Slog
News & ArtsFriday, September 28, 2012
Hetero Every Child Deserves a Mother and a Father
Posted by Dan Savage on Fri, Sep 28, 2012 at 1:07 PM
Albert Peterson shot dead his wife and two sons hours after going to church because he dreaded the thought of Obama winning the election, a family friend has revealed.... Albert, 57, Kathleen, 52, Matthew, 16, and Christopher, 13, were found Tuesday just after noon inside their home in Herndon, Virgina. Co-workers reported to police that they were concerned that Mr and Mrs Peterson had not reported to work for the past two days.
1
I had to re-read this to actually believe this happened. This may just be one of the top ten most horrifying "Every Child" postings Dan has done.
3
Oh media, this is what your end times bullshit has wrought.
The doomsaying on both fucking sides is getting ridiculous and guess what? It reaches everybody. Even the fucking crazies.
Unless people tone down the hyperbole, who knows how many more stories like this we will see after the election happens.
The doomsaying on both fucking sides is getting ridiculous and guess what? It reaches everybody. Even the fucking crazies.
Unless people tone down the hyperbole, who knows how many more stories like this we will see after the election happens.
8
I know the childhaven link is a good addition, but in a lot of these cases it seems like something helping people with mental illness would be even better.
10
Strange, it's only the Daily Mail that has the details of the father's illness and supposed fear of a second Obama term.
None of the local reports coming from Virginia go into such detail. The Daily Mail is a shit newspaper in England - how did they get so many details that the local news outlets don't have? I am not trying to minimize the tragedy, it's awful. Please let the sickening details of the father's mental illness be the luridly fabricated details of the tabloid press, and not what really happened.
None of the local reports coming from Virginia go into such detail. The Daily Mail is a shit newspaper in England - how did they get so many details that the local news outlets don't have? I am not trying to minimize the tragedy, it's awful. Please let the sickening details of the father's mental illness be the luridly fabricated details of the tabloid press, and not what really happened.
11
@3: doomsaying on the part of the left? "if romney wins, you should shoot your family to death"? that sort of thing?
please provide examples, otherwise your "both sides do it" is just more conservative excuse-making.
please provide examples, otherwise your "both sides do it" is just more conservative excuse-making.
13
I attend an eschatologically-oriented congregation, and no one preaches that if Obama wins, you should kill your whole family and yourself. He was obviously a clearly disturbed man looking for an excuse.
14
@11 Are you serious?
I cannot count how many times people have said they would be "scared" if Romney won.
As if the prospect was terrifying.
And NO ONE on the right said that "If Obama wins you should shoot your family" either.
Yes, I honestly believe Obama is the better choice, but the idea the Romney, if elected, would bumble about the world creating American animosity, blow up our debt to the point that we cannot recover, and generally bring about the end of America as we know it is not going to happen.
America isn't over if Romney wins, but I've read many stories that have painted it that way.
It scares people. Fear is never a good motivator.
I cannot count how many times people have said they would be "scared" if Romney won.
As if the prospect was terrifying.
And NO ONE on the right said that "If Obama wins you should shoot your family" either.
Yes, I honestly believe Obama is the better choice, but the idea the Romney, if elected, would bumble about the world creating American animosity, blow up our debt to the point that we cannot recover, and generally bring about the end of America as we know it is not going to happen.
America isn't over if Romney wins, but I've read many stories that have painted it that way.
It scares people. Fear is never a good motivator.
17
@14
"I cannot count how many times people have said they would be 'scared' if Romney won."
The only reason I can see to be "scared" if Romney wins is that he will make the exact same mistakes that Bush did.
1. Start a war with Iran.
2. War with Iran means a bigger deficit which means a bigger debt.
3. Enough of a debt to bankrupt the USofA? Maybe.
4. More tax cuts for the wealthy so they can move the money out of the USofA.
5. Tax cuts mean a bigger deficit which means a bigger debt.
6. Enough of a debt to bankrupt the USofA? Maybe.
7. Trade war with China!
8. See 2 & 5.
9. I'm not even going to get into the social issues.
10. Or environmental.
So "scared"? Yeah. Maybe. But nothing that can't be cleaned up.
Even though the clean up will take LONGER than it took to get us into that disaster.
And the Republicans will be fighting the clean up efforts every step of the way.
Just like they're doing today.
"I cannot count how many times people have said they would be 'scared' if Romney won."
The only reason I can see to be "scared" if Romney wins is that he will make the exact same mistakes that Bush did.
