Ian Murdock, Debian founder commited suicide?
 

I don't know if you guys heard, but Ian Murdock (founder of Debian on which Maemo is based) reportedly commited suicide after being beaten up by the police (isn't that suspicious by the way?)... Reddit discussion thread: https://www.reddit.com/r/linux/comme...ening_suicide/

EDIT: I first posted it in off topic, but I think it will gain more attention here... And I think it's still more 'on-topic' then e.g. Christmas tech thread.

Re: Ian Murdock, Debian founder commited suicide?
 

Whatever actually happened, RIP Ian.

Thanks for all the fish


I do hope that this case will have its true form revealed

Re: Ian Murdock, Debian founder commited suicide?
 

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped..._siegel_hq.jpg

https://web.archive.org/web/20151229...r.com/imurdock

Re: Ian Murdock, Debian founder commited suicide?
 

please guys don't let us make joke of someone's death... and even if it was suicide, you have to be really desperated to make a similar act.

Re: Ian Murdock, Debian founder commited suicide?
 

R.I.P.
I like Debian. Some people still don't understand his way of using the 'N' word. Whats wrong with the United States police now days? Every month I do have to read at least one news article about them 'gangsta's'.

Re: Ian Murdock, Debian founder commited suicide?
 

Related Debian blog post:

https://bits.debian.org/2015/12/mour...n-murdock.html

Sad news :(

Re: Ian Murdock, Debian founder commited suicide?
 

Well, every decade or two, the US seems to go through some sort of upheaval. Currently, the hot issues seem to be growing gap between rich and poor, the left/right radicalization of the government, and perhaps issues about religion... But what it always comes down to is people without power agitating against people with power. And, of course, the police always end up in the middle, and therefore bear the brunt of discontent.

I don't know anything about Ian Murdock's circumstances, but right now the US is a land awash with angry people carrying personal firearms. Which means it's a dangerous time to be a policeman. I can understand why they may be overreacting to some situations...

Re: Ian Murdock, Debian founder commited suicide?
 

After reading his social media statements leading up.
He was definitely in distress.
Unfortunately when in distress dealing with police it can snowball into a very bad situation.
It compounds exponentially.
I've helped friends who were falling apart...
invariably when crisis services and or hospital and or police service intervene it can make situations spiral into the abyss very very easily.
I'm guessing the whole mess would have calmed down had he just been put in a room to chill out.
As a civilization we still haven't figured out yet how to respond and calm down those in emotional distress before it escalates.
It takes alot of patience and understanding from those around the individual... at the time ...in the moment...
One day maybe.
All around I feel for those who were close to Ian.
After this unfolding nightmare..
It will be hardest on them.

Re: Ian Murdock, Debian founder commited suicide?
 

Are the police in the US not trained to deal with crisis situations? They are in the UK...

Re: Ian Murdock, Debian founder commited suicide?
 

Oh God, no. Never call the police in the US for a person contemplating suicide. If the police department in your area that responds happens to be trained in these matters, it's merely luck.

Re: Ian Murdock, Debian founder commited suicide?
 

The US police can learn a lot from there colleagues in the UK.

Re: Ian Murdock, Debian founder commited suicide?
 

They could learn a lot from their colleagues from 30 years ago, too. I recently unpacked a bunch of my grandmothers' stuff -- they both passed away about 27 years ago -- and it was wrapped in contemporary newspapers. I saw a story about a guy who went a little nuts and barricaded himself in his home with a gun. The cops came with a special psychiatric unit who talked to the guy for over an hour and got him to come out and they took him to the hospital. When I read that I was just dumbstruck over how things have changed here . . . These days they'd have taken his body to the morgue after about 5 minutes of setting up the battering ram and assault gear and emptying multiple magazines of ammo into to his body, home, family, neighbors, and pets.