Amish Executions
If you’re just getting up and haven’t heard: some guy walked into an Amish school, ordered out the boys, and lined the girls up to shoot, execution-style, and shot all eleven of them before killing himself. Four died; a fifth was just pronounced dead.
Last night we were just at break-fast with a Hasidic family who runs a camp in Amish country. They interact with the Amish a lot; they supervise a batch of cows being milked so they can get cholov yisroel milk; they take care of each other’s livestock and stuff. “They call outsiders ‘English,’ it’s like their word for ‘goyim,'” one of the daughters told us. “But they don’t call us English. We’re different.”
(On another page entirely: isn’t it screwed up how the New York Times and other papers are taking and printing hundreds of photographs of Amish people? The Times article went out of its way to write paragraphs about how Amish people believe that taking a photo of someone is tantamount to stealing their soul, and they play out the community to be a bunch of helpless victims. And then, right above the article, is a whole photo spread of Amish people crying and Amish people looking sad. F#*!ers.)
I note that few people have commented on what is to me one of the most obvious facts here – it wasn’t the Amish being targeted – it was the women (or in this case, the girls).
In case after case of these random shooters, it’s women and girls who are targetted. I’ve already read several accounts in which the police have reported that the man was acting out a trauma from his past, and that it had nothing to do with the Amish. Well, not that I don’t feel bad for the Amish, but let’s be clear here who are the victims – it’s the same old, same old. Our culture says it’s okay to target women, it makes us targets in video games, in magazine spreads (see Ms. Magazine over , literally, years for some really gory advertising photo shoots – for clothing mostly), advertising of all kinds. And it lets us get away with targetting a class of people fo rno other reason than that they fit into that class. When you do it to people of color it has a name. When you do it to women, it’s just the usual thing.
This really should be a post in itself, but I’m too angry and depressed to make it a whole article. Shana tovah, everybody.
Oh, yeah, I noticed. I’ve been noticing — specifically — since the girl shooting spree last week.
During last week’s pre-shooting hostage coverage, the ‘journalists’ went out of their way to use the pronoun “they” when speaking of the unknown lunatic. Subsequently, they all referred to the victims as “female,” and the boy students as “young men.”
Some media did report that the hostage taking of the Amish girls were unrelated to their Amish-ness, but were based on their ready access.
I think it’s past time for women to take their girls out of dance classes, and put them into martial arts ones. Imagine if even two of those dead — in both situations — could do flying jumpkicks; maybe they all could have gotten away in one piece.
Meanwhile, all of the media continue to sexually objectify girls and women. 99% of female anchors are young, skinny, and have beautiful faces. And they sit next to males who are much older, and at best, simply average looking.
Ditto for tv shows, and movies: skinny (but with beautiful faces) women either actually in heat, or exuding pheromones, are the only ones who get ‘leads.’ Leads on two Law & Order shows (hey, I’ve been sick in bed for the last couple of weeks) have been replaced with younger, skinnier women, as the older men come back increasingly wrinkled.
PS Has anyone noticed the new version of the old Japanese binding of infant girls’ feet? Seems like all actresses now have the same gait — they cross their feet with each step they take! — making their hips sway enough to require immediate chiropractoric care…
“In case after case of these random shooters, it’s women and girls who are targetted.”
Do you have any empirical studies to refer to or is this simply your opinion?
I did a quick search of three of the most well-known school shootings: Columbine, Red Lake and Stockton. In the Columbine shooting 8 out of 12 victims were male. Similarly, at the Red Lake High School shooting, the majority of indivudals shot were male (9 out of 13). Were not over half of those shot during the Stockton Massacre male as well?
Chinese foot-binding, not Japanese.
“it makes us targets in video games” — I think if one were to do a study of video games, the ratio of victims of violence would be something like 1000:1 male:female. As for violence more generally, our culture turns a blind eye to the murder of men both in America and in the armed forces abroad. Granted, this is usually male-on-male violence.
Wait, are women not supposed to be targets in video games? Is this a new feminist crusade I haven’t heard about? Isn’t excluding women from their natural right to be targets in video games just like men…sexist? Did the feminist warriors of yesteryear fight tooth and nail to be mollycoddled and sheltered from the very real threat of virtual bullets and alien invasions? I think not!
