You need mental help if you think that it's alright to call CHILDREN, no matter what hideous crime they have commited, as "vile pieces of garbage". There was obviously something seriously wrong with tthese kids and they clearly weren't born like that, so the responsibility falls on the parents.

 

Ill call them what I damn want thanks hun....I dont care whether they are 10 or 100, they were/are vile pieces of garbage. I knew what was right and wrong when I was 10 and Im sure these lads knew it was wrong to murder an innocent little boy.....I would have thought everyone knew that was wrong aged 6.

 

You just want to place blame on everything but the actual criminals. And Im not saying their upbringing wouldnt have had an impact, it would have but other people grow up in vile atmoseperes and dont murder little boys. I just think they were horrible vile boys and I wish them hell.

That caller who told her to get over it and move on needs mental help

I wouldn't ever say that to Denise Fergus. However, it is true that she has allowed the dreadful murder of her son 18 years ago to ruin her life. She should have had whatever help she needed to return to some sort of normality. Of course she's never going to forget what happened - and nor should she - but it shouldn't have dominated her life in quite the way it has.

 

If a sense of guilt for letting James (his parents never called him Jamie) out of her sight is part of the problem, she should have been given help to address that as well. Children wander off very frequently. Almost every time that happens they are found again within minutes. Cases like this are exceedingly rare. After all, the average number of children killed by a stranger each year is just six.

I dont think I ever get over the murder of my son :(

 

Especially knowing the murderers can live a relatively normal life with security :(

To make it more clear, I don't want/expect his mother to get over it. However, I think it is wrong that she keeps drawing attention to herself and the murder. It think she wants revenge. Which is understandable.

Edited April 7, 201114 yr by starryeyed

I agree Starryeyed, she does want revenge and frankly, Im not surprised....I hope she gets it in her afterlife and she looks down on them burning in hell whilst she is heaven with her son xx

Edited April 7, 201114 yr by Shelli Louise Po

I dont think I ever get over the murder of my son :(

 

Especially knowing the murderers can live a relatively normal life with security :(

If by "getting over" it you mean forgetting it then I don't think anyone ever would. However, plenty of people whose children have been murdered have been able to return to some semblance of a normal life. That's often because they find some inner strength to enable them to do so. Anyone who needs help should be given it.

 

As for the murderers living "a relatively normal life", that is simply not true. Robert Thompson must live in fear of being exposed every day of his life. When Jon Venables' new offences made the news, he must have been even more worried. Don't forget that, however appalling his crime, he has kept out of trouble since his release despite all the pressure he must feel every day.

I knew what was right and wrong when I was 10.....

 

So did I - but that's because I had parents who taught me right from wrong. Venables and Thompson's parents were pretty irresponsible and neglectful, their home lives were completely dysfunctional, and they both have siblings who abused them in the way they did to James Bulger (in their minds, it was just something you did to kids younger than you). It's a tragic symptom of a broken society, but it doesn't make them intrinsically evil.

So did I - but that's because I had parents who taught me right from wrong. Venables and Thompson's parents were pretty irresponsible and neglectful, their home lives were completely dysfunctional, and they both have siblings who abused them in the way they did to James Bulger (in their minds, it was just something you did to kids younger than you). It's a tragic symptom of a broken society, but it doesn't make them intrinsically evil.

 

This is very true. Abuse comes out in children in different ways. I truly believe they did not fully understand the concept of death.

As for the murderers living "a relatively normal life", that is simply not true. Robert Thompson must live in fear of being exposed every day of his life. When Jon Venables' new offences made the news, he must have been even more worried. Don't forget that, however appalling his crime, he has kept out of trouble since his release despite all the pressure he must feel every day.

 

 

Oh dear, pass me the tissues, Im crying for him

To live with guilt though is an awful thing. No matter what you read in the papers about holidays and alleged cushy existences - I bet both boys would trade all of that and more to sleep at night with a clear conscience. And do you know what - any kindness they've received since their awful crime will only have helped deepen their sense of guilt.

 

Can we get one thing clear about Denise though. I remember once in Primark my son was about three or four - and he went missing from my side - well there but for the grace of god I could have been in a similar predicament. That one minute I lost sight of him was like an eternity and anything could have happened and I wasn't 'busy gabbing to anyone' .... for a minute or two he went missing amongst the hangers and shelves. He was safe however ... but it could have been very, very different and I really have no time for people slagging Denise Fergus off - accusing her of neglect when just one minute was all it took.

 

Kath

Oh dear, pass me the tissues, Im crying for him

I have no idea what your religious beliefs are - if any. However, as an atheist I still have a sense of compassion. As others have said, these two boys grew up in dysfunctional families. That wasn't their fault.

 

We can only assume that Robert Thompson is living a useful life, has a job and is paying taxes. So he is helping to pay for the money spent on his rehabilitation. Money that seems to have been well spent.

 

You may be prepared to condemn someone indefinitely just because they had rotten parents. I'm not.

To live with guilt though is an awful thing. No matter what you read in the papers about holidays and alleged cushy existences - I bet both boys would trade all of that and more to sleep at night with a clear conscience. And do you know what - any kindness they've received since their awful crime will only have helped deepen their sense of guilt.

 

Can we get one thing clear about Denise though. I remember once in Primark my son was about three or four - and he went missing from my side - well there but for the grace of god I could have been in a similar predicament. That one minute I lost sight of him was like an eternity and anything could have happened and I wasn't 'busy gabbing to anyone' .... for a minute or two he went missing amongst the hangers and shelves. He was safe however ... but it could have been very, very different and I really have no time for people slagging Denise Fergus off - accusing her of neglect when just one minute was all it took.

