What were you thinking?

Last week, a Greenville bank was robbed. The bank robber walked into the bank, "pointed the gun at two women and forced them into an office where he presented a note demanding money" according to The Greenville News. Police snipers surrounded the building, SWAT team was deployed, FBI was on the scene and the robber walked out in handcuffs about 2 hours later. No one was injured.

By all accounts, the alleged robber, Bruce Lee Windsor, was a good man. At age 43, he was a deacon in his church, married for 16 years with four children from 11 down to 3 years old. Apparently, he had a real estate business that had gone south. His sister appeared at his bond hearing and said that he had "just snapped". His pastor spoke and said he was "one of the best fathers I know anywhere," and that his role as deacon at Brushy Creek Baptist Church included visiting shut-ins.

Several people at my church knew Mr. Wilson or knew someone who knew him. One lady is related to him by marriage (I'm unsure of the details).

I have just one question for Mr. Wilson: WHAT WERE YOU THINKING??

The obvious answer is that he wasn't thinking. Something possessed the man (and I do believe in a literal possession by evil spirits) and made him walk into the bank. The two women hostages were likely frightened out of their minds by the ordeal as were their families. Families of other bank employees were likely affected also.

I was at a meeting with someone who found out his daughter was across the street. He and his wife were also affected, as they worried about their daughter.

There is absolutely no excuse for this type of action. Mr. Wilson should have known that this is only going to make things worse. His wife and four kids will now be in the same fiscal problems they were in before, now he's not there to help them. I told my wife that I think he took a coward's way out.

The charges against him will likely keep him in jail for the rest of his kids' childhood. He can face 30 years for the robbery, 30 years each for each hostage taken and 5 years each on 2 counts of weapons charges. And that's just state charges, he could also face federal charges.

There were better ways out. Mr. Wilson had probably counseled people in his church to ask for help. He could have called lenders and explained the problem. He could have declared bankruptcy and still protected his house.

What seems odd to me is that the day after the robbery, the TV show Flashpoint (one of my new favorites) showed three "average men" who had hit rock bottom who held a company CEO hostage. One of the men threatened a dramatic suicide.

Hitting rock bottom is no excuse for this kind of behavior. It only makes matters worse. Even if Mr. Wilson was possessed (as I believe), he will still have to bear the consequences of his actions.