Quoted from a Canton Rep Blog on 14 Feb 2008 at 11:29 am Ginger wrote:
"One thing I will never forget on the first day of the search. My sister and I both being from North Canton, felt absolutely compelled to help find Jessie, its just a feeling you have that you have to do something. Once we boarded the bus which was taking out team to our search location, we were briefed on what to do and what not to do by the fire dept personnel. Then a man came on board and told us to be careful, stay hydrated and thanked us for coming. He was very calm and no one thought anything of it, he was just another man giving us our instructions and we were anxious to get moving and help. Just as he was leaving the bus, he turned back around and stepped back into the bus and paused for a moment. and then he said something to the effect of “Please help us find my daughter Jessie. We need to find her and the baby now. Be careful and please bring Jessie home” and he thanks us again, tearing up and left the bus immediately. The bus was speechless except for some people who began crying. Us included. It was the most heartfelt phrase of words I had ever heard. and it motivated us. People we didn’t know, who automatically bonded in a heartbeat. I wish we would have found her for him and Jessie’s family. Jessie’s father also greeted the bus both times after our searches and thanked us for searching and told us not to worry, we would find Jessie. It is what I remember the next day when I was deciding whether or not to go search. It wasn’t an option. All I could remember was her father talking to us and you had to go back and help. It wasn’t will I go, it was how fast can I get there."
Jessie Davis must have cried for herself and Chloe. She must have struggled for the five or six minutes it took his huge powerful hands to stop the air going to her lungs. Did Chloe struggle helplessly trying to get born to breathe as well?
Even after Jessie was gone, how did Bobby Cutts not think of his unborn child who still had a chance for life? How did he allow Blake to watch "Mommy is crying. She is in the rug."?
So the policeman who was struggling to support wives and mistresses, legitimate and illegitimate children, spewing his seed without conscious, seeking abortions to alleviate the inconvernience of his pleasures. This "good father" sayeth Kelly Cutts, who left Blake after the trauma of seeing mommy in the rug, in dirty diapers alone to wallow in the fear and mess left behind. The bleach bottle and who knows what else.
Jessie and Chloe cried and then they died. And then Bobby lied and denied.
How many like Ginger were compelled to give up their lives and fight to find this pregnant mother. How many will deal with the nightmare of Cutts' actions forever? Canton, Ohio is a small community. A community now torn apart by the immorality of one man. They were forced to fear and search and then deal with the discovery. Their lives have been forever changed by the trial and the need to decide whether they have to impose the death penalty or support and protect this degenerate for the rest of his sorry days.
And now he cries again. Tearless cries - please spare my life! Did you think about sparing Jessie or Chloe or Blake or the rest of those who loved them? Did you think about the police and search parties and jurors who whose lives will be forever scarred?
Bobby Cutts thought he would maybe someday be mayor of Canton. Indeed he did wind up being someone whose actions would impact them all. He leaves behind a community scarred forever.
Live or Die - the decision will hurt and harm many - the question is WHY? Bobby WHY?
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Friday, February 22, 2008
JUSTICE FOR ALL
MARK JENSEN VS. STATE OF WISCONSIN
On Dec. 3 1998 another woman's life was taken by the man who was supposed to be closest to her. Domestic violence once again, carefully planned and executed to look the desperate act of an unstable woman. A woman so unstable that not only would she take her own life, but would leave false clues in order to frame her husband for murder. And some people believed it.
This murder took 10 years to solve, but the state was finally able to close its case on Feb. 21, 2008. That, of course, is for now. Rumor has it an appeal will be filed. But no matter what happens in the future, Mark Jensen is behind bars now, a convicted murderer. And this jury, out of Walworth County, got it right.
A long list of evidence showed Jensen for what he really is. A man who wallows in bizarre sexual fixations, lies, deceit, tapes, porn, infidelity, jealousy, mental abuse and selfishness. A sick bastard filled with abnormal rage and a plan to use a few doses of Antifreeze to kill his wife and make the world believe that it was the suicide of a depressed, unbalanced woman. Not suicide, Mr. Jensen: MURDER.
The saddest part of this tragedy is that the victim refused to let herself trust her own instincts. She refused to fully believe that her husband of 14 years could or would possibly do in reality what she was secretly terrified he would do. Julie Jensen had two beloved young children to raise and was so much in love with this man that she let her heart get the best of her.
A tragic mix of love, fear, lack of self-worth and self-belief made Julie Jensen deny for too long that her husband Mark was capable of doing any real harm to her. The tragedy is compounded by the fact that during Julie Jensen's last few weeks of life she did finally start to believe what her husband, the father of her two children, was capable of.
Julie opened up her eyes and closed that confusing door to her heart just long enough to write a very private, telling letter. Signed, sealed and delivered to her neighbors with a promise it would be handed over to the authorities "only" in the event something terrible would ever happen to her. Like death under suspicious circumstances.
Mark Jensen thought he committed the perfect murder. But even though there are crimes that go unsolved, there is no such thing as the perfect crime. There is always a mistake or an oversight that isn't noticed by the killer. Mark Jensen may have disguised Julie's murder as suicide, but not forever. His mistakes and oversights, his own words and his Internet trail – used at first to try to frame Julie for her own death – ultimately brought him down.
Mark Jensen thought he got his due when he was shed of Julie and free – free to raise his sons, free to live his life, free to marry Kelly. But the end for Mark is not freedom; it is now – finally - a murder conviction and incarceration. The end for Mark is justice for Julie.
There was a detective who never dismissed this case as a suicide, but rather held onto his sixth sense and strong conviction it was indeed a homicide. There was a D.A.'s office that persevered. And there was a jury that listened to the evidence, debated with each other and came to a righteous decision. After 3 days of deliberation Mark Jensen was finally found G-U-I-L-T-Y of first-degree intentional Homicide in the death of his former wife Julie Jensen.
Interesting that when two people take their vows the preacher has the bride and groom repeat, "Till death do us part." Mark Jensen found a whole new meaning to those 5 sacred words.
Finally, Julie Jensen, you can rest in peace.
So Ladies and Gentlemen you better think twice.
Took nearly took 10 years, but he's paying the price.
On Dec. 3 1998 another woman's life was taken by the man who was supposed to be closest to her. Domestic violence once again, carefully planned and executed to look the desperate act of an unstable woman. A woman so unstable that not only would she take her own life, but would leave false clues in order to frame her husband for murder. And some people believed it.
This murder took 10 years to solve, but the state was finally able to close its case on Feb. 21, 2008. That, of course, is for now. Rumor has it an appeal will be filed. But no matter what happens in the future, Mark Jensen is behind bars now, a convicted murderer. And this jury, out of Walworth County, got it right.
A long list of evidence showed Jensen for what he really is. A man who wallows in bizarre sexual fixations, lies, deceit, tapes, porn, infidelity, jealousy, mental abuse and selfishness. A sick bastard filled with abnormal rage and a plan to use a few doses of Antifreeze to kill his wife and make the world believe that it was the suicide of a depressed, unbalanced woman. Not suicide, Mr. Jensen: MURDER.
The saddest part of this tragedy is that the victim refused to let herself trust her own instincts. She refused to fully believe that her husband of 14 years could or would possibly do in reality what she was secretly terrified he would do. Julie Jensen had two beloved young children to raise and was so much in love with this man that she let her heart get the best of her.
A tragic mix of love, fear, lack of self-worth and self-belief made Julie Jensen deny for too long that her husband Mark was capable of doing any real harm to her. The tragedy is compounded by the fact that during Julie Jensen's last few weeks of life she did finally start to believe what her husband, the father of her two children, was capable of.
Julie opened up her eyes and closed that confusing door to her heart just long enough to write a very private, telling letter. Signed, sealed and delivered to her neighbors with a promise it would be handed over to the authorities "only" in the event something terrible would ever happen to her. Like death under suspicious circumstances.
Mark Jensen thought he committed the perfect murder. But even though there are crimes that go unsolved, there is no such thing as the perfect crime. There is always a mistake or an oversight that isn't noticed by the killer. Mark Jensen may have disguised Julie's murder as suicide, but not forever. His mistakes and oversights, his own words and his Internet trail – used at first to try to frame Julie for her own death – ultimately brought him down.
Mark Jensen thought he got his due when he was shed of Julie and free – free to raise his sons, free to live his life, free to marry Kelly. But the end for Mark is not freedom; it is now – finally - a murder conviction and incarceration. The end for Mark is justice for Julie.
There was a detective who never dismissed this case as a suicide, but rather held onto his sixth sense and strong conviction it was indeed a homicide. There was a D.A.'s office that persevered. And there was a jury that listened to the evidence, debated with each other and came to a righteous decision. After 3 days of deliberation Mark Jensen was finally found G-U-I-L-T-Y of first-degree intentional Homicide in the death of his former wife Julie Jensen.
