As the ashes of the Kirkland home of Leonid and Olga Milkin and their two young boys cools, bleeding heart liberals writing news stories have to decide what angle to put on this horrible crime. It is sickening but predictable that they would chew up columns at a furious pace trying to excuse the creep who slashed the throats of Andrew (3 years old), Justin (5 years old), their mother Olga and her sister Lyuba.

We now know far more than any of us care to about his MySpace musings, his divorced parents, his disgust at his alcoholic dad and his inner turmoil. We know his hobbies are aquariums, playing pool, reading, cooking, video games and talking to people one-on-one. Unfortunately they have to mention somewhere in the story that his hobbies also included binge drinking and drugs, but they want to get all the other stuff mentioned first. Just in case you might be tempted to think that something was wrong with him.

After all, friends and former employers say that he is a caring young man, introspective, a nice guy and a gentleman.

Conner Schierman said he woke up in the Milkin’s home, covered in blood, gashed on the face (apparently from when Olga or Lyuba tried to fight him off) and surrounded by dead bodies. He took a shower (in their bathroom), changed into spare clothes (probably belonging to the father), spread gas around the house in several places and then burnt it to the ground trying to cover everything up.

Sorry, but nice guys don’t slash the throats of little children. It’s time for another angle.