 |
| Bee Bee Gun? Bee Sting at the firing range. |
BREAKING NEWS: BEE STING CHARGED, FIANCEE GIVES HEROES IN THE NIGHT INTERVIEW, PLOT THICKENS
Charges have now been reported in the arrest of Bee Sting (see previous entry). The Flint Journal's website reports:
"(Bee Sting), age 36, of Sterling Heights, was arraigned by Genesee District Judge Larry J. Stecco on Friday for assault with a dangerous weapon and wearing body armor during a commission of a violent crime."
Earlier this evening I received an e-mail from Bee Sting's fiancee. I offered her to give a statement about what was going on and what follows is the impromptu interview that took place.
Tea Krulos: Anything you'd like to say, I'll repost.
Thank you. I still haven't gotten to talk to (Bee Sting). They have him in the main holding area where he can't get visitors or phone calls. Right now all I have is anger for the other members of the RLSH, the ones that have jumped to conclusions without knowing (Bee Sting's) side.
TK: Can you tell me about the last time you saw him? What was going on, what did he say?
It was Wednesday night. He didn't tell me he was going on patrol...he knew it made me worry. The next thing I know someone is trying to call me from jail Thursday morning...a cell phone, so I couldn't accept. But I can tell you I know (Bee Sting) and he NEVER would have pointed a gun at an unarmed man unless he feared for his life or someone else's. I wish the jail would let me talk to him.
TK: So you're saying this story doesn't fit his character? You don't see him doing something like that?
Absolutely not. And I can also tell you that the owner of the mobile home park was paying him and the other guys $10 a night to patrol, $10 each, to cover their gas.
TK: Really? Because in the article I read, he distances himself from Bee Sting and the group.
He was, according to the article. That was a lie, though. (Bee Sting) had just told me the previous weekend about how the guy wanted them to patrol...and was more than willing to pay for it, even though they told him they didn't need to.
TK: What did you think of him bringing a shot gun on patrol? Did you know? Did that concern you?
I knew that he had one, and frankly I thought it was a good idea to have just in case a situation got really bad.
TK: So you've seen some of the negative reaction online from RLSH and others-- what message do you have for them?
All I want them to know is that if the tables were turned...if it were any of them sitting where he is right now, he would not be rushing to judgement. He wouldn't be trying to "boot them" from the Michigan Protectors. He would wait to hear their side, he'd get all the facts. They way they are turning on him like a pack of rabid dogs is just sick.
There was many a time I questioned the whole RLSH thing, when I questioned the real purpose of the Michigan Protectors. He never failed to stand up to me, to stand on behalf of every one of them. It's sad to see that they can't lend him the same courtesy, even when he isn't in a position to defend himself.
It doesn't matter if it sounds like someone he would do or not, he shot a trailer that if occupied could have killed someone. He discharged a firearm in proximity of city limits, none the less around other people, which is a crime. PERIOD. Hell, he could have shot any of the people around him if that gun had be pointed in the wrong direction. What he did was criminal, in poor choice of action, and just plain irresponsible.
ReplyDeleteLet him swing.
-MSV
You don't know who pulled the trigger. The other guy might have been the one. Perhaps the victim isn't the "victim" after all. Jumping to conclusions based upon one side of a story is utterly ridiculous.
ReplyDeleteLet him swing? This is my fiancee you're talking about...the mother of his children. How completely thoughtless and cold of you.
Agree with Malvado,
ReplyDeleteHe wanted to play a little children's game of superhero and brought deadly weapons to the playground.
But he also is a husband and father. What he has accomplished, and what all superheroes in a similar situation, is that they will hurt their families. And if he or they go to prison, then they will keep hurting their families, over and over and over again. The child might be scarred for life having a convict father. A convict who will find all the value and honor his Military Career gave him, wiped away by his careless thoughtlessness. You don't need guns to call the police. The police arrived While they were fighting over the gun, after the gunshot went off. That's a pretty fast response.
And: A soldier - a war vet - has his weapon taken from him by an unarmed civilian. A Civilian he approached and had the drop on. How does that even happen? Soldiers don't make mistakes like that. Fact is, he almost died, and that would have hurt his family also.
Phoenix Jones is the same. One day, his wife is going to be called to identify his body. And his children will grow up without a father. His choice, he's been told this, and chooses to ignore the needs of his family, his duty as a father and husband, to play a dangerous game, for fleeting Internet fame.
