Molester Blames Bigfoot
Posted by: Loren Coleman on March 26th, 2008
In one famous case, a man who said he was hunting Bigfoot killed a park ranger. Some individuals have died of exposure in wild locations while looking for Bigfoot, and a few have shot up livestock or people, telling authorities they thought they were aiming at Bigfoot.
Humans will be humans. But when they use Bigfoot to justify their acts, to me, it goes beyond the limits of my tolerance.
Now comes this awful story out of Virginia of a man convicted of molesting children, who says he did it and attributes his start to Bigfoot.
I may be open-minded about Sasquatch, but I’m without mercy, no matter what the excuses, about molestation.
In an article by Keith Epps, dated March 26, 2008, the The Free Lance-Star of Fredericksburg, Virginia, the details are revealed.
Gene R. Morrill
A man who claims that he was molested by Bigfoot as a child was ordered to serve 20 years in prison yesterday for his own molestation-related activities.
Gene R. Morrill, 57, of New Ipswich, N.H., had previously pleaded guilty in Stafford Circuit Court to 20 charges stemming from his efforts to solicit 13-year-old boys over the Internet.
Defense attorney Terrence Patton cited Morrill’s mental health issues in seeking leniency from Judge J. Howe Brown.
Morrill told an investigator preparing his pre-sentence report about being sexually assaulted by the legendary Bigfoot, a North American folklore character said to be between 7 and 10 feet tall, and covered in dark brown or dark reddish hair. Patton said Morrill really believes the assaulted happened.
However, Morrill was determined to be mentally competent to stand trial. The judge also couldn’t have been impressed with Morrill’s criminal record, which includes a rape conviction involving a child in New Hampshire.
According to the evidence presented by prosecutor Jim Peterson, Morrill was one of several out-of-state online predators identified last year by Detectives Darryl Wells and John Chapman.
The detectives made Internet contact with Morrill and others while pretending to be young boys.
Chapman introduced another suspected predator to Wells, his “13-year-old friend,” and both detectives received pictures and movies of boys having sex with other children and adults.
The real boys were between 5 and 12 years old. The other predator brought Morrill into the conversations and Peterson presented pages of online discussions in which Morrill expresses his desire for sex acts with young boys.
Morrill was convicted of five counts of attempting to take indecent liberties with a child, five counts of using electronic equipment to solicit a juvenile and 10 counts of reproducing child pornography.
Morrill is still facing similar charges in Prince William County.
About Loren Coleman
Loren Coleman is one of the world’s leading cryptozoologists, some say “the” leading living cryptozoologist. Certainly, he is acknowledged as the current living American researcher and writer who has most popularized cryptozoology in the late 20th and early 21st centuries.
Starting his fieldwork and investigations in 1960, after traveling and trekking extensively in pursuit of cryptozoological mysteries, Coleman began writing to share his experiences in 1969. An honorary member of Ivan T. Sanderson’s Society for the Investigation of the Unexplained in the 1970s, Coleman has been bestowed with similar honorary memberships of the North Idaho College Cryptozoology Club in 1983, and in subsequent years, that of the British Columbia Scientific Cryptozoology Club, CryptoSafari International, and other international organizations. He was also a Life Member and Benefactor of the International Society of Cryptozoology (now-defunct).
Loren Coleman’s daily blog, as a member of the Cryptomundo Team, served as an ongoing avenue of communication for the ever-growing body of cryptozoo news from 2005 through 2013. He returned as an infrequent contributor beginning Halloween week of 2015.
Coleman is the founder in 2003, and current director of the International Cryptozoology Museum in Portland, Maine.
I have to concur. I have no time for people who do these types of crimes. There is no excuse and every one of them have an excuse but never want to take the responsibility for their actions. Our society does not treat them as they should. We need a place to put them. Perhaps an island in the Pacific with a huge population of sharks all around. Sorry but I have no time or sympathy for them.
It’s people like him that are the real monsters along with those who defend them. Nothing can justify the pain, fear & damage these “monsters” have caused.
It would almost be funny if it weren’t so tragic.
Well, this is an original line of defense, however pathetic. It would be like a kidnapping suspect try to explain his acts by claiming alien abduction. Poor excuse !!!
Maybe the guy WAS molested as a child, and maybe in his mind he deals with that by attributing it to a Bigfoot. Whatever. That still does not excuse his behavior.
I find this story quite disturbing whether big foot has anything to do with it or not. An island surrounded by shark infested waters is much too lenient of a sentence for anyone like this a## H#le. Putting him in jail with the normal population will be a much more fitting sentence. He will soon have many non Bigfoot creatures treating him like he treated those children. I have a feeling he will soon forget all about a Bigfoot molesting him.
Bigfoot has gotten enough bad publicity from Hoaxers. It does not need more from paedophiles of all people, thanks!
I agree with the others, this is a true monster. So, he was convicted of raping a child and was out on the streets again? Like greywolf said, let’s find that island and some hungry sharks.
Forget the island, just give him a bucket of chum and push him in.
There is NO excuse for abusing children.
A story of this nature may follow him to prison and make him very noticable to the inmates. A very unwise situation for a pedophile to create.
