# Aw hell; Family of 7 dead in apparent murder-suicide **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [January 27, 2009, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aw-hell-family-of-7-dead-in-apparent-murder-suicide/483260 "2009-01-27T18:39:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Cluricaun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bb73d2/32.png) [@Cluricaun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cluricaun)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2009, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aw-hell-family-of-7-dead-in-apparent-murder-suicide/483260/21 "2009-01-28T00:17:08Z")
> [@Polerius](#): > > Apparently this story is not funny because the people are not Belgian… And the man didn’t dress up like the Joker. Why so serious? ---
**Author:** ![ivan\_astikov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@ivan\_astikov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivan_astikov)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2009, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aw-hell-family-of-7-dead-in-apparent-murder-suicide/483260/22 "2009-01-28T00:25:11Z")
> [@mswas](#): > > No one in their right mind murders their kids or commits suicide. Obviously it’s a mental defect. But not that obvious that anyone could see it coming? That’s what always amazes me. It’s like a switch just goes, and that’s it, mayhem and madness, here I come! ---
**Author:** ![Polerius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/d78d45/32.png) [@Polerius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polerius)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2009, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aw-hell-family-of-7-dead-in-apparent-murder-suicide/483260/23 "2009-01-28T00:26:04Z")
> [@Cluricaun](#): > > And the man didn’t dress up like the Joker. Surely your (and others’) witty gallows humour, demonstrated in the Belgian thread, cannot be thwarted simply because the guy did not dress up like the Joker. There must be something funny to say about this story. ---
**Author:** ![Cluricaun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bb73d2/32.png) [@Cluricaun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cluricaun)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2009, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aw-hell-family-of-7-dead-in-apparent-murder-suicide/483260/24 "2009-01-28T00:33:26Z")
> [@Polerius](#): > > Surely your (and others’) witty gallows humour, demonstrated in the Belgian thread, cannot be thwarted simply because the guy did not dress up like the Joker. There must be something funny to say about this story. Of course there is, but if he had dressed up like the Joker the jokes would have written themselves. Anyway, which kid do you shoot first? I guess by the time you get shot last you know you were the favorite. ---
**Author:** ![Rysto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ecccb3/32.png) [@Rysto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rysto)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2009, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aw-hell-family-of-7-dead-in-apparent-murder-suicide/483260/25 "2009-01-28T00:57:03Z")
> [@Cluricaun](#): > > Anyway, which kid do you shoot first? I guess by the time you get shot last you know you were the favorite. I think it’d be more like that Cthulhu Jack Chick parody: the favourite gets shot first. ---
**Author:** ![Monster104](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Monster104](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monster104)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2009, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aw-hell-family-of-7-dead-in-apparent-murder-suicide/483260/26 "2009-01-28T01:31:55Z")
> [@guizot](#): > > Well, I understand your sentiments, but do you really think that this was a case of a person who was living a nice life and then just decided–out of the blue–to become a “dipshit,” to use your words–and kill his family? Do you really think that he was a normal guy who had everything going for himself and his family, who just suddenly decided that it would be a good idea to kill his family? Yes, I believe that’s a distinct possibility. You don’t? > [@](#): > > You need to enlarge your sociological view of the world, and dig deeper before putting forth RO. Society is complicated. Who are you to say I need to “enlarge [my] sociological view of the world”? Go fuck yourself. > [@](#): > > Outrage is for people who are sane and who do something horrible for some personal gain. Nobody kills his own children (and then himself) for some kind of personal gain. The fact that this happened is not an occasion for outrage, but for trying to figure out how a person could come to such a state of mind. What point is there in cursing a person who has committed suicide? I’m outraged that he _murdered his family!_ Dumbshit. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![caveman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/caveman/32/7242_2.png) [@caveman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/caveman)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2009, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aw-hell-family-of-7-dead-in-apparent-murder-suicide/483260/27 "2009-01-28T01:51:22Z")