Interesting that when two people take their vows the preacher has the bride and groom repeat, "Till death do us part." Mark Jensen found a whole new meaning to those 5 sacred words.
Finally, Julie Jensen, you can rest in peace.
So Ladies and Gentlemen you better think twice.
Took nearly took 10 years, but he's paying the price.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
ALERT: A True Voice of Reason
WATCH THIS ABSOLUTELY MAGNIFICENT FILM CLIP before it is removed from the web.
Amazing enough that Arab financed Dubai television would allow this powerful and amazing statement to air on Al Jazeera. Please watch this. It is extremely powerful and no doubt Wafa Sultan, an Arab-American psychologist from Los Angeles, is as brave as they make them. This impressive woman will have, if she does not already, a huge price on her head. It will probably not be on the air long. Tell everyone you know to watch it soon, doubtful the link will be active long. Should be seen around the world by everyone, regardless of their politics, religion or beliefs. http://switch3.castup.net/cunet/gm.asp?ai=214&ar=1050wmv&ak=nul
It's time to listen, really listen. Wafa Sultan has the voice and the courage to speak. We all need to heed her words spoken with the ferocity and heart of a lioness protecting her cubs.
Sadly, in this case her cubs happen to be a large portion of the human race threatened by another portion of so-called humanity. As she so correctly points out, this is not a battle of civilizations, it is a battle between civilization and barbarism. East against West, Muslim fanaticism against just about everyone else . . . the stakes can't possibly get any higher than they are.
LISTEN UP ~ ~ Hear this secular Arabian woman, a potent awe-inspiring voice for rational thought and behavior - going against every ideal we have come to expect from Islamic extremists, and appearing on Al Jazeera television of all places.
Watching and listening to her you will be astonished by what she says, and perhaps even more, by where she is saying it. There is no, none, zilch, zip, zero wiggle room for a counter attack - at least not from anyone who is rational. Of course, rationality does not always have meaning on Al Jazeera, where she is spitting into a hurricane-force wind.
Sultan herself is a force to be reckoned with, one with nearly as much power as that storm wind that wants to destroy us. She speaks passionately about the ability of civilized societies to rise above the need to dominate at any cost. And just as passionately about the need to rise above the insane hatred that drives attacks on other societies, the ones that wipe out a few thousand innocent people at a time. The subtext to her words is clear: We are the target and the bullseye is painted permanently on our chest. Are we listening?
Sure, you might think, she is saying this from the safety of her home in Los Angeles. Don't kid yourself for a minute, Wafa Sultan is a marked woman. And don't forget that as a product of that culture, she knows better than anyone she has made herself a living target. Listen to her - because someone may have to take up her banner in the near future. Does this sound paranoid? It's not. There is a price offered for the Danish cartoonist who dared to characterize Mohammed and still one remains on the head of Salmon Rushdie, even though all this time has elaspsed since the publishing of his Satanic Verses.
Sultan is bravely willing to risk her own life in order to tell us just how bad it really is, just how determined our enemies. We had better listen - we owe it to her - we owe it to ourselves.
Breathtaking and humbling, this speech is a reminder that there are still brave, rational minds at work in a world that sometimes seems to have gone mad. Imagine an Arab woman publicly taking the side of Western civilization, of the Jews, of secularism. Where does this courage come from? It may come from having very clear vision and knowing without a doubt that if the barbarians are not stopped, this world as we know it, has little time remaining.
We need to listen ~ we need to be prepared.
As memories dim with the erosion of time since September 11, our so-called leaders have allowed the attack on our homeland into political coinage. They have not done one damned concrete thing to make us more secure. Here is one lone voice, this infinitely courageous woman, who reminds us not to slip further. Not to be complacent or mindless of the real purpose of extremism: to oppress and enslave and kill anyone who does not cave into their 12th century mentality. Worse still is that their 12th century mentality is armed with 21st century technology.
The barbarians keep our pride and gratitude for being secular American women in western society, free citizens of a free society in high gear. In these times that awareness is not just a g ift, it is a necessity.
Wafa Sultan is laying her life on the line to remind us we better be ready to do the same. We had better be listening and we had better listen hard.
Amazing enough that Arab financed Dubai television would allow this powerful and amazing statement to air on Al Jazeera. Please watch this. It is extremely powerful and no doubt Wafa Sultan, an Arab-American psychologist from Los Angeles, is as brave as they make them. This impressive woman will have, if she does not already, a huge price on her head. It will probably not be on the air long. Tell everyone you know to watch it soon, doubtful the link will be active long. Should be seen around the world by everyone, regardless of their politics, religion or beliefs. http://switch3.castup.net/cunet/gm.asp?ai=214&ar=1050wmv&ak=nul
It's time to listen, really listen. Wafa Sultan has the voice and the courage to speak. We all need to heed her words spoken with the ferocity and heart of a lioness protecting her cubs.
Sadly, in this case her cubs happen to be a large portion of the human race threatened by another portion of so-called humanity. As she so correctly points out, this is not a battle of civilizations, it is a battle between civilization and barbarism. East against West, Muslim fanaticism against just about everyone else . . . the stakes can't possibly get any higher than they are.
LISTEN UP ~ ~ Hear this secular Arabian woman, a potent awe-inspiring voice for rational thought and behavior - going against every ideal we have come to expect from Islamic extremists, and appearing on Al Jazeera television of all places.
Watching and listening to her you will be astonished by what she says, and perhaps even more, by where she is saying it. There is no, none, zilch, zip, zero wiggle room for a counter attack - at least not from anyone who is rational. Of course, rationality does not always have meaning on Al Jazeera, where she is spitting into a hurricane-force wind.
Sultan herself is a force to be reckoned with, one with nearly as much power as that storm wind that wants to destroy us. She speaks passionately about the ability of civilized societies to rise above the need to dominate at any cost. And just as passionately about the need to rise above the insane hatred that drives attacks on other societies, the ones that wipe out a few thousand innocent people at a time. The subtext to her words is clear: We are the target and the bullseye is painted permanently on our chest. Are we listening?
Sure, you might think, she is saying this from the safety of her home in Los Angeles. Don't kid yourself for a minute, Wafa Sultan is a marked woman. And don't forget that as a product of that culture, she knows better than anyone she has made herself a living target. Listen to her - because someone may have to take up her banner in the near future. Does this sound paranoid? It's not. There is a price offered for the Danish cartoonist who dared to characterize Mohammed and still one remains on the head of Salmon Rushdie, even though all this time has elaspsed since the publishing of his Satanic Verses.
Sultan is bravely willing to risk her own life in order to tell us just how bad it really is, just how determined our enemies. We had better listen - we owe it to her - we owe it to ourselves.
Breathtaking and humbling, this speech is a reminder that there are still brave, rational minds at work in a world that sometimes seems to have gone mad. Imagine an Arab woman publicly taking the side of Western civilization, of the Jews, of secularism. Where does this courage come from? It may come from having very clear vision and knowing without a doubt that if the barbarians are not stopped, this world as we know it, has little time remaining.
We need to listen ~ we need to be prepared.
As memories dim with the erosion of time since September 11, our so-called leaders have allowed the attack on our homeland into political coinage. They have not done one damned concrete thing to make us more secure. Here is one lone voice, this infinitely courageous woman, who reminds us not to slip further. Not to be complacent or mindless of the real purpose of extremism: to oppress and enslave and kill anyone who does not cave into their 12th century mentality. Worse still is that their 12th century mentality is armed with 21st century technology.
The barbarians keep our pride and gratitude for being secular American women in western society, free citizens of a free society in high gear. In these times that awareness is not just a g ift, it is a necessity.
Wafa Sultan is laying her life on the line to remind us we better be ready to do the same. We had better be listening and we had better listen hard.
Monday, February 18, 2008
What Have We Done to the Children?
When Betty Friedan published her highly influential The Feminine Mystique describing the dissatisfaction felt by middle-class American housewives' narrow role imposed on them by society and galvanized the feminist movement, women left the home.
No longer content to cook and clean and carpool, family life changed drastically. I wondered some forty or so years ago whether it would wind up being a change for the best. Yes women would expand their participation in business, politics, economics, government, and the arts. They were and are entitled to personal challenge, success, and fulfillment in every way, but at what price?
Marriage is no longer a dependable contract between two people. Husbands and wives ebb and flow, in and out of marriage at will. Children lost more than having someone waiting at home to listen, hot lunches, and conversation at the dinner table with dad, mom and siblings.
Communication, dedication, reliability and commitment have had major down turns. Moral values are in steep decline.
Our children are killing one another in SCHOOL! Remember when school was the place where you studied and made friends and played sports? Remember when school was second only to the womb as far as a safe-haven. Oh well, we know what has happened to the safety of the womb.