I hope the media points out sex offenders are monsters not Bigfoot.
I would have to say that although this is an origional defence, it is totally ludacris. Just think what that says about bigfoot. It shows that bigfoot has no taste in what is good looking. I mean, come on. Look at the guy. I am not the most beautiful person in the world, but let’s get real. I hope bigfoot is sitting in his abode right now reading this article and gets extremely upset. Okay. I won’t be judgemental anymore. But I just have one question, could bigfoot sue him for slander or libel?
A someone who works in this field, I would point out that abusers are often victims themselves, and that victims often attribute their abuse to fantasy people, creatures or scenarios as a coping strategy.
Quite often abuse is a tragic consequence of the abuser’s own past. In a sense their punishment comes before their crime. When someone abuses a child they set off a chain of consequences that may stretch decades into the future, and affect people they do not know, or who may not even yet be born. These chains of events often cannot be believed until you read the case files as I have had to.
In one case I had to sit caring for long nights in a high-dependency psychiatric unit listening to the pitiful wailing and screams of a young woman who ‘s baby had been taken from her because it was feared she might sexually abuse it. She had no record of doing this, but had self-harmed, because her grandfather had abused her since infancy. Apparently he himself had been abused as a youngster. Where does the blame lie? Was it right to take her child or not? Who are the victims? The ‘feed them to sharks’ line might assuage our disgust but summerary solutions do not always either address the problem, punish the guilty or spare the victim.
I make no excuses for this monster – but monsters are made, not born.
I have to admit, the former discussion is thoughtful, informative and well written, but when I read the name ‘sausage1’ it still made me giggle! And I wonder, was Bigfoot made, or born? I guess that’s the question cryptozoologists are trying to figure out.
This “belief” of his is in no way an excuse for the actions that has occurred. There is no punishment too harsh for individuals that prey on children.
Hi again.
Agreed, Cryptogoji, no excuse. But while having been abused oneself is not an excuse to abuse others, it may be part of the reason. Address the reasons and you may obviate the need for excuses.
By the way, ET, Sausage is my little girl’s nickname. She prefers it to the other one, which I’m afraid is Stinky. She believes in bigfoot but for a while laboured under the illusion that it has one big foot and one small one, like the Zombie Woof.
How do we know this guy wasn’t sexually attacked by Bigfoot? He wouldn’t be the first person to claim that. See Loren’s latest Bigfoot book…
well, without making judgment on the man beyond what has been reasonably passed, i would add that there is a history of this kind of pathetic excuse-making not only in our culture, but throughout bigfoot reporting history.
there was the logger who claimed he was bathing naked and was abducted by a cooing female bigfoot in the pages of ARGOSY magazine (i believe, though ya’ll can probably add his name and correct publication of this story if i’m wrong, as i suspect).
he says he obviously impressed the female sasquatch because he was “well-endowed” and skinnydipping in a creek! later, when he saw the way the male sasquatches were enviously eyeing him (owing to their more, er, uh, simian proportions), he put two and two together and got… twelve? 😉
when he re-appeared days later, he was covered in love bites (he claimed) and told of being forced to make love to the shefoot endlessly. later under questioning, i believe he finally confessed that he was just a lying scumbag who inflicted pinch marks on himself to cover for a drunken ‘lost weekend’ type binge from his logging gig.
R. Crumb, the u.g. cartoonist, did a hilarious (if sobering in light of today’s headline) comic about this, as well.
again, i’m not justifying what the child molestor did in any way or form; his actions have deservedly rendered him future victim bait at the hands and other parts of cell mates for the next 20 years or more.
but it may shed a light however dimly into the mind of such a man IF he was drawing — consciously or subconsciously — upon this darker, rarer side of human/bigfoot encounters in his very apparent insanity attempt.
again, it shows how cultural resonances like Jung predicted go beyond the ability to us to sometimes understand and/or separate as fact or fiction.
in other words: the most horrifying possibility to me? not that it didn’t happen (clearly or at least highly unlikely not); not that he lied about it (despicable, but justice was served); but… what if the molestor actually believes in his own, demented mind it’s true? not just that he ‘cleverly’ concocted such a story (for who in their right mind would believe it?), but has rendered such a mental abstract not as fantasy but as internal truth to blot out his darker nature?
it’s easy to laugh, and easy if understandable to condemn the man. but neither will prevent future molestations, merely make the victims more reluctant to come forward to accuse victimizers for fear of ridicule, scorn, and/or abject pity.
think of the catholic priests who abused and were protected by the church for untold generations. are they any less heinous? in fact, are they not — at least arguably — more monstrous? did they not have an institution that not only looked the other way, but actually rewarded the molestors as a class with benefits, freedom and promotion?
i guess what i’m saying is: the man ‘got what he deserved.’ but did his victims? clearly not. we owe it to the pain and degradation they’ve suffered to do more than raise our pitchforks in anger and storm castle frankenstein to burn it to the ground.
as the old universal frankenstein movies showed in each new sequel, that had a way of simply making it possible for the monster to escape extermination and become reincarnated endlessly to inflict more damage on future victims.
again and in conclusion for those who would misjudge my attempts herein: no mercy too often equals no understanding and no prevention. i do not advocate pity for the molestor, as much as pity for the next and at this point inevitable cycle of victims.
if we’re truly horrified, we should be dedicated to understanding such mental illness as the molestor suffers from rather than tossing another witch upon the bonfires. that may make us feel better temporarily, but what does that tell us about ourselves in the long run?
