Comments on: The Perfect Murder Weapon

By: Invisible Mikey

Invisible Mikey — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 08:58:39 +0000

Though it’s true that time is the universal avenger, that isn’t really murder. It’s just that time=death, since all bodies wear out no matter what we do. The perfect murder weapon is intent + intelligence (i.e. your own brain), since you can talk someone into killing themselves given sufficient will & skill in expression. BTW, an icicle leaves a wound entry point, which is obviously suspicious.

By: Heather Covaleski

Heather Covaleski — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 03:34:12 +0000

I am stunned to read this article, and beyond pleased with my find. George Covaleski was my grandfather. Your account of his demeanor & visage is spot on, and brought back familiar recollections so vivid I could nearly smell his constant companion brand of cigarettes. The only things off truth was that he died 10 days after my father committed suicide, not 10 years after cancer. The stress of his only surviving son’s death by self-inflicted gunshot wound was to great on his heavy heart. He had a youngest son as well, who died as a child in front of his sisters & in my father’s arms after being hit by a passing car. Among my father’s other stories of their youth was George showing crime scene pictures to his teen daughters, showing them what trouble can happen to girls who stay out too late at night, etc. Some may find this harsh & gruesome, but I found it a bit amusing. =) His efforts to raise safe & upstanding children worked, as all my aunts grew to be beautiful, smart, well grounded & well rounded women I admired my life long. I remember spending summers at my grandparents, and shirking playing in the sunny yard to sneakily read Grandpa George’s books on fingerprints & various other forensics. I fondly attribute my intense interest in forensics to this day to my grandfather George… although he by his knowledge spared me the details of work when I was a child, not knowing I was avidly reading his books, hehehe… & I wish he were still here today, even just to share with me the conversations on the day’s notable deaths as he did with you. I came across this article while looking up my grandmother’s recent obituary (his wife Elda, another notable character in my development) and it has truly brightened my day. Thanks to it I am now interested in your other writings as well! I would welcome & encourage any correspondence you find yourself a moment for. Kudos for a great piece. =)

By: Nagrom

Nagrom — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 04:57:12 +0000

Nice piece. Having worked in EMS and Fire, it reminded me of my professions particular gallows humor, and the personalities I’ve worked around. And of the inevitable loss of some of my favorite of those people.
When I first read George’s question, I actually said “Time” in my head.

The wise old man was right when he said if you sit on the river bank long enough, you will see the bodies of your enemies floating by. What he left out is, you’ll see the bodies of a lot of friends too.

By: Paul

Paul — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 04:17:03 +0000

The answer to George’s question: Humans. You did say weapon? Human. Weapons invented then without man is no longer a weapon. Man and woman. That is my answer.

By: Kevin

Kevin — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 17:42:15 +0000

Thanks to all for your kind words. Now don’t get any sinister ideas and go out and murder someone. I absolve myself of responsibility for sharing the secret of the perfect murder weapon. (Anyway, it’s summer. icicles may be hard to find, at least in the lower 49).

By: SAM

SAM — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 19:51:01 +0000

THE FIRST PERSON I HEARD THE ‘ICICLE’ WEAPON THING FROM WAS ALFRED HITCHCOCK…MAKES FOR A GREAT TRIVIA QUESTION.GREAT STORY.

By: Cristine

Cristine — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 01:19:58 +0000

I don’t know why I decided to read this article, but I’m glad I did. I really enjoyed all the great descriptions and the answer to the question was very clever. I liked the time answer as well. Every day my dad picked up a copy of the Sun-Sentinel before dropping me off to school. I wonder if he read your column…

By: Daryl

Daryl — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 13:57:26 +0000

Excellent piece. Thanks for writing it.