Todays Tragedy

[curtis]

What happen today in CT School Shooting is just beyond resonable though to me.

WHAT ARE WE DOING TO OUR YOUNG PEOPLE TO CAUSE THIS?

[Zoobi]

I don't understand this.
We give them everything, they don't have to have to work or compete. Their all winners, no losers, no second place. When they do wrong we talk, make positive suggestions and hug. When they do poorly in school we focus on how to make the teacher better. All we want is to make this generation safe and happy.
Maybe its someone else's fault. It cant be the way their raised.

[Jason]

I've been placing some of the blame on the social media. We as kids didn't not have access to instant gratification that is available now. We had to wait until the next school day or social gathering to find out someone has made fun of us. Kids today can find out instantly that they are being made the joke of the day. They just don't seem to be able to handle the pressure.
Other than that, I have no answer. I am as perplexed as the next person.

[RAT]

I think it is human nature. We are all genetically programmed to kill. Way back it was for survival. Even though society says it is wrong, nature says otherwise. Remember that we are animals just like all the rest. And in every societal group there are going to be those that, for what ever reason are going to be nonconformist. Mental illness, piss poor parenting, drugs, whatever the reason, there will always be that minority of human beings that can not control their base instincts and will step out side society's norm and do things like this. The only positive thing that I can take from this encounter specifically is that he killed himself and saved the taxpayers all that money on legal defense and his care and feeding. My condolences to the families. May they find their own special ways to cope and in their own time.

[aw12345]

IN my book it has to do with the distance we create in human contact. A good number of people prefer the anonymity of the internet or a cell phone over human face to face contact. Which seems to dehumanize people and make it easier for some to off people like they are playing a computer game. This whole serial shooting thing is a seriously sick trend and killing 20 preschool kids just before Christmas is beyond reprehensible. I do not care what a persons mental state, but this is beyond anything acceptable in our society

[Zoobi]

IN my book it has to do with the distance we create in human contact. A good number of people prefer the anonymity of the internet or a cell phone over human face to face contact. Which seems to dehumanize people and make it easier for some to off people like they are playing a computer game. This whole serial shooting thing is a seriously sick trend and killing 20 preschool kids just before Christmas is beyond reprehensible. I do not care what a persons mental state, but this is beyond anything acceptable in our society

I think you hit it right on the mark

[RAT]

IN my book it has to do with the distance we create in human contact. A good number of people prefer the anonymity of the internet or a cell phone over human face to face contact. Which seems to dehumanize people and make it easier for some to off people like they are playing a computer game. This whole serial shooting thing is a seriously sick trend and killing 20 preschool kids just before Christmas is beyond reprehensible. I do not care what a persons mental state, but this is beyond anything acceptable in our society

It sounds like you're saying it's the games fault, or the internet's fault or the cellular phone's fault. That's just like sayings it's the guns that kill. I don't like the FPS games at all, but I don't like hangovers either. But its my choice to get a hangover, not the tequila's. It's the person that kills that makes that choice, for whatever reason. It's a matter of perspective. Society makes these monsters by making most people afraid to say anything for fear of offending someone's first amendment rights, or because they simply don't want to get involved. And then when it happens, everyone is offended and shocked and can't understand. The game companies make games that glorify murder. The evening news shows combat almost every night. Cop shows show murder and rape and all sorts of perversions and Millions of people watch this crap, play these games and never pick up a gun and kill masses of people. Doesn't matter if its reprehensible to society or not, it's gonna happen. The odds say it will. 8 Billion people on this Earth... We can't all be saints.

Oh! Merry Christmas!

[brokenujoint]

You all have good points. Really good ones actually. I've taken psychology, sociology, holocaust, child development and studied freud in college. It has a lot to do with desensitization on many levels. The truely social person by nature takes pride in maintaining that trait and the introverted individual finds solitude in hiding behind technology (texting, FORUMS, tweets, facebook, online dating etc). You can blame it on warcraft, or Marilyn Manson or Fox News but it comes down to a mix of the whole formula. America freaks when we see a titty on tv but a suicide, rape, or hit and run? It's old news by the next day. The titty? Its on for 6 months. Humans by design are tail chasers. We see someone run, we want to run. Take a course on the Holocaust and you'll see just how F'd people really are. People who would NEVER do bad things, DO. We pretend to be civil but in the back of our minds that guy who just cut us off,,, you want to #$# him up..Why don't you? Laws, social rejection? Because you just know its not right because that's the way you were taught. It's not natural. It's taught.
Everyone says how the hell? How could someone do this? True. How? Is it because they were children that makes it so horrible? Probably. This story will play out textbook style. He hated his parents, he was a social outcast who had social issues. I hated my dad for yrs, I had issues with fitting in. Who didn't? Am I going to go shoot the man in the face and kill 20 bystanders? Hell no! It's a TERRIBLE thing that happend but just as I shake my head in disbelief, I can believe it. Once he snapped for whatever reason and shot his own mother point blank in the face, he decided that was it.. Im dead. Why the hell he went to the school I dont know. The children thing.. thats just f'd up big time. Im not religious but if there's a hell that kid gets a 1st class seat all the way down.

