In the 32 years that I’ve been alive, there have been some holy shit moments. The Challenger explosion. The World Trade Center bombing. The Oklahoma City bombing. Columbine. And now this. Luckily, I have no family in New York, so I’ve been spared as far as I know.
My heart goes out to the families of the victims. More commentary later.
Ever hear of the Robin Hood Hills Murders? How about the West Memphis 3? Me neither until I saw a documentary on HBO the other night called Paradise Lost. To my goth readers, you probably already know all the details. To my other readers, if I have any, please read on.
I’m a little sketchy on all the details and names since it’s been a few days since I saw the movie, but I will provide links to other sites that can do this much better justice than I can.
I believe it was in 1993 that three children were brutally raped, tortured, mutilated, and eventually murdered in West Memphis, Arkansas. West Memphis is one of those towns in the deep south you think doesn’t really exist anymore. They’re for the most part, fundamentalist Christians to the point of zealotry. They cried out for a quick arrest to be made. Eventually, they arrested 3 teens. One, their alleged leader, goes by the name of Damien Echols. Damien Echols is kind of like someone I know. He dressed in black, listened to heavy metal, and studied alternate religions. In fundamentalist towns, people like this are seen as devil worshipers. One of his friends, whose last name I believe is Misskelley, I could have the spelling wrong on that, has the IQ of a nerf ball. He was allegedly held under police questioning for 12 hours, even though only I believe an hour and a half of tape exists. He confessed to being part of the murders, even though his testimony contradicts some of the facts of the crime scene. After his conviction and subsequent life sentence, Damien Echols was then tried, convicted, and sentenced to death for these murders. The third teen, whose name escapes me right now, was also sentenced to life after his trial.
The thing is the police so bungled their case against Echols I don’t think they would have gotten a conviction in any other state that isn’t predominantly a backwoods, bible thumping, inbred, white trash state like Arkansas. Evidence was mishandled. Leads were not followed up on. One of the prosecution’s star witnesses who professed to be an expert on the occult received his degree from a mail-order college.
Damien Echols didn’t help his own case, though. He wasn’t always Damien. He allegedly took the name Damien after the Catholic priest Father Damien who helped the lepers in Hawaii before succumbing to the disease himself. But, as my wife pointed out, there’s also Damien from the Omen trilogy and Father Damien in the Exorcist movies who banished the demon in I and then was possessed by the demon in III. According to the movie, he might have been a follower of Alistair Crowley and Anton LaVey, two self-admitted Satanists. But on the other hand, I have read the works of Crowley and LaVey. Does this make me a Satanist? Hell no. (Pun intended) Reading those books made me even stronger in my faith in Christ and God. I think what sealed Damien’s fate was that he admitted to believing in Wicca. To those who don’t know, Wicca is a belief in mother earth instead of God and is also known as white magic. To the fundamentalist redneck hicks of West Memphis, he might as well as said that he was a satanist.
Also, one of the victim’s step-father has an air of suspicion swirling around him. His wife died under mysterious circumstances. Some of the victims had bite marks and the step-father had all his teeth removed, stating either they fell out, the dentist, removed them, or he lost them in a fight. He is also a gem cutter, which requires surgeon-like precision, which is what the county coroner said was required in order to inflict such wounds. And one of the victim’s biological father believes that the WM3 are innocent.
I don’t know whether Damien Echols committed these murders or not. Only seven people know, as my wife put it, the victims, the accused, and God. And God’s not talking right now. Anyway, my point is that the West Memphis 3 deserve a retrial. And the only way they are going to get a fair trial is to take it out of Arkansas. In order for a fair trial it must be taken to a religiously neutral or mixed state. Otherwise, it’s just another case in which their only crime was being “different”.
I mean no disrespect to the victims. My condolences go out to their families.
I read this article today about some of the families of the Columbine shooting victims are suing video game manufacturers. They are singling out the popular game “Doom” specifically. As usual, I will preface this by saying again my heart goes out to the victims’ families. Not a day goes by where I don’t pray for them. But I think their latest efforts are misguided. Suing the video game manufacturers for the billions they’re asking for just seems a little too much to me.
