I read Saturday’s coverage of BTK in The Eagle and here’s the reponse I had: Give me five minutes alone in a room with this creature. He’s not a human being.
I’m so sick and tired of this neanderthal. I know he murdered 10 people and I feel horribly for their families. But every time I see the mug shot of Dennis Rader, you know the one I’m talking about, I feel sick to my stomach. I don’t need to see it anymore. In fact, I need to not see it.
It’s time for Rader to go away to prison and fo us to stop talking about him. That’s why I most anticipate the Aug. 17 sentencing hearing; because after that he’ll be gone. I don’t anticipate the hearing for any news it will generate, I don’t need any more of the gruesome details.
You might ask: Bob Lutz, are you crazy? You’re a journalist and this is the biggest story ever in Wichita. And yes, I realize there are people who can’t get enough of the coverage. They want to know every minute fact. They want to get inside the "brain" of Dennis Rader.
Baloney. This guy’s brain is fried. In reality, he is probably one of the least interesting people on the planet. He killed 10 people. He brought great harm and pain to dozens of others. He’s a low-life.
I watch our reporters do an amazing job of covering this story. More than amazing, really. They have been on top of this thing from the beginning. And early on, I was interested in every word. I wanted as much information as I could get.
Now I just want Rader to go away. To jail, for the rest of his miserable life. And the less that is said at his sentencing hearing, the better.
I recognize I’m in the minority. I know many people have an endless thirst for BTK information. Rader loves all the attention, all the publicity. He was quoted on Dateline NBC as saying it makes him feel like a "star."
Five minutes. Just give me five minutes. Nah, on second thought, just put this guy away. And nobody talk to him ever again.