Of course it is a woman's right to excel as an individual. But how much of a factor has this change in society contributed to the increase in physical and psychological abuse, sexual abuse, lack of respect for the lives of women, unborn children and children?
Where is all this violence coming from and where is it going? There are many possible causes, but what can we ~ what will we ~ what should we ~ be willing to do to change the direction. One wonders, if we are reaping what has been sewn, how much higher the price are we willing to pay?
No longer content to cook and clean and carpool, family life changed drastically. I wondered some forty or so years ago whether it would wind up being a change for the best. Yes women would expand their participation in business, politics, economics, government, and the arts. They were and are entitled to personal challenge, success, and fulfillment in every way, but at what price?
Marriage is no longer a dependable contract between two people. Husbands and wives ebb and flow, in and out of marriage at will. Children lost more than having someone waiting at home to listen, hot lunches, and conversation at the dinner table with dad, mom and siblings.
Communication, dedication, reliability and commitment have had major down turns. Moral values are in steep decline.
Our children are killing one another in SCHOOL! Remember when school was the place where you studied and made friends and played sports? Remember when school was second only to the womb as far as a safe-haven. Oh well, we know what has happened to the safety of the womb.
Of course it is a woman's right to excel as an individual. But how much of a factor has this change in society contributed to the increase in physical and psychological abuse, sexual abuse, lack of respect for the lives of women, unborn children and children?
Where is all this violence coming from and where is it going? There are many possible causes, but what can we ~ what will we ~ what should we ~ be willing to do to change the direction. One wonders, if we are reaping what has been sewn, how much higher the price are we willing to pay?
~~~
Feb. 14, 2008
DeKalb, IL. Gunman kills seven students and then himself, and wounds 15 more when he opens fire on a classroom at Northern Illinois University. The gunman, Stephen P. Kazmierczak, was identified as a former graduate student at the university in 2007.
Feb. 8, 2008
Baton Rouge, LA. A nursing student shot and killed two women and then herself in a classroom at Louisiana Technical College in Baton Rouge.
Oct. 10, 2007
Cleveland, OH. A 14-year-old student at a Cleveland high school, Asa H. Coon, shot and injured two students and two teachers before he shot and killed himself. The victims' injuries were not life-threatening.
Sept. 21, 2007
Dover, DE. A Delaware State University Freshman, Loyer D. Brandon, shot and wounded two other Freshman students on the University campus. Brandon is being charged with attempted murder, assault, reckless engagement, as well as a gun charge.
April 16, 2007
Blacksburg, VA. A 23-year-old Virginia Tech student, Cho Seung-Hui, killed two in a dorm, then killed 30. more 2 hours later in a classroom building. His suicide brought the death toll to 33, making the shooting rampage the most deadly in U.S. history. Fifteen others were wounded.
Jan. 3, 2007
Tacoma, WA. Douglas Chanthabouly, 18, shot fellow student Samnang Kok, 17, in the hallway of Henry Foss High School.
Sept. 29, 2006
Cazenovia, WI. A 15-year-old student shot and killed Weston School principal John Klang.
Oct. 3, 2006
Nickel Mines, PA. 32-year-old Carl Charles Roberts IV entered the one-room West Nickel Mines Amish School and shot 10 schoolgirls, ranging in age from 6 to 13 years old, and then himself. Five of the girls and Roberts died.
Sept. 26, 2006
Bailey, CO. Adult male held six students hostage at Platte Canyon High School and then shot and killed Emily Keyes, 16, and himself.
Sept. 13, 2006
Montreal, Canada. Kimveer Gill, 25, opened fire with a semiautomatic weapon at Dawson College. Anastasia De Sousa, 18, died and more than a dozen students and faculty were wounded before Gill killed himself.
Aug. 24, 2006
Essex, VT. Christopher Williams, 27, looking for his ex-girlfriend at Essex Elementary School, shot two teachers, killing one and wounding another. Before going to the school, he had killed the ex-girlfriend's mother.
Nov. 8, 2005
Jacksboro, TN. One 15-year-old shot and killed an assistant principal at Campbell County High School and seriously wounded two other administrators.
March 21, 2005
Red Lake, MN. Jeff Weise, 16, killed grandfather and companion, then arrived at school where he killed a teacher, a security guard, 5 students, and finally himself, leaving a total of 10 dead.
Sept. 24, 2003
Cold Spring, MN. Two students are killed at Rocori High School by John Jason McLaughlin, 15.
April 24, 2003
Red Lion, PA. James Sheets, 14, killed principal Eugene Segro of Red Lion Area Junior High School before killing himself.
October 28, 2002
Tucson, AZ. Robert S. Flores Jr., 41, a student at the nursing school at the University of Arizona, shot and killed three female professors and then himself.
April 14, 2003
New Orleans, LA. One 15-year-old killed, and three students wounded at John McDonogh High School by gunfire from four teenagers (none were students at the school). The motive was gang-related.
Jan. 15, 2002
New York, NY. A teenager wounded two students at Martin Luther King Jr. High School.
Nov. 12, 2001
Caro, MI. Chris Buschbacher, 17, took two hostages at the Caro Learning Center before killing himself.
March 30, 2001
Gary, IN. One student killed by Donald R. Burt, Jr., a 17-year-old student who had been expelled from Lew Wallace High School.
March 22, 2001
Granite Hills, CA. One teacher and three students wounded by Jason Hoffman, 18, at Granite Hills High School. A policeman shot and wounded Hoffman.
March 7, 2001
Williamsport, PA. Elizabeth Catherine Bush, 14, wounded student Kimberly Marchese in the cafeteria of Bishop Neumann High School; she was depressed and frequently teased.
March 5, 2001
Santee, CA. Two killed and 13 wounded by Charles Andrew Williams, 15, firing from a bathroom at Santana High School.
Jan. 17, 2001
Baltimore, MD. One student shot and killed in front of Lake Clifton Eastern High School.
Sept. 26, 2000
New Orleans, LA. Two students wounded with the same gun during a fight at Woodson Middle School.
May 26, 2000
Lake Worth, FL. One teacher, Barry Grunow, shot and killed at Lake Worth Middle School by Nate Brazill, 13, with .25-caliber semiautomatic pistol on the last day of classes.
March 10, 2000
Savannah, GA. Two students killed by Darrell Ingram, 19, while leaving a dance sponsored by Beach High School.
Feb. 29, 2000
Mount Morris Township, MI. Six-year-old Kayla Rolland shot dead at Buell Elementary School near Flint, Mich. The assailant was identified as a six-year-old boy with a .32-caliber handgun.
Dec. 6, 1999
Fort Gibson, OK. Four students wounded as Seth Trickey, 13, opened fire with a 9mm semiautomatic handgun at Fort Gibson Middle School.
Nov. 19, 1999
Deming, NM. Victor Cordova Jr., 12, shot and killed Araceli Tena, 13, in the lobby of Deming Middle School.
May 20, 1999
Conyers, GA. Six students injured at Heritage High School by Thomas Solomon, 15, who was reportedly depressed after breaking up with his girlfriend.
April 28, 1999
Taber, Alberta, CA. One student killed, one wounded at W. R. Myers High School in first fatal high school shooting in Canada in 20 years. The suspect, a 14-year-old boy, had dropped out of school after he was severely ostracized by his classmates.
April 20, 1999
Littleton, CO. 14 students (including killers) and one teacher killed, 23 others wounded at Columbine High School in the nation's deadliest school shooting. Eric Harris, 18, and Dylan Klebold, 17, had plotted for a year to kill at least 500 and blow up their school. At the end of their hour-long rampage, they turned their guns on themselves.
June 15, 1998
Richmond, VA. One teacher and one guidance counselor wounded by a 14-year-old boy in the school hallway.
May 21, 1998
Springfield, OR. Two students killed, 22 others wounded in the cafeteria at Thurston High School by 15-year-old Kip Kinkel. Kinkel had been arrested and released a day earlier for bringing a gun to school. His parents were later found dead at home.
May 19, 1998
Fayetteville, TN. One student killed in the parking lot at Lincoln County High School three days before he was to graduate. The victim was dating the ex-girlfriend of his killer, 18-year-old honor student Jacob Davis.
April 24, 1998
Edinboro, PA. One teacher, John Gillette, killed, two students wounded at a dance at James W. Parker Middle School. Andrew Wurst, 14, was charged.
March 24, 1998
Jonesboro, AR. Four students and one teacher killed, ten others wounded outside as Westside Middle School emptied during a false fire alarm. Mitchell Johnson, 13, and Andrew Golden, 11, shot at their classmates and teachers from the woods.
Dec. 15, 1997
Stamps, AR. Two students wounded. Colt Todd, 14, was hiding in the woods when he shot the students as they stood in the parking lot.
