[cpbell0033944]

The really interesting thing about the Rudolph family in general is their level of commitment.  A lot of people don't know that while the FBI was hunting Eric Rudolph, as a statement of protest his brother Daniel Rudolph set up a video camera in front of a circular saw, applied a tourniquet to his arm, said "This is for the FBI and media," and then used the saw to cut off his own left hand. 

So I don't know where you draw the line between "nutcase" and "unusually determined".  Using a circular saw to sever one of your own limbs as a statement of solidarity is arguably on the nutcase side of that line.  Still, ya gotta admire that level of commitment.  The first time I heard about Daniel's purposeful dismemberment I said aloud, "Yippee-ki-yay, motherfucker."  And even though Eric is a murdering maniac, there's a little bit of me that admires how he was able to evade the FBI in one small corner of North Carolina for five years.

They're opposites, really.  Jewell was a man of limited gifts who did everything he could to be decent and to have a positive effect on the world.  Rudolph is a man of extraordinary talents who still wants to be a monster.  Both succeeded, but now Jewell is dead while Rudolph will spend the rest of his life in the "Supermax" Federal prison in Florence, Colorado.

So Eric Rudolph is a clever guy who's a little bit deranged, then?

[Lingster]

Eric Rudolph is a brilliant guy who is also evil.

[Author]

Posts