Citigroup banker, 27, leaps to her death from 40-storey Trump building

[harvey007]

Source: Daily Mail

An attractive banker and charity worker described as having 'everything anyone could want' jumped to her death from the roof of the 40-storey Trump Place building in New York.
Jessica Fashano, 27, was found face down in a third-floor courtyard in Manhattan just after 8am on Saturday morning in a suicide that has left her friends and colleagues as baffled as they are distraught.
Her shocking plunge from an enormous height led one witness to say the sound of the impact was 'so loud I thought part of the building was falling.'

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1340176/Citigroup-banker-27-leaps-death-40-storey-Trump-building.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

[juajen]

1. Hmmm, could she have been pushed? This story sounds fishy to me. NT

[harvey007]

3. Purported "suicides" are sometimes homicides

That's something to consider, especially considering the field she was in.

[valerief]

17. That's always my first thought. Was it suicide or was she suicided? nt

[muriel_volestrangler]

4. Who do you suspect - the resident who shared the lift with her for a bit?

Miss Fashano's final movements, police said, saw her leave her own apartment 16 blocks away, enter the residential Trump Place building and take a lift to the roof.

A resident who had returned from walking her dog rode with Miss Fashano in the lift.

The woman, who declined to be named, said Miss Fashano was dressed for the cold in Ugg boots and a winter jacket, and asked how she could get to the roof for views of the Hudson River and New Jersey.

She described Miss Fashano as seeming alert and aware.

Police do not suspect foul play and said she was undergoing treatment for depression.

What's the fishy bit?

[valerief]

18. Citigroup. A resident. nt

[jobycom]

54. Read up on Pavlov and bells.

The word "suicide" seems to induce drooling around here.

[muriel_volestrangler]

56. Sadly true, but perhaps a query might make people think

to override the unconscious reaction.

[smirkymonkey]

68. So does the word "Citigroup".

She's not the first Citigroup employee to take a dive from a Manhattan skyscraper.

Maybe she was meeting someone on the roof of the building? Who knows? Very tragic, either way.

[BlueCaliDem]

86. A resident who did not want to be named. And you don't think that's fishy?

Miss Fashano was dressed warmly in Ugg boots and winter jacket, but she was going to the roof to plunge to her death. Wow. I guess she was afraid she might catch a cold - before she was able to jump off the roof.

I'm sorry, but after reading how about that Anne Ardin and her "rape" allegations {claims rape, but had an amiable get together afterward - uhhuh}, and after reading she was not only an U.S. funded, CIA backed, anti-Castro plant, I'll need more than a "resident, who wishes not to be named", especially since this involves unscrupulous banksters

[muriel_volestrangler]

90. No, because the DU conspriacy theorists would be plastering her name everywhere as a suspect

Jesus, the people here sometimes leap on anything like a pack of ravenous wolves. And tabloid reporters would be almost as bad as DUers, but more likely to annoy her in person.

[BlueCaliDem]

101. Typical American response - saying conspiracy theorist like it's a bad thing

Only in the United States does that carry a negative connotation - and usually by right-wingers, not Liberals or Progressives because we're supposedly predisposed to keep an OPEN mind.

But if you're willing to believe a nameless woman, and the excuse you just trumped up to support it, over what's still pretty open to interpretation - mine being backed by statistics that show women, in particular, choose sleeping pills as the suicide weapon of choice because they're still cognizant of how they'll appear to family and friends even in death UNLESS they want to make a statement to a certain someone - that's your prerogative.

This woman was successful, outgoing, had everything she could ever want, but then she goes against norm, dresses warmly, climbs a roof and tosses herself over? It just doesn't jive. And where in the heck is her suicide/goodbye note/letter?

Sorry. Like you, I have no proof she was urged off that roof, but we don't have any proof she wasn't either, but considering that she worked for Citibankster, I don't see any reason why my theory is any less valid, or any more far-fetched, than yours.

[muriel_volestrangler]

108. Your 'theory' is a pantload of crap

'Backed by statistics' my arse (yes, I'm British; perhaps we're not as paranoid as the average American, judging from the idiotic posts some Americans have made in this thread, such as yours). That's a 'theory'? That women can't commit suicide by jumping? What a load of bollocks. Maybe she wanted a quick death, rather than a drawn-out one. Are you saying a women would never want a quick death?