We’ve all heard the theories that being molested will sometimes lead one to becoming a molester. But, if this “human” really believes he was molested by a Bigfoot, shouldn’t he in turn be molesting other Sasquatches? I mean, his train of thought derails somewhere in his attempt at a legal defense. Imagine you’ve been traumatized by being attacked by a large dog. Does the rational response include you going around biting cats? Um, nooooo….
Ladies and gentlemen, we have ourselves a winner.
I will not apologize for my lack of empathy for this “man,” nor for my lack of insight into the mentality of a molester. There are some things humans should NEVER have to understand.
“if we’re truly horrified, we should be dedicated to understanding such mental illness as the molestor suffers from rather than tossing another witch upon the bonfires”
…………..
Please…. Let me throw the first log on to this bonfire!
This man is garbage. I have no regrets or apologies about saying this.
Finny out.
understanding and condoning are two radically different philosophical choices. at least, in all due respect (and i’m sincere in that respect, i hope you understand), to my way of thinking. to wit:
you may understand nuclear physics, but it does not mean you wish to set off an A bomb atop anyone.
you may understand the mind of a serial killer, but it does not mean you advocate wanton slaughter of the rest of humanity.
you may seek to understand the Bible, but it doesn’t mean you desire to commit some of the atrocities outlined therein.
you may wonder why a man falls prey to his own inner forces so horribly as this pathetic man did, but that doesn’t mean you condone his actions nor lack sympathy for his victims.
you may have a relative who is bi-polar or schizophrenic, but attempting to fathom the “why” of their mental derangment does not make you a supporter of any choices they made while under the state of derangement themselves.
having empathy is not a pre-requisite to scientific knowledge, per se. that is actually more in the realm of spiritual and moral choices. to me, that’s self-evident, not only with the repugnant sources of human quest for knowledge, but especially for them.
for example, no one wanted to examine the phenomena of serial killing for hundreds of years throughout humanity’s history. but some did. as a result, the FBI has developed a methodology of psychological profiling that enables them to capture and prevent at least some of the killers.
had we simply said, “well, gee, these folks are beneath our contempt?” the killers prosper, undetected amongst us.
loren coleman has written an excellent book about copycat killers and such inspired by the media (The Copycat Effect). does anyone herein believe Mr. Coleman is a fan of such madness? i for one do not. i for one believe he’s very brave to write such materials, especially given it opens him up to critics who can (and have, just read some Amazon reviews sometime) falsely say he’s only trying to exploit suicide and/or misunderstand motives, etc.
but as law enforcement officials who’ve used loren’s book as a case study to deal with incipient types who are mentally exhibiting the pathology that leads to school yard shootings and whatnot? well, they might say, “better to look than merely look away, clucking our tongues.”
it’s not easy to face the unknown, especially the darkest unknowns in our own souls. as was said, paraphrasing, ‘stare too long into the abyss, and the abyss stares back into you.’
i believe the molestor is a repugnant example of behavior as much as i do committing any form of evil against any other human is unacceptable. repeat, no one who harms others is a worthy moral example of humanity. quite the opposite, in the extreme. therein we agree.
but i still advocate not tossing stones when we all live in at least partly glass houses (or does your home lack windows?). Jesus said it best: He who is without sin? Cast the first stone. many other religious figures and philosophers have intoned similar advocacy of understanding versus condemnation. many were scorned for saying it, as well. they were not saying, ‘let killers go free.’ rather, perhaps we need to see that in each of us lies a little of what is magnified in the monstrous amongst us?
finally, condemning folks does little good. you may feel morally superior by condemnation, and this is a very human reaction to such evil. but is it just? nazis and racists feel morally superior; so do the very terrorists who threaten our country. all feel “we had it coming.” and note: i’m not saying you are like those people, okay? honestly, no comparison, my word.
but: it’s like the folks who post herein and ridicule any cryptozoologists who take the possibility seriously.
it calls into question the basic nature of of as human beings, in other words, that we seek to label some of us who are defective — criminals, molestors, mentally ill — and reward others who act more closely according to our personal codes of conduct, however unexamined those codes may be.
not unlike so-called ‘religious types’ condemning homosexuality and Good Germans looking the other way during WW2, in short, i find it’s often a sign of human intolerance afoot when folks start talking about a blatant lack of empathy, about some amongst us as being not worthy of the same rights, as some animals being more equal than other animals, etc.
the judge sentenced the man. the sentence was at least partially fitting, though clearly, nothing short of death was sufficient for some herein. i don’t necessarily disagree, given what most of our prison populations produce as an outcome when sex offenders are released (and all too often all too soon). perhaps we all agree on that.
but how many more like this man are out there? right now? online? does sentencing the molestor reduce the probability any? or will insight, however damaging to the brave few willing to do the research necessary?