The video games are not to blame. To me, the blame lies squarely on the parents of Harris and Klebold. For those of you who may not know in Doom, you are a “space marine” and you go around shooting aliens with big guns and the aliens bleed red blood.
It is a pretty violent game. I’ve played it a few times myself. This is not a game for kids or teens. When I first played it, the game was clearly rated “M” for mature. Meaning, only 17+ should play the game. If I caught my son playing this game, he’d be grounded until his wedding day. The game did not make these kids killers. Egomania and inattentive parents did. If they should sue anybody it should be the parents, which they already did and won, or the retailers who sold them this game, or whoever bought it for them.
I hate to say this but suing the video game manufacturers looks like some ambulance chasing lawyer whispered into their ears. It looks very opportunistic.
I came across an AP article on Thursday about a 14-year-old boy in Georgia who was discovered to have who had several guns, Nazi posters, $4,900 in cash, and bomb recipes in his room in relation to a suspected bomb threat against his middle school. 10 other homes of students were raided as well. Now the media is labeling them as “goths” but I guess that’s par for the course these days. Now the article goes on as the AP interviewed the boy’s father. He tried to defend his son by stating the following…
The boy’s father told The Associated Press on Thursday that the handguns belong to his son-in-law, who is visiting from Illinois. The pistols were stashed in his son’s room to keep them away from younger children, he said. “He is not a violent kid,” the father said. The boy pulled bomb-making recipes off the Internet only to demonstrate to his father how easily teens could find such instructions online, the father said. As for the drawing of Adolf Hitler seized from the boy’s room, the father said his son once wrote a school report on Adolf Hitler and got a good grade for it. He said his son claimed the $4,900 belonged to a friend.
Now, I’ve been a victim of extreme coincidence, but this sounds so far-fetched. Even to me. It sounds like the father is trying to cover his own ass for either not knowing that this was going on or, he was encouraging this behavior. The guns, the bomb instructions, Nazi paraphernalia, it all fits together too nicely. And the old “He’s holding the $5,000 for a friend” routine is a classic case of “Not my child” syndrome. Unfortunately, this just another case of parents who have no involvement in their children’s lives. With all the recent outbreaks of school violence, I fear another tragedy might happen this 20th. For the love of God, I hope I’m wrong.
An update to a previous post.
Thank God, the Florida legislature has enacted a law stating that any outside party wishing to view autopsy photos must gain clearance through a judge. Hopefully, this will keep Dale Earnhardt’s autopsy photos out of the hands of internet death merchants.
Ok, I’m not the biggest race fan in the world. As a matter of fact, I don’t see what the attraction is of watching cars turn left for 3 hours. But when you live in the south, NASCAR is a way of life.
2 1/2 weeks ago, Dale Earnhardt was killed in a crash at the Daytona 500. Now, as you all know, I live in North Carolina. I live a stone’s throw from where Earnhardt lived and grew up. And I’ve heard nothing but good things about the man. I couldn’t help but get swept up in the outpouring of emotion from the local community. I even put the graphic you see above on the front page of my site. But now the media is at it again, and in my “favorite” city in the country. The Orlando Sentinel wants access to the autopsy photos of Dale Earnhardt for their own investigative purposes.
They claim that they would not print these photos for public viewing. Now, there are many things wrong with this situation. First of all, you know that if they are granted access, some copy boy or other unscrupulous employees would get their hands on the photos and sell them to the highest bidder. Then they would be splashed all over the internet. And would be eaten up by the same people who rent the “Faces of Death” movies and worship Charles Manson. Secondly, where was the Orlando Rag when drivers like Davey Allison, Adam Petty, and Kenny Erwin were killed? Also, the family of Dale Earnhardt hasn’t even had time to grieve yet because of the media vultures in Orlando. How would you like it if one of your family member’s autopsy photos were printed for the world to see?
