A neighbor of mine was convicted of murder yesterday.
Within a half mile from my house Phil Spector killed Lana Clarkson in his mansion.
It is strange to be in a neighborhood with a castle in the middle of 2 and 3 bedroom homes (click here to see the satellite view of our neighborhood with the castle).
Apparently Spector has had a long history of threatening others (including The Ramones), especially when under the influence of alcohol. The highly successful producer of the Beatles (among many other well known artists) ended the life of another. Apparently, he was intoxicated.
On Sunday, we happened to be driving from a great time with my cousins in Orange County only to be near the intersection where a 22 year old young man was driving under the influence of alcohol (with a suspended license and while on probation for another drunk driving conviction) and crashed into a car killing 3 young adults and injuring a 4th. One of those killed was Nick Adenhart, the Angels pitcher who was on his way to celebrate his greatest pitching performance of his life. (Above is a picture I took at the intersection). Such a needless and avoidable tragedy.
Every day 36 people are killed by drunk drivers in our country. How many more are injured, shot, beaten up, or hurt by someone impaired by drugs or alcohol? These tragedies should remind us of the importance of responsibility, moderation, and for some of us sobriety.
Eric over drinking is our national disgrace and the biggest single problem that we face as a nation here in Scotland.
I know that the church went over board in the past with anti-drinking in the sense that it made not drinking the identity marker for being a Christian rather than loving God and others however I do think in my culture at least we need to be careful that in avoiding past legalism we don’t miss an opportunity to warn of a significant danger to our society.