Was Burke Involved # 5

[buggiegirl]

Would your brother have chosen a picture of himself in a girly looking sailor suit for his yearbook? I know this has Patsy written all over it, and its a different generation than the one I grew up in, but I cannot imagine any guy I knew wanting a "Look everyone, Mom wanted a girl!" photo included unless he was joking about it. Unless Patsy didn't run it by Burke first, which might tell us something about their relationship.

I don't think Burke is "ill". Very different, odd perhaps, but not sick in a classical sense. Since returning to his classroom in January of 1997 he appears on the surface to have had a typical life. But something about this collage feels staged to me. No pun intended.

In my experience those photo collages were done by the parents to surprise the kids. Who knows. And I don't think the sailor suits are girly looking (and I don't think it matters if they were), it was just a tiny kid fashion thing for a while.

 

[Miz Adventure]

I'm trying to figure out exactly what BR has done to make the parents say they are proud of him.

Looking fairly normal in a few photos maybe?

 

[southernmimi]

I'm trying to figure out exactly what BR has done to make the parents say they are proud of him.

Looking fairly normal in a few photos maybe?

Burke seems to have had a normal childhood with friends, interests, and accomplishments so I can see why his parents would be proud. The collage...even with the JonJon suit...looks pretty typical to me. I've not a staunch BDI supporter so view it differently than those who think he is guilty.

 

[andreww]

If Burke was involved, one thing is certain: the parents had no idea about the pineapple or they would have incorporated it into their version of events. The goal of the Ramseys' story is to close the timeline -- they maintain they were all in bed no longer than an hour after arriving home.

What is interesting is that the least involved person in the crime, John in most peoples opinions, was the last in bed. They all saw JB go to bed, John saw Burke go to bed, John saw Patsy in bed, and Patsy says she was almost asleep and heard John come to bed, even though he was obviously in a hurry to sleep and took a Melatonin. They all have an alibi for each other. How convenient. The guy that likely wasn't involved is the last to sleep.

 

[andreww]

Burke seems to have had a normal childhood with friends, interests, and accomplishments so I can see why his parents would be proud. The collage...even with the JonJon suit...looks pretty typical to me. I've not a staunch BDI supporter so view it differently than those who think he is guilty.

Wonder how many rich kids had pages like that in the yearbook? I'd want to curl up and die if my parents put something like that in my yearbook.

 

[andreww]

I'm trying to figure out exactly what BR has done to make the parents say they are proud of him.

Looking fairly normal in a few photos maybe?

He didn't kill anybody in high school. Thats something.

 

[Ambitioned]

Wonder how many rich kids had pages like that in the yearbook? I'd want to curl up and die if my parents put something like that in my yearbook.

Ikr??? I would never allow it, lol.

 

[Miz Adventure]

Just supposing that BR was guilty. Would the parents ever be able to feel the same about this child ever again? I'm not a parent so this is why I'm asking.

They look to be a close threesome in the photos that I've seen but could this all be an act? Or would they have forgiven him because they fully understood that he had mental problems back then, and they partly blame themselves for not keeping a check on his behaviour?

 

[HarmonyE.]

Wonder how many rich kids had pages like that in the yearbook? I'd want to curl up and die if my parents put something like that in my yearbook.

I have a 15 year old boy and he probably would stop speaking to me if I did that to him. Of course, I've never dressed him like a modern-day Little Lord Fauntleroy.....

Patsy did this, making sure to include JBR, and even though it wasn't an individual photo I wonder if she wanted to make sure he had that little reminder with him forever. I'm always yanking out my old yearbook for some reason - seeing obituaries more often these days - and it's one of those things that no matter where I've lived or moved to, it's always been around me. Same with my mother who is in her 70's now.

 

[Tadpole12]

I have a 15 year old boy and he probably would stop speaking to me if I did that to him. Of course, I've never dressed him like a modern-day Little Lord Fauntleroy.....

Patsy did this, making sure to include JBR, and even though it wasn't an individual photo I wonder if she wanted to make sure he had that little reminder with him forever. I'm always yanking out my old yearbook for some reason - seeing obituaries more often these days - and it's one of those things that no matter where I've lived or moved to, it's always been around me. Same with my mother who is in her 70's now.

Heyya HarmonyE

Was looking through some vintage Simplicity Patterns,
maybe the bib is a special occasion collar.