there are no easy answers, in this question, or cryptozoology, or any endeavour wherein humans attempt to seek answers, especially against entrenched interests (see: flat world believers, Kings vs. Commoners, etc.).
it’s easier after all to ask how many angels dance on the heads of pins than to ask yourself/ourselves: how many devils reside inside us all?
just my thoughts. if you think i’m defending the molestor and not his victims? you really should re-read my posting again.
but as a child of the segregated south, i’ve seen this kind of lynchpin mentality in full force all too often, and while i am most decidely not judging any of you herein who’ve posted your strong emotions as such types to repeat ad infinitum (believe me, as a father of 3 children, i know and share your outrage), it does not protect our loved ones to burn witches.
it only drives more demons into the light of day, imho. and creates an atmosphere where such creatures of the dark are freer to blend in amongst us, undetected, leaving us all vulnerable to their sicknesses.
a perfect example of all that i’ve been talking about. i honestly and sincerely thank you for making it, though i suspect you’ll only believe i am ridiculing you (i am not).
though we radically disagree on the solution, it’s often difficult to make the case that understanding does not mean forgiving the individual involved in a crime. quite the opposite: it’s a view that suggests you’re only adding to the problem by advocating willful ignorance to the societal and individual stressors that lead to these problems occurring again and again and again and…
but your point makes it very clear why it’s so difficult to achieve any understanding at all. the gang mentality is so often the beginning of a world wherein victims are created who in turn victimize.
you’d have to be willing to ask the monsters behind colombine and other school shootings the painful ‘why’ of their actions to get that, however, else you’re just allowing more kids to remain in peril. you may believe, in short, that childhood torturing and abusing and bullying are simply universal, without impact, and things “to be gotten over” without allowing it to effect you.
there are those amongst us who are unwilling, unable and will react against such thinking. they are the next John Wayne Gacy’s, the next “Bigfoot Molested Me!” excuse-makers, etc.
you see it growing everyday. i am suggesting our intolerance to understanding — not accepting nor rewarding them, mind you — is a major cause of the breeding ground of latent misygony.
one day, the violence and victimization may touch you. one day, you may be called upon to search deeper than human witch burning.
but until that day, i again and sincerely thank you for your commentary. it proves the reactionary mode of thinking that leads to molestors and mall shooters being formed in the first place, even if i believe free speech is a basic human right that makes it completely acceptable for you to say so.
Not often do i present any type of opinion when stories come out on CM. Normally i read them and allow them to provoke thought. When you get right down to it, isnt that the goal of all these articles?. Let me assure you this particular article provoked a number of thoughts. Firstly, i would just like to adress the issue that seems to have sprung forth regarding our treatment or lack thereof of mentally disturbed individuals. To say we in no way help the problem by being angry, or reacting in less than rational means is bunk, and ill explain why. Throughout human existance our instincts and sharp mind have tought us what is safe and what isnt. Its our inherent “jumpiness” in decision making that has served to see humans live long enough to evolve. I see a poisonous snake on a trail in front of me, i dont stand idly by wondering “why the snake is here”, or “what i’ve done to cause him distress”. I move. Barring that possibility, its him or me. Im not saying i blame the snake for his nature, far from it. I respect him for his nature, i also respect how careful we must be around dangerous objects. I think (and this is personal opinion) we have learned how to protect ourselves in part by being judgemental and emotional. Also personal opinion is how we deal with dangerous topics, such as the subject in this article. We have so many thousands of “experts” who claim they know how, where,when and why monsters are made. And for every one of thier reasons, we have an excuse. They may in fact be one hundred percent factual, the fact of the matter is this, in most cases evil actions are taken by people who dont care about wrong or right, not who cant “discern” wrong or right. If i were molested as a child, and i was not, but were i, i would expect at some point in my evolution to adulthood i would have determined for myself that what happened to me was criminal. Not normal actions i should repeat or emulate. It is the personal “risk” of right and wrong that keeps most of us on the straight and narrow. If someone feels they can get away with it, they are then far more likely to attempt whatever risky actions they are considering. This leads to our punishment of wrong actions, or lack thereof. Why should we take into consideration a persons capacities when we decide punishment? If they are competent or not, the punishment MUST fit the crime. So this “jewel” feels wronged because ol’ bigfoot had his beer goggles on, and made a few foot tappings under this guys stall. We should what? Seek an explanation for why he thinks this is factual? Seek to assuage his guilt because he was wronged in a likewise manner in the past? No. Let his punishment be as severe as it would be for you or i. In fact, as he was determined to be competent enough to stand trial, make an example of him. No more excuses, we dont care what the reasons are for anything other than scientific curiosity. Commit a crime, pay your debt, end of story, regardless of circumstance.
Just my two-cents. And based on inflation it “aint worth much.
Rap
Cryptomundo was one of the earliest blogs to break this story, two days ago (as I write this on Friday).
It has stirred up many feelings, about the nature of “monsters among us.” As a person on many sides of the issue, professionally and personally, being a MSW, I have understanding and also call for responsibility for molestation.
Nevertheless, there is still another side of the situation.
