Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
The only thing that separates criminals from non-criminals is the fear of getting caught. That's why non-criminals are so fierce in their determination to see extreme punishment meted out to those arrested. Behind it all: subconscious jealousy. If only they had the guts..........................
I know of no one who hasn't, at one time or another, harbored the desire/dream to kill someone or rob a bank.
And always remember, the most brilliants criminals will never allow themselves to be featured in a true crime book. Imagine what goes through their minds when reading a true crime book! I can see any of them reading a certain passage of the book and laughing so loud at their stupidity they wake up the neighbors.!
I have no favorite American criminal. If it was some Robin Hood type character, I would. But I haven't read of one yet.
The only thing that separates criminals from non-criminals is the fear of getting caught. That's why non-criminals are so fierce in their determination to see extreme punishment meted out to those arrested. Behind it all: subconscious jealousy. If only they had the guts..........................
I know of no one who hasn't, at one time or another, harbored the desire/dream to kill someone or rob a bank.
And always remember, the most brilliants criminals will never allow themselves to be featured in a true crime book. Imagine what goes through their minds when reading a true crime book! I can see any of them reading a certain passage of the book and laughing so loud at their stupidity they wake up the neighbors.!
I have no favorite American criminal. If it was some Robin Hood type character, I would. But I haven't read of one yet.
All too many opportunites lost.
I could not disagree more with your opening statement, especially the part that only the fear of getting caught is what keeps the non-criminal on the straight and narrow.
George Bush because he stole the presidency. Pretty slick if you ask me.
Also Al Gore because he conned the American public into paying him money for them to be able to breathe
Not trying to turn this into a "birther" thread but my "favorite criminal" would be someone who could obtain a legal, long form, authentic birth certificate on Barack Obama to show, once and for all, exactly where he was born. I figure such a person would have to break into computers or files he had no legal right to access and obtain the information illegally.....and this would make him a "criminal" by legal standards.
His mother is an American citizen, so that makes him one. Why does it matter where he was born? (Couldn't resist asking this question of a "birther" since I never run into any and always wondered about this ...)
First, I wanted to make it a poll so that posters could vote for their favorite criminals. Sorry, I don't follow crimes very closely and may have missed the names of infamous criminals.
Society is interested in crime and sex. Stories about those often lead the news, sell books, movies bring in the crowds. Isn't American TV basically crime? With brutal murders?Even city data has a forum 'True Crime'.
None of the names I listed in the OP are fictional, so they are true criminals.
Al Capone is well known, but never killed anyone. Same for Charles Manson.
Charles Whitman shot people at a remarkable distance and held off a police helicopter.
I read a lot of true crime and watch it on TV. I particularly enjoy the shows which feature the ways forensic science catches criminals. My husband commented that it was rather morbid and I told him that I do not watch or read about true crime for the gory details (no slasher flick fan here), nor do I enjoy heartbreaking stories about people getting killed. The best part of true crime is when the criminal gets their comeuppance! It restores my faith in human nature when a little bit of the world is set right when a heinous crime is solved.
Some of the most popular true crime subjects are the ones that have never been solved. People have been puzzling over Jack the Ripper for over a century and more and more books and TV shows come out all the time. Then there's the Black Dahlia, JonBenet Ramsey ... many more. As human beings we just long for closure of these terrible things, whether or not we knew the victims.
Charles Manson probably tops my list, because how his "followers" ~ some who were supposedly highly intelligent ~ could eat the crap from this despicable little man's hands. It is still absolutely unfathomable to me.
Manson's hold on his "family" was always an interesting question. I think the person who answered it best was Sharon Tate's sister when being interviewed on a TV show about Manson and his family. I don't remember her exact words, but she said that she does not believe for one second that Manson's followers who participated in the murders were "brainwashed victims."
She believes that in order to do what they did and to be so fundamentally attracted to Manson, they were just as evil as he was deep inside themselves.
His mother is an American citizen, so that makes him one. Why does it matter where he was born? (Couldn't resist asking this question of a "birther" since I never run into any and always wondered about this ...)
It matters because IF he was born outside the US, he has attained the presidency fraudulently, and if that be the case, it should be a matter of concern to ALL Americans. We are a nation of laws and a constitution or else we are not. It can't be both ways.
A "birther" is someone who believes he was born outside the US. I am not a "birther" as I do not know where he was born and have no strong beliefs either way. My mind remains open as I think the question has not been conclusively answered because Hawaii law, at the time he was born (and perhaps still today--I don't know) allowed children born abroad of Hawaii residents to obtain the "certification of live birth" form that has been presented to the public.
If he was born elsewhere, his mother was too young at the time for him to claim birthright citizenship through her. That is established law.
I hope this answers your questions.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
