Man sets himself alight in Vatican City

A man has doused himself with petrol and set himself on fire in St Peter's Square in the Vatican City.

The Vatican said on Thursday that the 51-year-old man had been treated at a nearby hospital and transferred to a larger one, with serious burns to the upper part of his body.

A Vatican statement said a Jesuit priest initially tried to smother the flames with a jacket. He was later joined by two police officers who used a fire extinguisher to put out the blaze. The officers were treated at the hospital for smoke inhalation and injuries to their hands.

The Vatican said the man's motives were unknown; he had a piece of paper with the phone number of his daughter.

www.theguardian.com...

I wonder why does someone do this to himself ....and why in the Vatican ?!?!?!

reply to post by CosmicDude


Interesting. Actions like this are generally forms of protest and not so much a way to commit suicide. What was this man protesting? It seems a waste if you don't make that clear before lighting yourself on fire and possibly (most likely) losing the ability to state your concerns afterwards. Maybe this guy was just serious mentally disturbed and that was how he wanted to go out, but it does seem odd.

reply to post by CosmicDude


This man takes the weird route to make whatever statement he thought he was making. During the Vietnam war the famous incident of the Buddhist monk igniting himself and sitting there without moving until he toppled to the side was indeed a statement, and caused actual changes. Then four Americans did the same thing, one at the Pentagon, another at the United Nations, and one in Detroit (don't know where the fourth was) and were pretty much ignored. The first time it actually made a difference, then any imitator after that was just imitating, the sincerest form of setting yourself on fire but no longer a major statement because, as a poster later says on this thread, the media ignored them.

The Wikipedia entry of the monk, Thich Quang Duc: en.wikipedia.org...

And Wikipedia pages of three Americans, the fourth, Florence Beaumont, doesn't have a Wikipedia page :

Alice Herz (I'd never heard of this one, an 82 year old woman): en.wikipedia.org...

Norman Morrison: en.wikipedia.org...

Roger LaPorte: en.wikipedia.org...

And another Vietnamese, Nhat Chi Mai, a woman, burned himself as a protest of the Vietnam War as well: en.wikipedia.org...

And here is the Wikipedia list of all political self-immolations: en.wikipedia.org...

EDIT: I had said disparaging things about the two Americans, and a poster a couple of threads down correctly stated that I was doing them a disservice, and I agree.

Morning,

It's either a protest, insanity or both
Since it occured at the Vatican, I am leaning towards protest.

-Peace-

reply to post by Aleister


You can blame the two incidents in America being ignored on the media. They marginalized it so much and gave it little coverage to the point that Americans just didn't care. It really is ashame since those two made some very good protests along with great sacrifice and you are doing them a large disservice by calling them idiots and stupid.

Why? I don't know why this guy would but I think there is valid reason to do things like this. If I knew setting myself ablaze in front of a huge community while shouting my beliefs, would change the world. I would. I'd make that sacrifice every day of the week. I don't because I love life and people aren't completely ready to listen to reason yet. The reason I speak of is how we are being manipulated by big business and governments in collusion with families that have been changing history as they go.

Krazysh0t
reply to post by Aleister

 

You can blame the two incidents in America being ignored on the media. They marginalized it so much and gave it little coverage to the point that Americans just didn't care. It really is ashame since those two made some very good protests along with great sacrifice and you are doing them a large disservice by calling them idiots and stupid.

A star and an apology, you are correct. I changed my post to reflect this, and am adding to that post the Wikipedia pages of the monk and the four Americans who died in protest of the Vietnam War. The first was an 82 year old woman, Alice Herz, and I'd never heard of her - as you say, ignored by the media. Thank you.

My calling them and the Vatican fellow names was a knee-jerk reaction to what a horrible way to have to make a statement. I would think Alice Herz died thinking she had made a difference, and I hope so.

I couldn't imagine a more painful way to go!
being eaten maybe... but being cooked by fire must be excruciating.
I don't think an Insane man would be that insane..
but I think a passionate man with no reason to live, is!

Aleister

Krazysh0t
reply to post by Aleister

 

You can blame the two incidents in America being ignored on the media. They marginalized it so much and gave it little coverage to the point that Americans just didn't care. It really is ashame since those two made some very good protests along with great sacrifice and you are doing them a large disservice by calling them idiots and stupid.

A star and an apology, you are correct. I changed my post to reflect this, and am adding to that post the Wikipedia pages of the monk and the four Americans who died in protest of the Vietnam War. The first was an 82 year old woman, Alice Herz, and I'd never heard of her - as you say, ignored by the media. Thank you.

My calling them and the Vatican fellow names was a knee-jerk reaction to what a horrible way to have to make a statement. I would think Alice Herz died thinking she had made a difference, and I hope so.

edit on 19-12-2013 by Aleister because: (no reason given)

edit on 19-12-2013 by Aleister because: (no reason given)

=D glad, because I agree with the poster who changed your mind.

The Vatican said the man's motives were unknown; he had a piece of paper with the phone number of his daughter.

If he was lighting himself on fire, then why have a piece of paper on him?
Wouldn't he know that it would burn up?? Doesn't make sense.

Antipathy17

Aleister

Krazysh0t
reply to post by Aleister

 

You can blame the two incidents in America being ignored on the media. They marginalized it so much and gave it little coverage to the point that Americans just didn't care. It really is ashame since those two made some very good protests along with great sacrifice and you are doing them a large disservice by calling them idiots and stupid.

A star and an apology, you are correct. I changed my post to reflect this, and am adding to that post the Wikipedia pages of the monk and the four Americans who died in protest of the Vietnam War. The first was an 82 year old woman, Alice Herz, and I'd never heard of her - as you say, ignored by the media. Thank you.

My calling them and the Vatican fellow names was a knee-jerk reaction to what a horrible way to have to make a statement. I would think Alice Herz died thinking she had made a difference, and I hope so.

edit on 19-12-2013 by Aleister because: (no reason given)

edit on 19-12-2013 by Aleister because: (no reason given)

=D glad, because I agree with the poster who changed your mind.

And a star for you too! If I had thought for a minute instead of just putting my fingers on the keyboard I would have seen my own idiotic reaction. My thought process was "what a waste" to do that, and my mind flashed on what I thought were two Americans who burned themselves to death to protest the Vietnam war (because of the post correctly chastising me I checked Wikipedia, and learned about the two other Americans, one an 82 year old woman, as well as a young Vietnamese woman), needless deaths that didn't end that war and, as the poster pointed out, was even underreported by America's media.

This man who burned himself in the Vatican, I wonder what that was about. Hoping we learn, and I wouldn't put it past the pope to show up at his hospital room to talk with him (although that might inspire others to do the same).