[curtis]

I think it is time to address the Dramatization of evil and violence in our culture. Video games, Movies, News, and Social Media all play a part in this. I think kids that have problems, loose touch with reality because of these things. And they think violence might make things better for them. I also think we need to put a ban of some sort on assault weapons because our society does not seam to be able to deal with them in a responsible way.

[aw12345]

Another thing that stands out is that pretty much every single one of these people that resort to this kinda lunacy, has some sort of personality problem. Almost to a T do they have problems relating to other people and since people seem to more and more gravitate that way, we are in for a rough ride. Nowaday, lots of people rather talk on their cellphone than to speak to a person face to face. With those bleutooth hands free devices it's even harder to tell who the village idiot is. You all get the point as a whole our population is straying away from personal contact with one and another. Which impersonalizes other humans, so in essence it makes it an impersonal act to off them, just like on TV or on your Xbox or what not. So where is the root cause? I haven't got a clue as a whole people are an extremely violent, merciless destructive critter, yet we are capable of great love, caring and can create things of great beauty. Talk about an enigma.

[aw12345]

It's a sad thing, but this mother is hitting on a core truth about these terrible incidents.

n the post-Newtown debate over mental illness, a distraught and exhausted mother has written a chilling article describing life with her troubled son and the health care system's shortage of options. The boy, "Michael," remains undiagnosed, and despite medication he continues to exhibit a hair-trigger temper. His mother says Michael shares characteristics with gunman Adam Lanza and other mass killers, and during his unpredictable episodes he makes frightening and violent threats. The mother's lack of help is typified by her meeting with a social worker who informed her that their best option is to get Michael charged with a crime, because "That’s the only way you’re ever going to get anything done. No one will pay attention to you unless you’ve got charges."
The entire article is republished below with permission from "The Blue Review."
Friday’s horrific national tragedy—the murder of 20 children and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School in New Town, Connecticut—has ignited a new discussion on violence in America. In kitchens and coffee shops across the country, we tearfully debate the many faces of violence in America: gun culture, media violence, lack of mental health services, overt and covert wars abroad, religion, politics and the way we raise our children. Liza Long, a writer based in Boise, says it’s easy to talk about guns. But it’s time to talk about mental illness.
Three days before 20 year-old Adam Lanza killed his mother, then opened fire on a classroom full of Connecticut kindergartners, my 13-year old son Michael (name changed) missed his bus because he was wearing the wrong color pants.
“I can wear these pants,” he said, his tone increasingly belligerent, the black-hole pupils of his eyes swallowing the blue irises.
“They are navy blue,” I told him. “Your school’s dress code says black or khaki pants only.”
“They told me I could wear these,” he insisted. “You’re a stupid bitch. I can wear whatever pants I want to. This is America. I have rights!”
“You can’t wear whatever pants you want to,” I said, my tone affable, reasonable. “And you definitely cannot call me a stupid bitch. You’re grounded from electronics for the rest of the day. Now get in the car, and I will take you to school.”
I live with a son who is mentally ill. I love my son. But he terrifies me.
A few weeks ago, Michael pulled a knife and threatened to kill me and then himself after I asked him to return his overdue library books. His 7 and 9 year old siblings knew the safety plan—they ran to the car and locked the doors before I even asked them to. I managed to get the knife from Michael, then methodically collected all the sharp objects in the house into a single Tupperware container that now travels with me. Through it all, he continued to scream insults at me and threaten to kill or hurt me.
That conflict ended with three burly police officers and a paramedic wrestling my son onto a gurney for an expensive ambulance ride to the local emergency room. The mental hospital didn’t have any beds that day, and Michael calmed down nicely in the ER, so they sent us home with a prescription for Zyprexa and a follow-up visit with a local pediatric psychiatrist.
We still don’t know what’s wrong with Michael. Autism spectrum, ADHD, Oppositional Defiant or Intermittent Explosive Disorder have all been tossed around at various meetings with probation officers and social workers and counselors and teachers and school administrators. He’s been on a slew of antipsychotic and mood altering pharmaceuticals, a Russian novel of behavioral plans. Nothing seems to work.
At the start of seventh grade, Michael was accepted to an accelerated program for highly gifted math and science students. His IQ is off the charts. When he’s in a good mood, he will gladly bend your ear on subjects ranging from Greek mythology to the differences between Einsteinian and Newtonian physics to Doctor Who. He’s in a good mood most of the time. But when he’s not, watch out. And it’s impossible to predict what will set him off.
Several weeks into his new junior high school, Michael began exhibiting increasingly odd and threatening behaviors at school. We decided to transfer him to the district’s most restrictive behavioral program, a contained school environment where children who can’t function in normal classrooms can access their right to free public babysitting from 7:30-1:50 Monday through Friday until they turn 18.
