An Open Letter to Anonymous Cowards
I received the following lovely email in my inbox today:
refer to your article on John Hogan in Greece. Your language is appalling, your compassion is zero and you are a jerk through and through. Guess God put you idiots on this earth to teach others patience. you need as much help as this John Hogan. Obviously you have never been suicidal
Ah, the classic John Hogan hate mail: accusatory, judgmental, and hateful. In other words, it lacks all of the qualities it pretends it has. (If I’m here to teach you patience, and you sent this email anyway, then I guess that makes God a lousy teacher, eh?)
I continue to be amazed at the double standard employed by these people. I’ve been called every name under the sun. Yet John Hogan? The man who killed his own child (and tried to kill the other as well)? He gets "compassion" because he was "sick". It’s like the George Carlin routine about how you get fined for spitting on the sidewalk, but not for vomiting.
News flash, o presumptuous Internet: I have people I love who have been suicidal. They would never have done something like Hogan did. (And they’ve been through much worse than he’s been through in his life.) If they found themselves contemplating it, they would get help. Being deeply, clinically depressed - and yes, I’ve been there too - doesn’t rob you of your volition, any more than being drunk or high does; it just makes it easier to make disturbed, tragic choices. At some point, John Hogan made a series of choices in response to his mental illness that ended up in his son dying. I feel a modicum of compassion for that suffering - but my compassion for the child he murdered far outweighs any sympathy I may have for him.
As for the commenter above: In the future, dude, have the guts to leave your comment publicly - and use a real email address to boot. You may hate my opinions, but at least I don’t cower behind a curtain of anonymity.
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4 opinions for An Open Letter to Anonymous Cowards
Lora
Sep 12, 2006 at 8:37 am
I don’t know about you but I think I’ve shown all the patience I can for parents that USE children for their purpose.
I have no compassion for Mr. Hogan and I thnk his actions were appalling. If he wanted to kill himself why did he go for the dramatic. He wanted to teach someone a lesson and he used his children. I don’t like the word depressed. To many people hide behind that word and blame their actions on it.
My 78 year old father has a saying “If you can’t sign your name to what your doing, you shouldn’t be doing it!” Words to live by.
Be safe…
trace
Oct 27, 2006 at 8:43 am
absolutely!!!!!!! I agree with everything you say zero boss!
Mark
Mar 20, 2007 at 6:09 am
Judge not lest ye be judged. John Hogan’s family, both his mother and his wife, have behaved with great dignity and restraint in this sad affair. Would that the armchair commentators would do the same…
amylulu1
Mar 20, 2007 at 10:46 am
Oh, yes, and I am quite sure that Hogan’s family and wife have no animosity toward the fact that he killed their grandchild/child..whatever!! Practice what you preach–your comment is very judgmental about the fact that we share our OPINIONS.
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