Although it is difficult to find any humor in sexual molestation, it is part of human nature, perhaps as a bit of relief from the horror underlying these stories, to search for the light edge in news like this. Stand-up comedians make careers of doing thiis.
Today, Friday, I would like to just point to how this story is being carried by The Anomalist (http://anomalist.com) in their mentioning of it, to wit:
😉
Honestly, someone should warn MR. Biscardi. Alone in the woods with a randy sas. If we claim humans can learn deviant behavior from those who perform such abusive actions on them, can we also assume sasquatch might learn? Call the national guard, Biscardi might be in the woods with a whole slew of Young sasquatch (s?) Bent on man buggery and be in imminent danger!
Could you imagine the warning signs planted for tourist/hikers/sightseers?
“beware, sexually deviant large homonid may or may not exist and may or may not be residence. Assure all chastity belts are of correct tensile strength and in proper position before venturing further”
Lighten the mood the mood a bit, things got all dark and serious there.
Rap
i concur with loren coleman re: humor. that’s why i included my ARGOSY tale in my first posting in this subject matter. but i knew when i went beyond humor some would react with agitation. that’s the price we all pay for participating in free speech, of course; i don’t like it any more than you, but i love this country and would never, ever suggest we abandon that which has made us free: open discussions, pro and con.
rapscallion writes:
you would expect, in short, to spontaneously cure yourself? that’s akin to saying if you have a bad condition, you’ll grow out of it; or if you’re injured with Post Tramautic Stress in a war, you’ll simply forgive and forget and get all better by yourself.
while not impossible, it is a lonely, hurt-filled way to struggle through life.
and what happens if you fail? you know, last time i checked, 100% of the folks who posted herein are human. that means: failure. a lot of it, if you’re sporting the same genetic make-up as myself and every other human being i’ve ever met in my lifetime on this planet. 😉
so say you admit you have an “issue” from abuse. and that you can’t “mature” and deal with. that it festers inside you, like it did those Catholic choir boys and girls all those decades?
now what? seriously. seek treatment? why bother? as you state, we have so many “experts,” and all they do is make excuses, as you state. wouldn’t this mean, then, that they’re just excusing the acts of “evil” committed against you by the molestor?
that’s what you write. you write that, in essence, seeking help is seeking an excuse, because the only professionals you turn to will be offering you nothing but a way out of taking responsibility.
or: are you advocating “going it alone” and “toughing it out” without regard to your own psychological state? if so, you are falling prey to what these professional “excuse-makers” say time and again is what leads to further victimization. in essence, those who are abused continue the cycle themselves.
visit a web site about molestation. you won’t find it fun, i assure you. but you will find that a MAJORITY of those who abuse were abused. and that a MAJORITY failed to seek help from the so-called “excuse makers,” which in turn… well, you see the pattern, yes?
you argue my points for me. you basically state “we” all have some innate sense of right and wrong, and that this a priori state has protected us all against our own worst instincts. or at least, it should if we’re good and normal, whatever that means.
if this is true, then why do we still find folks committing murders, rapes, cheating, lying, stealing, etc.? or, are you suggesting only the morally superior amongst us (one presumes from your posting you include yourself in this category; i categorically deny any such affiliation based on my Christian beliefs, personally) have this uncanny ability to never fall prey to evil?
and again i ask you: what happens when this ability which you cite is prevalent fails? what happens when, for example, a democratically-elected leader sends a free people into a war against another sovereign nation under false pretenses? despite international protests, condemnations, and finally proof the action was ill-advised?
i am, of course, referring to Hitler and the invasion of Poland. or did you inadvertantly and momentarily fall prey to believing despite your moral instincts to know better into thinking i was referring to more recent events?
if so, this instinct has just been shown in no uncertain terms to have failed even in cyberspace. just now. over a small debate.
now imagine yourself alone, frightened, replaying your victimization over and over in your mind, and wondering why the very priest who molested you, let’s say hypothetically, is rewarded with “the good life” and society condones it and you, you’re left to feel inadequate, nay deserving of your fate?
what happens to your innate instinct then? do you mature and say, ‘hey, it was only rape of a child, after all?’ or do you begin to find yourself wondering about darker thoughts… revenge… or worse?
who was it that wrote: “life, being what is is, makes us all long for revenge” more or less? a brilliant mind even if the name escapes me.
were that reality only stories not reality, this might hold sway with me. and be, as you suggest, the “end of story.” but life is not a story. the happy endings are, as we mature adults realize, few and far between. that is the essence of maturity, actually; to go on despite the set-backs.
mind you, and as i’ve repeated now thrice, i did not and do not argue anything less than the punishment that man received. re-read my postings if you wish; this is factually true.
but my larger point is this: failing to do anything more than condemn and forget is tantamount to condoning these actions, albeit passively and unwittingly. to do nothing only insures more evil, as you call it (and i agree but wonder wherein the evil lies — only their hearts, or all of ours?).
it is a simple equation, you argue, to simply lock ’em up and throw away the key. and yet, has such action produced anything resembling a solution to this growing crisis in our land? does it do anything to detect and prevent? does it allow those who might be tempted down this path to seek help without immediate jail sentencing?