No, right wingers are quite capable of being paranoid and make up conspiracy theories about secret cabals. Think of all the 'reds under the bed' crap. Reality, however, has a well-known liberal bias, and there is a long tradition of being left wing and actually looking at facts and reality.

She was suffering from depression; her success is therefore not very relevant. She dressed warm; well, everyone does in the New York winter, don't they? Not from thinking 'I might catch a cold', but from simple comfort. If she'd stop to think about it, she might also have thought "why draw attention to myself walking along in unsuitable clothes?". Only 15 to 25 percent of those who kill themselves leave suicide notes.

My 'trumped up excuse' about not wanting to be known to conspiracy theorists is already backed by one DUer naming 'a resident' as a suspect in #18.

I have evidence she committed suicide. The police have evidence she committed suicide. Your 'evidence' consists of calling the reporters, or the resident, liars, and speculating that people who work for Citibank don't commit suicide, they get murdered by dark forces. Yours is evidence-free, less valid, and far-fetched.

[unkachuck]

123. "...but from simple comfort."

....you mean, she wanted to be COMFORTABLE before she 'hit the ground'? If she was thinking comfort, wouldn't 'not hitting the ground' be more comfortable than a chill?

[muriel_volestrangler]

131. While she's walking around

We know she was several blocks from her own home.

[petronius]

141. I have little experience with suicide, but I wouldn't assume that a person intent

on or contemplating suicide would quit performing all their habitual actions, like dressing warmly or eating breakfast or whatever else she did that day. If they did, maybe suicides wouldn't so often come as a surprise, and a lot of heartbreak could be avoided...

[Chan790]

129. Thank you for this.

It's idiocy like that which harms innocent people (like the resident) and the surviving loved ones (whom it largely prevents from moving on by reopening wounds and interfering with closure.)

The sad part is that conspiracy theories form a sort of non-sexual paraphilia in the mind of their fetishists...if you could and did utterly disprove his theory, rather than accept reality, they'd likely substitute another theory as detached from reality as the first. Reality is too scary for this sort.

[toddaa]

140. That was awesome

I do love a good smack down.

[Chan790]

128. Pretty sure it is a bad thing.

At least in the cases where the evidence of the theory is specious at best.

I dunno, I think it belies a great amount of immaturity and insecurity to be that needlessly-paranoid causelessly.

Further, as a proponent of Occam's Razor it offends a reasoned and healthy mind.

[LeftishBrit]

138. People can, and sadly do, commit suicide for all kinds of reasons

Even 'successful outgoing' people can develop depression, or be devastated by a painful life event. There is no way to know; and tabloids like the Daily Mail are always ready to exploit any tragedy for its sensation. Because some 'suicides' turn out to be murders, doesn't mean that all do - and the method chosen makes it unlikely here. You are jumping to conclusions that are likely to be unfounded, based on some assumptions that you already have.

And you have already shown your willingness to jump to unfounded conclusions on the basis of existing assumptions, by saying that Muriel's post is a 'typical American response' and would happen 'only in the United States'. In fact, Muriel is, like me, British.

[tblue37]

103. I am not suicidal, but if I were, I would have no desire to be

cold and uncomfortable in the minutes leading up to my death. I hate the feeling of icy cold wind, and even if I planned to die soon, I wouldn't want to suffer before I did so. Also, just in case I didn't die, I wouldn't want to lie there all freezy cold as well as in all kinds of other agonizing pain!

[tblue37]

104. Also, I would not want to be named, either, if I were a bystander

in such circumstances, because of the very real possiblity of being pestered by reporters or by other people.

[Hawkowl]

23. Unusual method for a woman .nt

[bitchkitty]

46. My thoughts exactly.

Women take pills, as a general rule.

She would have had to really, really hated herself to do what she did. If she did.

[emilyg]

59. Had a teacher in

high school who leaped from the school roof and impaled herself on fence.

[onenote]

105. unusual method for anyone

overall, suicide by jumping occurs in only around 2 percent of all cases. Over 90 percent of the time, men take their own lives with guns (more than 55 percent), by hanging, suffocation, self strangulation (23 percent) or poison (12 percent). Women take their own lives with those methods 90 percent of the time, with poison being used slightly more often than a gun (38 percent v. 32 percent) and hanging et al beng used around 20 percent of the time.

[zappaman]

34. yes, because depressed people never kill themselves

does everything have to be a conspiracy?

