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Honor Aaron Swartz's life, not his death
1 point by gavanwoolery on Jan 20, 2013 | hide | past | favorite
At the risk of yet another post on this matter...

(And forgive me if a similar post has occurred, because I have not seen it)...

I think that many people are (unintentionally) sending out a very bad message with all of the attention surrounding Aaron's death.

That message is: suicide is empowering.

Seemingly (if headlines were any indication), few people really cared about Aaron's prosecution before his death.

If you want to attack the prosecutor and the ideals of the prosecution, by all means do so, but do not do it in Aaron's name. Do it because you have something against such policies.

I do not say this to try and sound heartless, but rather to protect people. Whether it is commonly acknowledged or not, suicide has a profoundly negative effect on more than just the person committing it (my family has been affected on multiple occasions by suicide). As soon as you turn somebody into a martyr (for lack of a better word), you inspire others who are contemplating suicide that their death might bring them the attention they seek (whether or not this was Aaron's intention, I have no idea).

That said, Aaron had an amazing life (even if short-lived); let's remember the good things.



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