Dare I say it, if Susan B. Anthony were here today, she would beat a hooker to death with a bat in Grand Theft Auto. To show that women can die virtual deaths just as well as men – because death is the one thing that can’t be segregated and phallocentrized.
Now, as far as the Amish, on the list of “Groups of People Who Don’t Deserve to be Killed,” they’re about number 1. They make the Buddhists look confrontational. My heart goes out to their community during this time.
The New York Times and other papers have interpreted a skewd & impromptu survey of victims of tragic school shootings to reach the conclusion that for maniacs it’s open war on “girls” Interesting that they never attempted to put this kind of analysis to work regarding the maniacs who have declared open war on boys, girls men & women who happen to be… Jews.
nah, I don’t buy the Video games made him do it. People who tend to play ultra violent games ( I am not even talking about GTA etc) I am talking about underground games…will be violent anyway. I bet this guy was shunned by an Amish gal or her family when he was a teen. I don’t know, but if my husband told me he was thinking about molesting kids, and I had 3 kids…um, I would be so out of there!
Men are more likely to be randomly attacked/robbed/mugged than women. Women are more likely to be attacked by someone they know.
“I think if one were to do a study of video games, the ratio of victims of violence would be something like 1000:1 male:female.”
Yes. I haven’t played video games for years but in most of the shooting games I played in the past, the enemy was exclusively male. There have recently been some high-profile games that receive a lot of attention in the press–Grand Theft Auto, for example–where you can beat up female prostitutes and kill civilians (male and female) but I think these games are far and away in the minority. I actually recall a higher female presence in martial-arts games than the shooting games. But maybe times have changed in this regard.
I know women are routinely objectified and are more often the victims of partner/spousal abuse than men are. I know women are more likely to be killed by their ex-lovers than men are. But I don’t think women are the primary victims of random deadly violence. I believe statistics bear this out. And if one includes gang violence it is even more apparent that men and boys are killing other males.
I may be wrong and I’m totally open to empirical studies that argue otherwise. But polemic doesn’t do it for me. I think a lot of these notions—“it’s women and girls who are targeted…let’s be clear here who are the victims – it’s the same old, same old. Our culture…makes us targets in video games…â€â€”are considered “common sense” by feminists and I consider myself a feminist. But I do not think they are accurate. Another common sense notion—one that comes from the other side of the ideological spectrum—is that most drug users are black. Of course this is false. We have arrest records and other statistics to prove that this claim is not reflective of reality.
WEVS1-
Good post, but this-
“Another common sense notion—one that comes from the other side of the ideological spectrum—is that most drug users are black. Of course this is false. We have arrest records and other statistics to prove that this claim is not reflective of reality. ”
-is a straw man, isn’t it? The actual common sense notion is (1) that blacks are PER CAPITA more likely to use drugs (it would be hard for 12% of the population to produce “most” drug users) and (2) that blacks tend to disproportionately use the deadlier drugs like crack and heroin. I think both of these notions are true.
I live in Philadelphia which is close to Lancaster County. The Pennsylvania legislature is unwilling to pass a law that limits the purchase of handguns to one gun a month, excluding rifles and antique guns. I doubt that this will make a difference.
“The actual common sense notion is (1) that blacks are PER CAPITA more likely to use drugs (it would be hard for 12% of the population to produce “most†drug users) and (2) that blacks tend to disproportionately use the deadlier drugs like crack and heroin. I think both of these notions are true.”
I’m not sure if that is the “actual common sense notion”. Or another way to put it is it depends on who you talk to. I know a lot of white Americans think more black folks use dope than white folks, period. Especially when you talk to white folks outside of urban areas. Of course this isn’t true for the reason you give above.
As to your comments regarding percentages per capita, hard drug use, etc. your notion may be the correct, or it may not. I don’t know. I’m sure the Center for Disease Control or some other government agency keeps those statistics. As in the case of random violence you can compare your notion to the statistical evidence and see how close of a fit there is.