Were Jack's crimes fuelled by Alcohol - Yes or No ?

[Sister Hyde]

80 percent think the Ripper crimes were fuelled by bergamot tea.

I'm depressed.

who woudn't get homicidal tendencies from bergamot tea??

i still think our man wasn't drunk when he comitted the murders, or if he had drinken anything, it would be more like one or 2 glasses to be more steady (which is actually considered as "doping" in shooting competitions)

[DVV]

80 percent think the Ripper crimes were fuelled by bergamot tea.

I'm depressed.

[Fisherman]

Ruby:

"I agree Fisherman -I didn't mean to suggest a teetotaler..more someone that had control over his alcohol consumption..."

Seems a realistic bet to me.

"and maybe had a sense of superiority, even revulsion for drunken women ?
maybe his mother was a drunk ?"

Ooopla - I wouldn´t go there...!

The best,
Fisherman

[Rubyretro]

I agree Fisherman -I didn't mean to suggest a teetotaler..more someone that
had control over his alcohol consumption and maybe had a sense of superiority, even revulsion for drunken women ?

maybe his mother was a drunk ?

Pure speculation..who knows ?

[Fisherman]

Ruby:

"At any rate, maybe the fact that Hutch wasn't an obvious heavy drinker was one factor that impressed Abberline as to his good character, got him a good reference from the Victoria -and I note that Hutch made a point of saying that he hadn't been drinking on the night before Kelly's murder."

Hi Ruby!

As such, I do not think that what he said about his drinking in relation to his sighting was meant to point him out as a man who normally avoided alcohol. He said : "I was quite sober, not having had anything to drink all day." To me, that more points in the direction of him at times drinking, but not on this particular occasion. If he had wanted to impress the police, he would reasonably have said that he was quite sober as always, since he was no drinking man.

It´s just a small point, though, and I agree that he would probably not have come across as any habitual drinker.

The best,
Fisherman

[Rubyretro]

Seriously, though...

I used to believe that Jack's crimes would be linked to alcohol, because
a) so many crimes are linked to substance abuse -including those of Serial killers b) it certainly seems as if the crimes are linked to the pubs
in Spitalfields, with several of the victims reportedly drinking in the Ten Bells, and Hutch (my favourite suspect) living almost opposite the Princess Alice and c) all of the victims being alcoholics and -as prostitutes -surely soliciting from pub to pub, as prostitutes did at the time.

Never the less, I'm now 'undecided'...
-I see that there were Temperence Meetings at the Victoria, and I doubt that the lodgers could regularly roll up dead drunk
-I think that Jack's 'luck' in getting away with the murders is partly due to alot of quick thinking, controlled silence, and, if he wasn't covered in blood,
then he wasn't in a frenzy but careful in his movements.
-One could frequent pubs without being a 'drinker' one's self.

Murderer's often seek to justify their crimes to themseves in finding a reason why the victims deserved to die (that's when they can't just admit that they like killing ..). I think that there is a possibility that the Ripper despised his victims secretly for being 'drunken whores', and tempting men like himself into 'sin' ? Maybe he's received alot of mixed messages in his childhood ?

Who knows ?

At any rate, maybe the fact that Hutch wasn't an obvious heavy drinker was one factor that impressed Abberline as to his good character, got him a good reference from the Victoria -and I note that Hutch made a point of saying that he hadn't been drinking on the night before Kelly's murder.

[Rubyretro]

Moi, par contre, j'écoute les Pogues quand je suis empégué.

[/QUOTE]

.....Moi, c'est pire, Je chante les Pogues...

[Sister Hyde]

Tu n'imagines pas le nombre de serial killers alcoolisés.... Dahmer et tant d'autres.
Moi, par contre, j'écoute les Pogues quand je suis empégué.

Oui David, il y en a plein, mais notre ami avait l'air bien trop consciencieux et très appliqué, c'est pour ça que je doute.
Je ne suis jamais "ivre morte", mais quand je suis de "bonne humeur" ça se sent

[Natalie Severn]

Lovely David....brilliant line.....

[DVV]

Ah, Norma, you promised me Broadway was waiting for me....!

[Natalie Severn]

Yes--isn"t it just!

[DVV]

Oh, that one is splendid ! Have you seen the clip ?

[Natalie Severn]

Fairy Tales in New York David?

[DVV]

I don't think the crimes were fuelled with alcohol, i think the murderer needed all his senses if he wanted to do all that properly.

Tu n'imagines pas le nombre de serial killers alcoolisés.... Dahmer et tant d'autres.
Moi, par contre, j'écoute les Pogues quand je suis empégué.

[AP Criminologist]

Over half of all homicides in the UK involve alcohol or drugs in some way, and that figure is far higher for other cases of violence, such as those involving GBH, ABH, domestic violence etc...Based on this it is possible to argue that Jack was under the influence of alcohol at the time of the murders. However, we are talking about a serial killer here, and not some drunken bar fight resulting in an unfortunate young male hitting his head on a curb and dying as a result of the injuries, which subscribes to a majority of the aforementioned. With regard to serial killers, it is not unheard of for them to drink prior to committing their murders, or even being alcoholics. Although it should be noted that serial killers usually have some other deep-rooted motive or psychotic desire to kill, which can better account for their actions, than that of alcoholic consumption. If Jack was indeed intoxicated at the time of the murders, this is unlikely to have been the core reasoning/fuel for his actions, rather a 'luke-warm' catalyst at best in my opinion.
Having stated my disregard for alcohol being the fluid which unleashed the murderous beast within Jack the Ripper, I do believe that Jack is quite likely to have been drinking not long before the murders however (perhaps not excessively, but none the less still with alcohol in his system). This is based on the fact that drinking was such a common pass-time in Whitechapel in 1888, and many of the murders occurred at times in the evening or night when pubs were closing, or at their peak times of business. In addition to this, several of the murders are reported to have occurred only metres away from a pub. Lastly, a number of Jack's victims are reported to have been intoxicated themselves not long before being murdered, which suggests that if Jack had been in their company whilst they were drinking, he too may have been drinking. All of these points give strength to the argument that Jack may well have been drinking prior to committing his murders.
To answer your second question, prostitutes both now and in 1888, are and were in dire need of income support, to such extremities that even though they admit to being in great fear of their safety (and even their lives) at times, they will/would most often have sex with a client regardless of their state or appearance. Levels of poverty were far worse in 1888 Whitechapel than they are today, and I believe that there was little that would deter a prostitute from sleeping with a client (i.e. if the client was drunk) when money was at stake.
My comments above have pretty much indirectly answered your last two questions, although I will say in conclusion that Jack the Ripper was unlikely to have been 'fuelled' by alcohol, even though it is likely that he had been drinking not long before committing his murders. If Jack was indeed intoxicated at the time of the murders, it is again unlikely that this would have deterred his victims from accompanying with him. The 'cleverness' of the murders could encapsulate an entire book's worth of discussion in itself. Although based on the evidence of previous serial killers, I once again doubt that the influence of alcohol would have prevented Jack from carrying out these acts, as it was some other motive of internal desire driving him to commit them, which were unlikely to have been sedated by the effects of alcohol. But was Jack the Ripper a raving alcoholic, or a T total man? We will probably never know!