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The BBC covered a story of domestic violence in which an estranged husband broke into his in-law’s home and stabbed his wife to death. The cause? According to the headline, and much of the story, Facebook did it. The estranged husband claims he was set off by reading that his estranged wife changed her status on Facebook from “Married” to “Single.” I was happy to see Techdirt called attention to the fact that Facebook didn’t cause the murder, a nutzy husband did, and the fact that using headlines like this only gives mis-information on the use of social networking technologies.
Most likely the irate husband was pushed over the edge by his estranged wife “publicly” announcing their separation. This would be no different than if she were at pub with a group of friends and, knowing her husband was there, she stood up to yell to the bar, “Hey, everyone, I’m single!”
Unfortunately what the article fails to mention are the social issues that arise when people do not know how to successfully manage conflict, deal with anger, or heal from hurt. Moreover the article fails to address the lack of resources or failure of legal systems to protect people who are trying to leave a physically or verbally threatening relationship.
Facebook was simply the communication tool he referenced to explain his rage, and as the old saying goes, “Don’t blame the messenger.”
For more info: Denver resources for dealing with domestic violence -- SafeHouse Denver
Comments
This not the first I've heard about someone being upset that their partner (or former partner) changed their relationship status to "single" on Facebook (or Myspace for that matter). It seems to be a typical issue in modern day relationships. However obviously Facebook is not to blame in this. The husband is obviously out of control and needed professional help long before this ever took place.
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