If I hurt your feelings while you're reading this, well quite frankly I couldn't give one fuck. Obviously, after reading your article, I have come to the conclusion that you have one: never battled a mental illness and/or two: you have never lost someone dear to you to a mental illness. Since you have never experienced one of these you are incredibly unentitled to be able to speak out about this situation as you have so far. You have made hundreds furious and many Odyssey writers and Editors such as myself ashamed to say that we have people in Odyssey like you.
Chester Bennington battled with drugs and depression a good part of his life. In the end, the latter took his life that millions of people cherished. He did not do this to copy his dear friend Chris Cornell, he did this as a sad, yet truthful way to end his pain and suffering.
"What drives people to suicide is something I can't understand." So why the fuck would you write an article about a suicidal caused death? You know nothing about it, you don't understand. You stated that yourself.
There isn't a problem with celebrities who commit suicide. There's a problem that people, HUMAN FUCKING BEINGS, who feel as if they need to take their own lives. That's a problem. Them being a celebrity doesn't make a difference; they are famous, but they are still human. Depression is a celebrity, it's a curse.
"It's when people say things say like, 'What Bennington leaves behind, Pinfield says, is a body of work that will impact generations of musicians to come.'" What could possibly be wrong with this statement? Chester left his works of art in the form of music here even after he is gone. Forever we will be able to cherish his music and lessons we learned from them. There is not one thing you can take negatively from that statement. People write legacies about famous people who die from anything. Suicide is a commonly talked about specifically with famous people because they are famous. To show that not just commoners and nonfamous people suffer from mental illness. It shows that (like I said earlier) celebrities are just people- people who have their own demons.
He left a saddened community. Impacted by his death. "Chester...it was the most selfish thing you could have done. "People (you) who say that suicide is selfish always mention the survivors and those that are left behind to just watch. "He left behind three college-aged kids, a high schooler, a fifth grader and twin five-year-olds. Bennington also left behind his goddaughter, Cornell's daughter." You say it's selfish to leave behind these people except you're not remembering that it's these people who are the reason why Chester hung on to life so long. I am more than sure Chester and Chris both thought about their families and loved ones up to the very last moment. But the demons Chester battled crushed him deeply and his depression swallowed him and made him feel as if there wasn't another option. Sadly, it was a devastating and life ending choice. The choice has been made, all we can do it live life the way Chris wanted to live it himself- happy and with meaning.
"If music wasn't fulfilling, you could have tried making a change. Instead, he fixed his own problem but then caused a ton more in the process. " I am more than sure that Chester tried everything to help him before he made his decision. He didn't cause more problems- he did cause hurt, but he is still loved and looked up to by millions. Just because he isn't here doesn't mean we can't take his story and try to learn from it and help others.
"Your legacy has been stained, and you made the wrong decision. " All I have to say to this is from many of his fans including I, would like to chant a loud "Fuck you!".
And to Chester, whose life ended tragically and too soon: we love you and we miss you. You left a void in our hearts that we will forever lack the ability to fill.
If you or someone you know is struggling with suicide or depression please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 1(800) 273-8255.