The morning of the pants incident, Michael continued to argue with me on the drive. He would occasionally apologize and seem remorseful. Right before we turned into his school parking lot, he said, “Look, Mom, I’m really sorry. Can I have video games back today?”
“No way,” I told him. “You cannot act the way you acted this morning and think you can get your electronic privileges back that quickly.”
His face turned cold, and his eyes were full of calculated rage. “Then I’m going to kill myself,” he said. “I’m going to jump out of this car right now and kill myself.”
That was it. After the knife incident, I told him that if he ever said those words again, I would take him straight to the mental hospital, no ifs, ands, or buts. I did not respond, except to pull the car into the opposite lane, turning left instead of right.
“Where are you taking me?” he said, suddenly worried. “Where are we going?”
“You know where we are going,” I replied.
“No! You can’t do that to me! You’re sending me to hell! You’re sending me straight to hell!”
I pulled up in front of the hospital, frantically waiving for one of the clinicians who happened to be standing outside. “Call the police,” I said. “Hurry.”
Michael was in a full-blown fit by then, screaming and hitting. I hugged him close so he couldn’t escape from the car. He bit me several times and repeatedly jabbed his elbows into my rib cage. I’m still stronger than he is, but I won’t be for much longer.
The police came quickly and carried my son screaming and kicking into the bowels of the hospital. I started to shake, and tears filled my eyes as I filled out the paperwork—“Were there any difficulties with… at what age did your child… were there any problems with.. has your child ever experienced.. does your child have…”
At least we have health insurance now. I recently accepted a position with a local college, giving up my freelance career because when you have a kid like this, you need benefits. You’ll do anything for benefits. No individual insurance plan will cover this kind of thing.
For days, my son insisted that I was lying—that I made the whole thing up so that I could get rid of him. The first day, when I called to check up on him, he said, “I hate you. And I’m going to get my revenge as soon as I get out of here.”
By day three, he was my calm, sweet boy again, all apologies and promises to get better. I’ve heard those promises for years. I don’t believe them anymore.
On the intake form, under the question, “What are your expectations for treatment?” I wrote, “I need help.”
And I do. This problem is too big for me to handle on my own. Sometimes there are no good options. So you just pray for grace and trust that in hindsight, it will all make sense.
I am sharing this story because I am Adam Lanza’s mother. I am Dylan Klebold’s and Eric Harris’s mother. I am James Holmes’s mother. I am Jared Loughner’s mother. I am Seung-Hui Cho’s mother. And these boys—and their mothers—need help. In the wake of another horrific national tragedy, it’s easy to talk about guns. But it’s time to talk about mental illness.
According to Mother Jones, since 1982, 61 mass murders involving firearms have occurred throughout the country. Of these, 43 of the killers were white males, and only one was a woman. Mother Jones focused on whether the killers obtained their guns legally (most did). But this highly visible sign of mental illness should lead us to consider how many people in the U.S. live in fear, like I do.
When I asked my son’s social worker about my options, he said that the only thing I could do was to get Michael charged with a crime. “If he’s back in the system, they’ll create a paper trail,” he said. “That’s the only way you’re ever going to get anything done. No one will pay attention to you unless you’ve got charges.”
I don’t believe my son belongs in jail. The chaotic environment exacerbates Michael’s sensitivity to sensory stimuli and doesn’t deal with the underlying pathology. But it seems like the United States is using prison as the solution of choice for mentally ill people. According to Human Rights Watch, the number of mentally ill inmates in U.S. prisons quadrupled from 2000 to 2006, and it continues to rise—in fact, the rate of inmate mental illness is five times greater (56 percent) than in the non-incarcerated population.
With state-run treatment centers and hospitals shuttered, prison is now the last resort for the mentally ill—Rikers Island, the LA County Jail and Cook County Jail in Illinois housed the nation’s largest treatment centers in 2011.
No one wants to send a 13-year old genius who loves Harry Potter and his snuggle animal collection to jail. But our society, with its stigma on mental illness and its broken healthcare system, does not provide us with other options. Then another tortured soul shoots up a fast food restaurant. A mall. A kindergarten classroom. And we wring our hands and say, “Something must be done.”
I agree that something must be done. It’s time for a meaningful, nation-wide conversation about mental health. That’s the only way our nation can ever truly heal.
God help me. God help Michael. God help us all.

[inVERt'D]

I call this phenomenon evil.

[curtis]

Or could it be (Cultural Decline)?

[inVERt'D]

Could cultural decline be defined as a cultural move away from virtue?

[curtis]

MAYBE THIS

Cultural Marxism

a movement that seeks the elimination of codes of behavior, binding obligations, and moral standards.

Rousseau-inspired cultural Marxists aim to convert our country from a virtue-based community to a wilderness of wildly autonomous selves. In Rousseau's own words, these elites seek to "force us to be free" -- free in particular from self-evident and objective truth.

To summarize,
cultural Marxism rejects good things. In elite parlance, these things -- faith, family, children, love of others, the home, and the womb -- are "oppressive institutions," threats to self-fulfillment in a conflict-filled jungle.

Oh, and yes to your question.