I think we can rule out a Wad Cutter.
From what I’ve read Venner wasn’t Catholic and actually an atheist. In addition he was doing this suicide in imitation of Japanese writer Yukio Mishima (who ironically was homosexual) who committed hara-kiri on himself after a failed coup.
There won’t be any same sex wedding there. Not until the Roman Catholic Church says OK. This is a huge fear of opponents of SSM. When you explain that it won’t happen in their church, providing their church doesn’t allow it, most people are OK.
Notre Dame is the center of Paris, the heart of it. This is a deeply offensive thing to do. About the worst you can do short of trying to overthrow the government and start a repressive regime.
I saw exactly one mention of a quote from someone who knew (but did not agree with) him that he knew he was going to die a painful death soon
There won’t be any weddings there. Notre Dame de Paris doesn’t do them. It isn’t a parish anymore, and while it can celebrate masses, it doesn’t do weddings, funerals or baptisms.
Foudn this on a French web-site: Le dernier coup d’un routard d’extrême droite:
My translation: “A gesture of despair as much as a political gesture,” explained a close friend. “Dominique Venner knew that he was fated to have a long and painful illness, but he wanted to give some meaning to his departure.”
How about lap dances?
Not in my experience. Nor do they like Dan Brown fans very much. Hell of a buffet, thought.
Wow. That’s both tacky and in extremely poor taste, referring to the toplessness and pistol-in-the-mouth respectively. I support same-sex marriage, but damn. That’s offensive.
The protest seemed to be at least in part against his fascism and terrorism, not just his opposition to same sex marriage. It’s not surprising that there’s a lot of people who want to do the equivalent of pissing on his grave.
Ouch
A more idiomatic rephrasing: “A gesture of despair as much as a political one. Dominique Venner knew he had an illness which was bound to be long and painful and he wanted his departure to mean something.”
Unfortunately the meaning was “I’m a bigoted and selfish asshole.”
Or, “hey, most people don’t know me from Adam, but now they will. HAH! I’m actually using SSM to get my fifteen minutes of glory, rather than being yet another sad bum who commits suicide rather than go slowly.”
And of course the only thing making it “news” to any extent beyond the merely local was his choice of venue. ISTM suicide in his drawing room would have passed largely unnoticed, and doing so on the train platform at Chatelet-Les Halles during rush hour would have been far more disruptive to the citizenry but unlikely to generate the same kind of counter-demonstration – those wanting to “piss on his grave” would have probably limited themselves to planning to, well, *piss on *his grave.
Not surprising, no, but only because people are stupid. If you want to desecrate something because of him, why not something that, you know, actually belonged to him?
Not that said desecration accomplishes anything. He’s dead. If his beliefs are correct, he’s either in hell or a really long limbo. If not, he’s, well, dead. There’s no purpose in doing anything, other than your own selfish satisfaction and getting your fifteen minutes of fame.
Probably the pool boy.
Well, he was a member of the OAS in the '60s. Must have been going for a double-double.
Only if you’re an altar boy.
I read the headline to Mr. Singular, and he said "we need more like that ".
That’s my man!
Limbo is a Catholic concept, so he wouldn’t be there if his beliefs were correct.
I think Christianity was too foreign for him.