Murder is a juicy topic in modern day society and I want to touch on five common motives for murder. Just the right kind of happening to get men tightening up their sleeves, women gasping in shock, and kids covering their faces in horror.

Murder is a vile and strange occurrence which has been with us throughout the history of mankind. People will always kill other people for whatever motive they deem fit; anything from looking at a person the wrong way to not being able to shake off a particular feeling.

Let me walk you through five common motives for murder.

1. Jealousy

We all know it, we have all felt it, and some of us have killed a person for it. The first murder in the Christian Bible was due to jealousy. One has to assume that O.J Simpson’s motive (I’m not saying he did it) was jealousy or why kill his wife and murder her lover with a knife? Oscar Pistorious is another example. The list is as endless as humanity letting emotions rule their lives.

2. Revenge

This sounds like the plot of an old Clint Eastwood western, right? Where the bad guy kills the good guy’s wife (not knowing the good guy is a gun slingin’ assassin) which causes shit to hit the fan and all hell to break loose in the search for vengeance.

The basis of revenge as a motive to murder someone is the ‘eye for an eye’ doctrine. It suggests the person you are killing isn’t all that innocent anyway, so according to popular culture, it’s okay! (I didn’t support the view; I only repeated it.)

3. Political

Oh, this one really sucks. It basically involves placing a hit on an opposition member, sometimes even your own party members (ask Caesar). It is what fully validates politics as a dangerous game when the talkers bring out the cannons to eliminate themselves.

Political murders have been happening since the beginning of time; some have even been caught on camera. Like Lee Harvey Oswald killing JFK from a distance. And Jack Ruby killing Lee Harvey on T.V (That one is actually revenge….hmmm, but political nonetheless).

4. Hate

Hate crimes are horrible. The act of giving in to an emotion as petty as hate which results in an actual murder is disdainful. Sadly, hate ranks as a common cause for murder in the world encompassing a broad spectrum from hooded white men in the KKK to vile terrorist attacks.

5. War

Sadly, this is still one of the top motives for humans being murdered in society; and this one is legal! In fact, if you do it exceptionally well, you get a medal pinned to your chest and they call you sir for the rest of your life. Is there some irony there?

War and exciting times go hand in hand, and murder is the basis of war. Kill the enemy before they kill you. What’s not to like about that concept?

These are just five common motives for murder out of a hundred, more or less…what can I say? We are violent beings.