Dec. 1, 1997
West Paducah, KY. Three students killed, five wounded by Michael Carneal, 14, as they participated in a prayer circle at Heath High School.
Oct. 1, 1997
Pearl, MS. Two students killed and seven wounded by Luke Woodham, 16, who was also accused of killing his mother. He and his friends were said to be outcasts who worshiped Satan.
Feb. 19, 1997
Bethel, AK. Principal and one student killed, two others wounded by Evan Ramsey, 16.
Feb. 2, 1996
Moses Lake, WA. Two students and one teacher killed, one other wounded when 14-year-old Barry Loukaitis opened fire on his algebra class.
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Excuse me Officer Cutts, which way to Death Row please?
thanks to Mabel, the Pirate's own Poet Laureate
Cutts, Cutts
he has no guts
Thought he'd try crying
they knew he was lying
Remorse for Jessee? Regrets for Blake?
So obvious in Court, he was merely a fake
No verdict yet, the jurors in and out
Strange it seemed, was there any doubt?
Cutts was nervous, seemed to know by then,
He was gonna be going straight to the Pen.
Police Officer Cutts is really very tough
Death Row for this guy is simply not enough
Roll the bastard in a rug
Let cellmate Bubba give him a hug
One down, many more to go
Our system works - it's starting to show
Jurors please make it right
Listen to the facts and help us fight
There's lots more undecided crimes,
Too many attorneys helping these slimes.
Peterson, Mack, Cutts ~ a pretty good start ~
Finding these bastards GUILTY will warm the cockles of our hearts!
Cutts, Cutts
he has no guts
Thought he'd try crying
they knew he was lying
Remorse for Jessee? Regrets for Blake?
So obvious in Court, he was merely a fake
No verdict yet, the jurors in and out
Strange it seemed, was there any doubt?
Cutts was nervous, seemed to know by then,
He was gonna be going straight to the Pen.
Police Officer Cutts is really very tough
Death Row for this guy is simply not enough
Roll the bastard in a rug
Let cellmate Bubba give him a hug
One down, many more to go
Our system works - it's starting to show
Jurors please make it right
Listen to the facts and help us fight
There's lots more undecided crimes,
Too many attorneys helping these slimes.
Peterson, Mack, Cutts ~ a pretty good start ~
Finding these bastards GUILTY will warm the cockles of our hearts!
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Disneyfied, Hallmarkized and Un-dividualized
Everybody likes holidays, some more than others - some holidays more than others, some people more than others. Personally, I hate Valentine’s Day but love Thanksgiving. Don’t care about Easter but adore Halloween. Fine, right? Wrong –o. We are supposed to gush and give and spend equally for every, and I mean every occasion. The traditional ones, the ones we grew up with, and a whole boatload of recently invented ones that are now mandated.
Of course it’s lovely to get a card from your grandson, but does it mean as much when it’s dictated by the newly minted Grandmother’s Day as it would if it was just a spontaneous gift? It could be argued – and I do – that this kind of enforced celebration undermines real, emotionally driven gestures of affection. Another step in the devaluation of honest feelings replaced with the sound of a credit card being processed.
It isn’t clear just how long it has been creeping up on us, this plague of greed and advertising and demand, but every month there seems to be another reason to send a card, buy a gift, celebrate, celebrate, celebrate! Which literally translates into “spend, spend, spend!”
And if you dare to walk by that Hallmark display or the oh-so-cute stuffed or porcelain Disney figures wearing adorable holiday slogans around their necks, then you start to suspect you are a grouch. A Grinch. The worst kind of selfish, uncaring scrooge who ever had the nerve to not reach for a gift to buy.
It may be paranoia, but I don’t think so. Disney and Hallmark have finally overtaken reality and created our 21st century standards of expectation. What we think, how we express our feelings, when we are supposed to jump up and consume. Pavlov’s dogs, remember them?
You’d just better get that heart-shaped box of candies or that eternity diamond pendant she has been expecting, and the gifts had better be there promptly on February 14th. Or else. Kids are even easier targets for this kind of marketing and branding. That exact hot pink Bratz slut doll that your granddaughter wants had better be there under the tree. Or else.
Or else what? Hearts will be broken, expectations dashed? The Pavlov human who is expecting that particular gift on that particular day will certainly face shame and humiliation when other people, the ones who did get what they were supposed to get, will not just feel sorry for them? They may just shun them altogether. Oh, come on.
What happened to our brains and our hearts? What happened to the proud individualism that was the defining quality of this country of ours? When did we become so easily led to the store and willing to purchase what we are being told is “just the right” gift?
And it’s not just holidays. We’d just as soon go to Las Vegas to experience Manhattan or Paris or Venice as trek all the way to the real thing. After all, in Vegas, the streets are clean, the people are polite and correctly costumed, and they speak English! The buildings are sparkling, the bathrooms are tidy, the art looks great (and so well lit!) and it’s all so, so almost real. Why bother to take that long uncomfortable trip and deal with the anxiety of being in a foreign city or country when we can get a reasonable - no, a better facsimile right here?
Who coined the phrase “a nation of sheep?” Whoever it was, hats off to his or her cynical, forward-thinking and sadly realistic view of our society. Baa, baa, baa, just lead us to the musical greeting card and the right gift-wrapping and the Thomas Kinkade villages where cobblestone streets try to give the illusion that our world is innocent and secure, kind and clean.
Yup, that’ll do it. If we buy and buy and buy into this rapacious machine that tells us what to think while relieving us of our coin, maybe we’ll all be just fine. With enough armor of brand names and stuff, enough non-stop celebration, enough bright techno-recreations of what used to be the real world, we’ll all be just fine. And so insidiously regulated. Yeah, right.
Of course it’s lovely to get a card from your grandson, but does it mean as much when it’s dictated by the newly minted Grandmother’s Day as it would if it was just a spontaneous gift? It could be argued – and I do – that this kind of enforced celebration undermines real, emotionally driven gestures of affection. Another step in the devaluation of honest feelings replaced with the sound of a credit card being processed.
It isn’t clear just how long it has been creeping up on us, this plague of greed and advertising and demand, but every month there seems to be another reason to send a card, buy a gift, celebrate, celebrate, celebrate! Which literally translates into “spend, spend, spend!”
And if you dare to walk by that Hallmark display or the oh-so-cute stuffed or porcelain Disney figures wearing adorable holiday slogans around their necks, then you start to suspect you are a grouch. A Grinch. The worst kind of selfish, uncaring scrooge who ever had the nerve to not reach for a gift to buy.
It may be paranoia, but I don’t think so. Disney and Hallmark have finally overtaken reality and created our 21st century standards of expectation. What we think, how we express our feelings, when we are supposed to jump up and consume. Pavlov’s dogs, remember them?
You’d just better get that heart-shaped box of candies or that eternity diamond pendant she has been expecting, and the gifts had better be there promptly on February 14th. Or else. Kids are even easier targets for this kind of marketing and branding. That exact hot pink Bratz slut doll that your granddaughter wants had better be there under the tree. Or else.
Or else what? Hearts will be broken, expectations dashed? The Pavlov human who is expecting that particular gift on that particular day will certainly face shame and humiliation when other people, the ones who did get what they were supposed to get, will not just feel sorry for them? They may just shun them altogether. Oh, come on.
What happened to our brains and our hearts? What happened to the proud individualism that was the defining quality of this country of ours? When did we become so easily led to the store and willing to purchase what we are being told is “just the right” gift?
And it’s not just holidays. We’d just as soon go to Las Vegas to experience Manhattan or Paris or Venice as trek all the way to the real thing. After all, in Vegas, the streets are clean, the people are polite and correctly costumed, and they speak English! The buildings are sparkling, the bathrooms are tidy, the art looks great (and so well lit!) and it’s all so, so almost real. Why bother to take that long uncomfortable trip and deal with the anxiety of being in a foreign city or country when we can get a reasonable - no, a better facsimile right here?
Who coined the phrase “a nation of sheep?” Whoever it was, hats off to his or her cynical, forward-thinking and sadly realistic view of our society. Baa, baa, baa, just lead us to the musical greeting card and the right gift-wrapping and the Thomas Kinkade villages where cobblestone streets try to give the illusion that our world is innocent and secure, kind and clean.
Yup, that’ll do it. If we buy and buy and buy into this rapacious machine that tells us what to think while relieving us of our coin, maybe we’ll all be just fine. With enough armor of brand names and stuff, enough non-stop celebration, enough bright techno-recreations of what used to be the real world, we’ll all be just fine. And so insidiously regulated. Yeah, right.
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Persona Non Gratis? What Took so Friggin Long?
