Another National Tragedy with SFV Origins, Elliott Rodger of Woodland Hills/West Hills Kills 6 College Students
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| Elliot Rodger on vacation in London in 2011. Image courtesy Daily Mail UK. |
The reason for this rage, according to Rodger as explained on a Youtube declaration (see below), that he was lonely, a virgin, and felt unloved that it was his duty to punish the "pretty women" at the local sorority that ignored him. But it doesnt stop there as Rodger even attacked the men that were "sexually active" and having more fun than him that he felt also deserved some sort of punishment.
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| Elliot's father, Peter Rodger (left) and maother, Lichin Rodger. Image courtesy Daily Mail UK. |
The video is downright scary and creepy. Upon first glance, you think Rodger is doing a good job acting out to some crazy character like the "Joker" from Batman like its a practical joke. But as the video continues, the confessional is serious and gets more shocking and alarming especially with the sinister and almost villain like laugh.
Elliot Rodger was born in South London to film director father, Peter, and Malaysian-born mother Lichin. Peter's father, George, was a successful photographer who was one of the founders of the renowned Magnum photo agency and covered the D-Day landings in 1944. The Rodgers moved to the SFV when Elliot was 5 growing up in Calabasas. Shortly after moving to the US, Peter and Lichin divorced with Peter later marrying Soumaya Akaaboune, a French actress of Moroccan-French descent who appeared in the Hollywood blockbuster, Green Zone.
Elliot lived a privileged life with parents connected to Hollywood, a luxury home in the hills, first class travel, and a BMW by the age of 22. Peter was finally making a breakthrough in Hollywood with a recent credit as an assistant director for the 2012 hit film, The Hunger Games as well as completing a documentary in 2009, Oh My God, which interviewed well known celebrities like Ringo Starr and Hugh Jackman.
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| Elliot, Peter, and Peter's wife, Soumaya at the Hunger Games premiere. Image courtesy Daily Mail UK. |
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| Elliots BMW in front of Lichin's West Hills home. Image courtesy Daily Mail UK. |
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| Peter's Woodland Hills home. Image courtesy Bing Maps. |
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| Lichin's West Hills home. Image courtesy Standard Home Realty |
When I first heard about the shooting, I was out on vacation in Palm Springs taking a break from the SFV life. Initially, I thought this was another crazy young male college campus shooting that has been plaguing the nation leading to stricter gun control debates. But when the details started pouring in that the shooter was from the SFV, I started to have a deja-vu like feeling because I suggested an event like this would happen in a blog post I wrote back in March 2012 titled, Dont Raise Your Kids In The West Valley: A Retrospective Review of Young Adult Crime In The West Valley, which examined the following crimes:
- Menendez murder of their parents in 1992 (very briefly because I missed it at the time of writing)
- Ewell/Radovcich murder of Ewell's parents in 1992.
- Jesse James Hollywood and gang murder of Nick Markowitz in 2000.
- The Bling Ring robbery of celebrities in 2008.
After observing a basic time cycle in the above crimes committed, I concluded the blog post with the following statement:
The events discussed in this article occurred in 1992, 2000, and 2008 which are more or less 8 years apart. Following that timeline, suggests there will be another serious event in 2016. If you become complacent with your kids, they could be the next one featured on 60 Minutes or any other national program.
With the Rodger murder occurring in 2014 instead of the predicted 2016 year, I was off by roughly two years which is pretty damn close when trying to make such calls. And let me be clear so I dont get a bunch of hate mail, I dont take any pride in this prediction as the taking of someone's life is horrible and uncalled for especially when we are talking about young adults that have a whole lifetime ahead of them. However, analyzing trends and making predictions should in theory help to break that respective trend provided appropriate actions are taken. And after reviewing the data from Rodger's murder as well as the other murders mentioned in the blog post, I noticed several similarities that couldnt be coincidental.
For now, I am ignoring the Bling Ring crime since fortunately no one was murdered. But all of the other crimes were murders that had the following in common:
- The murderers were either born or living in the West SFV and in particular were from either Calabasas/Woodland Hills/West Hills.
- The murderers were all males.
- The murders were all committed by at least someone aged between 21 - 22.
- The murders all took place either on a vacation weekend or the summer.
- The murderers all lived affluent lifestyles.
- Some of the murderers came from broken families. Its possible only the Menendez brothers had married parents at the time of the murder while the rest all were living with separated parents.
- I am not 100% positive on this one but I believe all the murderers didnt have jobs because of #5 but this could be wrong so take it with a grain of salt.
- All murderers were yearning for some sort of attention, acceptance, or money but mostly money.
- And the most startling similarity is that the homes of Hollywood, Radovcich, and Elliot's mother are all located within a 1/2 mile radius in West Hills. The Calabasas home of the Menendez family is about 8 miles south of the West Hills homes.
So the above 9 similarities cant be a coincidence and there is something going on with young males in the West SFV that drives them to commit such atrocious crimes which the media love and becomes national news and eventually showcased in a book or movie. I have a feeling that the Rodger story will become a book or movie since it has so many pieces that Hollywood writers look for in a script like affluent family, Hollywood lifestyle, violence, sex (or lack thereof), etc.
While there will always be the debate around gun control, I am not entirely sure if that is the solution as I believe these killers will find other means to act out on their motives. I dont think its fair to blame the parents because they didnt pull the trigger but they definitely have some influence. I think its impossible to prevent every crime but maybe one simple solution is to have parents be more engaged with their 20 year old kids, especially if they are known to be "troubled." I know that sounds easier said than done but seems like this age is still delicate and needs attention. Maybe this is something that can be led by counselors in the surrounding high schools.
The only positive news coming out of this area is the fact that El Camino Real high school in Woodland Hills recently won the academic decathlon beating second place Granada Hills which was the previous three year winner. So despite the negative press with crime, we do still have kids excelling in sports and academics that hopefully isnt being overshadowed by the bad acts of one person.
As far as my prediction, I wonder if 2016 holds and another crime takes place or this 2014 shooting counts for 2016. Following the 8 year time cycle would mean that another serious crime takes place in 2022 or 2024. So lets just hope I am wrong and the male youth of the West SFV break this 8 year cycle.
My condolences to the all of the families that lost their loved ones in this shooting in addition to the Rodger family.
You can view more SFV history here.
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Marty Mcfly
Anything and everything about the San Fernando Valley. This blog will take you back in time when the valley was covered with dirt and orange groves to a leader in the space race to its current status as America's suburb. Come along and join me on this adventure, I guarantee you have been influenced/impacted by the San Fernando Valley in one form or another even if you have never visited or heard of the SFV.
RIP The Supreme Gentleman, The True Alpha Male, The Purifier.
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