> [@Polerius](#): > > Surely your (and others’) witty gallows humour, demonstrated in the Belgian thread, cannot be thwarted simply because the guy did not dress up like the Joker. There must be something funny to say about this story. I gave a shot at the grimly funny up in post #9..I resolve to try harder next time! ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2009, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aw-hell-family-of-7-dead-in-apparent-murder-suicide/483260/28 "2009-01-28T04:10:31Z")
We’re all just each other’s pawns. Anybody who wants to assert their right to grease a few of his (and it almost always _is_ his) fellow humans can do it. Thankfully, most of us don’t, although it’s getting to the point where “why not” is more mystifying than “why.” ---
**Author:** ![lee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lee/32/7455_2.png) [@lee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lee)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2009, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aw-hell-family-of-7-dead-in-apparent-murder-suicide/483260/29 "2009-01-28T04:33:55Z")
I have read so many rants saying how people who can’t afford to care for their children properly should not have children and are scum if they do. I read rants about how it is morally wrong for people to expect the community to support children they bring into the world, how only scum do that. I lost my job shortly after my first child was born, and all those rants came slamming back to me and I felt like I was scum. I loved my child more than anyone or anything, but I felt like I had been wrong to have her, and I had never espoused those viewpoints. I had done my best to save and prepare a nice life for her, and it seemed like it was just not enough. I can’t imagine how much worse he must have felt than I did, because i can’t imagine doing that at all, but I can begin to understand the heartbreak and fear that started him on that path. ---
**Author:** ![Cluricaun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bb73d2/32.png) [@Cluricaun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cluricaun)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2009, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aw-hell-family-of-7-dead-in-apparent-murder-suicide/483260/30 "2009-01-28T04:50:25Z")
> [@Rysto](#): > > I think it’d be more like that Cthulhu Jack Chick parody: the favourite gets shot first. Dad, you said that I could get shot first, why did you shoot Amy first? ---
**Author:** ![KGS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/90ced4/32.png) [@KGS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KGS)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2009, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aw-hell-family-of-7-dead-in-apparent-murder-suicide/483260/31 "2009-01-28T05:06:53Z")
At least he wasn’t wearing a Santa suit. ---
**Author:** ![FarmerChick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a9a28c/32.png) [@FarmerChick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FarmerChick)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2009, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aw-hell-family-of-7-dead-in-apparent-murder-suicide/483260/32 "2009-01-28T13:26:10Z")
> [@lee](#): > > I have read so many rants saying how people who can’t afford to care for their children properly should not have children and are scum if they do. I read rants about how it is morally wrong for people to expect the community to support children they bring into the world, how only scum do that. I lost my job shortly after my first child was born, and all those rants came slamming back to me and I felt like I was scum. I loved my child more than anyone or anything, but I felt like I had been wrong to have her, and I had never espoused those viewpoints. I had done my best to save and prepare a nice life for her, and it seemed like it was just not enough. I can’t imagine how much worse he must have felt than I did, because i can’t imagine doing that at all, but I can begin to understand the heartbreak and fear that started him on that path. I grew up poor, there were 8 kids in my family. We usually had a garden, and utilized every thing possible to stretch what money we had. Hand-me-downs were a way of life, recycling was more then just a blue box at the end of your driveway. My point is, I would never rant at anyone for having kids if they loved them. The cold hard fact is we are in a world wide recession and it’s not going to get better any time soon. Everybody needs to start looking out for and helping each other, whatever that means. Grow a garden, use the food banks, apply and use any government program you can. If you have stuff you can no longer use, give it to someone who can. Be kind to the people that are not working, they already feel like shit, you don’t need to make nasty comments to make them feel any worse. Hell, a lot of people are just one paycheque away from the food bank themselves, and just a heart-beat away from a layoff. ---