ARUBA AUTHORITIES
Speak No Evil
Hear No Evil
See No Evil
Speak No Evil
Hear No Evil
See No Evil
If you have any information regarding the disappearance of Natalee Holloway, please contact the FBI tip line at 1-877-enoughisenough
NO!
Enough is NOT Enough.
We parents tend to reward our children for all accomplishments from the day they are born. Clapping hands and a big hug for those first tiny steps, a special treat for that gold star on a report card. As the accomplishments get bigger and better so do the treats.
Natalee Holloway. Birmingham, Alabama honor student, smart, well-educated, well-rounded, kind, friendly, trusting. Free from fear of others. What was there to fear? Everyone liked and loved this charming, friendly girl.
So time to reward the latest accomplishments. National Honor Society, membership in American Field Services, cheerleader, graduating with honors and off to further her education. On her way to becoming a physician, no question of accomplishment.
School trip for graduating seniors to the beautiful island of Aruba. Excitement, planning, shopping, text messages and e-mails back and forth with friends. The brochure promised:
Adventures You've Never Experienced Before Await You in Aruba!
Bonbini! means welcome, and here, you truly are.
You're welcome to dream. Of endless sun and scenery. Of breathtaking blues and crystal clear ocean and whit, sandy beaches. You're welcome to plan the ideal family vacation or wedding or honeymoon or meeting or simple escape to a colorful world away from home. You're welcome to explore. To make everything that's ours yours. To find the perfect something, or nothing, to do. Welcome to Aruba. This is our home. And we want to share our piece of paradise with you.
One can only imagine the intimate moments and conversations shared between Beth and Natalee during this special time. "When you come back, there's even more to come. A new chapter beginning. College, dorms, sororities, new friends, and study study study." Beth may have said. "All working toward another fabulous graduation day. Wonder what we will plan the next time?"
So while Aruba shared it's paradise with this sweet lovely young woman, whatthefuck was really going on there?
FACTS:
BETH HOLLOWAY TWITTY WON'T GO AWAY
NO ONE IS GOING TO FORGET.
REWARD JORAN FOR HIS ACCOMPLISHMENT.
ALL EYES ARE ON YOU ARUBA - LET'S GET IT DONE.
Enough is NOT Enough.
We parents tend to reward our children for all accomplishments from the day they are born. Clapping hands and a big hug for those first tiny steps, a special treat for that gold star on a report card. As the accomplishments get bigger and better so do the treats.
Natalee Holloway. Birmingham, Alabama honor student, smart, well-educated, well-rounded, kind, friendly, trusting. Free from fear of others. What was there to fear? Everyone liked and loved this charming, friendly girl.
So time to reward the latest accomplishments. National Honor Society, membership in American Field Services, cheerleader, graduating with honors and off to further her education. On her way to becoming a physician, no question of accomplishment.
School trip for graduating seniors to the beautiful island of Aruba. Excitement, planning, shopping, text messages and e-mails back and forth with friends. The brochure promised:
Adventures You've Never Experienced Before Await You in Aruba!
Bonbini! means welcome, and here, you truly are.
You're welcome to dream. Of endless sun and scenery. Of breathtaking blues and crystal clear ocean and whit, sandy beaches. You're welcome to plan the ideal family vacation or wedding or honeymoon or meeting or simple escape to a colorful world away from home. You're welcome to explore. To make everything that's ours yours. To find the perfect something, or nothing, to do. Welcome to Aruba. This is our home. And we want to share our piece of paradise with you.
One can only imagine the intimate moments and conversations shared between Beth and Natalee during this special time. "When you come back, there's even more to come. A new chapter beginning. College, dorms, sororities, new friends, and study study study." Beth may have said. "All working toward another fabulous graduation day. Wonder what we will plan the next time?"
So while Aruba shared it's paradise with this sweet lovely young woman, whatthefuck was really going on there?
FACTS:
- Joran met Natalee at a blackjack table in the casino.
- They went next to a popular island night-spot Carlos and Charlies where the y were joined by two (friendly-looking) young men, Satish and Deepak Kalpoe. JVdS drank a jello-shot out of Natalee's belly button.
- Approximately between 1:30 and 2:00 am she leaves the club with Joran, Satish, and Deepak.
- Friends see her being physically assisted and ask her to get out of the car. She refuses and is never seen again.
- Joran Van der Sloot is the son of a prominent Aruba attorney who was in training to take the bench as a judge.
- Natalee disappeared on May 30, 2005. A notice was not even posted until June 4.
- JVdS had a well-known reputation for late nights, exploits with young tourist females, use of drugs and alcohol.
- The story of what happened following "Joran's" self admitted sexual encounter on the beach with Natalee has changed on numerous occasions.
- The original story was the the dropped her off at the Holiday Inn. Joran claimed to have left his shoes at the beach a few feet from the liason. Strange, what really happened to the shoes?
- The Joran changed the story to say Deepak picked him up at the beach, where he left Natalee, because she was unwilling to go. Deepak declares this did not happen.
- After an entire week to be counselled by the elder van Der Sloot, the boys were arrested a week later.
- After his release Joran called the arresting officers 'Putas' and criticised the Kalpoe's for 'not getting chicks'.
- The boys have been arrested and released on a number of occasions.
- Natalee's family, especially her pittbull mom has done everything from day one to uncover the truth and keep the case from being forgotten.
- Whether the Aruban's have been stupid or covering up is not known but the investigation was murky from the start. In the first few days Natalee's father was asked if she suffered from seizures. Since nothing was ever said about her convulsing until Joran was caught on tape three years later . . . what did that question mean?
- Three years later JVdS was caught on hidden tape admitting his involvement in Natalee's death and throwing her body into the ocean, never to be found. He continues to remain smug, rotten, nasty, contemptuous, and FREE.
BETH HOLLOWAY TWITTY WON'T GO AWAY
NO ONE IS GOING TO FORGET.
REWARD JORAN FOR HIS ACCOMPLISHMENT.
ALL EYES ARE ON YOU ARUBA - LET'S GET IT DONE.
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Set Your VCR and Check Your Popcorn Supply
| Documentary, (noun) - a film or TV program presenting the facts about a person or event motion picture, motion-picture show, movie, moving picture, moving-picture show, pic, film, picture show, flick, picture - a form of entertainment that enacts a story by sound and a sequence of images giving the illusion of continuous movement; "they went to a movie every Saturday night"; "the film was shot on location" | ||
| Documentary (adj) - relating to or consisting of or derived from documents | ||
| Documentary (adj) - emphasizing or expressing things as perceived without distortion of personal feelings, insertion of fictional matter, or interpretation; |
Last year BBC announced our favorite, still avoiding justice murderer, Phil Spector, had given his first full-length interview in 35 years to British TV Director Vikram Jayanti, and filmmaker Anthony Wall.
The 90-minute documentary is based on some eight hours of interviews at Spector's Alhambra, California, "castle". Phil reportedly speaks about his relationships with the Beatles and John Lennon, as well as soul stars Ike and Tina Turner. He will also discuss his troubled personal life. "Poor Phil"
Perhaps some might conjecture the interview should have been conducted in a California prison. It has been five years since Lana Clarkson was found murdered in the foyer of that same home. No evidence of any excuse for the crime other than "our Phil" playing one of his well-known games of senseless, reckless, violence toward women.
The original announcement claimed that BBC "has been granted unprecedented access to legendary Phil Spector as he stands trial for murder. The reclusive star has not given an interview in 35 years. But he has agreed to speak to the BBC for a no-holds-barred Wall documentary." FALSE
Apparently, the 2002 Spector interviews with Mick Brown on the exact same material is conveniently forgotten.
Especially endearing is Spector's own voice saying "I wasn't that well. I wasn't insane, wellum, I wasn't well. I am not able to function in regular society . . . I take medication for schizophrenia, I am the product of marriage between cousins . . . I don't play anything if I can't win . . ."
The upcoming 90-minute Jayanti/Wall "documentary" subtitled The Agony and The Ecstasy of Phil Spector was originally scheduled to air last autumn and then was delayed awaiting the final outcome of the case. Apparently, the Brits like so many of us have given up hope that the trial will ever have a conclusion.
Despite some BBC bigwigs expressing concern that the broadcast should be delayed until after the second trial, and their frank questioning of whether the program makers might be too close to their subject, the decision to wait has been revised to air this April.
Director Jayanti said, "Our interviews have covered an awful lot of ground, including the trial. The position the defense has taken is that Clarkson killed herself. I'm trying to stay out of issues of guilt or innocence.
I am more interested inthis strange collusion between an artistic genius and the criminal justice system.
I asked him if he would deconstruct his hits. Ultimately that's interesting - what he hears. For all the great fun of his public personna, there is also the music. I want to get past the history of it all because I'm not interested in archaeology. I'm interested in who he is not and what's going on in his head. I asked him if he would demonstrate his hits."