 

Kath

Agreed 100%. That's why I said earlier that she should have been given help to alleviate any guilt she might have felt.

I can only hope that everyone who says Denise Fergus was neglectful/needs to get on with her life never goes through something one hundreth as bad as this.

 

If you are going to say Thompson and Venables were abused/neglected which led to their actions - and that could well be true - you cannot say that Denise Fergus leaving her son unattended for a couple of minutes counts as abuse and neglect! By that standard you might as well say that anyone who is ignored by their guardian for a couple of minutes could grow up to be a criminal/murderer due to all the neglect they suffered.

 

Denise Fergus probably regrets leaving him every second of every day, and has that on her conscience for life. That's all she did wrong. It was Thompson and Venables who murdered him.

 

As for getting on with her life - I would imagine it's a bit hard when the case is brought up every five minutes by the media (and don't say that every single time it is, it's brought up by Fergus, because it clearly isn't).

Ill call them what I damn want thanks hun....I dont care whether they are 10 or 100, they were/are vile pieces of garbage. I knew what was right and wrong when I was 10 and Im sure these lads knew it was wrong to murder an innocent little boy.....I would have thought everyone knew that was wrong aged 6.

 

You just want to place blame on everything but the actual criminals. And Im not saying their upbringing wouldnt have had an impact, it would have but other people grow up in vile atmoseperes and dont murder little boys. I just think they were horrible vile boys and I wish them hell.

 

The way I see it, these two shouldn't be forgiven or have any sort of relief for what they've done. That's as clear as day. However I also think we need to be looking closely at how upbringing and external events effect people who become murderers. People aren't born evil, those two had the potential to be normal functioning members of society but obviously it went wrong somewhere.

 

Just because other people grow up in vile atmospheres and don't commit murder doesn't really count for much...it could be more specific than just a difficult upbringing. I can't understand how somebody would just "be" evil. They obviously have to get there from somewhere don't they? :unsure:

Edited April 8, 201114 yr by Sabrewulf

The way I see it, these two shouldn't be forgiven or have any sort of relief for what they've done. That's as clear as day. However I also think we need to be looking closely at how upbringing and external events effect people who become murderers. People aren't born evil, those two had the potential to be normal functioning members of society but obviously it went wrong somewhere.

 

Just because other people grow up in vile atmospheres and don't commit murder doesn't really count for much...it could be more specific than just a difficult upbringing. I can't understand how somebody would just "be" evil. They obviously have to get there from somewhere don't they? :unsure:

But one of them (Thompson) does appear to be a normal functioning member of society. Venables' later offences were completely unconnected to the murder and are likely to have been committed even if he hadn't been involved in that terrible act.

Can we get one thing clear about Denise though. I remember once in Primark my son was about three or four - and he went missing from my side - well there but for the grace of god I could have been in a similar predicament. That one minute I lost sight of him was like an eternity and anything could have happened and I wasn't 'busy gabbing to anyone' .... for a minute or two he went missing amongst the hangers and shelves. He was safe however ... but it could have been very, very different and I really have no time for people slagging Denise Fergus off - accusing her of neglect when just one minute was all it took.

 

Kath

 

Difference is though, she actually left her kid OUTSIDE that shop as punishment because he was having a strop or something.... BIG difference from a kid just wandering off.... Given these facts of the matter, she was neglectful...

 

As for getting on with her life - I would imagine it's a bit hard when the case is brought up every five minutes by the media (and don't say that every single time it is, it's brought up by Fergus, because it clearly isn't).

 

She's not exactly shied away from publicity though dude, has she....? And presenting shows on Radio Stations in Liverpool and going over and over it all again, cant be healthy for her....

 

And the point brought up by Suedehead earlier is correct, ANY adult who had a mental age of 8 or 10 would be considered to have diminished capacity and would NOT STAND TRIAL....

As for getting on with her life - I would imagine it's a bit hard when the case is brought up every five minutes by the media (and don't say that every single time it is, it's brought up by Fergus, because it clearly isn't).

 

But being regularly on the radio as someone else said, brings it up again and again. For her sake she should stop.

Edited April 8, 201114 yr by starryeyed

So did I - but that's because I had parents who taught me right from wrong. Venables and Thompson's parents were pretty irresponsible and neglectful, their home lives were completely dysfunctional, and they both have siblings who abused them in the way they did to James Bulger (in their minds, it was just something you did to kids younger than you). It's a tragic symptom of a broken society, but it doesn't make them intrinsically evil.

 

Precisely. I don't know how many times we have to tell Shelli, these kids were not born evil. End of story.

They are scum and it makes me sick that they are living with secure indentities and get free houses and holidays off the tax payers money.

 

And seeing as one of them is now a pedophile, it looks like the rehabilitation period was another load of crap as well

 

I hope they both get locked up again for life

 

Cue everyone saying that they deserve a 2nd chance and that Im just as bad as them :heart: So predictable :wub:

 

The killers won't exactly have a great life outside prison though - they'll never be respected and will always have a guilty conscience, I can't imagine how they'd sleep at night, their crime was hideous and I think they deserved longer for it though

 

I do have to agree that whilst their crime was truly barbaric in every sense, they were clearly f***ed up in the head, and had a bad childhood- a result of abuse and neglect most likely- no one is born evil, even Hitler

Edited April 8, 201114 yr by chart wizard