Denied Parole

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I was a junior in high school when John Lennon was killed. I remember the exact moment when I heard the news. I was walking through the kitchen of my parents' home, my mind on nothing other than I was tired. My sister used to play the radio in the morning as we got ready for school and I was half-listening to WPHD when Harv Moore explained that Lennon was killed by a crazed fan. Unbelievable.

Like millions of others, I admired Lennon and all of the Beatles. I was more of a Springsteen, Stones fan, but I knew that if not for the Beatles rock and roll wouldn't have existed. I defy you not to sing along with some of those songs - and to think that they were all done by 1970 or so - God, it blows your mind. They were so ahead of their time - and they still sell millions of records. Amazing.

Anyway I couldn't get over the fact that Lennon was gunned down like that. I began reading about him, and his crazed killer - Mark David Chapman. I wrote a college term paper about Lennon's life - and learned tons of useless Beatles knowledge - the title for Yesterday was originally Scrambled Eggs - McCartney was working on the song and Lennon walked by and said - "That'd make more sense if you used Yesterday." Incredible.

I got an "A" on that paper, but it still didn't quell my fascination. The guy had just received Lennon's autograph on the Double Fantasy album (which with Yoko singing half the songs was only a single fantasy), and then he returned to murder Lennon. Ungodly.

Lennon was only 40. That also blows my mind. I often think about what he'd have contributed in the years that followed. It pains me to think that he would have just faded away. Sadness.

Normally, I have a soft spot in my heart when it comes to criminals and possible rehab and things of that order. Mark David Chapman is in an institution in New York State. I talked with a prison guard who met him at the prison - Chapman cooked him breakfast. The guard told me that they keep Chapman far away from the other prisoners, and that all-in-all, he didn't seem like such a horrible bloke. Forgiveness?

Whatever, I always feel better when I hear that parole has been denied for guys like Mark David Chapman, and Charles Manson. Happiness.

They say Chapman was a super fan that wanted to steal something from Lennon. In the end, he stole it from us. Imagine.

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