"Buy a black dress now"

I would like to interrupt the news of the madness going on in Washington with some news from the real world.

In the middle of the day on Tuesday, Daniel Giddings executed Philadelphia police officer Patrick McDonald, after shooting and wounding him and then coming back to finish the job; by pumping several more rounds from his semi-automatic weapon into the poor man's body. Daniel Gidding's life ended a few moments later, after he was cornered by Philadelphia's finest. And please, let me stop you from thinking what I know you are thinking, and give you a little perspective. The boyz in blue here in Killadelphia have lost five of their brothers in arms over the past two years, so you might want to excuse them for being a little trigger happy.

Daniel Giddings was a career criminal, and was, even by Philly standards, a very bad man. At the tender age of 10 he beat and robbed a mentally challenged man in his neighborhood. Neighbors told his mother at the time that she should "buy a black dress". He was placed in various juvenile detention facilities where he sent staff members in not one but two of the facilities, to the hospital. When he was 18 he carjacked a motorist robbed him of $100 and shot him in both knee caps. He was sentenced to 6-12 years in state prison (he could have gotten a maximum sentence of 45 years). While upstate he spent over 500 days in the hole and had over 25 violations. The ADA in his case begged the Judge not to put him back on the street, and the Judge said he had an appalling criminal record. Still, Giddings did 10 years and was released to the mean streets of Philly and the probation department, to serve out his remaining two years.

Now the city is mourning the loss of yet another police officer to the senseless violence of its streets. And Daniel Gidding's family is mourning too. His family said he was no monster. (Really? He seemed like a monster to me) "In my eyes, he was family-oriented" (What family? The Mansons?), is what his sister said. "He was intelligent, lovable and adored his children (yes, he actually had children, three of them). It's painful to see all the negatives. They're trying to make him a monster". Ahhh yes we are, and he sure made it easy for us.

Now here is the thing: The blame is flying fast and furious after this tragedy. We have been blaming the Judge for his light sentence. We have been blaming the prison for his early release. We have been blaming the probation department for not monitoring him properly after his release, and we have been blaming the pro gun crowd for helping to make guns so easily available on the streets of Killadelphia.

My question is this: Why is no one blaming the fucking sperm donor who created this monster, and kept getting up? Apparently the sperm donor was a career criminal himself, and as is often the case, the seed he created was doomed from the start.

"He always told me that he'll never go back to jail...I did my time", his sister said.

But he took a life, destroyed a family, and damaged the psyche of a city. He paid with his life, so I guess some will say that justice was served. But was it? Is the sperm donor who created him paying for his sin? I doubt it, and we will just have to brace ourselves until the next monster comes along. Just keep those black suits and dresses close by.

Now you can return to the make believe world of Washington politics, and missing little white children.

Story here.