R. Budd Dwyer is one of the most popular figures in extreme culture. What fascinates me to no end in his case is that his macabre legacy is something that wasn't meant to be at all. Budd Dwyer was a politician. A pretty crooked politician I might add. He was caught in a scandal where Pennsylvania's Commonwealth employees overpaid millions of dollars in Federal Insurance Contribution Act. Long story short, many people were putting taxpayers money in their pockets, including Budd.
He faced 55 years in prison an 300 000$ fine, but due to a loophole in Pennsylvanian law, Budd kept his job until the day of his sentencing. So instead of going to jail, dishonor his family and make America happy with its justice system, On January 22nd 1987, Budd Dwyer called a televised press conference...and...shot himself....in the head...on T.V...and yes, this was broadcasted live by blissfully ignorant T.V. stations that thought he would just do a normal statement. For the strong hearted, clip can be found here. You want to know something even better? Schools were closed on that day due to a snowstorm, so kids were at home, watching T.V.
Now, Budd Dwyer has entered the mind of twisted thrill-seekers like me. Rumor is that he committed suicide so that his family would keep benefiting his pension and his life insurance, so they wouldn't be ruined by his dishonest scheming (which he always pleaded innocent for). In that case, that would make him almost a martyr figure, despite having stolen a lot of money from honest workers. What did he had to gain to horrify the general public like this? Is it a prime, live-action example of this emotion we call despair?
I can also read ego-driven motivations behind that gesture. Budd Dwyer made himself to be a haunting vision. He made sure that everybody, tied to that scandal in anyway possible would remember him forever. What did he wanted to achieve by that? I don't know. A part of me thinks it's some sort of "Ha Ha! I got out of it on top of things" or a "Ha! Ha! I got away without assuming my responsibilities". According to the paperwork and the trial, it's evident that Dwyer was guilty of what he was accused. It's obvious he didn't work alone, but he always refused to rat on his colleagues.
Budd Dwyer make of his death a gruesome show that you don't have a choice, but to remember. By choosing to do what he did, he exposed the very system he worked for as easy to manipulate from within. He hit the grave a long time ago (soon 25 years) but his battles are still among us and his memory is still vivid, no matter how hard maintsteam media tried to erase him.
