I always give credit where it is due, friend.
And I'm hoping that I won't let you down.
Not specifically, HOTYH. But it's interesting to note that "listen carefully" sounds more like something you'd expect from somebody who was dictating, or was used to dictating...like a major corporate exec, for instance. As for ending with "victory!" PR was known to use strong punctuations. We'll examine that more in-depth as we go along.
I'm not sure.
Ah, the key question!
Well, let's take this one step at a time. The note ends with "Victory! S.B.T.C." Note the use of SBTC, or in this case, S.B.T.C. Did you notice the difference? There are periods between the letters in the ransom note. As a rule, modern English writing does not incorporate periods into the spelling of acronyms anymore. That particular style faded out around the early 70s. So, it is reasonable to think that perhaps the writer is someone who learned their writing sometime before that. PR was born in 1956 and would have been in high school by the time that manner ceased to be taught. I realize that's a somewhat broad net to cast. So let's narrow it a bit. Patsy was known to sign her letters to friends with acronyms with periods in them. One that stood out was "To B.V.F.M.F.A. from P.P.R.B.S.J." That meant "To Barbara V. Fernie, Master of Fine Arts from Patricia Paugh Ramsey, Bachelor of Science in Journalism."
Then, let's consider that the note has several uses of exclamation points. PR was know to do that.
Then there's the term "fat cat." While I don't know of any instance where PR used this phrase in her writings, since linguistics is based on the idea that we write the way we speak, it's helpful to remember that "fat cat" was a nickname for John Ramsey that was used by Patsy's mother and father.
More tellingly, the note instructs JR to use his "good Southern common sense." JR is not from the American South. He comes from Michigan, near Canada. PR's family were Southerners. They started in West Virginia and lived for a long time in Atlanta, Georgia, what some would call the Deep South. Patsy's mother Nedra was often heard to say that John had "good Southern common sense" as a joke because he was a great businessman and for marrying her daughter, Patsy.
Then, there's the use of the word attache, meaning a carrying case. The word is of French origin and even contains the proper accent mark over the "e", to denote the sound of an "a". PR had studied French and lived in Atlanta, which has a strong undercurrent of French heritage. JonBenet's own name is a pseudo-French version of her father's first and middle names, John Bennett. It is always spelled with the accent over the second "e."
Also, the RN deals in percentages. That's the kind of talk one tends to get around cancer patients and survivors. They talk about the percentage of survival. I ought to know. It's taken up a good portion of my life. Linda Wilcox, the Rs' former employee stated publically that PR had a tendency to express her ideas in percentages.
Then there's the section dealing with "proper burial." I've devoted whole THREADS to that!
These are just a few examples. If taken from the Rs' spoken words, the comparisons become even more apparent. There used to be a website that listed all of the times the Rs spoke in terms that mirrored the structure of the RN. Sadly, it's no longer up, and that's a damn shame, because it would save all of us a lot of work. But if you go over the transcribed conversations, certain patterns appear. The note says that the writer does not "respect the country" JR's business serves. He seems to like that word, "country." He often talks about "this country," "the country," and so on. That's only one of many examples it listed.
Now, let's examine what professional examiners had to say. One of the themes you'll find in listening to what they have to say is that the RN contains a very maternal, almost nurturing tone. IDI vehemently tries to deny this, saying that such an assertion is "stupid." Problem is, their denials are quite tenous. The note contains no real violent language. Yes, it warns that "she dies," but look at how that phrase is used. It doesn't say "she WILL die." It's almost passive. The entire note is written in passive voice. There's no real dynamism to it. As for the statement that JB will be "beheaded," given the passive nature of the note overall, it seem more likely that this was used by someone speaking in the abstract rather than someone getting their jollies from either imagining the actual act of decapitating her, or from their imagining the parents' reactions when they read it.
Roger DePue is the former head of the FBI Behavioral Science Unit. In 2006, he went public with what he had told Alex Hunter in private:
--"The delivery will be exhausting so I advise you to be rested," the note says. Depue called that an unusual instruction. "The statement sounds caring, motherly,"
--The note warns that if the instructions are not carried out precisely, "You will also be denied her remains for proper burial." Depue said. "In my opinion, proper burial is of more concern to a female than to a male," Depue said.
--"The two gentlemen watching over your daughter do not particularly like you so I advise you not to provoke them," the note says. The idea of "gentlemen watching over" has a feminine tone, Depue said. "Watching over" is also a caring concept," he said. That one makes a lot of sense.
"We're watching you" conjures up feelings of being hunted and paranoia. It's something you'd expect to hear from the Thought Police in Orwell's 1984 or the Pinkerton Detective Agency of 100 years ago. "We're watching over you" suggests something much different, as if to say, "don't worry. We're there if you need us." It's something you'd expect to hear from an insurance company, or a pastor reassuring his flock that God was looking out for them.
--In Depue's opinion, "The writer is a well-educated, middle-aged female."
Former FBI profiler Clint Van Zandt said that he and several other profilers had studied the note and concluded that "despite threats of violence throughout the note, Van Zandt says, it has a 'softness' suggesting its author was a woman or perhaps a 'genteel man."
Finally, we have Robert Ressler, the founder of the Behavioral Sciences Unit:
--There's an almost maternal quality to comments like, 'the delivery will be exhausting so I advise you to be rested. A hardened criminal would never use those terms."
--He also noted that the acronym at the bottom of the note was done with periods between each letter, as was "FBI."
Also, I came across this website a few days ago. Anyone who wants to can have a look:
http://alinguistic.blogspot.com/2007/10/becker-barbara-j.html
For good reason, might I add. (Pity you don't see that.) And you've given me a good opportunity!
I'll try to gear up.....
