I was watching the video of Ricky Rodriguez, the one he recorded the day before he murdered his mother's associate and committed suicide. For those who are not aware, here's the wikipedia entry on him.
(Just a side note, the video contains elements and feelings of hope, humor, anger and resignation, enough compelling material over most of the Hollywood movies right now.)
By the end of the video, I was pretty much braindrained. The reason being that after getting a glimpse into the man's mind, I can completely understand and sympathize with his thoughts and motivations behind his actions. You realized that Ricky seems like a regular guy (someone who you can have a decent chat with over drinks) who seemingly has a normal thinking process like anyone of us. He shifts in your perception, from someone which you regard as one of those that are off the tangent a la Travis Bickle to someone that is closer to you than you think. The only difference between us and him is that he got a life so fucked up that he couldn't move on.
It makes me think that it is absurd to see people walloping in self-pity in less trival matters compared to the fellow - relationship problems (I'm guilty of that last time), office politics, financial issues, etc. Most of these problems can be overcome with a bit of self-reflection and a lot of time.
For that I am grateful that I have had a good life so far to avoid his path.