[kenfrequed]

39. Occasionally it is a fair question.

I think it is sometimes fair to ask or question whether someone committed suicide or was murdered. I don't think it has to be a conspiracy to ask that question either.

[truth2power]

92. No, not everything has to be a conspiracy. On the other hand,

why is it that those who think outside the box, which is what I consider wondering if it really WAS suicide to be, can't have their concerns validated?

How does anyone know she wasn't meeting someone on the roof?
As an analyst, what information might she have been privy to?
Given the current state of affairs, re: financial institutions, I wouldn't be surprised at anything.

[martymar64]

117. Don't you think foul play should be ruled out before you declare it a suicide?

Conspiracies DO happen sometimes. It is the lack of forthrightness by authorities that fuel conspiracy theories.

There are too many secrets.

[muriel_volestrangler]

118. You mean, apart from the police already saying they don't suspect 'foul play'?

How forthright do you want the authorities to be, other than saying they don't suspect foul play?

[Art_from_Ark]

126. There is a difference between "not suspecting" foul play

and "ruling out" foul play.

[Initech]

44. Maybe I've seen one crime show too many but I was thinking the same thing.

[ananda]

2. Depression meds can make you suicidal.

nt

[dkf]

6. Lawsuit.

[elehhhhna]

24. uh, yeah ...so can depression.

[elleng]

47. And depression can make you suicidal.

[Freddie Stubbs]

55. How many non-depressed people take depression meds?

[HEyHEY]

124. I did

I took them for OCD.

[Chan790]

130. So did I.

Anxiety disorder and dissociative anger issues. (Think Incredible Hulk, these issues were linked.)

Lots of people do in fact. My best friend's wife is in a drug-trial that is testing one (and she isn't allowed to know which or if she's on the placebo) to assess their anecdotal effects on epilepsy. One uncle is on one as part of a regimen to deal with his withdrawal from being a 2-pack-a-day smoker, another uses Wellbutrin to treat a psychosexual issue. (He's a bit of an itchy trigger...Wellbutrin helps for that.)

In fact, there are probably only marginally less people on them for non-depression reasons as there are on them for depression issues.

[Freddie Stubbs]

133. And apperently you have yet to committ suicide

[HEyHEY]

135. Doesn't mean that everyone who takes them will, it's an actual side - effect

[TexasObserver]

106. That's what it sounds like.

For a small percentage of users of anti depressants, the person becomes obsessed with killing him or herself - often in a particular manner. Or, they become obsessed with killing someone else.

This incident sounds like it might be one of those. Anti depressants are prescribed by doctors, many of whom aren't competent to make psychological or psychiatric diagnoses.

[Posteritatis]

110. It's a bit subtler than that

The reason there's a risk of suicide from some antidepressants is because depression is often exhausting - someone might hate themselves and their life to the point of wanting to die, but if you're in bad enough straights that's just too much effort for the person's condition.

If a medication's prescribed, even if it's helping in general, there's sometimes the risk that as it starts to work the person's depression will begin to lift a bit, they'll get more energy to go about doing things, and might still be depressed enough to want to die. That window where the person has the ideation from the depression and the renewed energy from the treatment usually passes shortly, but it's still a pretty dangerous period for obvious reasons.

The first few weeks of a new treatment can be touch-and-go because of things like that. There's also the risk of it working fine, the person deciding happily that they're cured, at which point they flake on the medication - and hit that same point I just mentioned on the way back down.

[Lorien]

111. So can living in 21st Century America. nt

[GodlessBiker]

5. "An attractive banker"? Would they have said that if it were a man? Just odd (and a sad story).

[muriel_volestrangler]

7. It's the Daily Mail - right wing British tabloid

It's a crap place to take news stories from. DUers never should if they can avoid it (the mods are actually asking us UK DUers if we think it should be banned as a source - see http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=191&topic_id=32644&mesg_id=32644 ) It's very much par for the course for that rag.

[dipsydoodle]

13. If they did so

then they should ban the Daily Moron too.

[GodlessBiker]

15. That explains it, thanks.

[karynnj]

28. For most of us Americans of a certain age, it is where "paperback writer"

has a "steady job, but he wants to be a paperback writer".

It really does seem to run some pretty questionable things.

[Pacifist Patriot]

8. That bothered me in a story with a lot to be bothered about.

I honestly cannot recall a news item about a male banker or a male who committed suicide that commented on whether he was attractive or not. Why does this matter to the story.

