Kanjuruhan Stadium Disaster: When Sports Fanatism Turned Deadly

 Indonesians, like me love their sports. It means that I have no shame whatsoever to admit that I've been a sport fan for the entirety of my life. We love our football teams, our athletes, our badminton athletes, and whenever our national team in any sport play a game, all Indonesians come together for their support. But just yesterday, we witness probably one if not the biggest sports tragedy ever witnessed in history. As I said earlier, we Indonesians are quite fanatic when it comes to football (or soccer). And sometimes, the fanatism of said football teams could turn deadly in an instant.

 

            The site is Kanjuruhan Stadium in Malang, East Java. It was an ordinary Liga 1 regular season between Arema FC VS Persebaya Surabaya. In hindsight, it would appear that these two clubs are only playing regular season football as part of the 2022/2023 season. But for the rest of us, it goes way more than that. These two clubs in fact, are somewhat of a bitter rival, fighting for football supremacy in the eastern part of the Java Island. The rivalry can be traced as far as the two competitions they were initially part of. Arema, formed in 1987, played in Liga Sepakbola Utama (Galatama), Persebaya on the other hand, are much older being first established in 1927, and was part of the amateur-oriented Perserikatan. As a result, Persebaya was pitted against Persema Malang in Perserikatan, and Arema had feuds with Mitra Surabaya in Galatama. When the two competitions merged, many supporters aligned themselves with either Persebaya or Arema. Since then, Persema's form dropped, and Mitra Surabaya was disbanded.

 

            The main cause of this bitter rivalry, however, was not the antics of the players on the pitch, but by the supporter base of each side. There are 4 teams inside the Indonesian league system that have the most devoted fans. each 2 teams represent the west and east region of the Java Island. On the west side are Persija Jakarta and Persib Bandung. Two teams from two different provinces, one from the Jakarta SCR and the other represents the capital of West Java with equally hostile environment. Their fanbase, Jakmania (Persija) and Bobotoh (Persib) each have their own ways to intimidate each other, and whenever these two teams play each other, extra security measures are often enforced to reduce the chance of a riot between the fanbases. This is known as the Indonesian equivalent of the El Classico Derby. And there is the Super East Java Derby, guaranteeing hard matches and equally hostile fanbase. The relationship between Aremania (for Arema) and Bonek (for Persebaya) is so dangerous, each supporter base decided to form an agreement in 1988 to not visit each other whether the two teams play each other in any circumstances.

 

            I have seen many instances of stadium riots throughout my lifetime, and each of them is heavily covered. But on this instance, it might be the most devastating. As mentioned earlier, Persebaya supporters were nowhere to be seen when the match kicked-off on Saturday, 1st of October at 08.30 PM Western Indonesia Time. The match itself was intense, with the visitors taking an early two-goal lead, before the hosts equalized towards the end of the first half. Then heartbreak for the hosts happened inside the second 45 minutes, as Persebaya pulled an extra goal, snapping their 23-year home match unbeaten streak. The game finishes 3-2 for the visitors, and the upset Aremania then flooded the pitch while others threw objects in disappointment, demanding explanation from the players and officials for their horrid performance. Riot then ensued when the police, employed by the match organizers threw tear gasses hoping to contain the chaos, but that would only triggered mass panics, as fans rushed towards the only exit gate available. With the combination of mass panic and unbottled anger, several stadium facilities were damaged, and two police vehicles were vandalized. There was also mass stampede as the spectators rushed for their lives. Children got separated from their parents, others trampled by those who had no concern other than their own well-being, and some of them even suffocate due to the tear gas. As the time of writing, they were approximately 448 casualties, including at least 130 deaths from the riot, two of them were police officers.

 

            While I can safely rule out supporter-on-supporter violence, there are some problems that indirectly played their part during the riot. The first was the venue. Kanjuruhan Stadium used for Arema's home games has a 42.000-seat capacity, all of them were sold out. The organizers suggested before the game to only provide 38.000 spectator tickets for this game, with Persebaya fans banned from the premises. The police had also advised, per security concerns, to move the kick-off time ahead from its original timeslot, at 15.30 Western Indonesian Time (03.00 PM). But the match still went ahead on primetime slot due to agreements with the match broadcasters. The other problem being the use of tear gas to disperse crowds. FIFA strongly discourages the use of this contraption but has no say whatsoever for its usage by local match organizers.

 

            The stampede is now recorded as the second-deadliest sports disaster behind the Lima football disaster in Peru which left 328 people dead and ahead of the Accra Sports Stadium disaster in Ghana which killed 126 people. Liga 1 competition is temporarily suspended by the Indonesian FA and President Joko Widodo, until proper evaluation to every security concern is carried out. Arema are also banned from organizing home matches for the rest of the season. It means that by the time the competition is reinstated, Arema FC games are to be played in neutral territory. I might be a proud sports fan, but there is no way that this is something to be proud of. This deadly fanatism within Indonesian football has taken too many lives but with too little mitigation from the Indonesian FA. I wish I could say "let this be the last incident", but with our history of hooliganism, I highly doubt that. For all lives lost during the riot, rest in peace. For those who are injured. I wish you all a speedy recovery. 

Jake Davison: From Incel to Murder

 (Warning: Strong languages and graphic description ahead)

 

            With the immortal words of Carl Johnson from the game GTA: San Andreas, "Oh shit, here we go again", we dive head-first (again) into the world of the involuntarily celibate. It is a bottomless pit to explore, especially with the members of this particular sub-culture is basically men who has little or no care of their appearance or social cues, desperate for some good times with some girls that are way out of their league. This time, it's about another deranged unsub (thanks, Criminal Minds) who resented his life, his sexlessness and his lack of romantic attraction, to the point of lashing out onto the world, even dared to hurt his own mother.

 

            The story is set in Keyham, Plymouth, Devon County, England. The unsub in question was Jake Davison. His exact birthdate is unknown, but by the time of the shooting, he was 22 years old. He was the youngest of three from Mark and Maxine Davison, previously settled in Shetland Islands, just outside of mainland Scotland. His parents were poor, and his dad was arguably the worst of all. He was known as an antisocial fisherman with the tendency of violence and struggled with alcohol abuse. He has two siblings, Zoe, and Josh, but with Mark's alcohol problems, tensions are often unavoidable, and by the time Maxine fell pregnant with Jake, they left the island and moved back to Keyham. He was a quiet kid, but apparently had developed anger issues. He then diagnosed with ADHD and autism and attended Mount Tamar School for special needs children. The school is a public-funded, but was severely underfunded and consequently, the school's reputation was not very good. Jake was a quiet kid at school who didn't get along well with his peers. He wasn't necessarily a bad kid, though. He was described by his neighbors as a "pleasant kid", and often seen helping his mom with groceries. 