80s and 90s fashion, not so sleek designs.

 

[Tadpole12]

Kanzz, ya dude's doing a kick on a board

BR is a skate boarder.

 

[HarmonyE.]

Heyya HarmonyE

80s and 90s fashion, not so sleek designs.

True, but a bit cruel to pull it out 15 years later and publish it in a yearbook to be seen for all eternity. I'm sure Pats had tons of pre-JBR solo photos of Burke to choose from.

 

[Miz Adventure]

Kanzz, ya dude's doing a kick on a board

BR is a skate boarder.

There is no photo of BR on a skateboard, just a silhouette. That's a bit odd isn't it?

 

[Ambitioned]

I have a 15 year old boy and he probably would stop speaking to me if I did that to him. Of course, I've never dressed him like a modern-day Little Lord Fauntleroy.....

Hoo!!! :lol: :lol:

 

[flourish]

I don't think I've seen this before so I figured I'd post it here. It's "normal" Burke's "Congratulations from Mom and Dad" page from his HS yearbook (ah, millennials. Back in the day we just wrote stuff under our own pictures in the yearbook about Led Zeppelin and "that time with that special guy under the bleachers" that our parents never even looked at and we were glad for it). JBR even makes an appearance in a large group photo which just strikes me as odd. But not as odd as that outfit Patsy had little Burke decked out in. I remember 1990 well, and I cannot recall boys ever being dressed like that.

What is that front piece of material even called? A dickie?

It's a big collar. "sailor" style. A dickie is a thing that goes under a shirt to give the appearance and added warmth without sleeves or a bottom half of an actual shirt.

Not lovely fashion choices on either.

The collar outfit pictured above is pretty amusing, but I don't think it's totally atypical for little boys for formal photos. I think my nephew might have one like that which would have been taken in... Oh geez... Early 90s.

As for the yearbook page, parents in my hometown would sometimes take out little ads on the Sunday newspaper congratulating their graduating children. I think some yearbooks may do something similar? I'd be mortified if my mother had done that without me expressed permission and approval of all photos and text. Especially if she wanted to put in a photo with me dressed like a super dork.

 

[flourish]

A dickie was one of those things people would wear under their shirt to make it look as though they had a turtleneck underneath.

This is an old-fashioned looking sailor collar. Not so cute for boys.. very feminine, imo. I wonder if BR approved of this before it was submitted to the yearbook staff. I'll bet he did.

And once again, flourish responds before finishing the thread.

 

[flourish]

There is no photo of BR on a skateboard, just a silhouette. That's a bit odd isn't it?

I think that was just a graphic patsy chose from the available options?

 

[Ambitioned]

I think that was just a graphic patsy chose from the available options?

Yes, in my HS yearbook the parents could pick out a graphic.

Although, I've never in my four years, seen a full page yearbook page. Most were business card sized.

 

[buggiegirl]

Wonder how many rich kids had pages like that in the yearbook? I'd want to curl up and die if my parents put something like that in my yearbook.

Really?? In my experience it was mostly the popular kids whose parents did the collages for them. But I don't see what's embarrassing about it. Maybe freshman year of high school it'd be mortifying, but by senior year who cares?

It didn't have anything to do with being rich, though obviously a full page ad costs more than a quarter page ad. I think Burke and the Ramseys are guilty as heck, but having grown up in a upper middle class town in the same time period, it is very familiar and completely normal. I bet numerous other kids in Burke's class had ads just like this.

 

[ZoriahNZ]

When I was reading the Bonita Papers, I noticed it was mentioned that Burke had learning difficulties and had trouble with the development of motor skills for handwriting. It stood out to me, because some people had speculated that perhaps Burke might have Aspergers Syndrome. I came across this post today on on the Topix forum, they make some interesting observations about Burke's behavior on Dr Phil's show.

http://www.topix.com/forum/news/jonbenet-ramsey/T25RRL6342LGFRGVI/p103#c2218

From Wikipedia: Children with Aspergers Syndrome may be delayed in acquiring skills requiring motor dexterity, such as riding a bicycle or opening a jar, and may seem to move awkwardly or feel "uncomfortable in their own skin". They may be poorly coordinated, or have an odd or bouncy gait or posture, poor handwriting, or problems with visual-motor integration.