« from the peta-files | Main | the lardy demin limerick contest »

his demon soul revealed

I've been trying all morning to write something about Scott Peterson. But what can you possibly say about a man that would kill his wife and unborn child?

I look at the pictures of Laci Peterson and in all of them she is smiling broadly. Her eyes twinkle, they do not betray any worry or fear that would lead one to believe that Laci knew her husband had the capacity to kill her.

I knew men like Scott. I used to call them Eddie Haskells. They have sly smiles and firm handshakes and impeccable manners. Behind those white-toothed grins and strong hands and polite phrases, their minds are constantly churning, trying to figure out how they can parlay your trust of them into gold.

Except Eddie Haskell never killed anyone.

The guys I knew, when they held the door open for a girl it was a metaphor for opening other doors. Like the one to her bedroom. When they greeted your mother with "My, you look so beautiful today," they weren't looking at her but at the diamond pendant she was wearing. Their charm was only skin deep. Behind the snake-like skin was a schemer, a planner, a thief or a womanizer.

I always looked at the eyes. I always knew. They say the eyes are the gateway to the soul and I firmly believe that. You can tell at a glance if someone is sad even though they are smiling, or seething with a slightly disturbing hatred for the world even though they are grinning.

From the moment I looked into Scott Peterson's eyes the first time he appeared on television, I had an inherent mistrust of him. I saw him as a cold, calculating liar, capable of almost anything.

But not this. Murder, yes. Throwing your pregnant wife into the water, tying her down with cinder blocks and fishing weights and then parading around town like the bereaved husband - it seems so much more depraved than just murder.

It's Susan Smith driving her babies into the water. It's a step beyond your ordinary killings that go on every single day. There's a message attached, a deep-seated psychological power struggle that explodes when that person tries to take control of an already out-of-control situation. It's about the wide-smiled facade falling apart and the defiance and rage that ensues when that person realizes his demon soul has been revealed.

I can only imagine Laci Peterson's last thoughts. The man she loved was killing her. The father of her child - the child almost ready to grace the world with his presence - was killing them both. I'm sure her heart died before she did.

What punishment is there to suffice for this crime? None. None at all.

TrackBack

Listed below are links to weblogs that reference his demon soul revealed:

» What needs saying from cut on the bias
Michele at A Small Victory says what needs saying about Scott Peterson. The saddest, and I fear truest, part: I [Read More]

Comments

That was eloquent and horrifying... you're right on...

Smug MF was too smart by half, wasn't he. Death's too good for him. Make him Bubba's bitch, forever.

You look into Mattie's father's eyes and it's nothing but madness.

I felt the same way.
And in the first days after her disappearence, being so close to her family..
Sick SOB. What the hell is wrong with people?

If he did it, which I think he did, he'd have to be psychopath.

Interesting mind experiment:

A woman's father dies. At the funeral she sees a very hot man she falls in love with.

As a direct result, she killed her sister.

Why?

Email me with your guesses and I'll send back the answer. Or post it, and I'll be back to reveal the answer.

While scientists checked the recovered bodies for DNA, he roamed the freeway flipping off the people assigned to track him.

That's not the behavior of a man in mourning or an innocent man.

Feed him to Saddam's People Shredder.

I felt the same way about Russell Yates, the husband of Andrea Yates who murdered her five children. This guy paraded around the news circuits, seemingly untouched by the fact that his five kids were brutally murdered by his own wife. And yet somehow the feminists of America appeared to take no notice, apparently too busy worshipping Andrea Yates and her innovative newly discovered method of "abortion."

Did you see his arrest photo? It made me physically ill. Tell me he just woke up and decided to go blonde one day...

I couldn't have said it any more eloquently than you did. The man is a monster. There isn't a legal punishment in this country that comes close to what he deserves. He's as stong a case for vigilante justice as if I've ever seen.

Toxic, I have to disagree. This man is not a psychopath, he is a sociopath. Charles Manson is a psychopath. He's living in his own little dream world, with no link to reality. Scott Petersen is a sociopath. A person who could do something this evil and then continue living as though nothing were wrong has absolutely no conscience and no remorse. See also: O.J. Simpson.

P.S. Is it just me or does anyone else think that that picture they're showing of him in the green suit looks just like Jerry O'Connell?

No way, Dana. That's Ben Affleck.

Sociopath and psycopath are pretty much the same thing. Sociopath is just the old word for it. LIke manic depression is the old word for bipolar disorder.

That was the point I was making. Manson and Peterson are pretty close; one's just a lot more open about being a psycho/socio-path.

Hardcore medieval torture isn't even harsh enough punishment for Scott Peterson. The insertion of sharp and/or flaming objects into an orifice or three is a good start, THEN we ship him off to be repeatedly and systematically violated by Bubba and friends. Hopefully they start right away -- nothing says lovin' like ripping open fresh scar tissue. Did anyone else immediately and strongly suspect his guilt as soon as it was reported that he sold his wife's SUV and was trying to sell their house as well? Yeah, typical signs of mourning -- for a murdering sociopath. I truly hope the Rocha family gets to see justice served in the manner they'd appreciate, whether it's death or incarceration or whatever. My heart goes out to them. Only in my very worst nightmares could I even imagine something like that happening to someone I love.

Amputate his arns and legs and cauterize the wounds so he doesn't die. Prop him up on a skateboard with a sign around his neck and set him loose in Modesto.

