A WARNING TO THOSE WHO BLINDLY TRUST SOCIAL MEDIA.
“Silence in the face of evil is evil itself.” - Dietrich Bonhoeffer
We live in an era where evil no longer always comes in the form of brute force or blatant lies. Sometimes, it wears a pleasant smile, speaks kindly, gains your trust — and then uses that very trust to manipulate and exploit. More frightening still, evil doesn’t just thrive through the actions of the perpetrator, but through the silence of the many who look away, or worse — cheer it on.
I know this because my wife was once a victim. Six years ago, a man named Channing McClaren stole my carefully edited artistic photographs. I stayed silent. I thought he would disappear eventually. But today, he resurfaces — the same face, the same tactics — now flirting with yet another woman online. And I can no longer stay silent.
Channing doesn’t just deceive. He leaves behind a trail of women, each one bearing the mark he deliberately inserts into their names:
First it was Xenia — Channing X McClaren Then my wife — Channing M McClaren Then Erica Lillith — Channing E McClaren Then Haelena Moon (hapless-hollow) — Channing H McClaren And now, Antigonie Woods — Channing A McClaren
Xenia (X.), my wife (M.), Erica Lillith (E.), Haelena Moon (H.), and now, Antigonie Woods (A.). Each name is a chapter in the same pattern: a man who knows how to appear kind in order to exploit the naive.
Be careful. The internet isn’t harmless. A close friend once said: many women in the UK and US often open up too quickly to men. That vulnerability, sadly, is exactly what some know how to prey on.
I’m not writing this to save anyone. I’m no hero. I’m just a man who has seen enough, understood enough, and chosen not to stay silent in the face of evil any longer.
If you’re a man — don’t live like a pig.
There’s a particular kind of cowardice: using women as tools to make money, to paint yourself in the illusion of fame, or to wear the title of “writer” like a costume. It's a cheap value.
I will never forget the day he stood by and let Erica bully my wife, then walked away as if nothing had happened. If he interferes with my wife’s life again, I will report him to the police in Cranbrook, Kent. That’s not a threat — it’s a promise.
And so I leave you with this question — whoever you are: Are you complicit by staying silent in the face of wrongdoing? Or are you still cheering on the darkness he brings?
