Word vs. deed…

When I was a teenager – you know, back when dinosaurs roamed the earth – my dad used to have a grand ole time frightening the hell out of the guys I would date. He’d like to say that my not dating very much as a teen was a direct result of that, when actually I’ve always been the ‘long relationship’ kinda girl. When I got my first boyfriend, just a few weeks before my fifteenth birthday, my dad finally had a chance to make good on his threats. When Jimmy first came to our house, and every time thereafter (I wasn’t technically allowed to date until I was 18, so “dating” involved his coming to my house, and meeting at parent sanctioned youth group activities.), my dad was seen sitting on the couch, working his way through sharpening every knife in the house – pocket knives to carving knives. He bought a special sharpening set that involved three different stones, and to this day I can still hear the shhhhhhhhhhhht shhhhhhhhhhhht shhhhhhhhhhhht of them honing the edges of perfect blades. Jimmy, who apparently had bigger balls that we realized, eventually offered my dad HIS pocket knife and asked him to teach him how to sharpen it.

By the time I began dating the man who became my husband, my sister had been dating for some time, and dad had graduated from the knives, to cleaning the guns. My husbands favorite story involved the fact that he showed my dad HIS guns FIRST – thus beginning what was to be a life long friendship, between the two of them.

Now, my dad never overtly, obviously, so much in words THREATENED my boyfriends, but he did enjoy making them nervous, and letting them know that he demanded respect for his daughters, and he wouldn’t be shy about getting it. My husband looked forward to doing the same for our daughters, and since his passing, my son has threatened to do so in his honor, much to Peppermist’s dismay. (And don’t think Papa won’t be helping – he will!)

Mostly, it was in good fun, where the boys knew where they stood (slightly above a cockroach, as long as they kept their hands to themselves and treated us respectfully) and the boys even got a good chuckle out of it, once they were able to face dad without turning white and trembling. It was a great conversation starter (for my dad, though he never had to SAY anything) and something we’ve always laughed about. But something tells me the man in Apopka Florida didn’t get the memo that threats by dads/step-dads were supposed to be somewhat sort of tongue in cheek, but not actually CARRIED OUT.

Wade Edwards, upon finding his step-daughter having sex with her boyfriend in his house, closed the door grabbed his gun, and not only chased Julian Harp from the house yelling at him – but shot him. Four times.

Shot him.
Four times.

Neighbors commented that they felt Edwards may have “overreacted” but understood that he just wanted to protect his daughter. May have overreacted? He SHOT HIM FOUR TIMES.

Look, I get it, you want to protect your kids – we all do. You don’t want them having sex until they’re older – that would be optimal. But you have GOT to realize that some things are just going way too far. The daughter wasn’t being attacked, she’d invited her boyfriend into the room for the express purpose of banging him. Then the stepfather tried to say that it was self defense, that Harp jumped out at him, so he shot him – from behind him as Harp ran away. Uh huh.

So – let’s break this down for those who should know better, just in case it REALLY needs to be said (and really, if it does? I worry about you people!)

Making threats as to what you will do to your daughter’s boyfriends = a right of passage.
Actually shooting said boyfriend for banging your daughter, even if it’s in your house = felony.

We clear? Good. Consider this your Tuesday PSA.