Thursday, January 29, 2009

John Wayne Gacy, Jr., and the depravity of all men

Alright. I WILL keep posting. I was lying awake in bed on Tuesday night and so I decided to make the most of my time and think about what I would post next. And I remembered this song by Sufjan Stevens about a serial killer. It's a chilling song, and it's true. Before you can understand what the song is about, though, you need to know about the serial killer. It's pretty gruesome, what he did, but it's important to know if you want to understand the song. If you're interested in the whole story of what he did, here's the wikipedia story, but I think all you really need to know is this:
"He was convicted and later executed for the rape and murder 33 boys and young men between 1972 and his arrest in 1978, 27 of whom he buried in a crawl space under the floor of his house, while others were found in nearby rivers. He became notorious as the "Killer Clown" because of the many block parties he threw for his friends and neighbors, entertaining children in a clown suit and makeup, under the name of "Pogo the Clown".

The truth is terrible many times. There is evil in the world that we don't want to know about, but I think we shouldn't hide from it all the time. We need to realize, as Sufjan Stevens does, that without a Savior, we are just like John Wayne Gacy, Jr. The song is chilling, but true. And don't worry, the music style won't bother any of you, I don't think. But enough of my own typing and thoughts. Here's the song. Remember what it says. We're just as horrible as anybody else in the world, without Christ.




here's the lyrics:

His father was a drinker
And his mother cried in bed
Folding John Wayne's T-shirts
When the swingset hit his head
The neighbors they adored him
For his humor and his conversation
Look underneath the house there
Find the few living things
Rotting fast in their sleep of the dead
Twenty-seven people, even more
They were boys with their cars, summer jobs
Oh my God

Are you one of them?

He dressed up like a clown for them
With his face paint white and red
And on his best behavior
In a dark room on the bed he kissed them all
He'd kill ten thousand people
With a sleight of his hand
Running far, running fast to the dead
He took of all their clothes for them
He put a cloth on their lips
Quiet hands, quiet kiss
On the mouth

And in my best behavior
I am really just like him
Look beneath the floorboards
For the secrets I have hid

1 comment:

  1. Peter,
    That's quite the song, quite the story. Do you really think that we are like him? A serial murderer and rapist? True we all sin... but to compare on such a level. I don't know... I guess sin is sin. I sure am glad there is a savior! I do think that it is important for us to not think ourselves as incapable of such actions, as a safeguard against them.

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