 

            As like other teenagers at the time, Jake wanted to lose his virginity, but due to his autism diagnosis, struggled to even socialize in person, much less finding a possible romantic partners. But as with other subjects of the incel world, he was active on online forums and video games. As an outlet to vent on his loneliness, he documented his personal thoughts and views on his YouTube channel with the name of Professor Waffle. In one of the videos on the channel, he often blamed his mental barrier (that being his autism) as an excuse of his inability to secure a girlfriend. He also blamed his appearance, commenting that he was "fat as fuck". His personality shift happened way before that. In 2016, when he was 17 years old, he once attacked a 25-year-old man while accompanying his pregnant girlfriend. He allegedly punched the man almost 20 times unprovoked while they were walking around the local neighborhood. Jake was warned by the police but didn't escalate into a prosecution due to the lack of evidence. He would also argue with his mother, who just wanted him to get the help that he needed. This also exasperated by the fact that when he turned 18, his mother lost her government funds to support their economics. From then on, he found work as a scaffolder, but his hatred towards his mother would only grow bigger.

 

            As I said earlier, he was active on online forums and his YouTube channel. He would often complain about his encounters with women, not just about his own mother. He would complain about women being simple-minded and only cared about money. He was a nihilist and a proud misogynist. He would also share his blatant homophobic views on Reddit, as well as other subreddits dedicated to either the involuntary celibacy movement or the nihilism subreddit, like r/doomer. Davison presented the classic characteristics of an incel, such as his sense of entitlement to women and sex, and also his resentment towards the more attractive men who could effortlessly get women to do the nasty together. This is known as the "black pill" ideology, where in order for someone to successfully settle for a partner, he must be physically attractive or economically stable (or in this case, being a filthy rich person akin to the members of the Royal Family). 

 

            Strangely enough, in 2017, he applied for a gun license. When it comes to gun control laws, the United Kingdom has a fairly strict laws that dictates for those who want to apply for a gun ownership must state that they must be judged not to pose a threat for safety and has a fair reason for owning one. Radically different than those in the United States, which thanks to the Second Amendment of the US Constitution, permitted their citizens to purchase and own their own guns freely as well as establishing a "well-regulated militia", with laws about carrying those guns dictated by individual states. Weirdly enough, despite his circumstances, he was approved to own a firearm, and subsequently purchased a pump-action shotgun. If that weapon was a simple handgun or a rifle of some sort, it would be understandable, at least for the Englishmen standards.

 

            For years, Jake's dramatic personality shift sparked concerns on his family, particularly Maxine and freshly out-of-the-prison Mark, who has since reformed. Then 2020 happened, the world went into lockdown, and NHS was overrun, understaffed, and underfunded. At this point, mental health care was deemed almost impossible. Maxine even resorted to call the police to do a welfare check on Jake but was met with deaf ears. In December 2020, he was involved in a fight with two teenagers that turned so volatile, it resulted in his gun license revoked, and his shotgun taken away. His previous offence being unrecorded and registered, means that his gun ownership would be instated, if he attended anger management class, which he completed in July 2021. This was a disastrous decision on their part, that would set up the horrific events just one month later.

 

            The date was 12 August 2021. Keyham was enjoying warm summer weather, but not for one Jake Davison. He himself was a ticking time bomb at that point. His rage was at his peak, and he just got his shotgun returned. His reddit account was suspended just one day prior due to his inappropriate remarks on a 16-year-old American girl on an online gun forum. He had his usual argument with his mother, before storming back into his room, burst into Maxine's room, and shot her at point blank range twice, each shot targeted the chest and head. She died instantly. Without remorse or any slight thought of compassion, he reloaded his shotgun, and exited his home, and found 43-year-old Lee Martyn and his adopted daughter, 3-year-old Sophie. With his sight set on the father-daughter duo, Davison opened fire, killed both of them. At this point, the shotgun shots were so loud, multiple police calls were made on Biddick Drive, Jake's home neighborhood. He continued down the neighborhood, and locked eyes with Ben Parsonage and his mother Michelle, 53 and 33 respectively. They were struck, but manage to drag themselves into safety, and subsequently survived the ordeal. He then turned into the local park, and shot another unsuspecting victim, 59-year-old Stephen Washington. He then continued his rampage, shooting at random directions without any care in the world. His last victim was 66-year-old Kate Shepherd, who was fatally wounded in front of her own salon. Sensing that police were on his heels, and also the thought of no longer living his life as a free man, he encountered a bystander, said the words "there is nothing to worry about, mate", before turning the gun on his head, and pulled the trigger, having stolen 5 innocent souls and cowardly taking his own as well. The rampage lasted for 6 minutes, and left a devastating aftermath to Keyham, and to the county of Devon as well. 

 

            The wake of this incident sparked a massive reform to the UK's gun control laws. On 15 August 2021, the British government announced that it would issue guidance to require police to investigate social media posts of firearms license applicants and current holders. Before the new guidance is published, the Home Office asked all police services in England and Wales immediately "to review their practices and whether any existing licenses need to be looked at again". The two officers who handled Jake's reinstatement of his license were disciplined, and the police issued new guidance on applicants with history of mental illness. In remembrance of the 5 lost lives, an evening vigil was held on 13 August at North Down Crescent Park in Keyham. Flags in the city were flown at half-mast, and Smeaton's Tower was lit up that evening as a mark of respect.

 

            This case, at least at the surface, was like a typical incel rampage, with one man who is frustrated to the world who turned their backs against him, unleash rampage in the name of sexual desire, Having little to no conscience of their actions. But what lies beneath is despite the excellent services, the NHS was lacking the mental health department. It would take forever to someone to be noticed, and by the time that chance came, it was almost all too late. For those 5 innocent lives snatched from the rampage, rest in eternal peace. And Jake Davison, I hope you rot in the deepest pits of hell, sucking the biggest devil dicks imaginable. A coward killer incel belongs to a special place in the very depths of hell.

The Beast of Gevaudan: A True French Terror

 (Warning: Graphic description ahead)

 

"To the father and the son

Came the beast of Gevaudan

Terminator, a traitor, half wolf, and half machine

To the prior and the nun

Came the beast of Gevaudan

A redeemer, believer of fatal, mad, and mean

Beast of Gevaudan!"

 

-"Beast of Gevaudan", performed by Powerwolf, 2021.

 

            Yeah, I know. I only found out about this beast from a Powerwolf song, talking about a wolf-like beast, subsequently known as la bête du Gevaudan (the beast of Gevaudan), that terrorized an ancient region of Gevaudan in France between 1764 and 1767, but aside from the song, the beast itself was known for its cruel method of killing, by ripping out their throats, and in some cases, also decapitated. There are many interpretations about the existence of this beast. One of which being about how the beast was sent as an act of God to punish sinners in the area. 