[Moostache]

35. Bread and circuses...bread and circuses!

It matters for the same reason that the cable media will fawn all over a disappeared white woman and ignore similar stories every day of missing children or missing fat people or whatever other qualifier you have.

People throw "attractive" on to juice up the story and get the sheeple playing along...spending hours or even days contemplating the private sex life of a dead person (did she just lose a boyfriend? was she dumped? ooh...inquiring minds want to know!) instead of asking real questions like who rammed this hot poker of an economic melt down and feckless politicians up our ass?

[uncommon]

84. It always matters if a woman who died was attractive. Duh.

When your value is largely based on your sexual availability and desirability, of course it has to be mentioned.

[qb]

19. Also... the implication that attractive, successful people should be immune to mental illness.

Ignorance.

[elehhhhna]

25. No. Don't you know that ugly women deserve to die? Attractive ones? Not so much.

Until we hit 50 then we should pack it in. Only in America.

[kath]

85. You beat me to it - I thought the exact same thing. But then, the most important things about any

woman are what she looks like and how she dresses...

SIGH.

[PADemD]

9. 'everything anyone could want'

but peace of mind and happiness

[Pacifist Patriot]

10. Indicative of our society's attempt to reinforce highly materialistic values, eh?

AAGgghhh!

[davidwparker]

52. +1

[Broderick]

11. Strange

But, heck I have been standing on cliffs, buildings, and sometimes you get that scary thought to just jump and you have to take a step back. Maybe she just didn't step back.

[DRex]

78. My cousin reports that feeling often...

we've been out hiking up craggy ridges and whenever he stands on the precipice he feels there is something driving him to step out. He's not otherwise plagued with self-destructive thoughts. It freaks him sometimes.

[Name removed]

12. Deleted message

Sub-thread removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Demeter]

14. Citigroup banker, 27, leaps to her death from 40-storey Trump building

An attractive banker and charity worker described as having 'everything anyone could want' jumped to her death from the roof of the 40-storey Trump Place building in New York.

Jessica Fashano, 27, was found face down in a third-floor courtyard in Manhattan just after 8am on Saturday morning in a suicide that has left her friends and colleagues as baffled as they are distraught.

Her shocking plunge from an enormous height led one witness to say the sound of the impact was 'so loud I thought part of the building was falling.'


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1340176/Citigroup-banker-27-leaps-death-40-storey-Trump-building.html#ixzz18fbhaFe5

[CLANG]

76. I have everything I could ever want. Might as well kill myself now.

[onehandle]

16. They say that Richard Cory owns one half of this whole town,

With political connections to spread his wealth around.
Born into society, a banker's only child,
He had everything a man could want: power, grace, and style.

But I work in his factory
And I curse the life I'm living
And I curse my poverty
And I wish that I could be,
Oh, I wish that I could be,
Oh, I wish that I could be
Richard Cory.

The papers print his picture almost everywhere he goes:
Richard Cory at the opera, Richard Cory at a show.
And the rumor of his parties and the orgies on his yacht!
Oh, he surely must be happy with everything he's got.

But I work in his factory
And I curse the life I'm living
And I curse my poverty
And I wish that I could be,
Oh, I wish that I could be,
Oh, I wish that I could be
Richard Cory.

He freely gave to charity, he had the common touch,
And they were grateful for his patronage and thanked him very much,
So my mind was filled with wonder when the evening headlines read:
"Richard Cory went home last night and put a bullet through his head."

But I work in his factory
And I curse the life I'm living
And I curse my poverty
And I wish that I could be,
Oh, I wish that I could be,
Oh, I wish that I could be
Richard Cory.

[Demoiselle]

63. I've never seen this before...Is it song lyrics?

I love the Edward Arlington Robinson poem it's based on....

Whenever Richard Cory went downtown,
We people on the pavement looked at him.
He was a gentleman from sole to crown,
Clean-favored, and imperially slim.

And he was always quietly arrayed,
And he was always human when he talked.
And yet, he fluttered pulses when he said "Good Morning,"
And he glittered when he walked.

And he was rich, yes, richer than a king,
And admirably schooled in every grace.
In fact, we thought he had most everything,
To make us wish that he were in his place.

And so we worked, and waited for the light,
And went without the meat, and cursed the bread.
And Richard Cory, one calm summer night,
Went home and put a bullet through his head.