statistically, not. in short: throwing folks away may make you feel better for reasons i suggest you self-examine in greater privacy, but it leaves the rest of the society vulnerable to the next set of predators. it’s like citing a hurricane after it destroys a city rather than blaming the engineers who failed to build the levy properly that might/could/should have helped prevent further loss of lives. not ALL lives, but helped many.
it’s not an “all or nothing” reality, in my experience. it’s a “try and fail and try again” reality. you accept that it won’t be perfect but that doesn’t stop you from seeking a better version of your world (unless you’re cynical).
you intone that we shouldn’t speculate as on “dangerous topics” in a free society with free speech. i say just the opposite: that without an informed, free-spirtied debate? we only cover our eyes and wait with heads in sand until the next massacre of the innocent.
does that mean examination and “experts” as you quote/endquote them will have immediate answers? no. anywmore than we have definitive answers on quantum mechanics, gun ownership, and the War in Iraq.
what we do have, however, is the ability and i would argue responsibility to faithfully, seriously ask ourselves the hard questions: if prison is the answer, why does this problem grow? are you rationally suggesting that disgust however obviously felt by all who’ve posted herein is the solution? if so, it is a solution posited on inaction and willful ignorance. i do not and cannot support any such conclusion, alas, despite my respect for you as a fellow American to state the opinion to the contrary of my own.
many of us in this forum have dealt with mental illness firsthand, if not with a family or friend. it is an amazingly difficult subject to speak out on; only in the last decades have formerly “closeted” mentally ill patients even had the possibility to advocate attempted solutions, discussions, and acceptance. it is a taboo only genetic research has finally allowed to be broken into open debate, in short.
IF there is a genetic component to these crimes — and i do not say there is, per se, but that there exists some scientifically valid evidence that these kinds of crimes do have this as a component — wouldn’t we be better off as a society to not “coddle” the criminals but seek solutions?
you know, the largest percentage of homeless people in our major cities are mentally ill. our solution currently is: let them rot in the streets. the bums! they got it coming! get a job (not that, you know, i’d hire ’em because they might go postal on me, right?). hey, so what if this means we don’t track them, know their whereabouts, or know how they’ll react next to what societal tragedy? better to let ’em roam the streets like animals to commit who knows what crimes, right?
the kid at West Virginia? mentally ill. instead of help, most shunned him. for a reason: they didn’t want to be “associated” with such “societal lepers.” it’s easier to ignore than to address. after all, do YOU want someone to say you love and care about the sick perverts amongst you when you can just care for your own, healthy loved ones?
so then, if you get cancer, we should let you rot because you don’t have health insurance or access? if you have lupus, too bad? a broken arm, let it remain so? a liver condition, so death? so why not a brain disorder being treated like the organ of the body it is? why not… because, what, one organ deserves better treatment and one none at all?
no cancer solutions have been found. do you advocate giving up the quest? no one has prevent MS. you think we should shrug and say, “well, a lotta wasted money. end of story.” i rather doubt it, in context; surely you know someone who has not experienced perfect health from birth to death? if not, was a doctor and medical team present at that birth to insure such a blessed state of existence?
i think there is rank discrimination, in short, against the mentally ill because of historical prejudice. it wasn’t so long ago we imprisoned them. or mocked them. or burned them as witches. now we just let them stew until it’s too late and we cluck our tongues afterwards and wonder aloud, “my oh my, evil is just evil, isn’t it?”
what does that say about us? about our society? you may be a rugged individualist, i assure you no more so than myself. but individual responsibility has limits, or we wouldn’t even have a united states, would we? just a loose association of folks who never interact save if they absolutely have to.
such a society is dangerously close to what we’ve built de facto. the mentally ill, the sexual deviancy, the murderous rampages… all warning signs, if you’re not asleep at the wheel. sleepwalking through them only harbingers more to come, more evil, if you like.
i want to emphasize that i have very strong opinions about this (or can you tell?) because of personal history in this matter. not sexual molestation, but mental illness. i am tired of being lumped in with the Verboten Problems, and seek only enlightenment and understanding from my fellow human beings. not moral condemnation nor judgement based on a lack of education.
those who find this quesiton too disturbing, too challenging, need only excuse themselves from the debate, not pretend that imprisoning and disenfranchising those amongst us who have a brain organ disability is somehow tantamount to moral evil.
it’s a very backwards mentality, if you’ll excuse the pun. akin to saying african americans are somehow incapable of being as superior as european americans, or, in context of this forum, that sasquatch cannot exist because of prejudice against the idea by so-called scientists.
the same scientist who once said great apes don’t exist… that the world was flat… that there was nothing beyond the earth but God’s infinite nothingness… that the stars revolve around the earth… that…
it’s no great stretch to see that mental health is the next great frontier in human endevours. Arthur Clarke (God rest him) said as much in his books speculating on human science endevours. i for one look forward to the next great mystery unfolding before our startled eyes; i have learned that the more we uncover about ourselves, the less we have to fear, not more.
the demons hide in broad daylight because we shelter them so readily with ignorance. it is tough to allow the light inside and vanish them, but it is a goal of science as well as religion to do so.
i thank those of you who actually read my diatribes and reactions with an open mind. for those who are merely reactive and believe i am condoning molestation, i can only offer my sincere, true apologies for your misunderstanding of my words. if i failed to make the distinctions between knowledge and opinion clear, so be it my failure; if you refused to read without prejudice, the fault lies not within me, but yourself.