**Author:** ![lee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lee/32/7455_2.png) [@lee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lee)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2009, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aw-hell-family-of-7-dead-in-apparent-murder-suicide/483260/33 "2009-01-28T13:55:26Z")
> [@FarmerChick](#): > > I grew up poor, there were 8 kids in my family. We usually had a garden, and utilized every thing possible to stretch what money we had. Hand-me-downs were a way of life, recycling was more then just a blue box at the end of your driveway. > > My point is, I would never rant at anyone for having kids if they loved them. The cold hard fact is we are in a world wide recession and it’s not going to get better any time soon. Everybody needs to start looking out for and helping each other, whatever that means. Grow a garden, use the food banks, apply and use any government program you can. If you have stuff you can no longer use, give it to someone who can. Be kind to the people that are not working, they already feel like shit, you don’t need to make nasty comments to make them feel any worse. Hell, a lot of people are just one paycheque away from the food bank themselves, and just a heart-beat away from a layoff. I agree with you, but go back to many, many great debates threads where various self righteous asses and their echoes condemn those who can’t address every problem they encounter by themselves. ---
**Author:** ![ivan\_astikov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@ivan\_astikov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivan_astikov)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2009, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aw-hell-family-of-7-dead-in-apparent-murder-suicide/483260/34 "2009-01-28T14:07:46Z")
I can fully understand the “Ugh! Bad! Smash!” instincts cases like this provoke, but shouldn’t the challenge for human reason and ingenuity be, to try and find some way to make even the slightest positive from these fortunately rare, but seemingly increasing events? Is the only option for this 25yr old man and 20 yr old woman, to have them removed from the gene pool? ---
**Author:** ![FarmerChick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a9a28c/32.png) [@FarmerChick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FarmerChick)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2009, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aw-hell-family-of-7-dead-in-apparent-murder-suicide/483260/35 "2009-01-28T14:09:52Z")
> [@lee](#): > > I agree with you, but go back to many, many great debates threads where various self righteous asses and their echoes condemn those who can’t address every problem they encounter by themselves. You pegged it right here. > [@](#): > > \*\*self righteous asses \*\* Fuck’em. All that really matters is if you can look at yourself every morning in the mirror. I can. > [@ivan\_astikov](#): > > …Is the only option for this 25yr old man and 20 yr old woman, to have them removed from the gene pool? Works for me. ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2009, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aw-hell-family-of-7-dead-in-apparent-murder-suicide/483260/36 "2009-01-28T14:14:22Z")
> [@Beware\_of\_Doug](#): > > (and it almost always _is_ his) It is? ---
**Author:** ![ivan\_astikov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@ivan\_astikov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivan_astikov)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2009, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aw-hell-family-of-7-dead-in-apparent-murder-suicide/483260/37 "2009-01-28T14:27:26Z")
> [@FarmerChick](#): > > Works for me. Would it not be more fitting, and slightly more beneficial, to have them making cuddly toys for poor kids, for the rest of their lives? Maybe they’ll even save the state some cash, and die of shame at some point - preferably after having made a lot of toys ---
**Author:** ![ivan\_astikov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@ivan\_astikov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivan_astikov)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2009, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aw-hell-family-of-7-dead-in-apparent-murder-suicide/483260/38 "2009-01-28T16:15:04Z")
Ignore my above posts…I’m not even in the right thread! I should be in the “I Hate People” thread. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2009, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aw-hell-family-of-7-dead-in-apparent-murder-suicide/483260/39 "2009-01-28T16:38:45Z")
And yet, I was totally tracking with the zombie toy makers line of thinking. ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2009, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aw-hell-family-of-7-dead-in-apparent-murder-suicide/483260/40 "2009-01-28T17:11:25Z")
> [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#): > > > [@Beware of Doug](#): > > > > and it almost always is his > > It is? [Cite:](http://books.google.com/books?id=iN8TWrl2K2UC&pg=PA57&lpg=PA57&dq=percent+of+mass+murderers+are+male&source=bl&ots=0MO2bBTCSV&sig=oJjbN98Y_Zb05WWiK2zr_06Ejt0&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=2&ct=result) Mass murderers are 94% male. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aw-hell-family-of-7-dead-in-apparent-murder-suicide/483260.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aw-hell-family-of-7-dead-in-apparent-murder-suicide/483260.md?page=3)