Hell, you can even marinate him something so the rats and other animals ....

Toxic: I stand corrected (sort of) I'd always been under the impression that a psychopath was clearly insane to the casual observer, whereas a sociopath appeared normal but could still kill due to their lack of any morals, conscience or remorse (i.e., Bundy, Gacy, Dahmer) After researching this on the net for the last hour or so, I can now say I am more confused than ever. I have seen my definition, your definition and every possible one in between. I therefore retract my statement and replace it with the following: "Scott Peterson is f*cking nuts. " I think we can both agree on that.

So when are you going to post the answer to your mind experiment? I'm waiting...

i agree with larry. scott should be anally raped until he sees jesus.

John & Ken had it right on KFI, talking to their on-the-scene reporter: ``So, if it turns out not to be Laci Peterson but some other pregnant woman, will you be taking the next flight back?''

Unfortunately the next day it turned out to be Laci Peterson and they went wall-to-wall Laci Peterson. I don't get who the audience is for this. Plainly it's great entertainment for somebody.

A NYT article after Diana said that women tended to relate. Maybe that's all it is.

Whoa doggie, I know he's an evil MAN, but don't you think we should wait for the verdict, or at least the trial?

The Onion's spoof of trials by media is looking more and more prescient every day...

If he's aquitted by a jury of his peers, are you going to take what you are saying now back, or ignore it and move on?

Do tell.

I'll be interested to see if they come up with any physical proof. nothing we've seen out in the media public so far indicates guilt other than by circumstance. Not that i'm suporting the guy at all, mind you, but i think the police have a real tough chore ahead of them. Let's hope that they don't do an "OJ" and totally screw up procedures!

Nail on the head.

As the father of a 3-year-old and a 6-month-old, I cannot fathom the depths of evil it would take to kill your wife and soon-to-be-born child. If he is guilty (and I suspect the police have more info than they are giving out at this point), it's just one more argument for the death penalty.

Ryan: While I am fully aware that our justice system operates on a "innocent until proven guilty" basis, come on already. Get your head out of your anus.

He was having an affair. He sells his "missing" wife's vehicle and buys himself a new truck. He attempted to put their home up for sale. He was brougt into custody near the Mexican border sporting a freshly altered appearance, with $10,000 in cash and his brother's ID. Are these the actions of a man that is holding out hope that his beloved wife is going to be found alive? No. These are the actions of a man who knew with absolute certainty that she and their son were dead, and panicked when the bodies he thought he'd hidden for eternity washed up on shore.

If this swine is found not guilty it will be a travesty of justice second only O.J.'s farce of a trial. And remember, "not guilty" does not necessarily equate with
"innocent".

Wow, so not only have you determined that he's guilty, you've also determined that any aquittal will be a "travesty of justice". Do you have any words for the appeals court, too? I'm sure the parole board or death penalty review board could use some guidance, as well.

Man you work fast. The D.A. should hire you today, just imagine how fast the case load will go down.

Here's a link to the Onion article I refferred to earlier:

Murder suspect to be tried by media.

I invite folks to read it, then compare it to what Michelle is doing now. See any similarities?

Ryan:

A) I used the word allegedly when appropriate.

B) This post was more about two other issues: NOW co-opting the murder to further their agenda and whether or not this should be considered a double homicide.

C) Whether or not Scott is guilty of murder, I still think he is a smarmy, arrogant, unfeeling, conniving bastard.

Perhaps you are confused Michele, this thread is 'his demon soul revealed'. It is in 'turning tragedy into politics' that you talk about NOW and company.

So, not only is he guilty as charged... even if he's totally innocent, he's still a bastard? REALLY? I can see the jury now:

On the charge of murder in the first degree of Laci Peterson, we the jury find the defendant not guilty...

On the charge of murder in the first degree of Connor Peterson, we the jury find the defendant not guilty...

On the charge of being male in close proximity to a tragic female, we the jury find the defendant GUILTY AS CHARGED.

Judge Michele: Do you have any last words to say to the court, Mr Peterson? No? I sentence you to death, order to be carried out immediately. Baliff, take this dog out and shoot him.

As for NOW's position, they aren't doing themselves any favors, though you are wrong to paint them as politicising the issue.

Because murders of pregnent women being charged as a double-homicide is a recent phenomenan(with some exceptions)... therefore the D.A. is ALREADY playing fetus poitics by charging Mr. Peterson the way he did. NOW is simply responding to that political stand.

Correction: I went to the thread you mentioned and found the law in question. I was mistaken that the D.A. was playing politics, he was simply following the law.

And therefore NOW should NOT be concerning itself with the judicial end of the case, as they would essentially be asking the judge to rewrite the law.

If they want to have a say, they can lobby to get the law changed.

Michele - "I'm sure her heart died before she did." I read this several days ago and it's haunted me ever since.I don't know that I will ever forget it. Your writing is a treasure.
Terry Reynolds

i for one believe that lacey peterson had fears of her husband, its hard to understand why a woman would live with a man like scott, but human nature is funny, she could see the handsome man before her begging for forgiveness each time he abused her, how many wemon today are living with a psycopath but doesn't admit it, our fairy princess stories, and love concers all is a lot of crap, but so many wemon believe things will work out, and sometimes they just don't, and the charm turns to cold calculated murder..t's mom .. please omit name and e-mail address