I am not excusing being a Biscardi for one moment. However, being Biscardi may not be an excuse but it could be a reason for behaviour. Biscardis are made, not born. We create our own Biscardis and .. SLAP! SLAP!!
“Shut up, sausage!!!!” (Sausage’s Mum)
Ah,
Well, after having read that rather winded response i would pose several shorter arguments, to save myself from carpal tunnel.
At one point you will note i did state that “experts” may in fact be 100% correct in thier diagnosis and proposed treatment. I also never stated that outside help was not a blessing.
You would write from what appears to be a knowledge of basic psychology, by using simple and reliable examples, direct from the textbook, to bolster your argument. Dont get me wrong, im no scientologist, i believe the human mind needs to be studied. Here is where we differ. I dont think that my mind can be considered an outside entity of my body. I think if my thought process was derailed somewhere down the line and my body acted in a violent manner, causing injury to someone, that you cant try my mind and body as seperate entities. As such, crimes commited by the body and a now malfunctioning mind must be viewed as a process of the whole being, not one or the other. Because as it stands right now, we lack the methods of extracting a mind and placing it on trial, while leaving the now zombie-esque body free to wander the streets. Thats what it seems your arguments relate to. Punish the bad wiring, first and foremost. I respectfully submit to you that your argument that we continue to suffer from deviant behavior as a result of “my mentality” is both false and insulting. I too have attended college, i too have taken physcology, and though im not as eloquent nor as verbose as others posting on CM, i believe my argument have no less merit. If anything, i belive i am likely representative of the majority on this subject, not the minority.
You claim we have recurring problems such as these due to, again, “my mentality” or likewise thinkers barring our “experts” from thier great works. As if we were giant apes out for blood, and the thinkers would have to wait for our lust for violence to be sated, before they could begin the “real” work. That just doesnt fly. You see an acceleration in this kind of behaviour, not just a persistance. Why? i posit this is likely due to our current desire to FIX the wrongs, as opposed to punishing them. Tell me where i diverge from common sense on that statement. These problems never existed on such scale even say, one hundred years ago. Why? Did we as a gun toting barbaric race toss the offenders in jail? absolutely. Do we do that now? in most cases, yes, absolutely. But now we have a viable mouthpiece for the criminals side. The excuse makers. We get to hear time and time again about how they must be viewed with exceptions as they are afflicted with a disease or “condition”. Watch how we dance around the PC table and assuage our own horror and guilt by labelling someone as “diseased”. Diseases can be fixed, cant they? now dont we all feel better about ourselves?. The study of criminal minds has more to do with absolving the publics guilt, than it does with fixing the problem.
So, i will gladly await your response. This isnt a contest, merely a forum where we can espouse our beliefs. I dont blame you for our society, i blame society as a whole. I dont call into question your capacity to react or perform as you have stated you would. I dont use you as an example to make a point more directed at perturbing the author, than making a valid argument. Basic psych, im sure your familiar. A good expert of the mind must maintain critical thinking at all times. Without that objectivity your arguments are tainted. Never believe, examine. Never assume, prove. Prove your methodology has worked. By your own admission the problems we face persist. There is a middle ground in all things, and no one side of this issue holds the golden key, but perhaps understanding one anothers viewpoints can be a solid foundation from which to work.
Rap
As a quick addition to my previous post, i would like to add this. Cryptohaus, rather than attempting to insultme, wouldnt you be better served by trying to understand me? Also, i noted a distinct desire to see society as a whole assume more and more responsibilities for one another in your post. Its this “new age” (and yes, i say that jokingly) way of thinking that seeks to shirk so much on societies shoulders. Personaly responsibility has and always will be the paramount means by which we govern our actions. I for one would rather have hapiness in knowing i can care for myself, instead of pushing my needs on everyone else. As im certain most people would. Of course there are cases where someone needs a helping hand, of course. But to quote another great mind, “a hand out is what you get from the government, a hand up is what you get from a friend” (somebody tell me who that was, and you can claim yourself a wise man:) Your espoused belief states we should basically all care for one another. Where do you draw the line? do we then also gain when we all “govern” one another? sorry, i have no desire to live in the hive. If you want everyone else to shoulder the burdens we all have to face, to “share the load” as it were, than i say this. There is always one guy in the group who cant carry his load as well as others, and in most cases for a short time people will help them, support them in thier task. But after a while, when those helping realize they have thier own heavy burdens, helpfulness is replaced with resentment. Not a stretch of road i wish to pursue.
Theres a reason communism doesnt work.
