Bad Day in Black Rock

The world will not forget Binghamton's Black Friday. The real one! Friday, April 3, 2009, is the day forever etched in history as the most violent day ever in Binghamton, NY. It was a lone gun slinger. Not just some madman, but a specific individual with a family, neighbors, likely some friends, and ex-coworkers. Ex-coworkers, because the tale is that one of the things contributing to his act of terror had to do with his lack of employment. Seemingly the other contributor which initiated his heinous act was his inability to be effectively conversant in the English language. This in the 28th year of his residence in the United States. As far as is now known his name was Jiverly Wong, though he was known by a few aliases.
Picture this scenario: Jiv borrows his pop's old Camry, straps on his pair of side arms (duly licensed), stuffs tons of extra ammo into his carry bag, and zips up the old Kevlar vest. Next he's out the door and soon parks the Toyota against the rear exit of the American Civic Association building on Front St. He is now effectively blocking panicked escapees' only escape route. Then it's in the front door, shoot the receptionists, and move left into a classroom full of eager immigrants trying to learn English, the language which has eluded his grasp for nearly three decades. In that classroom he shot as many as he dared then killed himself. It looks like he was ready for a standoff, but courage eluded him as cleverly as had English.
At 41, Wong probably had reason to be embarrassed about his lack of linguist skills. I was in a foreign country for only one year, many years ago, but could communicate effectively with the natives, in their language within a couple of months. I was lost until then, and it was seriously debilitating. People laughed at my clumsy Korean mutterings. It's got to be hard to struggle with a language for as long as Mr. Wong did and still have your fellow immigrants snicker when you speak the tongue of the community. No excuse for a slaughter!
He lost his job in the local Shop Vac factory when the jobs emigrated to Mexico in November. Hey buddy! Everyone is losing their jobs now, thanks to current economic issues. Not a reason to murder innocents! So, it's obvious that he was a stick of dynamite with a long fuse lighted many years ago, which finally reached the gunpowder.
To get back to the original premise, he was assuredly crazy. The sane don't pack heat and go on murderous rampages against the unarmed gentle people of the world, do they? But he was a person who lived with other people. The above mentioned family, friends, etc., if you will. Nobody saw this guy's meltdown? Hell, I can't wear a pink tee shirt under my sweater without everyone mentioning it. If I get new shoes, I hear about it all day every day for a week or two. So, nobody sees this dude melting down and does anything to get him some help? Maybe. Unlikely. You can't blame anyone but the shooter, but I hope that there will be a few people out there burdened with the guilt that they sat on their thoughts and worries and never lifted a finger to help get this man away from situations where he could harm anyone. I hope that those people step up and do what they can for the dead and wounded this asshole left in his wake. I am happy that he seems to have killed himself, because this is America. Alive, he would never have had to pay for his horrid crimes.

A Pirate Looks at Census?

Holy god almighty! The hottest news on the street is that the U.S. Census Bureau has drastically lowered the bar. How else can it be explained? They've hired me, a lowly pirate, to enumerate census. I don't know how many censae there are out there, but if one staggers into my field of vision, I mean to enumerate it. Some may escape enumeration, but hopefully most will not. Really! April 8th, I go for the 'Orientation' festivities. All the local freshly minted and newly unwrapped Enumerators will be herded to an as yet undetermined location, and be oriented en mass. I'm hoping for some new recipes and to sharpen my woking skills. "Make the most of it", I say somewhat optimistically. April 13th, the fun begins! A whole week of training. I hope I can keep my appetite until then. I'm all giddy. If this gets as interesting as it potentially may, there will be updates on these pages. Stay tuned and feel free to comment at will. How else can he tell if you're out there?
Keep on countin' on!