...That poor girl. May she rest in peace.

[robbob]

70. It`s Simon and Garfunkle

...and I never knew it was based on a poem! Check it out; it`s a pretty catchy little tune.

[Demoiselle]

113. I will check it out.

It blows me away that they actually reference that poem. I only know the poem because it's in a l930's anthology of English and American poetry that my mother used in college, and which I've happily devoured for years now.

[TorchTheWitch]

136. it's a classic - one of my favorites n/t

[fascisthunter]

20. why is her attractiveness even mentioned?

what a horrific way to go.

[jzodda]

22. Its code for

she had everything going for her in every way....

which naturally makes people reading about it even more puzzled..Its not surprising that attractiveness was mentioned.

of course depression cares not for looks and can consume anybody

[Demstud]

91. "of course depression cares not for looks and can consume anybody"

Very true. And sometimes the more you seem to have going for you on the outside, the more difficult it is to get real help with internal issues from friends, family, co-workers, etc. because of the image.

[AlphaCentauri]

31. Attractive people get more sympathy from the morbid masses n/t

[sirthomas66]

21. Maybe her conscience could no longer allow her to live her

pretend life anymore, and she finally succumbed. True, depression medicines are problematic, and even more so the quality of today's physicians who prescribe them, often not giving enough time for the taker to come down from one before another is prescribed. That's what happened to my sister who one day committed suicide after complaining for months she could not stand the depression medications she was taking. We kept telling the doctor she was having trouble with the medications he was prescribing. He kept say, "this is all normal...." I hope that mysister and the woman in this story are now in a better place, if such a better place exists.

[anamandujano]

26. Just got off the phone with one of those doctors

I'm beginning to think that going through med school destroys one's common sense. I told him off good and proper.

I had to google my @ss off to run interference on them destroying my mother. I found all the information that they didn't care to check on. I finally got her off some bad stuff and she's much better now.

It takes a lot of energy to protect families against doctors on automatic pilot. That said, there are many good ones, just have to find them. I love mine but my mother's doctors suck royally. I'm totally worn out but my anger keeps me fighting.

I'm so sorry for your loss.

[sirthomas66]

40. Yes. Four times, two with my wife and two with me, I either intercepted

doctor's prescription orders prior to or during their use that would hurt or was hurting us. I now check everything doctors do. Doctors terrify me, which is strange, because I grew up thinking doctors both trusted and infallible. Thank you.

[elehhhhna]

27. So sorry, SirThomas. I worked for a company that cleans up suicides...

among other things, and I can tell you thast the vast, vast majority of these were people who's loved ones knew they were depressed, one was even hallucinating...and who did NOT seek treatment. Regrettable rear-view mirror situations, to be sure. I do think that an attempt at treatment is still better than ignoring it.

May your sister rest peacefully.

[sirthomas66]

41. I am not so sure anymore. Thank you for your kindness.

[karynnj]

29. My sympathies to you - it is very sad the doctor didn't listen

[sirthomas66]

42. Thank you, my lady.

[Lorien]

109. HER conscience?? Did it ever occur to you that someone who wanted to dedicate

her life to charity work and was already well on her way down that path might be depressed and overwhelmed by humanity's (and Americans in particular) LACK of conscience? Anyone with a soul who reads even a little non-MSM news daily feels like leaping from a 40 story building in despair from it all. The world is fucked, she was just a casualty of it's heartlessness.

I'm sorry for your loss, but depression is pure Hell for anyone in the modern era-with or without meds.

[sirthomas66]

119. Yes, that is exactly what I meant. Her conscience, her mediator of

right and wrong, could not deal with real life with its boundless tragedies and unfairness anymore, which may have made her depressed. Did that occur to me? Yes: that's what I thought I said. Her conscience could not deal with America's lack of conscience, as you say. I know about depression, having been depressed for most of my life and not having had time to deal with it. Once one admits depression and it goes on a doctor's statement, forget about getting anywhere in life any more, particularly now. You have to self-treat it. I was ordering depression meds without prescription from New Zealand, which was coming to me through different countries. The stuff worked a little but slowed me down at work. Had I kept taking it, I would have lost my job.

[postatomic]

30. Suicide almost always has people questioning everything

That she left no note would imply she was quite serious. People will speculate. People will the make the wrong conclusions. But no one but young Jessica knows the reason she decided to die.