This is a case of making the news instead of reporting it. And in their arrogance, the Orlando Rag has printed an article defending their actions and listing what other newspapers support them. Two of the papers mentioned are in Miami and Tampa. And we all know the journalistic integrity of those three cities. Especially after the election fiasco. For me personally, this gives me just one more reason to hate the state of Florida. As Bugs Bunny once said, “South America, take her away.” So do me a favor, please. Go to the Orlando Sentinel website and give them what for.
Ok, so I’m reading an article in the local news rag (The Charlotte Disturber) about a local high school student who got suspended once for having the Confederate flag in the back window of her truck and then got in trouble again for wearing the Confederate flag on her t-shirt. This got me to thinking about how both sides of this argument are so very wrong.
Let me first dispel some rumors about the south. Of all the many years I’ve spent in the south, I have seen fewer instances of racial hate crimes on the news, than all the years I lived in the northeast. Rednecks exist in every state north or south. Just go to Millville, New Jersey sometime. And it’s not just a southern thing, either. I have seen many a confederate flag flying in the state of New Jersey.
Now to the issue at hand. Some southerners cling to the notion that the Confederate flag shows pride in their southern heritage. Now, I have no problem with people being proud of where they come from. Which is why I wear my New Jersey Devils hockey jersey every chance I get, but I digress. But I see three problems with flying that flag. One, um….hello, the civil war is over, you lost, get over it. I mean, it’s like flying a flag that says, “Hey, we’re proud that we lost”. Secondly, unfortunately, hate groups like the KKK and neo-Nazi skinheads (not all skinheads are neo-Nazis) have taken the flag as their own. So now most of the country views the flag as a symbol of racism. Hell, I even used to have the confederate flag t-shirt from when Billy Idol’s “Rebel Yell” was popular, but I wouldn’t dare wear it today. No matter how much you try to justify that it’s not a symbol of racism, it’s too late. The swastika is also an American Indian symbol. But since World War II, not too many tribes have been using it. Thirdly, it’s not even the true flag of the Confederacy. It is the Confederate Navy Jack. The true 1st flag of the Confederacy looks like this…
But that’s still a Confederate flag. My suggestion to you is if you want to show your southern pride, come up with a new flag instead. And please for the love of God stop requesting “Freebird” on the radio.
Recently, the Federal Trade Commission released a report saying that the film, music, television, and video game industries have been marketing adult-oriented material towards children. Let me add to this by saying, “Duh!”. This has been going on for years. When I was 11, a movie came out called “Friday the 13th”. It was rated R, and I was much too young at the time. Did that stop me from wanting to go see it? Um…..NO!!!!! What did stop me was a responsible mother who realized I was too young to witness such violence. Not to mention the fact, looking back, I really didn’t miss much outside of seeing Kevin Bacon get slaughtered, but I digress. I found an article (dead link) on MSNBC.com that had Al Gore’s reaction to the FTC findings…
Gore said Monday if the entertainment industry did not halt such practices, he would support unspecified measures to hold it accountable. “A lot of it has to be done privately,” Gore said in an appearance on the Oprah Winfrey television talk show. “It’s not about censorship; it’s about citizenship, including corporate citizenship.” Referring to his wife’s involvement in the 1980s in a campaign to urge the recording industry to voluntarily label obscene and violent lyrics, Gore said, “Tipper started 20 years ago educating me about why parents need more help, and she was successful in convincing the recording industry to give warnings to parents when material is inappropriate,” Gore said. “Now Joe Lieberman and I are following up on that to try to persuade all the companies in that industry to abide by what they said they would do.”
Ok, let’s break this down, shall we…
1. He’s on Oprah. We know how great a fair and even-handed political forum the Oprah Show is.
2. This is coming from the man who has accepted more campaign funds from the Hollywood industry than any presidential candidate ever.
