Clearly this guy had issues beyond Bush's re-election. I mean the sun will shine again...... in four years.
Clearly, the man was sick. Had Kerry won the election, and had a Republican done what this poor fool did to himself, and had a string of Kerry and/or Democratic supporters cranked out the jokes, I can imagine what the Bush/Republican response would be here. Frankly, it's just another suicide. Sick people sometimes kill themselves. I'm not sure this is a subject that really deserves our time. Just my opinion, of course. Keep D&D Civil!!
'bout the same. This is a sick and sad man who kills himself, leaves no note, and it is turned into a political sacrifice and laid at Bush's feet.... Black humor is a very common phenomenon, SamCassell.
Dark humor doesn't have to be in poor taste, and just because someone was trying to be funny doesn't make it automatically appropriate. If someone had died of cancer, or AIDS, I don't think people would be making jokes in the same manner. Cloaking your callous remarks as "black humor" doesn't mean they're not offensive.
My mom worked with a LOT of suicidal folks when I was growing up. When I was still very young (5, 6, 7 years old), my voice hadn't changed and I was often mistaken for her when I answered the phone. On several occassions, I had suicidal people on the other end of the phone saying they were going to jump off a bridge or shoot themselves. It was scary as hell given my age. People who make it to that point where they actually go through with a suicide attempt have to be at a pretty dark place emotionally to begin with. Election or not, this guy was on the edge already and the strain over this situation probably just pushed him over the edge. I'm sorry for his family, particularly his fiance.
Anyone else considering killing themselves because Big Bad Bush(or any other American politician for that matter) kept his job needs to visit a third world country or two for a little perspective.
Well, if he had purposefully "contracted" cancer because of the election... that would be another matter entirely. Of course, that is absurd and that is why it is not funny. Is there any concrete evidence that he did this because of the election outcome or is it just being pinned on Bush? That's why it is kind of funny. I'm really making fun of the people who are contriving this death as a response to the outcome of the election.
Reread Jeff's post, giddy. This guy was obviously extremely depressed and / or mentally ill. The act was purposeful only in the loosest sense. He needed help, not jokes.
I a person that has experience the lose of a loved one that committed suicide, I can say that his "pain" may be over, but at the cost of him "making a statement", the parents and other loved ones are left picking up the pieces of the destuction he left behind.
I would bet that there were a number of suicides around the country after the election. Any major event so fraught with emotion is bound to push some people teetering on the edge over. Recognizing this is not the same thing as blaming Bush for the man's suicide.
Had I known or met him before the tragic action, I would have helped him instead of making jokes. However, all I know about this stranger are these news stories which loosely link his tragic decision-making to the outcome of an election. If not this reason, he would have found another soon enough.
What a waste of a bullet and a life. If he was so upset after last Tuesday, he and his fiance should have just packed up and moved to Canada.
Suicide is not an answer for anything. It leaves much more pain for many more people. Because of his selfish act many (his family and friends) are left to suffer.
I had a buddy whack himself over the summer and I feel nothing but contempt for him He left a beautiful wife and an 8 year old boy. I don't give a ship how bad things are its a waste of a life. I'm just glad this whacko didn't take out innocent people like a coluimbine moron or a homicide bomber. Good riddance. Boy you really showed them.
I've had a family member kill themself, and had a few friends who attempted. Depression is a serious illness, you aren't always in your right mind or making rational decisions. The manner in which he killed himself speaks to perhaps even further mental illness. I'm glad to know that some people on this board are so morally superior, tho. I didn't know this guy, but I'd bet that the election itself had very little to do with his suicide. I'll agree with giddy here, it could have been anything that set him off, if not the election.