 

            There are many descriptions about this beast, many of them are exaggerated due to the mass hysteria caused by the killings. But general description of the beast was a wolf-like canine with a tall, lean frame capable of taking great strides. Other descriptions being it has the size of a horse, has elongated head with flattened snout, pointed ears, and a wide mouth sitting atop of a broad chest. Some even said that the beast had the capability to speak like humans do, but this is heavily disputed. 

 

            The first instance of the attack happened sometime on early summer of 1764, when it attacked a young woman named Marie Jeanne Valet whilst taking care of her cattle. The beast was about to attack her when her bulls charged forward, obstructing it. They then drove the beast off when it tried to attack again. Valet was lucky enough, but a 14-year-old shepherdess named Jeanne Boulet didn't share the same fate; she was the first recorded victim of the beast of Gevaudan. The attack occurred on 30th June 1764. During the remainder of the year, more attacks and killings are reported throughout the region, made worse by the fact that the beast often preyed on lone men, women and even children as they tended to their livestock in the forests. There are reports that stated that the beast targeted the neck and head area. The fact pretty much explained the state of the victims at the time of the discovery, with many of them have their throats destroyed, or even worse, decapitated. By the end of 1764, there are also speculation that there is more than one beast lurking around the area. This is due to the fact that there had been such high number of attacks in such short time span, and many attacks or reports that occurred happened almost simultaneously. On early 1765, The Kingdom of France was alerted of the attack after the beast attacked 10-year-old Jacques Portefaix and his seven friends, all aged between 8 to 12. They survived the attack, and subsequently caught the attention of King Louis XV, who then rewarded Portefaix and his friends for their bravery, and later promised that the state will help to eradicate the beast. By this point, the beast was known as la bête féroce (the ferocious beast). 

 

            The French crown then sent many hunters to kill the beast, who at that point, had a bounty of 6.000 French livre. The first was First captain Duhamel of the Clermont Price dragoons and his troops but was met with non-cooperative farmers and local herders. His strategy was awfully executed too. He organized a large hunting party to hunt for the wolf-like creature, but when chances presented itself, it was hindered by the incompetence of his guards. This prompted louis XV to send a father-son duo of Jean Charles Marc Antoine Vaumesle d'Enneval and Jean-François. Their tactics were radically different from the previous, by using stealth techniques to kill the beast. After the pair failed to capture the beast as the attacks continued, François Antoine was sent on Jun 1765 to continue the hunt. On the 21st of September, Antoine shot an unusually large wolf measuring 80 cm (31 in) high, 1.7 meter (5 ft 7 in) long, and weighing 60 kg (130 pounds). He hunted the rest of the pack, and returned to Paris a hero of France, receiving titles and large sums of money. They thought that the attacks were over, but on early December 1765, two boys were attacked, but survived the ordeal. This suggested that the wolf killed by Antoine months prior was not the beast of Gevaudan.

 

            The terrors eventually stopped on the 19th of June 1767, when a local hunter named Jean Chastel shot the beast on the slopes of Mont Mouchet (now la Sogne d'Auvers) during a hunt organized by a local nobleman, the Marquis d'Apchier. The body then was transferred to the castle to be examined, and upon being opened, the beast's stomach contents revealing the remains of its last victim. 

 

            When you look at this story, from the first attacks all the way to the last, you might think that this could came out of a science-fiction movie, but the attacks by the beast of Gevaudan were horrific, to the point that even the king of France had to interfere. Usually, I'm quite a fan of historical stories and mythologies, but this one is actually scaring me, not because of the fact that the beast has killed people, but by the method of the killings themselves. And as I said in the beginning, the German metal band Powerwolf introduced me to this legend with the song Beast of Gevaudan, depicting this beast as a divine intervention and an act of God to punish all the sinners in the ancient region of Gevaudan. Seriously, if you look up the lyrics of this song, you will find that this song is actually about the wolf doing the act of cleansing the world of the sinners. Although the story behind the song and the lyrics are quite grim, I actually liked the song itself. In the end, the story of the beast of Gevaudan served as a lesson to always be vigilant to your surroundings. You would never know who or what is coming after you.

Elizabeth II: The Everlasting Royal Legacy

    Well, they say that the inevitable will eventually come. We all anticipated this news from many years ago, yet when the bitter end comes, we are still in shock. Just this morning, 6 AM Jakarta time, I woke up to the news that the reigning monarch of the United Kingdom, Her Majesty the Queen, Elizabeth II passed away in her Scotland residence of Balmoral Castle at the age of 96 years, just seven months after celebrating her Platinum Jubilee, marked her 70th year as the monarch of Great Britain and the Commonwealth realms. It was also two days removed from greeting her 14th Prime Minister of Great Britain Liz Truss, who will instead become the first Prime Minister to serve under her son's reign, now known as His Majesty the King, Charles III. Official news from Buckingham Palace stated that she passed away peacefully surrounded by the Royal Family in Balmoral Castle on the 8th of September 2022 at 6.30 PM BST.

             As we remember the beloved queen, let's dissect her life, from her time in the royal family, her military service, until her eventual ascension to the British Throne. Her Majesty was born Elizabeth Alexandra May on the 21st of April 1926 in Mayfair, London, England, the eldest of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother (Then known as the Duke and Duchess of York). She then assumed the title of Princess Elizabeth of York and was made the heir to the British Throne directly after George VI. At first, during the reign of her grandfather, King George V, she was third in line of succession, behind Edward VIII and her father. Had Edward married and had kids, she would be pushed further back. Then Edward assumed the throne in 1936 after her grandfather's death, and she became second in line. Then during the same year, Britain entered the constitutional crisis caused by Edward's abdication of the throne, due to him marrying Wallis Simpson, an American socialite who happened to be a divorcee. Technically speaking, if she had a brother, he would be the heir apparent, but since all she had as sibling was Princess Margaret, her younger sister, she became the heir presumptive. 

 

            When war came, most royal families would evacuate to somewhere safer. But during the events of World War II, Elizabeth and Margaret were to be evacuated as suggested by Lord Hailsham, but their mother outright rejected the idea, stating that the children will stay as long as the King stay. Interestingly enough, she served in the British Army during the struggle, served as a trained mechanic and driver and was given the rank of honorary junior commander. During her time in the Royal Family as Princess Elizabeth, she went to many countries, her first overseas tour occurred in 1947, accompanying her parents to southern Africa. One of the most memorable overseas visits that everyone will remember was when she was standing in for her father visiting US President Harry S. Truman in 1951. By that time, she was already married to her longtime husband, Prince Phillip, Duke of Edinburgh. 