Rap
hi rap,
i agree with your comments, largely. and i agree with you that i’m also long-winded. 😉
i’m not out to make you an enemy nor a convert to my viewpoints, merely express them openly and without judgement. if i seem to be ridiculing you, it’s only because i chose my words poorly, not with deliberative intent to mock or belittle you. i frankly don’t believe one can learn by listening to one’s own voice only; rather, through open communication, admitting when one’s arguments and rationalizations have failed, etc.
put another way: if we all knew the answers? none of us would be presumably looking for anything online, would be content to sit and eat and vegetate in front of the tube, etc. i think the fact we’re all participating in this forum and interested in “the unknown” is proof enough we all seek some measure of a common truth; enough said on that.
again, in agreeing with you, i think one point i’d like merely to reiterate:
the confusion that exists between the largely failed idea of socialist intervention vs. personal responsibility has been illustrated pretty convincingly in the United States (though i would note that we have had accelerating problems as we decrease the OVERALL PERCENTATE of spending on state-funded mental health treatment; this correalation can be found repeatedly in homeless studies, which cite “outpatient” treatment as the number one reason why schizophrenic types wind up living in our streets and too often turn violent).
the question is: if we can use the current studies and newest technologies to pinpoint genetic deficiencies and disorders, and in theory help cure and/or treat them, wouldn’t that augment personal responsiblity and freedom rather than promote hive mentality?
i argue this: not a BRAVE NEW WORLD scenario wherein we’re all doped up, but rather, one in which our inner worlds when disturbed (such as the sexual predators amongst us) are treated so that problems are not merely ‘punished’ but prevented.
one can see where this goes if done without informed, public debate: a Frankenstein scenario wherein populations of unwilling folks are forced into therapies, etc.
that is NOT what i’m addressing, however. but can we truly say an individual is at his best possiblity for personal responsibility if a genetic defect is influencing his behavior to the degree he predates on children?
though you may say ‘yes’ and back it up, i say ‘no’ and believe that tossing in progress for punishment is a HUGE step backwards.
i argue this: that if we make a false choice between incarceration and progress, we doom ourselves in both directions. it’s too polarized.
existing criminals should be punished. without this stricture, we can agree as we have herein that anti-social behaviors are condoned. tolerated. even promoted. that is wrong; i have stated this again and again.
but i also state herein this salient fact: punishment alone doesn’t work. see further: the drug wars. the failed drug wars. we now imprison more people in the “great free nation” than on any other country on Earth including China! and what has it done for us?
elminated drugs? curtailed their useage? not really. certain drugs, yes, for awhile. but only temporarily. the source problem — people self-abusing and self-medicating with illicit drugs — has only worsened. we’ve tossed billions into it, overcrowded our jails, and now, when we want to jail sex offenders?
they get off sooner so we can toss in dope users. i mean, whatever your viewpoint on the drug war, cannot we agree that if we’re to choose to fund incarceration (THE MOST EXPENSIVE ‘SOLUTION’ btw; an average prisoner costs $30,000-50,000 per YEAR to keep in prison; the death penalty is over $1 million to enact in most states) that we’re better off to house violent sexual predators instead of casual drug users?
this is where i see our true liberties far more stripped than in any ‘let’s feel sorry for criminals’ mentality as you erroneously suggest i support.
again, i don’t see wherein we’ve improved our world by allowing criminals to freely prey on us as civilized, free beings. just the opposite.
but i see connections between simply advocating personal responsibilty and then ‘throwing away the key.’ three strikes hasn’t worked; it’s created situations wherein we basically spend millions of dollars over the lifetime of a convict’s housing — per convict, mind you — when that money could be better spent figuring out solutions.
not just, you know, coddling criminals, but seeking answers.
if there are no answers to be found? then our entire civilization is built on a false premise, as is our democracy. for we argue “all men are created equal,” but what we do and what we say is — as we all probably can at least tacitly agree — radically different.
i want to end this discussion herein for i feel i have unbalanced it with viewpoints that are not appropriate to the forum. it’s clearly not a crypto issue, but an issue deserving of discussion, nonetheless.
but this forum is about cryptozoology, and as much as i believe these two issues are related — because how we treat the unknown in theory and in animal/simian life is at least tangentially related, after all — i don’t want to derail it further.
i invite you to further email me and/or continue this discussion, but i’ve said FAR TOO MUCH by your own critique and by my own admission. so back to bigfoot for me, and rap, no hard feelings (i hope!), because i truly value your viewpoints, have read them and digested them, and learned.
Just because, a mentally challenged rapist claims he was raped by bigfoot doesn’t mean we should warn Tom Biscardi about bigfoot. I’m sure he already knows the risks of getting rocks hurled at him (as in many sasquatch encounters) and being in the presence of a large, and very powerful ape.
I feel the need to point out that not every molestation victim grows up to be a sexual predator.
Crypto,
I cant say i disagree on any one particular point. Would that we could find a solution and prevent unlawful actions previous to their inaction? awesome. Somewhere, in some time, we are going to find the appropriate mix of punishment and treatment. As far as warning Mr. Biscardi, i believe a warning is in order. Yes, he knows the risks about hunting ‘foot. But this is a new risk (he says, jokingly). never before have we come to understand that bigfoot is a sexual predator. Perhaps Mr. B should be forewarned that there is a likelihood that bigfoot may be on the prowl for something more than privacy and seclusion. Have a care Mr. Biscardi! Bigfoot is out there, waiting, watching. And he may be looking for a date!