Geoff Rickly Reflects on Chester Bennington

Really enjoyed his views on this.

 

Good insights there from Geoff

 

Definitely a life not many know, and what he says you can certainly try and understand what frontpeople go through. We romanticize celebrity, but what it's truly like none of us know

 

Eh, I respect this guy a lot but I don't respect him writing a blog to speculate why somebody committed suicide hours after they did it.

This doesn't read as a reflection on Chester or depression. This reads like speculation and "Hey, I'm a frontman too! Look what I have to say!"

 

He was responding to someone's question.

 

hit the nail on the head. Also, I have been seeing certain comments that have been bothering all day about this and other similar situations saying he is selfish for leaving behind a wife and 6 kids. People have NO IDEA what what goes through someones head or how they feel. Mental illness is such a difficult subject to comprehend and understand and the services available for help are shit in this country. To trivialize the pain and suffering someone endures and call them a coward is just fucking wrong.

 

He didn't speculate why Chester committed suicide hours after he did it.

 

As an introvert and obsessive music fan who has frequently fantasized about being a band front man, this resonates with me. Just reading his analysis made me feel a little anxious, imaging myself in the situations a very public musician or artist finds themselves in. I fear people have gotten crueler with the advent of social media.

 

That goaltender analogy is perfect. Geoff gets it.

 

Beautiful words, as always.

 

Yeah I saw the bassist for Korn say that it was a "cowardly" move.

 

Couldn't put that dude's band on my "I'm never listening to this band again" list fast enough. I was so angry when I read his comments.

 

...when is suicide not a cowardly act though?

 

You know, I typed a whole answer to this and decided it was faster and more effective to just say "fuck you." Depression is an illness that people sometimes succumb to like any other physical illness. Fuck. Off.

 

Never, when you're educated enough about what pushes someone to kill themselves.

 

I completely agree with Geoff's comments, specifically the goalie analogy. As someone who is introverted and dealt with depression in the past, I can tell you that is exactly how I felt. The weight becomes too heavy for you to hold, and you honestly believe that no one is there to help. You can be surrounded by family and friends, but you get it in your head that no one can help, so you keep it to yourself. My neighbor freshman year of college committed suicide. So anytime I hear stories like this, even celebrities/musicians I never knew personally, it hurts. Condolences to Bennington's family.

 

When IS it, exactly?

We don't know enough about his thoughts to really talk about hit too much. However, I would say that he had been sacrificing his own mental health for others (because typically depression builds up to this act). So, really, that's the opposite of "cowardly" and "selfish."

 

No surprise that people would run with a portion of Korn's Head's comments and take it out of context. Sadly, this is what suicide brings out...feelings of anger, confusion, and desperation that cloud the ability to think rationally before spouting out your thoughts into the world. I sympathize with his anger but I'm not sure his turn of phrase is appropriate.

 

Unless the context is 'some people say suicide is a cowardly act, but that's a misguided, ignorant and irresponsible way of addressing an issue of mental illness that does more harm to those suffering than any possible good for those grieving, so no one should ever say such a thing,' there isn't a context appropriate for expressing those words.

 

So yeah that's why I said his turn of phrase wasn't appropriate. But slamming someone because they expressing their feelings is a really loving way to treat people and I'm sure will lead to more conversing and less introversion. Good job

 

This is not a conversation about a random dude from Korn. If his expression of his feelings hurts people, he needs to stop.

Saying 'suicide is selfish' and shaming those with mental illnesses hurts people. The people saying that should stop.

If me saying that extremely basic sentence is 'slamming' and 'unloving' to the people who are doing the hurting, then I guess that's the price to pay to stick up for the people they're hurting. If a person has a platform and uses it to shame others with a literal illness, they need to stop. Period.

 

Suicide is both selfish and not selfish at the same time. The very definition of selfish is lacking consideration of others and being concerned with the self over the concern for others. To say that suicide isn't is just plain wrong. However, the pain of depression distorts reality to the afflicted and may not even be aware of the self. The notion that the world would be better off without you could be interpreted as not selfish, but that would also be further from the truth. It doesn't make the reasons why people commit suicide wrong.

It is reckless and awful to insult a grieving family, no question about it. People that suffer from suicidal thoughts should seek help not read a blog about someone's thoughts about suicide.

By sticking up for people that are hurting you are just hurting more people. It seems as if the person that made some questionable remarks is being lynched by those who object, thus perpetuating the viscous cycle of hate.

 

Saying, 'people shouldn't shame others with a mental illness' is not hate. It's telling the truth.

The dude from Korn is fine. He isn't being anything close to lynched. He said something stupid and inappropriate. He shouldn't have. It's really that simple.