Texas dad carves pentagram in son’s back because 12-12-12 is a ‘holy day’

Source

“I inscribed a pentagram on my son,” the man explains.

“Why did you do that?” the operator presses.

“Because it’s a holy day,” the caller replies before hanging up.

Officers dispatched to Bartel’s home discovered the 6-year-old boy shivering without a shirt.


Raw Story (s.tt...)

A 'holy day'. Yep. Time to carve a Wiccan symbol in the little boy's back. He was six years old.

Do we need "holy days"? They cause all sorts of stress and disruption. A person can claim to be of any "religion" and that in their religion "this day is a holy day, so by law I can have the day off" (from work, school, chores, whatever).

The article doesn't say what "religion" this jackass believes in, but it sure ain't a Christ-like or Humanist one.
And, for the record, 12/12/12 is NOT a "holy day" to the Wiccans, who use the pentagram for ritual and ceremonial purposes, and to identify themselves to others (such as wearing of a pendant, etc).

I'm not saying no one should EVER get a day off, but the justification for bad behavior should NEVER be a religion.
IMO.

Thoughts?

Blood, apparently from the child's wounds, had been smeared on the sides and the top of the home's door frame -- much as described in the Bible during Passover.

Read more here: www.star-telegram.com...=cpy

Another report of the incident. This is crazy behavior. And the mother "fled the scene to get help"??

How about grab the kid first?? I'm guessing this guy is a deranged monster and probably abuses her, as well.

reply to post by wildtimes


WTF is happening in America people ?
OK I'm intelligent enough to know it's a few nutters, and an infintesmal percentage of the population but for The Is' sake get a grip.
Americans

The second source says:

His mother, in a telephone interview from Portland, Ore., said her son does not have a history of mental illness but has recently been under a tremendous amount of stress.

"Brent is not a demon," Lori Ponce said. "He is loving. He loves that boy. Something happened. Don't paint him as some crazy man. No, that's not him."

His stepfather said he had been searching for his spirituality.

"He is deep into the Old Testament," said John Ponce, his stepfather, in the telephone interview from Portland. "There's a possibility with all of this pain and marital strife and such, he may have resorted to Old Testament references and then convoluted them. If you know about the Old Testament, there's the Passover marks on the doorframe were done with a sacrificial lamb, definitely not sacrificial children."

Read more here: www.star-telegram.com...=cpy

Ah, the good ole' Old Testament, and the search for spirituality. Still, WTF?!!!!!

See how that dusty old tome is a recipe for DISASTER for the human race? We don't want to burn books, they are important tools for education, but they should at least label the Bible as "FICTION" or "MYTHOLOGY", and not teach that it is factual, inerrant, and "sacred."

"Don't paint him as a crazy man. No, that's not him." Says his MOTHER. While I understand the mama-bear instinct (and suffer from a case of it myself that flares up occasionally when my kids are wronged), and wanting to somehow "explain" or "minimize" behaviors that are unquestionably maladaptive , we can't forget that an objective stance is required to really see indicators...

Plus, in our culture, a MOTHER is most likely to take the blame (for whatever - and it's an internalized "it's all my fault, where did I go wrong?") whether it's others pointing a finger at her (and yes, parenting is a HUGE responsibility - which few people are really exceptionally good at), or her feeling guilty and ashamed and like a failure.

That sounds like something people would do while smoking bath salts. (Which has apparently become a creepy, face-eating trend in the U.S.)

Miami police suspect that what caused a 31-year-old man to rip off his clothes and viciously gnaw on the face of another man in a daylight attack on a busy highway is a new and extremely dangerous street drug known as "bath salts."

abcnews.go.com...

A Texas man faces a felony charge after he allegedly bit, killed and ate a housemate's pet dog while high on the synthetic drug "spice."

abcnews.go.com...

Did I mention it turns people into freaky-ass cannibals?