Jayanti and wall both have extensive history in lauding entertainment and music personalities. Peter Sellers, Bob Dylan
Documentary??? Or perhaps just another visit to "Phil, the manipulative" media user and abuser.
Personally, can't wait. Should be as much fun as listening to the genius rip Ike Turner at his funeral last December or revisit accounts of how he abused his children and made them watch his wierd sexual encounters. Where is the remote control when you need it?
Saturday, February 9, 2008
Charla's Song
It was one of the most powerfully emotional court watching experiences since Sharon Rocha finally had her chance to speak about Scott Peterson. Finally it was Soorya Townsley's turn to speak for her daughter, Charla Mack.
"I was one of those lucky mothers to be best friends with my daughter, we chatted three or four times every day. In those last years, Charla and I cleared our past mother-daughter conflicts.
Now when I awake, I feel a thick, deep-seated depression that is hard to shake off. I feel like I have weights all around my body and it is an effort to move. Just like an alcoholic. I have been forced to live moment-to-moment, not to think any further, because otherwise I might have to lie down and die of sorrow.
The day to day reality is I can no longer experience the living picture of Charla in my life. All this stopped now because of an indulgent, cowardly man. THIS MAN who decided to play GOD!!! I don't know if at this point I will ever find peace until I die.
Charla's dream was to sing professionally, or start a business developing seminars for couples. Charla believed she could tame Darren's rage and get him involved. There was a song she wanted to sing to Darren . . ."
And then the music started. It was Charla singing a country-western song. Suddenly, Charla was there in the courtroom, confronting them all. The murderer, the judge, the lawyers, the families, the friends. There she was reminding the of her sweetness, her beauty, her betrayal, her trust, her fear. She seemed to say:
THIS WAS ME
LOOK BEYOND HIS LIES, HIS CROCODILE TEARS,
THIS WAS ME
I BEGGED YOU TO PROTECT US,
THIS WAS ME
WE NEEDED YOUR HELP,
THIS WAS ME
YOU WOULDN'T LISTEN,
THIS WAS ME
HEAR MY SONG?
THIS WAS ME
HEAR ME NOW?
THIS WAS ME
"I was one of those lucky mothers to be best friends with my daughter, we chatted three or four times every day. In those last years, Charla and I cleared our past mother-daughter conflicts.
Now when I awake, I feel a thick, deep-seated depression that is hard to shake off. I feel like I have weights all around my body and it is an effort to move. Just like an alcoholic. I have been forced to live moment-to-moment, not to think any further, because otherwise I might have to lie down and die of sorrow.
The day to day reality is I can no longer experience the living picture of Charla in my life. All this stopped now because of an indulgent, cowardly man. THIS MAN who decided to play GOD!!! I don't know if at this point I will ever find peace until I die.
Charla's dream was to sing professionally, or start a business developing seminars for couples. Charla believed she could tame Darren's rage and get him involved. There was a song she wanted to sing to Darren . . ."
And then the music started. It was Charla singing a country-western song. Suddenly, Charla was there in the courtroom, confronting them all. The murderer, the judge, the lawyers, the families, the friends. There she was reminding the of her sweetness, her beauty, her betrayal, her trust, her fear. She seemed to say:
THIS WAS ME
LOOK BEYOND HIS LIES, HIS CROCODILE TEARS,
THIS WAS ME
I BEGGED YOU TO PROTECT US,
THIS WAS ME
WE NEEDED YOUR HELP,
THIS WAS ME
YOU WOULDN'T LISTEN,
THIS WAS ME
HEAR MY SONG?
THIS WAS ME
HEAR ME NOW?
THIS WAS ME
~~~
Darren Mack, of the once respected and powerful Reno, NV Mack family, used privilege to plow his way through divorce court, to get it his way. He used anything he thought of to hold up the inevitable.
Lies and accusations, gave fuel to his reasons to stall paying alimony and child support for their precious daughter Erica.
When things seemed not to his liking, Mack upset with a turn in the contentious divorce proceedings, decided Judge Chuck Weller was corrupt.
He stabbed estranged wife, Charla at least seven times when she arrived at his home, (as ordered by the court) to drop off their daughter. Then he drove downtown to a parking garage, where he sniper-style shot Judge Weller from 170 yards away.
A note found in the condo where Charla's bloodstained body was found, made cryptic references to the plan. Simple, "Dan take Erica to Joan." On the morning of the killing Mack's longtime friend Dan Osbourne drove Erica to the home of mack's mother, Joan, at Mack's request. The note also mentioned the garage door at the condo being open before the words, "end problem".
The trial was moved to Las Vegas because of extensive media coverage and possible family influence in the close Reno community. It ended on November 5 when Mack entered his pleas after prosecutors had finished presenting their case. Soon after, Mack changed lawyers, and tried unsuccessfully to withdraw his pleas and get another trial.
Finally, District Judge Douglas Herndon listened to those left behind and then sentenced Darren Mack to a minimum of 36 years in prison, the maximum terms of a plea deal - life in prison with possibility of parole after 20 years on the murder charge.
The judge also upheld the prosecutor's recommendation of sentencing Mack to 40 years with parole, after an additional 16 years for attempted murder with a deadly weapon. Both terms are to run back-to-back.
In handing down the sentence, Herndon cited the heinous nature of the crimes and Mack's lack of remorse.
"The truth is, Mr. Mack is guilty of these crimes, but he doesn't want to hear anything about that," the judge said while emphasizing that while he allowed Mack to speak at length, he never said the one thing he hoped we would hear: "I'm sorry."
The judge went on to make an emotional plea for both families to "be be a bigger person" for the sake of the couple's nine year old daughter.
"You have a young child at a very impressionable age, soon to enter her teen years and the adult life. You all can either choose to raise her, disparaging both parents, or you cantry to get past the court cases, the criminal proceedings . . . and teach her the good things about both these parents.
She needs to be raised with hugs and kisses," Herndon said with tears in his eyes.
She also needs a mother who is alive, and a father who is not in prison.
But the needs of Erica and so many others didn't matter to Darren Mack, one more man, whose personal desires and needs, changed everything for so many. And the beat goes on.
When things seemed not to his liking, Mack upset with a turn in the contentious divorce proceedings, decided Judge Chuck Weller was corrupt.
He stabbed estranged wife, Charla at least seven times when she arrived at his home, (as ordered by the court) to drop off their daughter. Then he drove downtown to a parking garage, where he sniper-style shot Judge Weller from 170 yards away.
A note found in the condo where Charla's bloodstained body was found, made cryptic references to the plan. Simple, "Dan take Erica to Joan." On the morning of the killing Mack's longtime friend Dan Osbourne drove Erica to the home of mack's mother, Joan, at Mack's request. The note also mentioned the garage door at the condo being open before the words, "end problem".
The trial was moved to Las Vegas because of extensive media coverage and possible family influence in the close Reno community. It ended on November 5 when Mack entered his pleas after prosecutors had finished presenting their case. Soon after, Mack changed lawyers, and tried unsuccessfully to withdraw his pleas and get another trial.
Finally, District Judge Douglas Herndon listened to those left behind and then sentenced Darren Mack to a minimum of 36 years in prison, the maximum terms of a plea deal - life in prison with possibility of parole after 20 years on the murder charge.
The judge also upheld the prosecutor's recommendation of sentencing Mack to 40 years with parole, after an additional 16 years for attempted murder with a deadly weapon. Both terms are to run back-to-back.
In handing down the sentence, Herndon cited the heinous nature of the crimes and Mack's lack of remorse.
"The truth is, Mr. Mack is guilty of these crimes, but he doesn't want to hear anything about that," the judge said while emphasizing that while he allowed Mack to speak at length, he never said the one thing he hoped we would hear: "I'm sorry."
The judge went on to make an emotional plea for both families to "be be a bigger person" for the sake of the couple's nine year old daughter.
"You have a young child at a very impressionable age, soon to enter her teen years and the adult life. You all can either choose to raise her, disparaging both parents, or you cantry to get past the court cases, the criminal proceedings . . . and teach her the good things about both these parents.
She needs to be raised with hugs and kisses," Herndon said with tears in his eyes.
She also needs a mother who is alive, and a father who is not in prison.
But the needs of Erica and so many others didn't matter to Darren Mack, one more man, whose personal desires and needs, changed everything for so many. And the beat goes on.
Thursday, February 7, 2008
When a Man Loves a Woman
A classic song, one I play over and over. It ranks way up there among my all time favorites. Percy Sledge immortalized it, but it's the divine Miss M, the one and only Bette Midler herself, who belts it out with such emotion that it never fails to grab my heart.
"When a man loves a woman, can't keep his mind on nothin' else . . . He'd give up all his comfort, sleep out in the rain, if that's the way she said it should be."
