Sep 282012
 

A young woman, not much older than my own daughter, was raped and murdered last Sunday morning in Melbourne. I’ve heard about and seen these events happen before today and lords know they’re dramatised often enough on television and in movies. One might think I’d be inured to such things but I don’t think anyone of a reasoned and rational disposition can ever become inured to the brutal death of another human being. Deliberately removed emotionally, maybe, but these things always have some impact, especially in this age of 24/7 news media & the hype which comes with it.

I’m pleased to note that this time, the media was somber in its approach, at least it seemed so. Social media was, and still is, distressed such as I’ve never seen before. Perhaps because this young woman worked a daily 9-5 with the National Broadcaster, a part of the media circus. Perhaps because social media really owned this event like  no other before it.I see that as a good thing. I don’t necessarily see some of the angry, irrational outpourings from well intentioned wanna-be vigilantes as very helpful. The dark side of the internet medium under such circumstances.

She was such a beautiful young woman, judging from the photos made public. Based on the CCTV video I watched, against my better judgement because it actually portrayed the killer much more so than I’d anticipated, she dressed to impress, as any vivacious young woman likes to do when out in public, enjoying herself among friends. Whether she was being stalked or was simply a victim of opportunity, we may never know and in the final analysis, what difference does that make? She is dead. Nothing can change that and analysing the in’s and out’s of her demise serves no-one any good. What is important is these few simple facts:

  • People like her killer live among us, every day, in every corner of the globe. We human beings carry the psychopathic traits of those who seek to fulfil desire at any cost within our genes. We’re all capable, thankfully, few of us actually succumb.
  • Darkness is the friend of darkness. Events such as befell Gillian Meagher more often than not take place at night. It behoves each and every one of us to look out for each other. Gillian should never have walked home last Sunday morning on her own. Doesn’t matter how well lit the streets or how crowded the route, darkness always provides comfort for darkness.
  • The male of our species will always lust after the female of our species. It’s hard-wired into our genome. We males will always appreciate a good looking woman. It’s the rare (thankfully) aberration who actually takes that appreciation and perverts it for selfish purposes. Women need to be aware of this most basic element of the human condition. That’s not to say that all men are ‘creeps’ or all men are axe murderers, far from it. But in my view, women ought not expose themselves to the dark side of that particular part of the male psyche. As Little Johnny Howard’s era taught us, be alert, but not alarmed. Be sensible, aware & street-smart.

Now, there will be those women who will take umbrage at that last point, but reality is harsh. Yes, as a free-thinking female of the species you might demand the right to pursue your own destiny, to go where you want to go, however you choose to go. I have no problem with that. However, common-sense and a sound sense of self-preservation say that you do not place yourself within the probabilities of harms way. Always look out for number one, because in the washup, you are the best protection you have. Sometimes, the only protection.

I think I’m saddest today over this matter because of the way I imagine Gillian ended her short life. It was undoubtedly violent, horrendously frightening and the ultimate in personal violations. I say that ‘I imagine’ but the truth is I cannot possibly conceive of such an end. No young woman, indeed, no woman of any age deserves to die as she must have died. Then to have her corpse cast into a shallow hole in the ground as so much discarded detritus. The thought disgusts me to my core. The thought fills me with anger that a human being of either gender could do such things to another human being. I have always advocated for capital punishment in circumstances such as these. I see no benefit to the greater human society in keeping perpetrators of such heinous crimes alive at the continuing expense of those of us who have to pay. As a species we will never progress, evolve or be able to strive for greater enlightenment if we continue to harbour these aberrant viscerally violent traits within our genome. I’ll be blunt. We don’t leave turds floating in a toilet bowl. We all prefer to shit into clear water. We all are taught to flush. I absolutely believe in cases like the murder of Gillian Meagher, we need to flush the perpetrator from any future possibility of polluting the gene pool.

“Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth” Yes, there’s more that follows, but I’m no christian. Eye for an Eye  is my creed. So be it!

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