....after what LE has said about the photos...I understand that....
What I do not understand is both of your uptightness about stating that someone's actions are due, in part to mental illness. Mental illness does NOT equate with "bad" any more than saying that someone who has heart disease or diabetes or arthiritis is "bad"... Frankly, your views of mental illness are medieval, at best...That being said, mental illness and its impact on a person's actions cannot be ignored. I think that Jeana would agree with this.
It seems that Noreen Gosch is a very well-meanng preson, and certainly, she has fought for children's rights. She is certainly not a "bad person"...
However, the story she has spun about her son's disappearance defies all logic and common sense. Certainly her poor child was kidnapped, and in all probability, murdered. This is horrible, barbaric and inexcusable. Psychologists have studied something they call "resilience..." Some folks like the Wetterlings are very resilient (also Marc Klaas and John and Revee Walsh, for example, and Jessica Lusford's father...), and are able to, after a certain point face "head on" what happened to their child, and to try to channel their energy, anger and grief into doing good for others. Noreen Gosch has done some of this, yes....But she also has used up a trmendous amount of her energy spinning a really improbable story about her son. This is due to her emotional fragility, and she would really, really, benefit, as I have said before speaking to someone like Patty Wetterling about her situation, as well as from some therapy.
HOTexas - your heart is in the right place; perhaps you could petition the governor of Iowa to reopen this case starting from "scratch", for example looking at known or possible offenders in the area who were overlooked at the time. This kind of work can pay off. In the Donna Mraz cold case I posted about on here, the police finally got a break and they know who their perp most likely is; now, unfortunately, they cannot find him....but they've pretty much cracked the case.
William....Underneath it all, I think your heart is in the right place too... I really think you feel for Noreen Gosch and her plight. However, I really do not understand your anger vis a vis mental illness, and how you almost don't want the phrase mentioned...I don't get that, really...That's how people used to be about not only mental illness, but things like cancer as well...I am so glad that society has come so far in now being able to openly talk about these things.
I think that Noreen Gosch, given the horrific way in which she lost her son, and with the disintegration of her marriage, felt she lost everything. Her behavior is classic as a person with PTSD and the other disorders mentioned here... I have this gut feeling that the person who did this to Johnny lived and still may live in the area, and perhaps folks should try to get this guy before he dies, rather than focusing on the more amazing scenario that involves almost everyone in the United States Federal Govenrment trafficking in children, doncha think?
(...psssst...you guys can go on as "guests" and check out these posts even though you've decided to "leave" for a while..)