 

            Her marriage with Prince Phillip in and on itself, was also controversial. Although served in the Royal Navy and became a British subject in the process, Phillip was a foreign-born, formerly Prince Phillip of Greece and Denmark. He was also in no financial standing and had sister who had married German noblemen with links to the Nazi. Before marriage, he renounced his Greek and Danish titles, and converted to the Anglican branch of Christianity, which basically a variant of the Protestant Christianity. Their marriage lasted until Phillip's death on 9 April 2021 and had four children, His Majesty King Charles III, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew, Duke of York, and Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex.

 

            In early 1952, The news of the death of George VI arrived just as Elizabeth and Phillip arrived in their Kenyan Home during their Australia-New Zealand Tour by the way of Kenya, with His Royal Highness Prince Phillip broke the news to the new monarch. As per tradition, whenever the sitting monarch passed away, their first in line of succession becomes the new monarch with immediate effect. She was 27 years of age when the her coronation ceremony occurred on the 2nd of June 1953 and witnessed many important events during her reign as the Queen of Great Britain and the leader of the Commonwealth. By this time, the Commonwealth had evolved to include 56 states, 15 of them are known as the Commonwealth Realms, where the head of state is the reigning monarch of The United Kingdom, which starting from this day onward, is King Charles III. In 1956, France was almost included in the Commonwealth, but instead signed the Treaty of Rome, which is the precursor to the European Union. She celebrated her Silver, Ruby, Golden, Diamond, and Platinum Jubilee, each marked her 25th, 40th, 50th, 60th, and 70th anniversary of her accession to the throne. She also witnessed the rapid decolonization of former British colonial territories in the 60s and the 70s, as many countries moved towards self-governance. She was also the first British Monarch to visit a communist country in 1970 when she visited Yugoslavia and President Josip Broz Tito. 1992 was the year marked by the Queen as annus horribilis, or horrible year, as she witnessed the divorces of Princess Anne, Prince Andrew, and then-Prince Charles from their spouses. There was also a rise of the Republican Movement in Britain, calling for a change in government from a monarchy to a republic with elected head of state. Her 70+ year reign was marked by various events in history, with the latest being the Covid pandemic, the United Kingdom's decision to leave the European Union, and the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine.

 

            When we look at the numbers during her reign as the Queen, Elizabeth II was perhaps the most well-known monarch in recent history. There are 14 prime ministers who served under her reign, most notably Winston Churchill, who was the last PM served under her father, Margaret Thatcher, a.k.a. The Iron Lady, Tony Blair, Gordon Brown, Theresa May, and the last under her reign and recently resigned Boris Johnson. Liz Truss was appointed Prime minister under her reign but will serve her post under King Charles III. With the United States, especially the presidents, 14 different presidents were elected at the same time as her reign. Her first meeting with Truman may be the first, but the meeting occurred while she was still Princess Elizabeth. Her first proper visit as Queen was when she visited President Dwight Eisenhower on October 1957. Then came Presidents John Kennedy, Richard Nixon, who apparently tried to set up his own daughter Tricia to marry Charles, Gerald Ford, whom she shared a dance with, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, who instantly bonded due to their shared hobby of horse riding, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George Bush, all the way to Barack Obama, Donald Trump, and Joe Biden. All of which has either visited her or she visit them personally. The only US president that the Queen never met was Lyndon Johnson, that honor instead went to Princess Margaret. Up until her passing, she exceeded her great-great-grandmother's record for the longest serving monarch in British history. For the record, Queen Victoria reigned for 63 years and 216 days. Her official time as the monarch clocked at 70 years and 214 days. It means that most of us are actually born under her reign. 

 

            For the next 12 days, Great Britain and the Commonwealth will enter a mourning period culminating to the royal funeral of Queen Elizabeth II. All sports, entertainment and comedy programs are banned during this period. King Charles III is also expected to tour the capitals of each home nations of Britain and will set up his coronation later down the road. For now, Operation London Bridge is in motion, and as the world gathers around in grief, we offer our greatest condolences to the royal family in the wake of the Queen's passing. She left a lasting legacy not only for Britain, but for the rest of the world. She will be missed, and may God provide a good health for the new king as he takes his rightful place to the throne of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and subsequently, the leader of the Commonwealth. Rest in peace, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, and (I know I'm not British, but I'll say this anyway) God Save the King.

Jimmy Savile: From Friend to Foe

 (Warning: Strong languages and sexual references ahead)

 

            There are plenty of stories of celebrity being ousted as sexual predators during the height of their fame, and many more are uncovered during their rise to fame. But never in recent history, that someone that was loved and praised by a country would wound up as the most prolific sexual predator ever existed after his death. When it comes to this man, between his active years as a radio disc jockey and television personality all the way to years after his death, people's perception changed from being starstrucked to outright mockery. Beware. What I am about to uncover is so demented, you wouldn't touch your meals after this.

 

            For people outside the UK and Ireland, the name Jimmy Savile is perhaps quite foreign, but for the British, he once was a celebrated personality due to his philanthropism and charity work, even earning himself the Order of the British Empire. The man was born as James Wilson Vincent Saville, born on the 31st of October 1926 in Leeds, England. He was the youngest of seven and grew up during the Great Depression. He later claimed, "I was forged in the crucible of want” and described his father as "scrupulously honest but scrupulously broke." He went to St Anne's Roman Catholic School in Leeds and started working in an office at 14 years of age after leaving school. During the second world war, he was conscripted to work in a coal mine, where he suffered spinal injuries from shot-firer's explosion. After his stint at the mines, and further extensive treatments, he became a scrap metal dealer. His first taste of music came in 1940, where he started playing records in dance halls, and claimed to be the first disc jockey (DJ). In his autobiography, he claimed to be the first person to use twin turntables and a microphone at the Grand Records Ball at Guardbridge Hotel in 1947, although this claim is disputed.

 

            Before the fame from all those radio and television shows, Savile was a semi-professional sportsman, most notably having competed in the 1951 Tour of Britain cycling race and worked as a professional wrestler. His first radio gig was in 1958 by joining Radio Luxembourg as a DJ, presenting six programs a week. By 1968, he joined BBC Radio 1, where he presented various programs such as Savile's Travels, Speakeasy, and an old chart show Jimmy Savile's Old Record Club. His got his first television job in the midst of his stint at Radio Luxembourg in 1960, where he presented Tyne Tees' Television music program Young at Heart. He was the first host of the BBC's favorite music chart show Top of the Pops when it first aired on New Year’s Day of 1964 and co-hosted the final edition on 30 July 2006. Of all his TV shows, the most notable one is probably Jim'll Fix It. This particular program works by letting Savile to respond to letters send by kids to help them grant their wishes, or as he would say "fix it". 