[aquart]

38. Citibank is an ugly place with ugly customs.

She may have known a lot of really nasty stuff.

[postatomic]

43. You're speculating

And you help prove my point. You are trying to channel her using your thought process. Your beliefs.

[valerief]

65. How is someone believing something when they say "she may have known"?

[postatomic]

73. "She may have known a lot of really nasty stuff"

Let's not be selective in the words used. Belief: Citigroup is Horrific. Hence, someone who works there found out some horrible truth and had to kill herself because she could not deal with it.

[valerief]

80. Well, they are horrible. I've had a Mastercard for 30 years now with Citi

and I've always paid on time. They jumped my rate to 24%, so now I can't use the card.

Usury is horrible.

[postatomic]

95. All Credit Cards suck

They are fucking over consumers big time. But, how do you make the leap from Citi Mastercard being horrible to explaining a suicide?

[valerief]

107. I didn't. I guess you are. nt

[valerief]

79. self delete, dupe

[aquart]

67. Yes. Speculating.

And this is a terrible problem for you, why?

[postatomic]

77. It's not a terrible problem with me

I just pointed out that it was very common for people to speculate when faced with trying to understand suicide. I don't blame you for speculating. It's what most people do. I was hoping that you would expand your thought process a little further.

[Name removed]

32. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[MilesColtrane]

33. Heartless

[stray cat]

36. I was wondering how long it would take for a jump * jump cheer

a little longer than usual maybe because she was a female attractive banker

[mwooldri]

57. Doesn't matter.

Suicide is a big deal to me. Anyone who has that kind of heart to cheer for a case of suicide is not a kind of person I wish to hang around with. Speaking as an individual who is bipolar, who has contemplated and had an unsuccessful suicide attempt or two, I don't care of the background of ANYONE who feels it necessary to kill themselves. No exceptions.

Those close to this woman must be completely devastated. Suicide is self inflicted homicide. Homicide devastates the lives of those close to the victim, and suicide does the same. In fact it's worse IMO because there is no perpetrator to hunt down and punish, the main witness is dead, and lots of questions never get answered. Closure is much harder in suicide cases.

As such, those cheerleading the self-inflicted homicide of anyone, including Wall Street Bankers and the line, will be the DU equivalent of "unfriended".

[zappaman]

37. wow dude

what a shitty thing to say.

[postatomic]

51. ... and how many to go?

Another one? I was hoping that your contemporary up yonder was the only "compassionate" person to respond. I was wrong.

[emilyg]

60. Shame on you. Shame.

[Aaria]

45. As a rule of thumb, most office buildings don't have window that open....

far enough to allow someone to easily crawl out of, if they can be opened at all. The buildings are climate controlled and are engineered so that with the windows closed all of the air in the building is changed out every few minutes.

[Lance_Boyle]

48. Another rule of thumb - most roofs don't require windows. n/t

[Raksha]

49. K & R

[craigmatic]

50. Maybe she felt bad for working for the evil corporation that is citigroup.

[Turborama]

53. "just after 8am on Saturday morning" but not reported until Monday morning

Very sad story, but why did it take so long to report it?

In fact, after having a quick look, it seems the New York Post reported it early Sunday morning...

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/manhattan/citi_gal_in_suicide_plummet_5Fr02xqmALysxOPT2zzIDP

[WingDinger]

58. Sometimes, a little MORE is expected of attractive female emps. Like hooking.

I have known very assertive women that worked in offices that had these expectations, if you wanted to advance.

[TygrBright]

61. Ask someone who suffers from depression: This makes perfect sense.

Sorry. All you folks speculating that there's something hinky about this just don't have any idea what depression is and what it does.

Depressed people don't necessarily isolate themselves, act gloomy, sit around and cry, etc.

Sometimes we are bright and cheery and energetic and we get ourselves into positions of great visibility and responsibility. Looking for meaning in a meaningless life, perhaps.

We make tons and tons of "friendships," most of them superficial. But there isn't anyone we share our inner hopelessness, our inner (perceived) worthlessness with. But lots of people know us, care about us, etc.

And then people start to (as we see it) rely on us to do all kinds of things. We're overextended. We made promises we can't keep (we think,) because it's just too much.

And the only way out of the mess we've created for ourselves, all these people relying on us, expecting stuff from us, needing us to do important things, is to make the Ultimate Excuse: "I'm sorry, I can't do that, I'm dead."