It isn't stated explicitly, but the song seems to promise that love will last, that it will remain steadfast through tough times and passion, even when the spark of youth is gone. The song is great, but the song is at best a lovely promise and a fairy tale. Love takes work and faith and honesty and compromise. And sometimes - evidenced by more than 50% of marriages winding up in divorce - it doesn't last.
So what does happen when a man no longer loves a woman in this millennium? The increasingly violent answers to that question are providing a seemingly endless series of criminal cases.
The benign, normal answer would be to separate from that woman, get up and leave. The split and the way it happens is a choice. Does he start a fight in order to have an excuse to take off? Does he leave a message on a cell phone? Or leave a yellow sticky on the fridge to announce it's over? Does he confess he has fallen in love with someone else or admit he doesn't want the responsibility or pressure of an ongoing relationship? Does he hide those things of value that he might lose or have to split? Does he step up to the plate and deal with his decision?
Or does he just leave? There's always that old story that begins, He just went out to get a pack of cigarettes and never came home."
Any of these messy, sad, painful endings are at least still on the radar of humanity. The woman has the chance to get over it, get past it, find a new life, or even to dwell and mourn forever. But more and more , it seems lately, the choice is anything but. Instead, the man defiles, abuses, and finally kills the woman. And more and more he even chooses to have the life he created that waits to be born in her womb is taken without so much as an after-thought.
When did it become acceptable to end a relationship or a marriage, by disposing of a woman like an old mattress waiting for the for the trash collector to haul it away and out of his sight? When did taking someone's life because they are unwanted or inconvenient become a choice?
Even if it isn't instant true love or a lengthy marriage or a sweethearts since high school situation, love and passion do - at some point - go hand in hand. Perhaps women are more likely to confuse the two, perhaps not. Does the love have to be life-long? Can a quick tryst on a secluded beach qualify, at least for the moment? Honestly, no, but that does not make it any less wicked and despicable to end a brief encounter with the ultimate display of contempt.
The public remains glued to the news, internet, televison, true crime books, and death row interviews, learning the sick details of men, as a matter of convenience, taking the place of God or whatever higher power, into their own hands. Nicole, Lana, Laci, Natalee, Julie, Stacy, Maria, and so many more have had their lives taken by the men they once loved and trusted. Men who had fathered their children or men they had just met. Relying on an internal compass doesn't seem to work any better in long marriages than it does in one night stands.
Far too often, a man decides to twist and distort the situation to produce the exact ending he wants - the quick exit to a mistake he has made and will not be held accountable for.
GET THIS THROUGH YOUR HEAD, TESTOSTERONE IS NO EXCUSE!
Women are not disposable, they do not have sell-by date and then discard stamped on their foreheads, they are not inconveniences. If you want out, GET-THE-HELL-OUT with out resorting to depravity! Pay the alimony and child support, deal with the anger like, well, like a MAN. Not a cowardly batterer.
The key word LOVE is lost to these men and replaced with selfish, self-serving, self important . . . SELF SELF SELF. So when it comes to an OJ or a Scott or a Drew or a Joran or on and on and on, it raises the question: when a man loves a woman does he really love anyone other than himself?
What goes wrong? Too many men need a new roadmap, a new song that addresses what happens when a man doesn't love a woman. When he loves the sex, the convenience and whatever is on his agenda. Sting almost got it right, but instead of "if you love somebody, set them free", change it to " if you loved somebody, set them free".
"You can't control an independent heart
Can't tear the one you love apart
Forever conditioned to believe that we can't live
We can't live here and be happy with less
So many riches, so many souls
Everything we see we want to possess.
If you love somebody, set them free . . ."
Monday, February 4, 2008
2008 Primary Super Tuesday - The March to the White House
On the cusp of Super Tuesday, Barack Obama continues closing the enormous gap he once faced in most key states. His momentum has yet to carry him over the top. Hillary Clinton still clings to leads, sometimes narrow, in the bulk of states in play.
Tomorrow votes will be cast in twenty-four states. In the top ten states, poll data, reliable or not, shows Hillary leading in eight, although by razor-thin margins in California, Alabama, Missouri, Connecticut and New Jersey. Only in New York, Massachusetts and Tennessee does her lead seem secure.
How did the once mighty Clinton machine falter so badly? And will the trend for Obama continue?
Every election is, at some level, a simple conversation between camps. Obama began the campaign by saying he was "new"; Hillary replied that he was "inexperienced"; Obama answered he was a "voice for change"; Hillary countered she was the one to bring the country back to the "optimism, dynamism and entrepreneurship enjoyed during the Clinton Administration."
So went the state of discussions leading up to Iowa. The after losing Iowa and almost failing in New Hampshire, the Clintons panicked and played the race card - injecting it into a contest that had been and should be colorblind.
While Hillary emphasizes in every speech that she will be the first "woman" president, Obama had rarely mentioned race. He ran for the Democratic nomination like a Republican black - never summoning victim status and avoiding racial remarks entirely.
Had the Clintons shut up and let the black voters of South Carolina do their talking for them, the block African-American vote for Obama would have brought the race issue home to undecided white voters, triggering a pro-Hillary backlash. But they couldn't keep quiet. Their oh-so-subtle racial innuendo, philosophizing bout relative roles of Martin Luther King and President Lyndon Johnson achieved in civil rights, landed them in a cauldron of boiling water.
With nothing else new to say, Hillary, in effect, countered Obama's message of change by saying "You're black." When Bill compared Obama to Jesse Jackson, the point was obvious.
Obama parried with great skill in his victory speech in South Carolina by stipulating that the election was about overcoming divisions and coming together as a nation That brilliant move left the Clintons flat-footed.
Hillary's performance in the week after South Carolina was scripted and prosaic - a mere repetition of her rhetorical lines from the past. Like a juke box, she played poll-tested golden oldies all week - hoping we'd sing along with her choruses.
It seems as if the Clintons, lacking dirt to throw, have nothing to say.
On January 7th, Clinton broke down in tears. this display of emotion during a discussion of how she is affected by campaigning for president - was credited with aiding her comeback in New Jersey following an earlier defeat by Obama in Iowa. Is it possible the once great Clintonian strategy team of Carville and Begala are either out-of-ideas or stymied by having to play it clean?
During a campaign speech today, the eve of Super Tuesday, Hillary once again teared up at Yale University. Could it be the tough, strong, wanna-be leader of the free-world is trying the fragile tear routine again to stop the Obama surge? Will President Clinton use tears and pouts when negotiating with world leaders? How about a foot stomp Hillary? If things go really bad will you get the vapors?
Obama's gains still leave him shy of his mark. Tomorrow may bring a deadening roll call of narrow Hillary wins, particularly in the eight caucus states, where her control of the party apparatus gives her an edge.
Hillary has a reserve army of poor, single, white women whose support is intense and unwavering. Will that be enough to pull her through? Or will Obama's surge continue, with his eloquence and positioning on the diversity issue transforming narrow defeats to victories in a host of toss-up states.
The Republican primaries are all but over. John McCain has leads in eight, with Mitt Romney ahead in only his native Massachusetts and Mike Huckabee leading in Georgia. Most GOP states award delegates on a winner-take-all basis, so McCain's lead in delegates coming out of Tuesday should be insurmountable.
McCain's likely nomination is, of course, very bad news for the Democrats. We are told he is, by far, the candidate most likely to beat Hillary in November. The very immigration bill that made him anathema to many conservatives can help him attract significant Hispanic support, while the bitterness of the Clinton-Obama contest is likely to drive many anti-Hillary Independents and Democrats to support the moderate maverick from Arizona. (Remember how anger at LBJ drove many liberals to vote for Nixon against Humphrey in 1968?)
McCain should have little difficulty in consolidating the Republican and conservative ranks behind him - especially if his adversary is Hillary Clinton. Animosity to the New York senator may be just the elixir McCain needs to unite his party.
OR IS HE?
In this time of media intervention of the voting process, with the majority of the power of the radio, television and print media slanted towards the left, is the American voter being convinced that McCain is the Republican who can unite the country to beat Clinton/Obama?
Is McCain being sold to the voters for the exact opposite reason, being that when the primaries are over and the contest begins again, John McCain is the least likely electable?
Let the games continue. Who will find victory? Wouldn't it be nice if it was the American people? Doubtful but it would be wonderful indeed.
Vote early - Vote often ~ Richard J.Daley, Mayor of Chicago ~ 1955 to 1976
Tomorrow votes will be cast in twenty-four states. In the top ten states, poll data, reliable or not, shows Hillary leading in eight, although by razor-thin margins in California, Alabama, Missouri, Connecticut and New Jersey. Only in New York, Massachusetts and Tennessee does her lead seem secure.