 

            He was also active during charitable events. Since he was a survivor of spinal cord injuries, one of his targets was Stoke Mandeville Hospital, where he invested in the Spinal Unit, NSIC (National Spinal Injuries Centre), and St Francis Ward – a ward for children and teens with spinal cord injuries. Savile also volunteered at Leeds General Infirmary and Broadmoor Hospital. From 1974 to 1988, Savile was the honorary president of PHAB (Physically Handicapped in the Able-Bodied community). He sponsored medical students performing undergraduate research in the Leeds University Research Enterprise scholarship scheme, donating more than £60,000 every year. In 2010, the scheme was given a commitment of £500,000 over the following five years. Aside from all the causes above, Savile also set up two charities, the Jimmy Savile Stoke Mandeville Hospital Trust in 1981, and the Leeds-based Jimmy Savile Charitable Trust in 1984.

 

            And from all of his work either from radio, television, or charity, he became one of the most beloved figures in British history. During his lifetime and at the time of his death, Savile was regarded as "an eccentric adornment to British public life ... a ubiquitous and distinctive face on television", who "relished being in the public eye" and was "a shrewd promoter of his own image". He created a "bizarre yodel", and catchphrases which included "How's about that, then?", "Now then, now then", "Goodness gracious", "As it 'appens" and "Guys and gals". Savile was frequently spoofed for his dress sense, which usually featured a tracksuit or shellsuit and gold jewelry. A range of licensed fancy dress costumes was released with his consent in 2009. Savile was often pictured holding a cigar. He claimed to have started smoking cigars at the age of seven, saying "My dad gave me a drag on one at Christmas, thinking it would put me off them forever, but it had the opposite effect." 

 

Savile was a member of Mensa and the Institute of Advanced Motorists and drove a Rolls-Royce. He was made a life member of the British Gypsy Council in 1975, becoming the first "outsider" to be made a member. In 1984, Savile was accepted as a member of the Athenaeum, a gentlemen's club in London's Pall Mall, after being proposed by Cardinal Basil Hume. He was chieftain of the Lochaber Highland Games for many years, and owned a house in Glen Coe. And he also grew close to many political figures through his charity work, some of them included members of the royal family. One name that stood out however, was then-Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. The woman known as "The Iron Lady" praised Savile's work as "marvellous". He also met several members of the royal family, such as Prince Charles, Prince Phillip, Princess Diana, and many others. Despite his relationship with the public, Savile was never married, and stayed with his mother until her death. 

 

            Sadly, the man known for his unusual antics and his lovable personality must meet the bitter end. On 29 October 2011, just two days shy of his 85th birthday, he was found dead in his apartment in Leeds, and the funeral service was held on 9 November 2011, at Leeds Cathedral, and finally rested at Woodlands Cemetery in Scarborough. But one year later, the floodgates would open, revealing the darkest secret a man has ever kept during his lifetime. During Savile's lifetime, sporadic allegations of child abuse were made against him dating back to 1963, but these only became widely publicized after his death. Savile claimed the key to his success on Jim'll Fix It had been that he disliked children, although he later admitted to saying this to deflect scrutiny of his personal life. He did not own a computer, claiming that he did not want anybody to think he was downloading child pornography. His autobiography entitled, As it Happens (1974, reprinted as Love is an Uphill Thing, 1976) contains admissions of improper sexual conduct which appear to have passed unnoticed during his lifetime. One celebrity, being former Sex Pistols frontman John Lydon once alluded that Jimmy Savile was in fact a sexual predator targeting kids, saying that he'd "like to kill Jimmy Savile" and he "knew some rumors" but was edited out by the BBC. When the allegations broke out, Lydon doubled down on his earlier quote, even expanding it into "By killed I meant locking him up and stopping him assaulting young children... I'm disgusted at the media pretending they weren't aware."

 

            More floodgates opened after his death. many investigations are launched to examine the possibility that the once beloved DJ and television personality committed heinous acts on children. Immediately after Savile's death, Meirion Jones and Liz Mackean from the BBC program Newsnight began to investigate reports that he had sexually abused children. They interviewed one alleged victim on camera and talked to a number of others who were willing to be quoted about alleged abuse at Duncroft Approved School, the BBC, and Stoke Mandeville Hospital. The former headmistress of Duncroft was Jones' own aunt. The Newsnight team, which included former police detective Mark Williams-Thomas, also found out about a 2009 Surrey Police investigation into Savile. The report was scheduled for broadcast on 7 December 2011, but a decision was taken to cancel its transmission, which ultimately developed into a major crisis for the BBC when the allegations against Savile were made public in October 2012. The subsequent Pollard Review found that Jones and MacKean had assembled cogent evidence that Savile had a history of abusing young women and Newsnight had been in a position to break the story in 2011. In November 2021, Mark Williams-Thomas spoke to GB News calling the BBC's treatment of the allegations "absolutely appalling".

 

            In January 2012 the Sunday Mirror reported that Newsnight had investigated allegations of sexual abuse immediately after Savile's death but that the report had been shelved. An article by Miles Goslett in the March 2012 edition of The Oldie alleged a cover-up. The BBC showed two Savile tributes over the 2011 Christmas period, and it was alleged that the Newsnight report had been dropped because its content would have compromised the showing of the tributes. A joint submission to the Leveson Inquiry from Anna van Heeswijk (Object), Jacqui Hunt (Equality Now), Heather Harvey (Eaves) and Marai Larasi (End Violence against Women) was titled "Just the Women", a phrase which was reportedly written by Newsnight editor Peter Rippon in an email to a colleague concerning the lack of other authorities [than the alleged female victims] for evidence of Savile's abuse. A Newsnight spokesman said, "Any suggestion that a story was dropped for anything other than editorial reasons is completely untrue."

 

            In October 2013 the transcript of Surrey Police's interview with Savile in 2009 was published after a request under the Freedom of Information Act. Savile denied the sexual abuse allegations relating to Duncroft Approved School put to him by the police, saying, "I've never, ever done anything wrong" and stating that the accusers wanted a "few quid".

 

            Other investigations soon followed and was made public on different occasion. One report concluded that Savile sexually assaulted victims in NHS hospitals over several decades. At Leeds General Infirmary, 60 people, including both staff and patients, stated that they had been abused by Savile, their ages ranging from 5 to 75. It reported on a number of organizational failures which had allowed him to continue unchallenged. One report even detailed Savile's boasting to nurses and other staff that he performed sex acts on the bodies of recently deceased persons in the mortuary of Leeds General Hospital and claimed to have removed glass eyes from corpses and made them into rings. A separate report on Savile's activities at Stoke Mandeville Hospital, prepared by independent investigator Dr. Androulla Johnstone and published on 26 February 2015, found that he had sexually abused more than 50 people there, including staff, patients, and visitors. One was an 8-year-old child. Savile had full access to all parts of the hospital. The report stated that it was widely known at the hospital that Savile was a "sex pest", and that 10 complaints had been made at the time, but no action was taken. In total, combining all the reports and findings, Jimmy Savile has sexually harassed an estimated total of more than 450 victims throughout his lifetime. Let that sink in.

