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Oscar Pistorius thread
- Thread starter Gilly
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Soldato
Anger issues are quite common for those with a major physical disability, born of frustration presumably. Still no excuse to shoot ones girl friend.
With a history of domestic violence I think the jury is not going to find him innocent. Not without a stunning court performance. He might be innocent, it might have been a mistake, but I can't see any jury letting him go. Manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility is his best bet - try and make a deal.
Caporegime
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If it was pitch black he probably couldn't even see two feet in front of him, but still it's not exactly a natural reaction to shoot someone who is trying to wake you up, or whatever his story is.
Man of Honour
Soldato
For those doubters who say that why are people being more receptive to this than the general masses, I'd say there's a few reasons that I'm finally going to weigh in on.
Ultimately, your average person who shoots someone, is someone you don't know too much about, has probably had a rough past, and generally speaking you put down to just being a despicable person.
The thing about Oscar here is that ultimately, we generally see him as a 'good' figure because he was the poster boy of Paralympics. It's more of a shock to the system, and such a fall from grace that it makes you wonder, and shock more so than your average joe who kills someone.
That doesn't make it any less of a crime, and arguably more so, if he is convicted guiltily.
kd
Ultimately, your average person who shoots someone, is someone you don't know too much about, has probably had a rough past, and generally speaking you put down to just being a despicable person.
The thing about Oscar here is that ultimately, we generally see him as a 'good' figure because he was the poster boy of Paralympics. It's more of a shock to the system, and such a fall from grace that it makes you wonder, and shock more so than your average joe who kills someone.
That doesn't make it any less of a crime, and arguably more so, if he is convicted guiltily.
kd
You are spot on.
He was the poster boy for the Paralympics and above all, I think what is so hard to get your head around is exactly what he has thrown away. Being born without full legs makes life tough enough as it is already, but he managed to overcome that and carve out a lifestyle and a following that most can only dream of.
I'm kind of surprised that a South African TV channel has decided to run its new reality show featuring Reeva Steenkamp. I see they have tried to justify it with a tribute and her parents acceptance, but ultimately it just strikes me as fishing for the audience, when ultimately the right thing would have been to pull it.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-21486066
He was the poster boy for the Paralympics and above all, I think what is so hard to get your head around is exactly what he has thrown away. Being born without full legs makes life tough enough as it is already, but he managed to overcome that and carve out a lifestyle and a following that most can only dream of.
I'm kind of surprised that a South African TV channel has decided to run its new reality show featuring Reeva Steenkamp. I see they have tried to justify it with a tribute and her parents acceptance, but ultimately it just strikes me as fishing for the audience, when ultimately the right thing would have been to pull it.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-21486066
Soldato
It's a real shame, can't imagine what her family are going through. We only get to see a small amount of this can imagine it's massive in SA as he was such a celebrity.
I was really quite shocked by it all, always thought very highly of him, he did so much for sport and I always thought he came off well and seemed a nice bloke in interviews and such... But I guess that is only seeing a tiny amount of someone.
I was really quite shocked by it all, always thought very highly of him, he did so much for sport and I always thought he came off well and seemed a nice bloke in interviews and such... But I guess that is only seeing a tiny amount of someone.
Man of Honour
I used to work with a bloke called South African Geoff (Jiff) and he came to live here when he was about 45 and was very private about his past life. We had many racists at the factory who wanted stories but he would never say anything. One day he decided to open up to me but swore me to secrecy because he didn't want the idiots making a hero of him. For many years he was a farmer and if he heard a noise in the bushes he would shoot first and then send his workers in to find out who/what it was and many a time he had shot somebody dead with zero repercussions. It sounds like a fairy story but we can't understand what it was like living in such a place and that's why he got out.
He was also a train driver for a while and can't count how many people he killed on the tracks.
He was also a train driver for a while and can't count how many people he killed on the tracks.
Associate
Wouldn't suprise me if she was with him just to strengthen her public image/persona, when there's a million and one other attractive women competing for media space you need a bit 'extra'.
Probably cheating, maybe made a comment about his disability in an argument etc, hopefully the judge will give him credit for his inspirational sporting achievements and he'll be out of prison before he turns 35.
While I was living there, a friend of my parents who lived in SA during the late 80s (I think) told us hit and killed someone in their car on a dark road. Once the police attended, they told her to drive away immediately before the family/friends of the victim realised what had happened, because they'd go after her for money otherwise and she'd never hear the end of it.
Thats something that I find strange about the whole story - I used to live next door to a couple who'd moved over from SA when they started a family and from the stories they told the last thing anyone who has lived there any length of time would do is sneak about in the dead of night to suprise someone.
It's a small comfort knowing you won't be on the jury, if nothing else.
Associate
So you think he should serve 25 years then
What about the likes of the bulger killers who served less than 10 years in a glorified youth hostel, for such a brutal crime and had their identities changed at vast cost to the tax not to mention trial and other costs, at least this athlete made some positive contribution to what is a deprived country with little prospects for many of its people.
What about the likes of the bulger killers who served less than 10 years in a glorified youth hostel, for such a brutal crime and had their identities changed at vast cost to the tax not to mention trial and other costs, at least this athlete made some positive contribution to what is a deprived country with little prospects for many of its people.
I don't really see how that matters. If he's found guilty of murder, it means he deliberately took someone's life. His past achievements and successes don't really excuse that, and they certainly don't mean anything to his victim any more.
In any case, my comment was more to do with your baseless assumption that she was shot because she was cheating or making comments about his disability. Last time I checked, those weren't justifiable reasons for shooting someone 4 times, even in South Africa.
In any case, my comment was more to do with your baseless assumption that she was shot because she was cheating or making comments about his disability. Last time I checked, those weren't justifiable reasons for shooting someone 4 times, even in South Africa.
Associate
It has a bearing on the case (if found to be true) because it may well have changed his mental state prior to the crime, he's 26 out by the time he's 35 is circa 8-9 years inside.
Soldato
I am loving the subtle attempts to get humor in 
So you think he should serve 25 years then
What about the likes of the bulger killers who served less than 10 years in a glorified youth hostel, for such a brutal crime and had their identities changed at vast cost to the tax not to mention trial and other costs, at least this athlete made some positive contribution to what is a deprived country with little prospects for many of its people.
I think sentence length should be based on the type of person you kill. She was hot and therefore the loss to society is greater than an ugly person so Oscar should be in prison for longer.