VICTOR CRUZ
Las Vegas, Nevada
The pressures of the holidays will affect us all a bit differently. Some people roll up in tight balls under their blankets, some drink themselves into a stupor, some go to church to find solace, some spend too much money or eat too much chocolate, or do the civil thing and hang out with the family.
Then, there's this guy.
When Beatriz Alvarez provided a place for Victor to stay until he got himself on his feet, she could not have imagined he was the kind of guy who would drink straight from the milk carton.
She asked him not to. He hacked her to death with a machete. Then he went after the rest of the family who are spending the holidays, now, in intensive care. He gets to celebrate the Nativity in his very own jail cell.
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Here's a friendly tip: don't give free room and board to any guy who moves in with his own machete.
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Here are some wacko runners up:
1. Ron Paul, presidential candidate, for his argument to Tim Russert on Meet The Press that the Civil War was unnecessary, that Lincoln could have peacefully freed the slaves by buying them, and that Lincoln's real motive was to destroy the Constitution as it was written.
2. Rick Carroll of California, who displayed himself as a sort of Santa Clause dressed thusly:
In addition to a red Santa hat, he wore a blond wig, red lace camisole, purple G-string, black leg warmers and black shoes.
He was arrested for drunk driving, and the police department said he was not THE real Santa Claus. Whew! They extorted $5000 in bail from the jolly old elf, packed him into a sleigh and sent him home.
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3. Vancouver Washington police officer, Roger Evans, who pulled out his gun and threatened to kill a butcher because the meat was badly seasoned. The butcher ran for cover while the "customers freaked out."
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3 comments:
I agree with Ron Paul's central premise, if not with the specific details.
That said, it's hard to hold two competing thoughts in my head at the same time. First, the Civil War ended human slavery in the US, which was a good thing. But second, the Civil War demonstrated that the federal government had no intention of confining itself to its enumerated Constitutional authority. Moreover, it showed that it was willing to use extreme force to prevent the Confederate states from exercising their natural right of secession (seems that if they ratified the Constitution a few decades prior, they ought to be able to unratify it should the need arise).
This guy probably crossed the boarder just last week and brought his friggin' machet with him right passed the noses of the guards.
As I see it:
Southern states had begun leaving the Union before LIncoln was sworn in. He could not have any direct responsibility for that decision. To accept the secession of the Southern states without a fight would ipso facto have been the demise of the Constitution. To fight against secession may have changed the refraction of its meaning here and there, but certainly Lincoln cannot be held to answer for every indirect consequence of the war he did not cause.
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