Yeah, this is a suicide.

Happens a lot this time of year.

This one just happens to be higher-profile than most.

And until we have a decent, accessible behavioral health system for everyone, we will lose more people like this. Granted, with the best mental health care system in the world, some people will still take the permanent way out. But many fewer than we have now in America.

informatively,
Bright

[aquart]

69. True.

As for the attractiveness being a reason not to be depressed...

I was once sitting next to one of the most attractive young men in my high school AND college when the new Miss America was announced. He looked at her and said, "Now everyone will want something from her."

It was like lightning striking.

[MilesColtrane]

74. +1

[CLANG]

81. This sounds so much like the COO of our company (RIP)

Sometimes we are bright and cheery and energetic and we get ourselves into positions of great visibility and responsibility. Looking for meaning in a meaningless life, perhaps.

We make tons and tons of "friendships," most of them superficial. But there isn't anyone we share our inner hopelessness, our inner (perceived) worthlessness with. But lots of people know us, care about us, etc.

And then people start to (as we see it) rely on us to do all kinds of things. We're overextended. We made promises we can't keep (we think,) because it's just too much.

And the only way out of the mess we've created for ourselves, all these people relying on us, expecting stuff from us, needing us to do important things, is to make the Ultimate Excuse: "I'm sorry, I can't do that, I'm dead."

//SNIP//

He was all that. Nobody (except maybe his wife) saw it coming - he was so successful and seemingly happy. And he had an entire corporation depending on him like no other.

So damn sad. He was the greatest person in the world.

[Blasphemer]

121. Thank you for posting this

Many people just don't understand unless depression renders one physically incapacitated. If they don't see an obvious illness, they treat you as if everything is perfectly normal, which is oftentimes the worst possible way to react to a depressed person. Just as ill bodies sometimes give out, so do ill minds. Perhaps one day, the millions of people in this country who suffer from mental illness will have quality behavioral health care.

[Haole Girl]

122. TygrBright...

Thank you for your insightful and well-written post.

[Dulcinea]

62. How sad.

Condolences to her family & loved ones. May she find peace.

[wisteria]

64. Why would a beautiful person-inside and out with so much going for herself commit suicide? n/t

[Kennah]

66. If she had not been attractive ...

... would the story have reported "she was a dog?"

This reminds me of the era when crime reports in newspapers would state the race only if the offender was black.

[wisteria]

71. Unfortunately, our society places too much emphasis on appearance

and people are rewarded more for how they look than what they can offer. Good luck in trying to change this perspective. It has become worse in recent years.

[Kennah]

87. Guess I'm just foolishly optimistic ...

... to believe that media reporting might rise above the societal base.

[Autumn Colors]

72. I am a horrible person

I read this headline and this photo was the first thing that came to mind:

[mikelgb]

83. you are not alone

my first thought too

[left coaster]

75. It's important that we know whether or not she was atrractive. FFS. nt

[Ian David]

100. She's not anymore. Anyone who's ever seen the remains of a jumper might have second thoughts.

You usually burst open like a water balloon.

And everyone who has ever survived jumping off The Golden Gate Bridge has said they immediately wanted to change their mind the moment after they jumped.

[uncommon]

82. "attractive"

barf.

[The Backlash Cometh]

88. What does that say when the young are showing more acts of conscience than the old in charge?

We have a young man, a private, who is being tortured for performing an act of conscience by releasing secrets to Wikileaks, and now this young lady who had everything to live for, suddenly decides nothing is worthwhile.

That's what happens when you don't hold old farts accountable.

[onenote]

116. what evidence do you have that this was an act of conscience

as opposed to the act of a someone with a disease -- depression -- that can and does cause some people to give up all desire to live.

[burning rain]

89. Have to see if our lovely conservatives try to make her a martyr for capitalism somehow.

.

[TomClash]

93. Two unmentioned guesses

1. She may have simply been lonely. Maybe she felt no one loved her.

2. She may have gotten too close to the edge and lost her balance.

[texshelters]

94. Am I supposed to care about her more that she's attactive?

Why was that even in there. Should I care less if they were ugly or fat by our societal standards?

I hate voyeristic reporting that has us gawk at a tragedy but offer little about motivation and causes.

Peace,
Tex Shelters

[AtheistCrusader]

96. For every one of her

There's probably 10 or more that are caught in Citi's predatory lending schemes, having lost their homes and posessions, and have spiraled down the same path of depression.