 

            To be honest, I am lost for words when I uncover so many heinous facts and all those confessions, even when writing this piece while watching the Netflix documentary Jimmy Savile: A British Horror Story, I need to hold myself from throwing up, as this is as demented as someone can be. And I thought that Chris Chan doing a fling with his dementia-ridden mother was the worst of it all. I just found out that Jimmy Savile was in fact, the most sick, twisted, and demented human being ever lived. Previously I wished you R.I.P, but now, rot in Hell you pedophile bastard.

Andrew Tate: The Alpha Male Beast or a Misogynistic Beta?

 (Warning: References of sexual harassment ahead)

 

            Well, I was about to finish another piece about another internet personality when this subject came about, specifically on TikTok (I'm in that rabbit hole of an app now, might as well follow me on that and also my Instagram), about a British American kickboxing champion, resides in Romania, supposedly built himself from the ground up to become what he is today, a multi-billionaire internet personality. He appears in every podcast you can think of, but we have yet to see him on Joe Rogan's. That would be awesome.

 

            But enough about the supposed coat tailing done by yours truly here, let's get to know the man himself. What we have here is Emory Andrew Tate III, or Andrew Tate, a. k. a Cobra Tate as we know him now. He was born on the 14th of December 1986, surprisingly, in Chicago, Illinois, USA. There is not much info about his family or his upbringing aside from the fact that he spent his childhood in Luton, England, but one thing is for sure, that he is of African American and British descent, the former from his father. While his mother is unknown, but we do know that he has a brother, Tristan Tate, another kickboxer who appeared in Shipwrecked: The Island, and a sister, Janine Tate. His father, Emory Tate Jr, was a chess player who won the USAF Championship three times and defeated several grandmasters during his career. He is currently resided in Bucharest, Romania with Tristan, while also known to be resided in Luton, where his mother (supposedly) came from. 

 

            If you look at Andrew Tate now, you wouldn't notice that behind all of the wealth, this man was a three-time kickboxing champion, with a (noted) record of 4 wins (3KOs) and 3 losses. He also tried his hands at MMA, with one amateur bout and a pro bout, all of which he won. In fact, his only pro MMA bout happened at the Ultimate Warrior Challenge 13, where he finished Shane Kavanagh with a knockout inside 3 minutes in the first round. It's a shame that he didn't fight two or three more MMA fights, he could have been in the UFC by now. His first taste of combat sport was in 2005. After scoring major victories over former Super-cruiserweight British Champions Ollie Green and Mo Karbo, Tate challenged Paul Randall for the vacant ISKA (acronym for International Sport Karate Association) English Kickboxing Light-cruiserweight title. Tate won his first ISKA Kickboxing title stopping Randall in the fifth round of their bout in Derby on 25 April 2009. Tate later scored a few more crushing victories and won the IKF (International Kickboxing Federation) British Cruiserweight title against Daniel Hughes with a devastating first-round KO, then on 19 March 2011, he fought for the first time for ISKA world title in France. Andrew lost the fight for the vacant ISKA world Full-Contact light heavyweight championship to Jean Luc Benoit on points after 12 rounds, however, he contested the results stating that he was the true winner. 

 

            Due to the fight being so closely matched, three months later they had rematch in Luton, England, and this time Tate became champion defeating Benoit via spectacular KO in round 8 of the scheduled 12 rounds. He lost a close battle for the It’s Showtime 85MAX world title against champion Sahak Parparyan on 12 May 2012 in Kortrijk, Belgium on points. On 2 December 2012 Tate participated in Enfusion 3: Trial of the Gladiators reality final tournament, to determine #1 kickboxer of the world in -85 kg category at that time. He qualified for tournament in August 2011 in Ohrid, Macedonia stopping Sammy Masa by second-round KO and Adnan Omeragić by first-round KO. He scored an easy victory in semifinals knocking out Ritchie Hocking with punches in the first round, but surprisingly lost in the final via first round flying knee KO from Franci Grajš, who fought hard battle in semifinal against Sahak Parparyan. 

 

            Tate avenged a 2011 loss to Vincent Petitjean and won his second ISKA world title in twelve rounds of two minutes. Fight was held in Châteaurenard, France on 9 March 2013 with Tate taking ISKA World Full-Contact Light Cruiserweight Championship via split decision. Andrew defended title one year later, also on Power Trophy event, stopping Cyril Vetter early in the first round. After taking four victories in Enfusion Live ring during 2013 over David Radeff, Marino Schouten, Marlon Hunt and Laszlo Szabo, Tate participated in a four-man tournament to determine Enfusion Live -85 kg World Champion, alongside Mirko Cingel, Jiří Žák and Rustam Guseinov. Tournament was held in Žilina, Slovakia on April 26, 2014, Tate lost in semifinals to local fighter and tournament winner, Miroslav Cingel, via unanimous decision. Despite losing in the semifinals of tournament for Enfusion Live -85 kg championship Tate got opportunity to fight for Enfusion Live -90 kg championship against kickboxing veteran Wendell Roche on 28 June 2014. Andrew won the title in second round, becoming the second fighter that stopped Roche in his 200-fight career.

 

            After his kickboxing days, he tried his luck at influencer marketing. He set up his own website cobratate.com with his brother Tristan, where he offers financial and life advices in the form of "The War Room". This space works by using online profiles to steer traffic to his website offering training courses on getting rich and "male-female interactions". According to the website, he operates a webcam studio using girlfriends as employees. Another one of Tate's products is his Hustlers' University program, supposedly an online course on how to better manage their financials. Aside from the website, he also appears in podcasts discussing various topics ranging from religion, relationships, even politics. What sets him apart is his stances on some of these issues. He is known as "The King of Toxic Masculinity" by stating multiple times that women are inherently belongs to men, and often references his girlfriends as "his female." 

 

            Of course, with the state of today's society, Tate instantly came under fire for his comments. One of such occasion was at the heels of the 2017 Harvey Weinstein scandal, where the kickboxing champion posted series of tweets claiming that women should "bear some responsibility" from being raped. His reasoning being that the women in question "put themselves in position to be raped." He also justifies some forms of harassment like catcalling, calling it as a "normal male behavior." He is also once under investigation for human trafficking and physical harassment, the latter of which cost him his participation on the UK reality series Big Brother. He is also downplaying mental health issues, stating on one occasion that “depression isn’t real.” He claimed that depression “is not a clinical disease,” but instead “it is a circumstance which they must change.” His views on women, and relationship on a whole, made him an unexpected idol for the involuntary celibacy (incel) community. 

