A few years ago I started thinking about a question that's been around for a long time: Why were there so many serial killers in the Pacific Northwest: The Green River Killer, the Want-Ad Killer, the Happy Face Killer, the Werewolf Butcher of Spokane, and on and on? I grew up near Seattle in the 1970s (on Mercer Island), around the time that Ted Bundy first came to attention. At that time he was only a shadowy figure named "Ted" who seemed to be responsible for women disappearing all over the state. I've often thought about that era because so many weird things were happening. We didn't know about it then, but there was a serial killer growing up down the street from me (the so-called "Eastside Killer"), a mad bomber who tried to blow up the I-90 bridge to Bellevue, a notorious arsonist, and other strange characters. Thinking about this, I got very interested in the history of lead poisoning in the area and something called the "lead-crime hypothesis." I'm happy to answer questions about anything (I've also written about rewilding and the history of the Christian Science Church), but possible topics might include the history of serial killers and violent crime in the U.S., why crime was so bad in the 1970s, and what lead can do to your brain.
Sorry to be a bit late, but I'll be here from 1-3pm EST to answer your questions. Thanks!
[link] [comments]