The Cornfields Are Silent and the Goats Are Not on Fire… August 18, 2011

The Cornfields Are Silent and the Goats Are Not on Fire…

By Hemant Mehta
August 18, 2011

You’ve probably heard this by now, but “David Mabus”/Dennis Markuze, the notorious death-threat-spewing, non-sensical-phrasing, email/Twitter spammer is supposedly under arrest.

Tim Farley has the extensive breakdown of who “Mabus” is and how this arrest came to be. It’s a very compelling read even if you don’t know what I’m talking about.

Like so many other public atheists, I’ve gotten my share of “Mabus” threats. Even when I had “private” Twitter conversations with my friends, he’d often send threats to them as well. I never wanted to imagine the worst… but sometimes it’s hard not to.

Here’s hoping the Montreal police arrested the right guy and that he gets the help he needs. And let’s hope we never hear from him again.

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  • Ramen.  

  • JulietEcho

    It’s about time.  I remember how, shortly after I became a moderator on the FA forums, Mabus showed up to post his screed (accompanied by pictures of mushroom clouds), and when I deleted it and suggested he post less threateningly in the “Convert Me” section, he responded (with more violent threats, obviously) and used my name.  That was back when I was using my real first name, not my screen name I have now, and it was chilling.  Later, I learned how ubiquitous he was, and I felt both more and less disturbed.  On one hand, he wasn’t targeting me alone (safety in numbers?) but OTOH, what a wide net he cast!

    I really hope he gets help.

  • Anonymous

    Totally awesome news! 

  • Dan W

    Tim Farley’s article was great. I’d heard of Mabus on pretty much every atheist or skeptic blog I read, but didn’t know how he got started or that he’d been at it for so long. Glad to hear the police are finally doing something about him.

  • Drakk

    I know it’s not intended that way, but the last line in the post sounds kind of sinister o_O

  • Anonymous

    Why does the article refer to his beliefs as “psuedo-religious,” I wonder. That would be apparently but not really religious. I imagine the word was used innocuously, but it’s essentially saying, “This guy claimed to be religious, but he’s not really, he’s just pseudo-religious, not a True Believer™.”

  • Mabus is pretty cool guy
    eh threatens atheists and doesn’t afraid of anything.

    Chris-Chan is a far more disturbing than this guy, but less threatening.

  • Great summary and great news…

  • Great summary and great news…

  • Anonymous

    You know that you’re always welcome to come back and play moderator.  Please.  😉

  • Anonymous

    I wonder what motivates people to lash out at strangers like this?  Clearly the level of obsession is well into the realms of mental illness.  He needs help.  I suggest stepping away from the Internet for some time might do him some good. 

  • JulietEcho

    Aww, if only law school left time for anything besides law school 🙂

  • The Other Weirdo

    Montreal police? The investigation is doomed, then, before it even gets started.