 

            One aspect of him that has been heavily scrutinized is his two online programs being The War Room and Hustler's University. One source alleged that both of his supposed "online course" is in fact, a pyramid Multi-Level Marketing scheme involving the Tate brothers convincing impressionable boys to invest onto their courses, supposedly teaching them the basics of stock trading, finance, and even cryptocurrency. In his website, every single member of The War Room has their face either blurred or pixelated, except for Andrew and Tristan. This has the implication of secrecy about this group. 

 

            But what shocks me the most (in a good way, I admit), is his views on religion. Since he resides in Bucharest, he aligns himself to the Orthodox branch of Christianity. He explicitly stated this whenever the religion card is being brought up. He often shares his stories of donating thousands of dollars to the church and having church friends, but he has a deep admiration to the Islamic faith. His main reasoning of this admiration is the Muslims' willingness to stand and defend their religious and life principles based on the teachings of the Quran and Prophet Muhammad PBUH. He even went as far as stating that the religion of Islam could fix practically every problem faced by the Western society. I have to admit, there is one quote from Tate that made me instantly hooked up to his principles. And as an Indonesian Muslim myself, I agree wholeheartedly to this quote. He once told a story about why he branded Islam as the most intolerant (in a good sense) religion on Earth. He then went on to tell this story about Christianity being deprived of its core values all because of today's Christians are so tolerant, they are willing to accepting a gay pastor (this is done without the intention of discrediting the LGBT community). By his words (I'm just paraphrasing this, as this is not his exact quote), he can wear a T-shirt saying any heinous things about Jesus Christ, and no Christian will bat an eye, but if he does the same with Prophet Muhammad PBUH, he wouldn't get past the alley without suffering a hellish beatdown to the point of almost dying at best. His way of expressing this is pure poetry. "If you are tolerant of everything, you stand for nothing." Emory Andrew Tate III, you officially have my respect and admiration. 

 

            So, what do we know about Andrew Tate? He is a former kickboxing champion, he has two online course program teaching things about relationship and finance, he appears in a lot of podcasts talking about multiple topics and sparking huge interests across social media realm. He is also known as a man known for his unorthodox views on man and woman relationship, favoring traditional and conservative values over progressive ones to the point of getting a lot of heat because of it. Although being a Christian, he admires the religion of Islam, and often states his fascination to the faith. Of course, I can agree to some of Tate's remarks and disagree with him on others, but the former champion is rising into virality for his quotes and attitudes towards society. And I have to admit that he is a damn good influencer. 

"If you are tolerant of everything, you stand for nothing."

-Andrew Tate

When Incel Attacks Part 2: The Van of Death

 (Warning: Strong languages ahead)

 

            Researching about an internet movement known as those who are involuntarily celibate (incel) is an interesting one, as this particular movement, first known as a channel to vent about one's loneliness, turned into a radical and borderline terroristic group, with all of the members inside this exclusive movement being someone who desires a 10, but they themselves is basically a 0 or 1, 5 if they are lucky enough. Lest we forget about the tendency of violence that these men are capable of, even one of them gained instant infamy for carrying out a deadly attack as the way to "avenge" himself for not getting any romantic relationship. In this piece, I'll be talking about another killer incel, who had some connection to the one previously mentioned in a separate article, but they are actually one the same, a heartless individual capable of absolute evil.

 

            From Isla Vista, California, we turn into Toronto, Ontario, Canada, to meet Alek Minassian (I know I spelt his name wrong in the previous piece. So, this is my way to make it up to it). Minassian was born on 3 November 1992, from an Armenian-Iranian family settled in Canada. His father worked as a software developer, while his mother held a job at an IT company. Young Alek himself was an aspiring software and mobile app developer. His formal education history included Sixteenth Avenue Public School, an elementary school in Richmond Hill, where he was assigned in a special education class. The move was done because of Minassian's Asperger syndrome diagnosis, as told by his mother in 2009, which is a high-functioning form within the autism spectrum disorder. He then attended Thornlea Secondary School in Thornhill, where his former classmates described him as "not overly social" and "harmless". By his LinkedIn profile, he attended Seneca College in North York and resided in Richmond Hill. In 2017, he tried his luck enlisting in the Canadian Army for two months, but never made it out of training stages after 16 days. One senior military official stated that Alek at that stage "wasn't adapting to the military life, including in matters of dress, deportment and group interactions in a military setting".

 

            During his school days, particularly in Seneca College, he tried to befriend some of his classmates, but always come across as annoying, as he often cuts into conversations midway, but on group projects though, he has proven that he can be a responsible team member. But during 2017 to 2018, his behavior changed. He started harboring anger towards his peers. Hell, he was involved in a fight in one of his classes in March 2018. And by the time of his graduation, he actually posted a message read "Finally finished college. Fuck you all and good riddance".  It is disputed when did exactly Minassian came into contact with the incel ideology, but in 2014, back when Elliot Rodger was still alive, Minassian befriended him over their shared hatred and contempt of not having a romantic partner. They met at an incel subreddit, and started to communicate, revealing that they actually had more things in common than it actually seemed. Their friendship lasted until Rodger's rampage (he referenced it as "an important mission", and that he "might not make it out alive") that took 6 innocent lives, as well as his own. After the incident, Alek remained active in the incel community, particularly in 4chan's r9k forum. Unlike reddit, 4chan's level of moderation is low enough, that someone could be talking about the most heinous ways to end another person's life, and easily get away with it. Days leading up to his own "revenge plans" he remained active on that forum, while stoking his anger and frustration to the point of no return. He has failed multiple jobs, failed at the army, and even failed at socializing. 

 

            And just like what Rodger did, He hatched his own plan for revenge. On the 23rd of April 2018, He went to a local car rental service 16 km (10 miles) from his home and rent a Chevrolet Express Van. He was cleared to rent after his background check came up clear. After he acquired the keys though, he sat inside the van for 20 minutes, and a cryptic Facebook post followed suit, read:

 

"Private (Recruit) Minassian infantry 00010, wishing to speak to Sgt. 4chan please. C23249161. The incel rebellion has already begun! We will overthrow all the Chads and Stacys! All hail the supreme Gentleman Elliot Rodger!"

 

For some context, C23249161 was his recruit number back when he was enlisted in the army, and "the incel rebellion" mentioned in the post refers to the violent response to sexlessness, sometimes used interchangeably with phrases like "beta uprising". "Chads" and "Stacys" are terms used by incels to refer to conventionally attractive men and women who (in their mind) had no trouble finding romantic partners and eventually sex, due to their attractive appearance. And of course, the post about a supposed "incel rebellion" would not be completed without mentioning the sick unsub who did it the first time, with all of his infamy.

