CosmicConnie had a tweet about a beautifully succinct post on the Examiner by Cassandra Yorge: http://www.examiner.com/social-change-in-national/a-moment-of-silence-for-the-victims-of-james-arthur-ray

Last October James Arthur Ray killed three peoplein a sweat lodge. The deaths of Kirby Brown, James Shore, and Liz Neuman weigh heavy on my heart even though I never knew them in life. They should not have died. Their murderer should be in prison. The latest word is that James Ray’s trial will be in February 2011, at which point he will face triple manslaughter charges. Currently he is blathering away on YouTube. I ask you to join me for a moment of silence for those who died at James Ray’s hands.

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Ok, enough for silence.

How about a little outrage now?

I want to honor the victims who died at the hands of this horrible cretin, and help to stop other horrible cretins from getting the chance to do harm. All I have is a voice though, so I am willing to use it because a thing like Sedona should have never happened.

And why did it happen? Among the many things that will no doubt be argued in court as murderer James Arthur Ray faces his crimes, at the bottom of it is greed. Filthy, despicable, self-aggrandizing greed.

It is this that I want to use my voice against, it is this underlying greed that I want to admonish. In my own way, it’s how I want to honor the victims of James Ray today.

Greed treats individuals like a number or a cog. There is no respect nor a shred of basic human dignity offered toward “the mark” – they are simply evaluated for net worth, used-up, and discarded…and another is deftly slipped in to the still-warm, empty spot.

It is a vicious cycle, and one that preys on you. You are particularly in danger when you are looking for help, or guidance – like Kirby, James and Liz – for greedy opportunists understand there is a monetary value in convincing you to believe there is always something better coming soon- and this thing, this one thing, might be just the thing you need to get there.

Yet what they deliver, because it is the only possible thing to deliver to such an absurd promise, are Magic bullets and unicorn dreams to distract you from the fact they are figuring out your net worth to lubricte the cycle. By the time you might begin to notice it is not your best interests being protected or even considered at any point, you might find yourself dead in a sweat lodge.

The greed of James Ray was no doubt a big part of what drove him to cut corners in providing adequate resources in Sedona. He was no expert, and this was a dangerous thing by any measure. But he still created a sweat lodge and killed people in it.

3 of them: Kirby, James and Liz.

These are not the only deaths being attributed to James Ray and his greed. Hopefully by the time the dust settles in court, they find or invent very interesting ways to punish the guilty.

Today, James Ray is tweeting. Obscenely, others have families that are mourning and there are (at least) three of them.

The families of Kirby Brown, James Shore, and Liz Neuman.

I will join those who remember what you did to these people, James Ray. I will use my little voice to say it again, because it ALWAYS bears repeating: James Authur Ray is responsible for their deaths. He killed people with his selfishily irresponsible greed.

No doubt, James Ray will rot in whatever hell exists. Because no matter what happens next: he killed people.

While there might never be a way to understand the deepest mechanics of why it happened, how it happened is definitely worth examining by the proper authorities. And remembering is important to the survivors, and the families of those lost.

And punishing this charlatan is important to send another message that there is a system of checks and balances. So is speaking up, and speaking out against it. I look forward to justice being swift and heavy-handed.

I want to honor the families of the victims of James Arthur Ray in the Sedona tragedy last year. I am so sincerely sorry for your loss. May you soon find peace. Please let my voice join with those that already offer you support. What happened matters, and we lift our voices to remember with you.