G4 to 'salute' Ryan Dunn?

G4 has announced plans to air the so-far unseen episodes of ‘Proving Ground’ as a salute to the late Ryan Dunn. The tribute begins on July 19th at 7pm, Eastern. I have to be honest, where is the teachable moment in all of this?

This idolization seems as insensitive towards Zachary’s family as Ebert’s minutes-after-death tweet that “Friends don’t let jackasses drink and drive.” Ebert’s poor timing and lack of sensitivity made him look like a…what is the word… jackass?

With time to grieve and digest the tragic and unnecessary deaths of Dunn and Zachary Hartwell, we need to take the ball and run with it for our children’s sake. We may need to sting a little so that the thousands of young Dunn fans KNOW not to make the same mistake. Driving drunk and recklessly repeatedly, taking the life of another human being, is not something we as a society should idolize.

Ryan Dunn, if alive, would be facing a vehicular manslaughter charge right now. It has been reported that Dunn had been cited 23 times for driving infractions in the past 13 years- including 10 speeding and careless driving tickets and three for driving with a suspended license. There was also a drunken driving arrest in 2005. Best friend and MTV star Bam Margera even shared that Dunn had crashed in the same exact location where Dunn and Hartwell met their deaths.

Margera told The Hollywood Reporter, "He flipped me in a car eight times at the same exact spot in 1996, Thank God I had my seat belt on, because Chris Raab put one on me, but my brother didn't have one on. He flew 40 feet. Thank God he's alive. But like, Dunn was always a maniac at driving."

There was another person in this car. His name has been mentioned peripherally at best. Zachary Hartwell. I can’t imagine what his family is feeling as Ryan Dunn is being 'saluted' on G4. Ryan Dunn reportedly had a blood alcohol content level nearly twice the legal limit when he crashed his Porsche. I don't believe in condemning Dunn, but let's point out the faults of this behavior. Let's air PSA's. Let's shout from the mountaintops the err in his actions so that some lives may be saved from these lost two.

Nj.com reader Todd Kostrub shared, "Dunn is not only being idolized, he's being cast as someone who was a great human being, ignoring the glaring problem that honoring human life is the first qualification for such honor. Children will die from this exercise and in the end more lives will be lost since there are many that are bound to emulate and seek this same treatment."

Kostrub's opinion may not be the popular one, but he makes a very important point. My heart grieves for Dunn and Hartwell. Especially as I ponder HOW they met their deaths. I pray it was the impact and not the fiery aftermath that took their lives. But here is where I'm going to sound 'judgmental' - we need to be clear-there was nothing heroic or worth saluting by Dunn's final action, driving drunk and vehicular homicide.

What do you think? Is paying tribute to Ryan Dunn on G4 sending out the wrong message to our kids?