Poor Adrian Jones.

I am one who is used to peering across the lip of the abyss to gaze at the id monster lurking within. I am quite the seasoned explorer in the lowest levels of human degeneracy, but there are occasionally news stories of depravity so hellish that even this determined exposer hesitates to venture into. I have not linked any of this because it would violate the T&Cs in a way rarely seen before, but even if that were not the case I seriously doubt that I could bring myself to do it. The story is real and it is out there to be seen, but I strongly advise you to stay well away from the details of this horrifying and heartbreaking occurrence.

A bright-eyed young boy, Adrian Jones, was tortured and eventually killed by his demonic father and stepmom, Michael and Heather Jones. The two demonically brutal murdering sub-humans, actually look, If such a thing is possible, absolutely the part. These two monsters certainly have the eyes that are bringers of icy death.

The stepmother actually recorded for psychopathic posterity all the acts of terror and brutality she and her husband inflicted on Adrian. I will not even attempt to link the photos or videos here. You can go to the link if you desire nightmare fuel to keep you up for weeks. The following is a heavily edited excerpt from this vile excuse of a woman's depraved commentary

A photograph showed [Adrian] with a bar of soap stuffed in his mouth, others with injuries caused by a Taser. Heather seemed to be documenting the abuse and the injuries it caused as if she was proud of it.

Investigators even found a message Heather had sent to an unknown person: ‘Just strapped the boy to my inversion table with handcuffs and ace bandages and put him downstairs,’ she wrote, adding: ‘the hubby wants some a** and I ain’t had none in over a week!!’ She signed off cheerily: ‘love y’all nighty night.’

This poor football loving boy paid the heaviest price for his father's choice of stepmother. Is this an under-remarked social phenomenon of how the step-parent tends, over time, to conform to the code of the natural parent's moral universe? In practice this often means a morality regression from the accepted norms of a civilised society and a shrunken capacity for empathy. Its seems that an approval seeking step-parent is more likely to make every effort to please, and what comes of this deference is a slow betrayal of a clear sense of right and wrong, until they are not just rationalising the natural parent's worst depravities, but participating in them.

I have seen it expressed that, when civilisation, in societal or individual form, confronts primitivism, the latter will eventually corrupt and overrun the former absent a will among the civilized people to temporarily discard their civilized norms to save themselves from the primordial infestation. Is this expression to become a maxim that future generations will curse us for failing to regard.

Sometimes, this regressive behaviour goes both ways. Is it out of bounds to say that an inordinate number of us are mentally deficient, physically repulsive, emotionally child-like, and psychologically imbalanced headcases who nurse a seething hatred of the civil norms our society is built upon? Do so many of us bring our own brand of sociopathy to relationships, setting up a two-way avenue to access levels of debauchery and depravity that has no place in the civilised world? Is the veneer really so thin in so many? The Jones story fits this mold. If the devil gaze of this evil man and woman does not make our blood run cold then how far have we really come? Heather Jones, hints she turned to the dark side with equal facility as his hollow soul engulfed and digested what morsel remained of her humanity. A chilling detail from the story provides evidence:

His stepmother called him ‘the boy,’ rather than use his given name. While she and Adrian’s father cared properly for their six girls, he was singled out for abuse of the worst kind. Does this woman harbour a hatred of the male species so vehement that it drove to willingly participate in a level of abuse I do not even want to think about? If so was marriage to the boy's father merely a vehicle for her to indulge her sickness? Where were the sisters while all this pain was meted to Adrian? Did everyone within their social circle turn a blind eye? It appears that’s the case.

Add to the toxic stew and Adrian had no chance. Step-parents are statistically more likely to abuse their stepchildren. Can we accept that this is Darwinism 101: like the lion clearing out the infant cubs of the pride he just occupied, to make room for his own cubs, as the genetic cleansing action of the male sends the lionesses of the pride into heat? Let me tell you, we'd better damn well not!

