6 Things We Can Learn From Joe Exotic, The Tiger King About Revenge

They say revenge is a dish best served cold.  Joe Exotic apparently did not get the memo.  Now serving a 22-year prison sentence for a murder-for-hire plot, Joe the ‘Tiger King’ is the poster boy for revenge gone wrong.  The self-described “gay, gun-toting cowboy with a mullet”  lost touch with reality as his hunger for revenge grew out of control.

The increasing obsession with revenge against Big Cat Rescue’s founder and CEO Carole Baskin is  chronicled in the Netflix docu-series ‘Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem, and Madness’.  Currently the most streamed show in America, this coronavirus- quarantine-hit raked in 34 million viewers in its first 10 days.  

While outlandishly entertaining, there are also key takeaways from the ‘Tiger King’ we can all apply when we have been done wrong.  Here are 6 things we can learn from Joe Exotic about revenge.

1. Your First Reaction Is Not Your Best Reaction

Joe’s feud with Carole began in 2004 when the Oklahoman ran a story about a cub at Joe’s zoo had been born crippled, a possible result of inbreeding.  The reporter reached out to animal activist Carole Baskin for comment, in which case she stated “No legitimate animal sanctuary would allow that to happen”.  At the time Joe was doing mall tours with tiger cubs, a practice Carole passionately fought to banish.  Carole employed her fans and followers to bombard the malls hosting Joe’s cub petting gigs with emails protesting the events.  The malls received so many emails that they canceled Joe’s upcoming shows and agreed not to book anymore.  

Joe immediately took to his Youtube channel Joe Exotic TV to publicly address his beef with Carole.  He used mannequins and blow-up dolls to represent Carole and would shoot them point-blank in the head, along with other degrading acts.  This was only the beginning of Joe’s pursuit to humiliate Carole.  He also exposed a 20-year rumor that Carole killed her first husband and either fed him to the tigers or buried him beneath a septic tank.  Joe even made a music video titled “Here Kitty Kitty” featuring a spot on look-alike of Carole holding a man’s head on a platter while she feeds “body parts” to the tigers.  Joe didn’t stop there and neither did Carole.

The Lesson

Always take time to think about what your course of action is, if any.  Sometimes it is best to not react at all.  Never act on impulse when emotions are running high.

2. An Eye For An Eye Will Make The Whole World Blind

Carole became ruthless in her attempts to bring Joe down.  Other animal rights organizations, including PETA joined Carole’s crusade.  Joe became a target in the underground world of big cat owners.  Joe would eventually go on a local news segment and threaten animal rights groups with guns, stating “This could be another Waco”.  Joe received threats on Facebook and even caught a member of PETA sneaking onto his property in hopes of gaining undercover footage of mistreated animals at the zoo.   

In response, animal rights groups created websites to expose wildlife abuse where, again Joe becomes the main target.  Joe continues social media attacks on these groups and Carole.  He decided to film a tour of Carole’s animal sanctuary Big Cat Rescue to document the hypocrisy in her accusations about Joe’s poor care for his animals.  He rented a helicopter and filmed the location of the zoo grounds, causing one tiger to have seizures due to the loud noise.  Joe even began using Carole’s Big Cat Rescue logo as his own, with very slight differences.  In turn, she sued Joe for copyright infringement seeking a resolution of $1 million.  Joe seeks revenge yet again, and hosted a protest outside Big Cat Rescue where protesters passed out pictures of Carole’s employees smiling while holding bloody bunnies.  Carole obtains a copyright on the photos and sues Joe for infringement again.

The Lesson

Revenge is a vicious cycle where each participant continuously attempts to top the other.  Things can quickly get out of control leaving no one a clear winner.  Know when to hang up the hat and lick your wounds at home.

3. Don’t Fuel The Fire

Journalist and producer Rick Kirkham agreed to help get Joe’s Youtube show Joe Exotic TV off the ground in exchange for permission to film his own reality TV show based on Joe’s life at the zoo.  Rick and Joe eventually get into an argument about the contract.  Joe discovered that not only does Rick own the footage of the reality show, but the footage of Joe’s Youtube channel as well.  Joe was furious and immediately left the park for a few days, but not before he changed the locks to Rick’s studio.  Joe seeks legal advice from his attorney and was advised to simply “take care of it”.  During his departure, a fire was set to the studio housing the footage, evidence subpoenaed by Big Cat Rescue, seven alligators, and one crocodile.  All of which were lost in the fire.  Although arson was confirmed, no arrests were made.  The case is still open.

Once again, Joe takes to his Youtube channel to inform his viewers of the fire.  He accuses everyone from animal rights activists to Carole Baskin to the producer himself.  Joe offers an award of $10,000 for any information leading to the arrest of the arsonist and doubles it if the fire is linked to any animal rights activists.  He repeatedly threatens retaliation of the fire with Carole’s life claiming he will put a bullet between her eyes, when in fact all signs point to Joe being the arsonist.

