Someone once said that you could never go broke underestimating the taste of the American public. One proof of that observation has to be the rise in popularity of "murderbilia," people collecting artifacts, artwork, and other mementoes of infamous killers.

Last week, there was a bit of a dust-up in Massachusetts, as an imprisoned serial killer sold his "artwork" (very crude crayon drawings) were sold in an online auction. That brought up a spate of protests, and discussions of just how to keep these criminals from profiting from their infamy.

But there appear to be signs that the deed might end up being its own punishment. One guy, Nikki Stone of Malden, Massachusetts, dropped three grand on a self-portrait of John Wayne Gacy (in his full clown regalia) several years ago. And ever since then, he's had a spate of bad luck. He almost sold it to a friend who wasn't afraid of the "curse," but the deal fell through when the friend had his own misfortunes.

The painting is currently in the hands of a consignment dealer (whose mother was murdered six years ago), but he has to keep it out of sight -- it disturbs too many people.

I feel sorry for Mr. Stone's mother and dog, who appear to have suffered from the curse (the dog died, and the mother has cancer), but none for Mr. Stone himself. He thought it would be "cool" to be linked to such evil. He got his wish.