Slashdot Mirror
Suicide Caught on Surveillance Tape Appears Online
Jason writes "Reuters reports (and News.com mirrors) that the video of a man who shot himself after his girlfriend broke up with him has appeared online under the heading of 'Introducing: The Self-Cleansing Housing Projects.' It goes on to say that the police officers receive no training to deal with privacy issues."
I'd say he's been immortalized by the internet. I used to have a huge collection of bizzare, funny, disturbing, etc things collected from around the net. It was the most accessed section of the web-site. Whenever I'd forget to All Access Pass it, I'd do several gigs of transfer in a single day. I pulled it because it conflicted with my other interests. Like running a nice clean site. If you want to build a very popular site very fast, collecting internet pulp culture is the way to do it. If you can stomach it.
The mom should counter by posting embarressing pictures of her son so he's not remembered as that guy who blew his brains out. Perhaps as that guy who burned his eyebrows off when he was 12.
But somehow I don't think that will work as well.
Ben
Work Safe Porn
"Hey, everyone else is running out to see Mel Gibsons snuff film. Whats wrong with this one?"
This guy's real, Jesus wasn't.
Say what you want about religion, but we're definitely sure the actor who played Jesus was not fatally harmed during the making of the movie. He was, however, struck by lightning.
Yesterday I took a piece of paper from District Court to the Police station, on it was an order to erase my record of arrest because I hadn't committed a crime. I asked for a reciept or confirmation that they had erased my records and they said there was 'no procedure for that, trust us'. Now I don't have proof that my employer won't find this particularly offensive record when they do occasional background checks (I work at a school).
Privacy of suspects and citizens surely is part of the police duties, if they can provide records they should be obligated to properly handle them.
"Sometimes, I think Trent just needs a cup of hot chocolate and a blankie." -Tori Amos on Nine Inch Nails
If anything else, it desensitizes us about humanity. Sure lot of bad things happen in the world but that doesn't mean we need to watch it night and day. Some people seemed to be obsessed with watching these stuff almost to the level that they are addicted to it. Now that is pornographic.
Yeesh, way to push your ideas on everyone else.
I hate to break it to you but death is normal. It's going to happen to ALL of us.
There are lots of people out there who absolutely hate this idea so they seek to aviod ANY reminder of it (not just suicides/murders).
Most of the people bitching in this thread wouldn't be nearly upset if this was a video of someone being BORN.
Is it sad if someone dies before their time? Yes.
Is watching some video on the internet going to make a healthy indvidual loose respect for human life? Hell no.
Hell, I play GTA all the time, killing people, steaing cars, etc. Am I "desensitized" to actual crime and violence? No.
You mentioned one end of the spectrum:
those obsessed with these type of videos and therefore death
At the other end of the spectrum there are those who don't want to acknowedge that death exists.
The majority of the people who watch this type video have a healthy viewpoint and are *gasp* curious.
In most modern societies we don't see death that often because our old folks die in nursing homes and hospital beds. People know that death is going to happen to them, but they've never seen it happen to someone else. They want to know.
If you watch this video and think "that's sad" you're normal. If you watch this video and think that others must be protected from seeing it or they will begin to see death as normal, perhaps your viewpoint could use a little adjustment.
While death is a big deal, it shouldn't be a "reality shattering" concept.
All that said, I didn't watch the video because it is a sad event. I just don't think it's right to claim that watching this would make you "desensitized".
Then again, look how offended we're all supposed to be about seeing a nipple! Somehow I didn't think it was a big deal. I must be "desensitized" right? It couldn't be that someone else has an unhealthy viewpoint.....
Life is too short to proofread.