It's a tragedy unfolding, and the greatest tragedy is how the rest of the superheroes - the "Silver Appeasers" just look the other way, claim they "Can't be responsible for others" and then cape up, and go out to "patrol" pretending to be responsible for their neighborhoods.
One is afraid we'll soon be reading about someone killed by a superhero, or a superhero who was killed. It's going to be a shame.
-Lord Malignance
If you were not involved, how can you judge the situation? If you do not know all the circumstances, how can you be so quick to state your opinion as fact? Yes, firing a firearm in city limits is illegal, but did you see him fire the gun? When was the last time you were in Flint, MI? I have a friend whose neighbor's home was riddled with bullets from an automatic assault rifle, which would have killed his neighbor and her three children had they been home at that time. Does this sound like a non-threatening environment?
ReplyDeleteYou can say that Bee Sting wanted to play a children's game of superhero, and from all appearances sake you may be right. However, what about the people whose lives Bee had made a difference in? What about the people who found hope in a city filled with despair? Having needed the police in Flint before, I can assure you that their "response time" is a FAR cry from what is being portrayed. An ongoing joke in Flint is "Call the police; they'll want to write this down."
The city itself is in shambles--economically, politically, and socially. With the police force having been cut down to less than bare bones, having Bee Sting and his companions patrolling gave people SOME sense of security, regardless as to how much. Having talked with him a few times, I never once got the impression that he was aiming for fame or glory; he wanted to make a positive difference in a community that is in desperate need. You chastise him, and those of his ilk, and yet what have you done to better the world? This man has been well aware of the dangers he is putting himself in the entire time, which he may go out putting his life on the line and have that life called up. Yet he still found the courage, the resilience, the heart, to stand up for people he did not even know. Who does this? Someone viewed as crazy or someone who is so tired of the injustice unleashed on his fellow man?
Whereas it is true that Bee Sting has served in the armed forces, it is not outside the realm of possibility that another person could over power him. Take into consideration the fact that Bee is human; it is possible that the other fellow was physically, mentally, or skillfully above him. You speak as though a soldier is impervious to error, giving no room to the concept that it is human to error. This man is still human; his capacity for error is no less than that of anyone else. His training and background gives him a strong technical understanding and skill-level that a regular citizen may not posses, but that does not exalt him to some unquestionable level of mastery.
You are right on one thing, there is a tragedy unfolding. It is tragic that a sophisticated, developed society is so broken and desolate that ordinary people feel so desperate for justice that they involve themselves. The sad, unfortunate truth is that Bee Sting is now cast as some wild, crazy vigilante—hell-bent on creating havoc and chaos. When people see the selfless actions of one who is willing to risk their life for utter strangers and find some sick and sad way to distort and misconstrue it as inherently criminal, it is sad. At this rate, anyone who acts on a philanthropic notion should be arrested, secluded from society, and kept away from the world that would so willingly crucify them.
I am not a RLSH, nor would I want to be one, and the sad fact of the matter is that I do not see the value in helping thankless, rude, self-absorbed, petty, and arrogant people. Yet, I still find the honor in those who DO. I see what they are trying to accomplish; I see their hopes and aspirations for a greater society. It's people like you, "Lord Malignance", that solidify my resolve. Whereas I look at Bee Sting with admiration, I question why a person would find such a wretched and baseless joy in defaming another person as you have. May you never find yourself in a situation that would benefit from the kindness of a stranger.
I can can say I side with his fiancee. For all we know, the man on the bike grabbed the gun and surprised Bee Sting who accidentally had his hand on the trigger. The gun could have accidentally went off, or maybe the man on the bike hit the trigger. The fact of the matter is that it happened one way or another. Was anybody hurt? No. Was it a crime? Yes. Was it a crime worth condemning him over? No. I live in Milwaukee WI. Not the good part. I can tell you what it's like to hear gun fire. If I could carry one, I probably would because a lot of other people are packing to.
ReplyDeleteI've talked to Bee Sting via facebook numerous times and he has never seemed to be a crazy vigilante. He only seems to care for his community and if he feels threatened doing that and he has the proper licensing, he has every right to carry a fire arm.
And as for being basically unbeatable, Lord Malignance, he is ONLY A MAN! My best friend is a kick boxer soon to go pro and he gets hit all the time even when he's boxing me and I have no clue what I'm doing. My point is that although he has the training, it isn't always enough. People slip up and that's what appears to have happened here.
I suggest we all stop criticizing him and wait for his end of the story. You can't solve a case with only one clue.