How Desperate Are Times?

Christopher Wood, the 34 year old father and husband of three young children killed his family and then himself at their home in the small town of Middletown, Maryland. Wood left not one, but six different suicide notes around the house. He wrote a letter to his wife (33), two sons (5 and 4), and his daughter (2). These letters expressed his love and regret. In the sixth one, directed at no one in particular, Wood makes his explanations. Wood talks primarily about his failing financial situation and immense debt. A number of prescription drugs were found in the house meant to treat depression and anxiety. In his letter Wood writes about his psychological trouble that was not improving.
However real and serious Wood’s psychological problems were, it is a wonder to me how someone can use them as a justification—or even as a reason, for the horrific act of murder. The primary reason for his psychological problems was the immense financial debt that he was in and the general strain of the bad economy. This is just one of the many stories in the news involving a murder-suicide by a father in financial or other trouble. Are times really so desperate that you have no other choice but to kill your family and yourself? How salient must your financial situation be in life to pay such a price if it’s not going well? Clearly there were other factors involved in the Wood case, but his suicide notes indicate that the financial trouble he was in prompted his actions above all else. An identity constructed principally on one aspect of your life is a risky thing. Such uneven placement of value in life can lead to a loss of self-awareness and control. Finances were clearly a top priority in life for Christopher Wood and carried more weight than they should have. Wood’s entire sense of self was severely jeopardized by his economic distress. This distress clouded the other aspects of his life, and very unfortunately Wood took the most extreme measures to end it.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/04/18/maryland.family.shot/index.html