These two are part of the of modern family configurations that we are told we should welcome into the fold of normalcy. If videos and blogs detailing the affront and indignity inflicted upon this hapless child are an indication of where the family values of these modern configurations may be headed, our civilised society truly is entering its final death throes. Then just as it seems this could sink no lower, we have the final disgusting indignity inflicted on this innocent. Consumption by pigs, bought specifically by the father for the purpose, were the chosen method of disposal for his tortured lifeless body. There is a sickness breeding in our society, we may argue about what feeds it, but what happened to Aidan marks us one very short step away from the point beyond which we cannot return.

Please understand this - I AM NOT DEFENDING HER

You talk about her regressing and refusing to care for her step-child, but there is a reciprocity to that relationship. Very often, step children fight their step parents and make it tough. It's an uphill battle because they can perceive the new mommy or daddy as trying to replace the one they lost.

In the wrong circumstances, this can be deadly.

a reply to: ketsuko

I consider the guilt equal and that these two fed each other's sickness. I don't question the validity of your contribution. May I ask if you are familiar with the details of the case?

Ditto to Ketsuko's point. I hated my stepmother for years. I thought she wanted to take the place of my deceased mom. It wasn't until I was older that I realized how good she was for my dad. They were married 25 years until his death (end-stage Parkinson's, so no, she didn't "off" him!). I talk to her everyday, and love her very much. Also, my daughter was 5 when my second husband and I got married. He's loved her like his own child. She's a grown woman now, and will tell anyone that her father is her father, but her stepdad is her Daddy. She has an equally good relationship with her stepmother (as much as I hate it - but that's MY issue).

I can't speak about the "statistics " of stepparent abuse, other than maybe we only hear about the bad ones. The silent majority just go about their lives, caring for and loving the children that aren't their flesh and blood.

I wouldn't write off the human race just yet. We've got some major issues, but there are still good people out there.

ETA: I just saw your reply to Ketsuko, and I did see that you consider both adults equally guilty in this, as well as every person who turned a blind eye. The focus always seems to be put on the stepparent, though.

A long time ago, I read a short story that attempted to put a different spin on the story of Cinderella. I can't remember who wrote it, or where it was published. The author wrote it as a letter from the "evil" stepmother to Cinderella after she wed the Prince. In it, she tried to explain why she did what she did even though it caused her Cinderella to hate her. Evidently, Cinderella 's father was very abusive and had actually caused the death of her mother. The new wife didn't know that at the time of their marriage. She also discovered that the men of the kingdom were almost all the same, seeing it and being encouraged in that behavior by their king. As Cinderella grew, and became more beautiful, the stepmom tried to draw attention away from her so that "dear old dad" wouldn't get any ideas. Her own girls weren't as pretty or quick-witted, and she encouraged those traits as well. After Dad died (hinting that it might have been a self-defense thing), the stepmom knew that Cinderella would catch the young psycho prince's eye with her beauty. She tried everything she could do to make sure that didn't happen. The fairy godmother, who was actually an old witch employed by the palace for nefarious duties, intervened. At the end of the letter, stepmom tells Cinderella that when the beatings start, run. Run as fast and far away as she could. The stepmother apologizes for failing to protect her, and tells her that she loves her as her own, and always has.

I've never viewed the story of Cinderella the same since.

a reply to: Lolliek

I accept what you are saying, and as I said I am no stranger to human proclivities. The harrowing details of this case must! for the sake of the future, make us at least take a long look at where we might be headed. And I don't say that glibly.

a reply to: CulturalResilience

A well thought and written OP about an horrendous story. I would, however, disagree on extrapolating this aberrant behavior to some sort of fall of the modern world. The end is not nigh. The amount of violence faced by the average American child is far lower now than at any time in the past. Any human behavior is going to have a few percentage points of individuals occupying either end of the spectrum. I just think the large portion of the bell curve has moved considerably to the left along the horizontal axis.

a reply to: TobyFlenderson

Let's hope your right to be only mildly concerned.