I'm not going to mock her death, but I wish the media could keep some perspective for the passers-by.

[Cherchez la Femme]

97. Sad, although

I truly love that sign on Wall Street: "JUMP! You fuckers!"

So very sad that someone with an actual conscience perhaps took those words to heart.


And yes, I'm assuming she jumped because of feelings of guild regarding the evil she works for -- of course I could be wrong, it could be among many other things boyfriend (or girlfriend) trouble or even simple depression which drove her to take her life.

Or, as others have wondered, if she was pushed :(

[dropboss11]

98. So sad

Its always sad when a human being thinks its better to take their life, than to face life challenges. And what a time for her to do this, her family must be devastated. Just sad and tragic, nothing to learn, no good achieved.

[Crowman1979]

99. Can you say whistle-blower?

I mean this whole thing looks suspicious.

[onenote]

115. the whole thing looks suspicious?

Really? Don't know much about suicide or depression do you.

[Crowman1979]

134. No, but I know that all the major banks are hiding a s***load of info from the nation.

[architect359]

102. She was a person; had friends, had passions...

FWIW

Profile: http://www.aolnews.com/2010/12/20/jessica-fashano-4-facts-about-the-citigroup-banker-who-jumped-t/

From last year...

http://community.acumenfund.org/profile/JessicaFashano

http://www.acumenfund.org/investment-story/the-blue-sweater.html

http://www.harboringhearts.org/

[Name removed]

112. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[muriel_volestrangler]

114. It's not all about you

You may not want a loan from a global charity, but that doesn't mean that it's no good to other people.

In “The Blue Sweater”, her recently published autobiography, she describes her past frustrations working in such pillars of finance and development as Chase Manhattan bank, the African Development Bank and the Rockefeller Foundation. She found them bureaucratic, distant and condescending to those they sought to help. So in 2001 she set up Acumen Fund, a “social venture capital” outfit, to promote what she calls “patient capitalism”. Acumen is an odd mix of charity and traditional investment fund. It takes donations from philanthropists in the usual fashion, but then invests them in a businesslike way, by lending to or taking stakes in firms. The recipients—private ventures aiming for profits—must serve the poor in a way that brings broader social benefits. Acumen goes to great lengths to measure those benefits, and thus the efficiency of its work.

Acumen’s charges are a diverse bunch. In India, Drishtee runs a network of internet kiosks in rural areas, while LifeSpring runs low-cost maternity hospitals. A to Z Textile Mills, a manufacturer of antimalarial bed nets, has grown to become one of Tanzania’s largest employers. Some ventures, including a Pakistani mortgage provider and an Indian pharmacy chain, have flopped. But many others manage to repay their loans (granted at below market rates) or generate dividends. Acumen reinvests its profits in other companies, thus stretching the initial donations further.

http://www.economist.com/node/13692513?STORY_ID=13692513

But if you're glad she jumped - well, that's all that matters, really, isn't it?

[Vidar]

120. A shame the Donald didn't go with her.

[HEyHEY]

125. So, in the race to the bottom, the media has decided reporting suicide is okay now?

Fuck human decency, eh.

[skoalyman]

127. an so it begins

:party:

[crim son]

132. Suicidal people often appear to have everything going for them.

They don't go around weeping and it's not surprising her friends and coworkers didn't have a clue. Depression is an evil f***ing disease and when uncontrolled, a fatal disease. May she rest in peace.

[LeftishBrit]

139. Sadly true.

[golfguru]

137. Some simple questions could solve the puzzle....suicide or homicide

Was she carrying a camera with her? If yes, she might have slipped
and fell trying to take a better camera angle on the roof. The camera
presence proves she was there to take pictures and it was an
accidental fall and not suicide or homicide.

In absence of a camera, did she have a cell phone and has some pictures
in it? If yes, again an accident.

In absence of both, was she wearing high heel shoes? If yes she is not likely
to climb on to any sloping roof, and that points to homicide. If she had
sneakers on, and no camera apparatus, then did she leave suicide note behind?
If yes, clearly points to suicide barring a fake note.

If wearing sneakers and no suicide note, points to a homicide. She probably
was meeting someone there. Investigate her phone records to find out who.

Also check into any meds or drugs found in her autopsy. If none found, that also
leans towards homicide.