1. Start a war with Iran.
2. War with Iran means a bigger deficit which means a bigger debt.
3. Enough of a debt to bankrupt the USofA? Maybe.
4. More tax cuts for the wealthy so they can move the money out of the USofA.
5. Tax cuts mean a bigger deficit which means a bigger debt.
6. Enough of a debt to bankrupt the USofA? Maybe.
7. Trade war with China!
8. See 2 & 5.
9. I'm not even going to get into the social issues.
10. Or environmental.
So "scared"? Yeah. Maybe. But nothing that can't be cleaned up.
Even though the clean up will take LONGER than it took to get us into that disaster.
And the Republicans will be fighting the clean up efforts every step of the way.
Just like they're doing today.
18
@16
"How tragic and ironic, considering Romney still has a chance and could end up winning."
Killing a child is not "ironic".
Killing two children is not "ironic".
Killing two children and a woman is not "ironic".
Go back to defending bigots and racists.
"How tragic and ironic, considering Romney still has a chance and could end up winning."
Killing a child is not "ironic".
Killing two children is not "ironic".
Killing two children and a woman is not "ironic".
Go back to defending bigots and racists.
19
@17 Yes, his presidency could be a disaster. But like you said, nothing we can't clean up. Unfortunate that we would have to do it, but that's the risk you take with democracy.
And yes, the fear-mongering is much worse on the right, but pointing the finger at only one side of the spectrum makes no sense because there have been misstatements made on both sides.
The point is that those misstatements reach the crazies, more than anyone it could have a terrible effect. Frankly, I'm hoping that the story has been misrepresented and that the Obama thing wasn't even a factor, but it might say something about how easy it was for people to believe that was the case.
Now, excuse me while I go take a shower and scrub myself with a cheese grater as I feel particularly dirty for defending Romney.
And yes, the fear-mongering is much worse on the right, but pointing the finger at only one side of the spectrum makes no sense because there have been misstatements made on both sides.
The point is that those misstatements reach the crazies, more than anyone it could have a terrible effect. Frankly, I'm hoping that the story has been misrepresented and that the Obama thing wasn't even a factor, but it might say something about how easy it was for people to believe that was the case.
Now, excuse me while I go take a shower and scrub myself with a cheese grater as I feel particularly dirty for defending Romney.
21
@14 - I logged in so I could tell you I completely agree with you. Leave aside the rhetoric, both parties generally govern the same. Aside from the republican fixation on gay marriage prevention, I wouldn't be able to tell the difference. And even that will be a dead issue in the next 8 years.
The thought of a Romney presidency makes me yawn.
The thought of a Romney presidency makes me yawn.
22
@19
"And yes, the fear-mongering is much worse on the right, but pointing the finger at only one side of the spectrum makes no sense because there have been misstatements made on both sides."
I think it is that "much worse on the right" (see Chuck Norris' "1,000 years of darkness") that makes some people overlook comments from the Left.
How does the Left compete with "1,000 years of darkness" or claims that God will abandon the USofA or that Satan will take dominion over our state and federal governments?
Somehow, demands for single payer health care reform doesn't have the same impact.
"And yes, the fear-mongering is much worse on the right, but pointing the finger at only one side of the spectrum makes no sense because there have been misstatements made on both sides."
I think it is that "much worse on the right" (see Chuck Norris' "1,000 years of darkness") that makes some people overlook comments from the Left.
How does the Left compete with "1,000 years of darkness" or claims that God will abandon the USofA or that Satan will take dominion over our state and federal governments?
Somehow, demands for single payer health care reform doesn't have the same impact.
23
So they're going to kill their families and then commit suicide because they don't like the fact that their candidate is losing? Speechless.
24
Virginia is a state that does not allow ANY legal contract between two Gay citizens that would bestow a legal protection. No D.P. no C.U. no C.M. (civil marriage). All in the interests of "protecting" marriage from the awful Homo-citizen. Bravo. Yet another example of the Heterosexual marriage gone wrong. They never should have allowed it when the experiments began way back when. We are now reaping the fruit of that horrible social experiment.
25
@22 Alright, it's impossible to compete with that kind of crazy. I tried. I just spent some time going through fact checking on things said by Democrats vs. Republicans which were untrue and the worst, most terror-inducing, falsehood I could find from Obama was:
"Mitt Romney, Rick Perry, and Newt Gingrich all say they would cut foreign aid to Israel — and every other country — to zero."