3. He dug up the ghosts of the PMRC. The ill-fated pet project of Tipper Gore. She cried for ratings, she got a sticker.
4. So either this man is dead serious about censorship or he’s a hypocrite. Either way, that makes him dangerous.
Bottom line: All corporations are soulless money-making machines out for a fast buck. Of course, they are marketing towards your children. Children want most what they can’t have. It’s yours and my job as parents and step-parents to protect our children, not the government. And if you feel it is the government’s job to help raise your children, than you shouldn’t have had kids in the first place.
So my friends at The Washington Post are at it again. No, it’s not about me this time, but you’ll see the connection if you’ve been reading this site. (Yeah, right.)
I read an article run in the daily newspaper that was run in the Post on 8/12/2000. The article was an opinion piece about how video game manufacturers are marketing their merchandising for M rated video games towards pre-schoolers. Now I thought it was just another article saying that the government should be the watchers of our children and not the parents until I saw this quote concerning ratings…
“More concretely, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Sen. Joseph Lieberman (D-Conn.) have introduced a Uniform Ratings Bill and are planning to hold hearings on it after the FTC report comes out. This bill would mandate an end to the current hodgepodge of rating systems and require that Hollywood, the video game industry, and music industry work together to create a single rating system. If the industries fail to come up with such a system, the FTC would be authorized to establish one.”
Notice a familiar name in there? That’s right kiddies. Our fair senator from Connecticut is not only concerned about pro-wrestling, but he seems to be meddling in the affairs of one of my other loves, video games.
Again, I say it is the parents’ responsibility to know what games your children are playing. Just like you should know what TV shows they’re watching. No excuses. And don’t give me any crap about how you’re too busy. You should always have time for your kids.
(A year after Columbine I wrote this as my reaction to being improperly associated with the gunmen. You have to keep in mind I was suffering deeply from depression at the time. I now realize that the problems I went through at the time were mostly my fault.)
I thought I’d open my first rant with a personal story about what happened to me after Columbine. But first click here to read the Washington Post article where my site was mentioned.
Are you back? Ok. Good. After that article was printed, I e-mailed the reporter letting him know that I didn’t appreciate being connected to such a senseless and tragic event. Also, I didn’t appreciate one of my works being taken out of context. As an aside, “Death Of A Jester” was written about me becoming more serious in my professional life instead of trying to be funny all the time. Instead of receiving an apology, I received this:
“Thanks very much for your note. I’d be most appreciative if you could call me at 202 XXX XXXX to discuss your site and the meaning of the Trenchcoat.”
My reply was to him a polite thanks, but you’ve ruined my life enough. Suffice to say I never called. An apology was never given, a retraction never printed.
I’ve been told that other media outlets also mentioned my site. Such as CNN, ABC, the BBC, etc. But the reason I always single out The Post is that it’s the only one I have concrete proof of my writing being used without my permission.
Now, The Post was the newspaper that broke the Watergate scandal back in the 70s and caused the downfall of a president. Fast-forward 25 years, and their investigative skills consist of paraphrasing an internet “poet” to make good copy. If Woodward and Bernstein were dead, they’d be rolling in their graves. Also, notice he didn’t quote any of my writings about love or dreams. That wouldn’t have been a “story”.
After receiving the death threats and having my friends threatened, I kind of had other things on my mind. It affected me at my job. I ended up losing a major account for the company I worked for. My blunder cost the company thousands. Needless to say, I was no longer employed after that. Then I couldn’t find a job. Then my car was repossessed. Then I was evicted. I was about to go live on the streets, but luckily, my family was willing to take me in, but they lived 642 miles away. Which meant leaving my girlfriend behind. That was 8 months ago. Strangely enough, we’re still together.
Anyway, Mr. Reporter, you want to know the meaning of TheTrenchcoat, well, here it is. As I’ve mentioned several times, growing up, all my heroes wore trench coats. When I finally got one of my own at 17, it felt great. To me, it was like wearing a cape, like I was Batman. It gave me confidence, women started noticing me more, and it looks damn cool. That’s it. That’s the big answer you were looking for. Thanks again for ruining my life.
The point? There is none. This is just something I had to get off my chest. If there is any point, it’s probably, don’t believe everything you read…especially in The Post.