How did the once mighty Clinton machine falter so badly? And will the trend for Obama continue?
Every election is, at some level, a simple conversation between camps. Obama began the campaign by saying he was "new"; Hillary replied that he was "inexperienced"; Obama answered he was a "voice for change"; Hillary countered she was the one to bring the country back to the "optimism, dynamism and entrepreneurship enjoyed during the Clinton Administration."
So went the state of discussions leading up to Iowa. The after losing Iowa and almost failing in New Hampshire, the Clintons panicked and played the race card - injecting it into a contest that had been and should be colorblind.
While Hillary emphasizes in every speech that she will be the first "woman" president, Obama had rarely mentioned race. He ran for the Democratic nomination like a Republican black - never summoning victim status and avoiding racial remarks entirely.
Had the Clintons shut up and let the black voters of South Carolina do their talking for them, the block African-American vote for Obama would have brought the race issue home to undecided white voters, triggering a pro-Hillary backlash. But they couldn't keep quiet. Their oh-so-subtle racial innuendo, philosophizing bout relative roles of Martin Luther King and President Lyndon Johnson achieved in civil rights, landed them in a cauldron of boiling water.
With nothing else new to say, Hillary, in effect, countered Obama's message of change by saying "You're black." When Bill compared Obama to Jesse Jackson, the point was obvious.
Obama parried with great skill in his victory speech in South Carolina by stipulating that the election was about overcoming divisions and coming together as a nation That brilliant move left the Clintons flat-footed.
Hillary's performance in the week after South Carolina was scripted and prosaic - a mere repetition of her rhetorical lines from the past. Like a juke box, she played poll-tested golden oldies all week - hoping we'd sing along with her choruses.
It seems as if the Clintons, lacking dirt to throw, have nothing to say.
On January 7th, Clinton broke down in tears. this display of emotion during a discussion of how she is affected by campaigning for president - was credited with aiding her comeback in New Jersey following an earlier defeat by Obama in Iowa. Is it possible the once great Clintonian strategy team of Carville and Begala are either out-of-ideas or stymied by having to play it clean?
During a campaign speech today, the eve of Super Tuesday, Hillary once again teared up at Yale University. Could it be the tough, strong, wanna-be leader of the free-world is trying the fragile tear routine again to stop the Obama surge? Will President Clinton use tears and pouts when negotiating with world leaders? How about a foot stomp Hillary? If things go really bad will you get the vapors?
Obama's gains still leave him shy of his mark. Tomorrow may bring a deadening roll call of narrow Hillary wins, particularly in the eight caucus states, where her control of the party apparatus gives her an edge.
Hillary has a reserve army of poor, single, white women whose support is intense and unwavering. Will that be enough to pull her through? Or will Obama's surge continue, with his eloquence and positioning on the diversity issue transforming narrow defeats to victories in a host of toss-up states.
The Republican primaries are all but over. John McCain has leads in eight, with Mitt Romney ahead in only his native Massachusetts and Mike Huckabee leading in Georgia. Most GOP states award delegates on a winner-take-all basis, so McCain's lead in delegates coming out of Tuesday should be insurmountable.
McCain's likely nomination is, of course, very bad news for the Democrats. We are told he is, by far, the candidate most likely to beat Hillary in November. The very immigration bill that made him anathema to many conservatives can help him attract significant Hispanic support, while the bitterness of the Clinton-Obama contest is likely to drive many anti-Hillary Independents and Democrats to support the moderate maverick from Arizona. (Remember how anger at LBJ drove many liberals to vote for Nixon against Humphrey in 1968?)
McCain should have little difficulty in consolidating the Republican and conservative ranks behind him - especially if his adversary is Hillary Clinton. Animosity to the New York senator may be just the elixir McCain needs to unite his party.
OR IS HE?
In this time of media intervention of the voting process, with the majority of the power of the radio, television and print media slanted towards the left, is the American voter being convinced that McCain is the Republican who can unite the country to beat Clinton/Obama?
Is McCain being sold to the voters for the exact opposite reason, being that when the primaries are over and the contest begins again, John McCain is the least likely electable?
Let the games continue. Who will find victory? Wouldn't it be nice if it was the American people? Doubtful but it would be wonderful indeed.
Vote early - Vote often ~ Richard J.Daley, Mayor of Chicago ~ 1955 to 1976
Sunday, February 3, 2008
Feb, 3, 2003 - We Will Never Forget
April 5, 1962 ~~ February, 2003"what we once enjoyed and deeply loved we can never lose . . . for all that we love deeply becomes a part of us." Helen Keller
The Time: 2:21 AM
The Place: The House of Blues
The Place: The House of Blues
Some said if Phil had had his usual driver, nothing would have happened. His usual driver would have said, "No, Phil, you promised," when he ordered a drink at the Grill early that evening; he would have said, "Come on, Phil, no drinking," when he ordered another one at Dan Tana's; he would have said, "Phil, you know how you get," and taken the next one away from him when they went to Trader Vic's. And later when Phil was downing Bacardi 150's and champagne at the House of Blues, the driver would have said, "OK, buddy, I'm taking you home now," and then later that night, when the gun went off, the driver would have said, "No problem, I'll take care of it". DON'T GO LANA DON'T GO
But instead Spector came out of his castle, gun in hand, and said to the substitute limo driver, "I think I just killed someone". Perhaps we will never know at what point the gun was drawn, who produced it, or why. We wonder what difference that makes in the scheme of things anyway. DON'T GO LANA DON'T GO
But we do know this special lady was shot in the face and when authorities arrived, Lana was dead as she sat waiting to leave, lying in a pool of blood in the marble foyer, while Phil Spector wandered about his house washing his hands and churning alibis, as the essence of life drained from her lovely body. DON'T GO LANA DON'T GO
Spector's long history - forever angry, selfish, impulsive, manipulative, depraved, indulged, appeased, self-centred, grandiose, pleasured by guns, and violent abuse of women was well-known in that strange place called Hollywood. Phil has never once been held publicly accountable for his actions. And because of his unaccountability how could Lana have imagined what lay ahead? DON'T GO LANA DON'T GO
Five years after the beast dragged the beauty to his lair on that winter night five years ago, little could she have known, he would finally snap ~ unable to handle his liquor, refusing to abide a simple rejection, one more door closing, one more pair of lovely footsteps skittering away, that there was so much to fear. DON'T GO LANA DON'T GO
This son of Satan, master of madness, demon of depravity, who would make the Marquise de Sade proud, still walks the halls of his Castle a free man. Manipulation of the system, countless legal tricks, he is still free. And those who loved the real Lana Clarkson sit and wait. Wait for the Justice that has to happen. Doesn't it? DON'T GO LANA DON'T GO
Among those who knew and loved the real Lana Clarkson, some mysteriously woke up at 2:21 AM, others didn't sleep at all. But all of us stand together to demand Justice. We will not forget, we will not rest until he sits behind bars and pays for distinguishing the light that was Lana. DON'T GO LANA DON'T GO
We light candles for Lana at: http://www.gratefulness.org/candles/candles.cfm?l=eng&gi=lana
One special personal friend of Lana remembers with these lyrics:
Not Ready To Make Nice - Lyrics/Dixie Chicks
Forgive, sounds good
Forget, I’m not sure I could
They say time heals everything
But I’m still waiting
I’m through with doubt
There’s nothing left for me to figure out
I’ve paid a price
And I’ll keep paying
I’m not ready to make nice
I’m not ready to back down
I’m still mad as hell and
I don’t have time to go round and round and round
It’s too late to make it right
I probably wouldn’t if I could
‘Cause I’m mad as hell
Can’t bring myself to do what it is you think I should
I know you said
Can’t you just get over it
It turned my whole world around
And I kind of like it
I made my bed and I sleep like a baby
With no regrets and I don’t mind sayin’
It’s a sad sad story when a mother will teach her
Daughter that she ought to hate a perfect stranger
And how in the world can the words that I said
Send somebody so over the edge
That they’d write me a letter
Sayin’ that I better shut up and sing
Or my life will be over
I’m not ready to make nice
I’m not ready to back down
I’m still mad as hell and
I don’t have time to go round and round and round
It’s too late to make it right
I probably wouldn’t if I could
‘Cause I’m mad as hell
Can’t bring myself to do what it is you think I should
I’m not ready to make nice
I’m not ready to back down
I’m still mad as hell and
I don’t have time to go round and round and round
It’s too late to make it right
I probably wouldn’t if I could
‘Cause I’m mad as hell
Can’t bring myself to do what it is you think I should
Forgive, sounds good
Forget, I’m not sure I could
They say time heals everything
But I’m still waiting.
UNTIL THERE IS JUSTICE WE WON'T GO LANA ~~ WE WON'T GO
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