I hate rhetoric, but it looks like the left could make a substantially convincing argument that the "doomsaying" rhetoric is coming almost entirely from the right.
Maybe Gay Dude For Romney has a more damning fearmongering quote, but I give up because for every 1 piece of doomsaying from the left, I'm getting 100 from the right. It's actually quite depressing.
"Mitt Romney, Rick Perry, and Newt Gingrich all say they would cut foreign aid to Israel — and every other country — to zero."
I hate rhetoric, but it looks like the left could make a substantially convincing argument that the "doomsaying" rhetoric is coming almost entirely from the right.
Maybe Gay Dude For Romney has a more damning fearmongering quote, but I give up because for every 1 piece of doomsaying from the left, I'm getting 100 from the right. It's actually quite depressing.
26
So because his candidate is not going to win he kills his whole family and then commits suicide? Are other Romney supporters going to do the same?
Speechless.
And no, no one on the left is making up stories about the nightmare that a Romney Presidency would be. We are pointing out facts.
Speechless.
And no, no one on the left is making up stories about the nightmare that a Romney Presidency would be. We are pointing out facts.
28
Now if they were in northern Pakistan I could imagine being suicidally fearful of Obama winning on the assumption that he would continue our cruel drone war. But this dude? I suspect mental illness. We all made it through the Bush administration; conservative guys can make it through Obama, who is far closer to the center than Bush.
30
"Yes, I honestly believe Obama is the better choice, but the idea the Romney, if elected, would bumble about the world creating American animosity, blow up our debt to the point that we cannot recover, and generally bring about the end of America as we know it is not going to happen."
@14 and @21: Aren't these things - - point by point - - exactly what GWB did? The global animosity and debt are obvious, and the Patriot Act/Homeland Security/TSA certainly changed the America I once knew.
@14 and @21: Aren't these things - - point by point - - exactly what GWB did? The global animosity and debt are obvious, and the Patriot Act/Homeland Security/TSA certainly changed the America I once knew.
31
Are we really surprised?!
When we've got pieces of pig shit like the resident house faggot with the dead of AIDS boyfriend "Gay Dude for Romney" talking about irony.
NO HOUSE FAGGOT aka "Gay Dude for Romney"-- I'm just sorry to see that so many worthy people are dead and you're not. Just be thankful you and I will probably never meet. You piece of worthless shit.
When we've got pieces of pig shit like the resident house faggot with the dead of AIDS boyfriend "Gay Dude for Romney" talking about irony.
NO HOUSE FAGGOT aka "Gay Dude for Romney"-- I'm just sorry to see that so many worthy people are dead and you're not. Just be thankful you and I will probably never meet. You piece of worthless shit.
32
This is depressing.
And also, the political slant is nearly irrelevant. This was a guy who was obviously going to snap about something. If it wasn't Obama's reelection, it would have been the Mayan apocalypse or a price change at WalMart. The man was clearly unhinged.
I'm taking this as it is: a reminder that some people shouldn't have children, period. And that gay parents aren't a part of the problem, the inability to stop some mentally ill people from snapping and causing damage is the problem.
And also, the political slant is nearly irrelevant. This was a guy who was obviously going to snap about something. If it wasn't Obama's reelection, it would have been the Mayan apocalypse or a price change at WalMart. The man was clearly unhinged.
I'm taking this as it is: a reminder that some people shouldn't have children, period. And that gay parents aren't a part of the problem, the inability to stop some mentally ill people from snapping and causing damage is the problem.
33
Here's a tragic story about a dad accidently shooting his 15-yr-old son that emphasizes the emptiness of the NRA bullshit machine:
http://ca.news.yahoo.com/us-man-fatally-…
http://ca.news.yahoo.com/us-man-fatally-…
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@6 Ha, ha!
@16 Ha, ha, ha!
@14 Didn't Samuel L. Jackson wake you the fuck up? Romney wants to transfer an even greater chunk of wealth from the poor and the middle class to the ones at the top, in the form of tax cuts and more opportunities for the ones who need it least. His plan of slashing government services and protections - and raising taxes on the middle class - is essentially austerity in everything but name. Have you seen what's going on in Europe? How's austerity working on the crisis over there? Well, that's what Romney wants over here in America.
Time and time again, we've seen that Romney's sole concern has been for his investors. Who are the investors of his campaign? What role did they play in our financial crisis?