 

            After that creepy move, he released the vehicle's handbrakes, and sped away southward towards the city with clear intention for harm. The first 9-1-1 call reporting pedestrians being hit was received at 1:25 p.m. Eastern Time. At Finch Avenue, the van, rented by Minassian, ran a red light, then drove southbound on the west-side sidewalk of Yonge Street, striking multiple pedestrians. The van continued along the sidewalk for several more blocks, hitting additional pedestrians. Security camera video from a local business shows the van reaching Tolman Street, which is one block south of Finch Avenue, at 1:24 p.m. At one point, the van re-entered the roadway due to the narrowness of the sidewalk, but at Park Home Avenue, the van again drove onto the sidewalk, hitting pedestrians in front of Mel Lastman Square, a civic plaza on the west-side of Yonge Street, 1.4 km (0.87 miles) south of Finch Avenue. 

 

            The damaged van kept speeding with reckless abandon, and was spotted by one police officer, being TPS constable Ken Lam, who then intercepted it. The van stopped on the north sidewalk on Poyntz Avenue, just west of Yonge Street and two blocks south of Sheppard Avenue, about 2.3 km (1.4 miles) south of where the attack began. Lam stopped his cruiser near the van and confronted Minassian, standing near the opened driver-side door. During the confrontation, Minassian repeatedly drew his hand from his back pocket and pointed a dark-colored object toward the officer as if it were a pistol (in reality, Alek was not armed at all, one defining difference from the Rodger case). Lam ordered Minassian to drop to the ground, while Minassian tried repeatedly to provoke the officer to kill him, demanding he be shot "in the head!" when the officer warned him he may be shot. Lam then went to his cruiser and turned off its siren. As Minassian and Lam advanced towards each other, he realized that the object in Minassian's hand was not a gun, but his wallet. Armed with this knowledge, he holstered his pistol, and took out his baton to avoid the use of unnecessary lethal force. Minassian then dropped the object from his hand, lay down on the ground and surrendered to Lam. He was arrested at 1:32 p.m. (Elliot didn't got this treatment, as he already put a bullet to his head by the time police arrived). 

 

            The devastation left by the van was massive. At the time, 9 people lost their lives due to the reckless rampage, with the tenth victim announced at 8:15 p.m. One initial survivor from that day, 65-year-old nurse Amaresh Tesfamariam succumbed to her injuries three years after the incident that left her paralyzed neck down, on 28 October 2021. Here is the list of all victims killed on that day, beside the fallen nurse who passed away recently:

 

1.      Beutis Renuka Amarashinge, 45, Female, Nutritionist

2.      Andrea Knafelc Bradden, 33, Female, Slovenian Canadian account executive

3.      Geraldine Brady, 83, Female, Saleswoman

4.      Chung So-He, 22, Female, University of Toronto student

5.      Anne Marie D'Amico, 30, Female, Financial analyst

6.      Mary Elisabeth Forsyth, 94, Female, Retiree

7.      Kang Chul Min, 45, Male, Chef

8.      Kim Ji-hun, 22, Female, South Korean Seneca College student

9.      Munir Najjar, 85, Male, Jordanian retiree visiting family

10.  Dorothy Sewell, 80, Female, Retiree

 

In addition to the fallen ones, additional 16 victims were injured as the result of the rampaging virgin with a van. 

 

            During the interrogation stages, conducted by Toronto PD senior detective Rob Thomas, when it comes to the involuntary celibacy movement that Alek allegedly adheres to, he uncovered important, but disturbing information regarding Minassian's motive of the attack, including the earlier attacks done in Isla Vista. And the way Alek delivers his confessions is quite frankly, harrowing to say the least. He actually stated that the movement's goal is to purge all the "Chads" in order to force "Stacys" to have sex with the incels. There is also person of normal statuses, which was nicknamed "normies". By Minassian's accounts, the incels don't wish to harm the "normies", but instead, they want to "subjugate" them. He also referenced the Pepe the Frog meme, which is a mascot (apparently) of 4chan. By his own admission, he did this as a way to stand up to the "Chads and "Stacys", and that he had "accomplished his mission" by running over those innocent bystanders with the van. That statement alone sent chills down my spine, due to the sheer coldness of the delivery. And just like the sick bastard that he dared to call his friend; Alek Minassian was praised by the incel community. Hell, the sick fuck was even SAINTED (yes, you read that right) alongside Rodger for pulling those deadly stunts that left a trail of devastation in their wake. 

 

            As the result of his deadly shenanigans, Minassian was charged with 10 counts of first-degree murder and 16 counts of attempted murder. He was originally scheduled to stand trial on 10 February 2020, but later postponed as the pandemic hit Toronto. The trial officially began 10 November 2020 and was conducted online via Zoom meeting. Despite admitting to all the heinous things he's done; he pleaded not guilty by insanity due to his autism diagnosis. During testimony on 12 November, a psychiatrist retained by Minassian's defense team stated in a report that Minassian's "autistic way of thinking was severely distorted in a way similar to psychosis." For this plea to work, one must be confirmed medically to have psychosis or similar mental illness where he couldn't distinguish right and wrong, and clearly, Minassian technically is not psychotic. This legal stunt pulled by Minassian and his team garnered criticism from autism rights advocates, stated concerns that the trials might worsen stigmas towards autistic people. In the end, Ontario Superior Court Justice Anne Molloy believed that Minassian is motivated by the desire of notoriety and avoid giving him further recognition by refusing to refer him by his real name. She also inclined to accept the assessment of the experts that he lied to the police about much of the incel motivation he talked about and that the incel movement was not in fact a primary driving force behind the attack. To hammer the final nail in the coffin, she rejected his attempt to use autism as a defense. On 3 March 2021, Alek Minassian was found guilty of all charges, and sentenced to life in prison without a possibility of parole for 25 years on 13 June 2022. By the time his parole chance came about, which might be his only chance, is in 2047, and by that year, he would be around 54 years of age. Technically, he would spend the rest of his days in prison, with no chance of ever communicate with the incel community. But even after the conviction, this virgin with rage has the audacity to file an appeal over the apparent "misapprehension" of expert evidence and made unreasonable findings. If this is just another ploy to use autism as an excuse, well, let me tell you, as someone with similar mental disorder, that shit would only gone up in flames once again. 

 

            Like I said earlier, news about violent acts done by those who are unlucky enough to find a romantic partner is, to be perfectly honest, boils my blood the most. These people have this warped mindset that they are entitled to a romantic relationship, and those who reject them are deemed responsible for crimes against humanity. What Elliot Rodger and Alek Minassian did were despicable at best, and this must serve as a lesson to never underestimate mental illnesses and disorders, coupled by the fact that today's dating culture is too harsh even for normal members of society, not much less to those with some limitations. For all 11 victims who had their lives snatched away by that white van of doom, rest in eternal peace, you innocent souls. And for Alek Minassian, there is a special place in Hell exclusively for you. Until then, rot in jail, you virgin lunatic.