phil has ever intervened in such a way), Jonathan told Phil, "She's gonna live with her choices." And when he went to Victoria, it was not to settle things or explain himself more calmly, but to tell her that "This is a race! This isn't about compassion!"

We have seen acts of aggressiveness land others in the Hall of Shame, such as Robb throttling Clay in a challenge during Surivor: Thailand. On Big Brother 2, Justin was awarded the very first full Hall of Shame induction for aggressive behavior that started when he put a knife to a drunken housemate's neck, an act which got him evicted from the house.

Jonathan's action of slamming Victoria's backpack was no better than those instances and no less worthy of a Hall of Shame Moment. Whether his behavior improves enough to spare him a full induction to the Hall of Shame remains to be seen, but if the preview of the next episode is any indication (telling Victoria, "You be the woman and be quiet, then"), Jonathan may well be on his way to full Hall of Shame inductee status. In the meantime, he will have to be satisfied with this Hall of Shame Moment. And let us hope it is a moment that is never repeated.

Mel can be reached at melzreality@yahoo.com.

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