Our progress in the Obama years has been fairly modest, but it has been progress nonetheless. Romney wants to take even those modest gains and throw them out, because his investors would be better off without them.
As for this guy who killed his family, I agree that it wasn't just because of Fox News. That may have been a trigger. There's probably a whole lot more to it than that.
@16 Ha, ha, ha!
@14 Didn't Samuel L. Jackson wake you the fuck up? Romney wants to transfer an even greater chunk of wealth from the poor and the middle class to the ones at the top, in the form of tax cuts and more opportunities for the ones who need it least. His plan of slashing government services and protections - and raising taxes on the middle class - is essentially austerity in everything but name. Have you seen what's going on in Europe? How's austerity working on the crisis over there? Well, that's what Romney wants over here in America.
Time and time again, we've seen that Romney's sole concern has been for his investors. Who are the investors of his campaign? What role did they play in our financial crisis?
Our progress in the Obama years has been fairly modest, but it has been progress nonetheless. Romney wants to take even those modest gains and throw them out, because his investors would be better off without them.
As for this guy who killed his family, I agree that it wasn't just because of Fox News. That may have been a trigger. There's probably a whole lot more to it than that.
35
I live one town over from this, about 20 min outside D.C. How tragic.
I wish that guy had gotten some mental help. I also wish he's analyzed the budgetary spending of both the Bush & Obama administrations. The *only* difference between the two is that Obama's Administration spent slightly less on education & more on defense. His job was safe for now.
The tone of this election season isn't helping anyone or inspiring anyone. It's just a hard, moneyed slog through the mire.
Very sad. Their poor family. Can't believe this NY girl lives in VA. My NY pals told me that I had to decide how I felt about guns before I moved here..
I wish that guy had gotten some mental help. I also wish he's analyzed the budgetary spending of both the Bush & Obama administrations. The *only* difference between the two is that Obama's Administration spent slightly less on education & more on defense. His job was safe for now.
The tone of this election season isn't helping anyone or inspiring anyone. It's just a hard, moneyed slog through the mire.
Very sad. Their poor family. Can't believe this NY girl lives in VA. My NY pals told me that I had to decide how I felt about guns before I moved here..
37
When Bush was elected in 2000, I and many others thought "he's a dumbass stooge, but how bad could he really be?" Well, we found out and it was much worse than we could possibly have imagined. It really does matter who gets elected and it has real consequences for real people. Probably the USA will survive but the world and all of us will be impacted, some much more than others. Don't minimize the consequences.
I agree with #32, something would have triggered this irrational response in this asshole, it is entirely unrelated to the reality of this election. I hope this maybe shakes up a few people enough to step back from their apocolyptic mindset, but it is just as likely to push a few over the edge, too.
I agree with #32, something would have triggered this irrational response in this asshole, it is entirely unrelated to the reality of this election. I hope this maybe shakes up a few people enough to step back from their apocolyptic mindset, but it is just as likely to push a few over the edge, too.
38
Blame Louis C.K. - when he gets in a motorcycle accident, there's a woman in the hospital bed behind him moaning, "What about Obama?" And then in the episode with Melissa Leo, when he refuses to reciprocate, she throws up her hands and says, bitterly, "Obama"... But really, let's not think about this stuff, it's sick and sad
39
And please stop posting horrific stories about straight parents killing their children (or worse). I mean get it, but I don't think it helps to gloat over it. Which it looks like you are, even if you're not.
41
And he was a defense contractor! Magnificent. Exactly the sort of level-headed, stable citizen who should be in that line of work.
42
Exactly what happened at that church office, that despaired him so much ? Are church sermons about politics ? Are preachers fear-mongering ?
I can't get how someone can commit murder/suicide just after church time. Isn't Church time supposed to help you feel better about yourself and the world you live in - whether through acceptance of the state of affairs, or through reassembling the community around hopes and fights for more rights ?
What kind of church was he attending ?
I can't get how someone can commit murder/suicide just after church time. Isn't Church time supposed to help you feel better about yourself and the world you live in - whether through acceptance of the state of affairs, or through reassembling the community around hopes and fights for more rights ?
What kind of church was he attending ?
43
These are exactly the kind of right wing crazies I'm afraid of if Obama wins. The murder of his wife and children is horrible, but he could just as easily have gone off on random people in public or targeted Obama supporters in some way. And it's why we don't show any public signs of support for Obama at our house or on our vehicle here in conservative southwestern Ohio. Paranoid? Sure. But these people are clearly nuts.
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