The Lesson

By creating a public reputation of seeking revenge to your enemy, you will be the first person accused went shit goes down.  Even if you are innocent, everyone will question the lengths you will go to take down your opponent.

4.  Don’t Cut Off Your Nose To Spite Your Face

To prolong the lawsuits against him, Joe changed the name of the zoo several times and made countersuits against Carole.  However, the judge dismissed Joe’s countersuits and awarded judgement in favor of the plaintiff, Carole Baskin in the amount of $1 million.  Carole seized some of Joe’s assets, including a semi-truck and a tour bus.  To prevent losing anymore assets, Joe decided to transfer the zoo, all other assets, and bills into his mother’s name.  Joe thought he had found the perfect loophole to keep Carole from collecting the $1 million.  Unfortunately, that was not how the story went.

Carole files a lawsuit against Joe’s mother, Shirley Schreibvogel for concealing Joe’s assets.  Shirley became financially drained from legal defense fees and filed for bankruptcy.  This led Joe to a stronger financial need for more cub petting, which meant more breeding.  This was the complete opposite of the outcome Carole wanted, as cub petting and breeding were the two main factors she focused in on to prevent Joe from doing.  Additionally, Carole has spent $1 million dollars in legal fees to gain $1 million from Joe.  She claims it is was never about money, but strictly about stopping the exploitation of tiger cubs and breeding.  Joe attempts this scheme once again and transfers the zoo to acquaintance and big cat lover Jeff Lowe, which also ends with Joe getting bite in the ass.

The Lesson

While on the all-consuming revenge mission, it is easy to lose sight of what we stand to lose and at what cost.  Those we love and even the innocent we don’t even know often become those among the carnage that acts of revenge leave behind.  Always consider how your actions might affect others, even if not directly involved.

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5. A Man Who Desires Revenge Should Dig Two Graves

Joe created the GW Exotic Animal Foundation in honor of his late brother, who was killed by a drunk driver.  He had the best intentions with the zoo, but later the desire for fame and the escalating drive for revenge led Joe to dark places.  Those dark places caused Joe to lose focus on the animals and his initial vision.  Joe only had one thing in his line of sight and that was destroying Carole Baskin.  With every reaction to Carole that Joe made, came a stronger (and smarter) reaction from Carole.  

Joe lost much more than his focus.  His life became a chaotic downward spiral that left him with nothing.  Everything he had worked for all these years was gone.  His threats towards Carole caught the attention of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the FBI.  Joe Exotic is currently serving a 22-year prison sentence for 2 counts of soliciting Carole Baskin’s murder, 8 counts of falsifying records, and 9 counts of violating the Endangered Species Act.  Joe only succeeded in one area of revenge. After the series aired, the Hillsborrough County sheriff reopened the case concerning Carole’s missing husband, Don Lewis.  Was this bittersweet act of revenge worth the sacrifice?  We might ask Carole the same question in the future.

The Lesson

You can only take someone down by going down with them.  Simple enough.

6. The Best Revenge Is Living Your Best Life

Although Carole’s attempts to take Joe down can be seen as petty, she never lost sight of her mission.  She continues to be one of the most talked about and successful big cat enthusiasts.  Despite recently dug up controversy, Carole and her current husband Howard are still sitting pretty with fortune and fame. After cutting ties with Joe, the former producer Rick Kirkham moved to Norway with his new wife.  He currently works as a freelance reporter and his happy to have put the Joe Exotic days far behind him.  Jeff Lowe and his wife still own and operate the zoo they acquired from Joe after he lost the lawsuit with Carole.  

Despite Joe’s attempts to destroy those that he believed slighted him, they are doing well and living their best life.  The Tiger King crown has been handed over to Carole, making her Tiger Queen.  Joe is the only one who truly reaped the consequences of his actions of revenge.  Sadly, Joe is still consumed by strong desires of seeking revenge, even from prison.  He filed a $94 million civil rights lawsuit against multiple government agencies and former business partners.  He is also seeking $15 million in compensation for false imprisonment, discrimination, malicious prosecution, selective enforcement, and death of his mother.  Stated in the lawsuit, Joe alleges Carole Baskin was behind the use of confidential informant James Garretson, former business parter Jeff Lowe, and a federal wildlife agent to entrap him in a false murder-for-hire scheme.  

The Lesson

Letting go and forgiving your enemies will free you from the constraints that seeking revenge inflicts.  Ruining someone else’s life will not improve your own.  It is important to remember your personal goals and aspirations of the person you want to become.  Don’t let thoughts of revenge prevent you from achieving all that you are capable.

Have you ever had a plan of revenge backfire?  Share your story with us in the comments below.

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