Karen Bune
Victimology Contributor
Officer.com
Passengers aboard a Canadian Greyhound bus were subjected to a grisly scene when they witnessed a passenger, Vince Weiguang Li, suddenly and wildly attacking Tim McLean, another passenger, by repeatedly stabbing and, ultimately, decapitating him. Exiting the bus as rapidly as they could, the other passengers wanted to secure their own safety and escape from the chaotic events that surrounded them. For the witnesses and all the passengers on the bus, the impact was traumatic and the aftermath of that event will linger over time with recurring memories that will, undoubtedly, invoke trauma and unrelenting emotional distress.
The family of the victim suffers greatly not only in learning of their loved one’s death but the manner in which he died. Moreover, hearing news that the offender allegedly had pieces of McLean’s body in his pocket, that may have included his ear, nose, and mouth, and that he may have eaten some of the body parts, augment the shocking impact of his death and the devastating effects on the family.
And, if that is not all bad enough, the group, People For The Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has put the icing on the cake by their desire to place an ad in a Canadian newspaper,
The Portage Daily Graphic, which refused to print it, that compares the killing of animals for food to the depraved actions of the murderer involved in the bus incident. The ad depicts a human being’s throat being slit. ’“By juxtaposing the shocking details of the murder with the fate of animals whose bodies are causally hacked apart to end up between two slices of bread, some good will come,†states PETA on their website.
The PETA group is obviously lacking a substantial degree of sensitivity and good judgment along with fundamental common sense. The group seemingly has no comprehension—or just doesn’t care-- of the tremendous amount of distress the survivors and family members are experiencing and the suffering that has engulfed their lives to an overwhelming degree. Though PETA issued a statement on their blog in which they profess their horror by stating, “Yes, of course, we were horrified (who wouldn’t be) when we heard the details of this barbaric, incomprehensible killing. And, obviously, everyone’s good thoughts go out to anyone affected by this violent act,†the PETA group seems to be laden with selfish motives for their own interests.
If PETA was genuinely “horrified,†it would be fair to assume they would not have even thought of such an ad, much less developed one, which would be so insensitive to the family of the victims and the witnesses to the tragic event. The proof is in the pudding that PETA is apparently ignorant of the bona fide impact of criminal victimization on human beings. PETA’s strategy of placing similarities between the bus incident and the act of killing animals for food is beyond the standard reach of reasonable comprehension and intrinsic compassion.
