Do You Know This Woman?

Photo: Josh Olson captures the essence of evil. Isn't she harmless looking?

I have learned the hard way that some people aren't what they seem. Most people are kind, average people just doing the best they can in the world. But there are those individuals out there who just seem needy, lonely and maladjusted but they're really people who are angry, entitled, deviant, and sometimes violent. Once the change is made--to view people in terms of filling the unmet need in their life, that people are things to be used for one's own purpose--these people cross the line from pathetic to pathological. They are dangerous.

The internet is a haven for these dangerous people as too many victims have learned.

The woman pictured is such a danger. She is a message-board lurker who conned a woman into 1) believing that she was a man named Jesse James 2) that Jesse James was in love with the victim 3) Jesse James convinced the victim to become engaged with her (as him) 4) Jesse James had a life-threatening health problem and 5) Jesse James died. And then, the evil woman, pretending to be the fiancé Jesse James sister, visited the victim and became real-life "friends" with her. That is, this con-artist was staying in the victim's house.

And then the friends of the victim did some checking. You can read the post at the above link to find out the rest of the story.

I had a family member who lived life like The Law lurked around every corner looking to "git 'em". Mostly, the conspiracy theories raged because this person had good reason to fear The Law. To live the life of a cynical, mistrustful person is to reveal much about one's own character.

However, it can be damaging, too, to ignore clear signs of strangeness. If something doesn't add up, don't try to make the equation work anyway. Listen to that little voice. Or as Oprah says, "When in doubt, don't."

Internet safety site resources.

H/T Boing Boing