After really carefully reading that story it looks like something is just wrong with that man's brain. That horrible woman defending him after he carved up her son. Disgusting.

reply to post by PrincessTofu


But it wasn't. It was from "studying" the Old Testament....
is it time to put The Bible on par with Bath Salts? Huffing? PCP?

I think people need stop procreating period...

We already have enough crazy people in this world that we don't need anymore.

reply to post by wildtimes


Dreadful story. And they will probably let that woman keep that child after she let the step-dad carve him up then defended him for it.

reply to post by Manhater


Yo
Wanna go out for a drink ?

Don't take offence I couldn't resist it

reply to post by PrincessTofu


Those were the statements of the offender's mother and stepfather. The little boy's mother was the one who left to get help. But yes, if they allow that man to stay in a custodial role to the boy, it will be a travesty.

Most states will attempt intervention, parental training, mental health counseling, case management, and do all they can WITH the family BEFORE removing a child. It's commonly agreed (or was when I was in the biz), that the parents only lose their Rights after extensive efforts to keep the family together have failed.

reply to post by wildtimes


Oh I see. Thank you for clarifying.

reply to post by cody599
all this really shows just how weak the minds of the people are here...they follow the media like mice in a piper story....sad...very few of us Americans actually have a grip on things...Most over here were not ready for the economic change our government dropped on us,many of us lost our homes,our way of life due to changes brought on by our governments greed.Mass Bird/Animal deaths,North Korea trying to start world war 3,martial law looms around the corner,The American dollar will soon go belly up.So yeah i can see brainwashing and mental break down written all over this one...very sad and unfortunate...poor kid had to have a wack job for a Father.

reply to post by PrincessTofu


I haven't found whether or not the guy was on drugs...but he may well have been.
Bad combination of whatever it was. I don't understand people who injure children...and I study the stuff. It's interesting, and I think, very important that as a society we do figure it out.

I was sick to my stomach last night watching the special reports about the school shooting in Connecticut. If my "man" so much as slapped my kid, I'd be furious. Throw him out. Period. No. Violence, mutilation, torture, religious fanaticism, ridicule, belt-whipping... NOT IN MY HOUSE.

It's a sick sick world. I hope that kid gets plenty of help/therapy etc.

However, I have a bad feeling that he may end up in the system and be subject to far worse abuse at the hands of the psychopathic elite who search the care system for kids like this.

reply to post by merkins

However, I have a bad feeling that he may end up in the system and be subject to far worse abuse at the hands of the psychopathic elite who search the care system for kids like this.

No, I doubt that will happen. He has grandparents and a mother; unless they are determined to be completely "unfit", he would go into their care first...and the offender would get into treatment (or jail), and only if he failed the coursework and showed no improvement, would he lose his custodial rights.

The child isn't an orphan....yet. But, I understand your concerns. It is frightening.

reply to post by Onewhoknowsjesus


I just posted the answer to this funny enough.

Here

Apologies to the OP if you feel I'm using your thread to promote mine. Mods feel free to remove this post if you so deem.

reply to post by cody599


I don't mind you promoting your thread, but can you contribute a bit more to the discussion of how religious "holy days" contribute to such injurious behaviors?

reply to post by wildtimes


This thread already exists here.

But just to chime in here, you understand that the pentacle (or pentagram) is not exclusively a Wiccan symbol, right? It's been used as an important symbol since Pythagoras. Also, 12/12/12 is not a holiday for anybody. This psycho may have picked it out because of the novelty or perhaps he is part of a small group who believes this.

This is not an issue with "holidays".

reply to post by Cuervo

woopsies! I didn't see it.
Thanks, Cuervo!

reply to post by Cuervo


Maybe they're allowing it to exist here in the OT Religion forum as it's a slightly different slant?

Anyway, yes, I'm aware that 12/12/12 is nothing but a coincidence of human time-counting.
I just wanted people who do know how Wiccans use the symbol won't blame Wicca for this.