Connecticut school district on lockdown after shooting report at a Newtown elemen #11

[i.b.nora]

Evil and sick in the head is not the same thing, imo.

 

[Darkman00]

IF Adam Lanza was "evil, period", (and, I personally don't believe he was evil) how does one use that conclusion to then spot evil people in the future? And, if one is able to spot evil people ahead of time, what should be done with them?

ya.. It's not like we can exterminate them on the spot or something ....

 

[Darkman00]

Evil and sick in the head is not the same thing, imo.

I hear you.
Possibly you are correct.

Maybe I simply don't / can't express myself properly ... after all I don't have a perfect command of English langluage (with it being my 2nd language etc)

 

[Gardenlady]

It would be interesting to hear from Ryan Lanza. I am curious why he was estranged from Adam to begin with.

On a related topic, I have not heard from other relatives of mass murderers like Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, Seung-Hui Cho, etc.

Susan Klebold, Dylan's mother, wrote a very moving essay for O Magazine some years back:

http://www.oprah.com/world/Susan-Klebolds-O-Magazine-Essay-I-Will-Never-Know-Why

 

[jjenny]

It's disgusting that you're essentially giving the killer of children a pass because poor him, he was bullied in elementary school and 12-14 years later enacted revenge...

...

ITA. If he was obsessed with serial killers as reported, what did bullying had to do with any of it anyway? Frankly it sounds like he was mostly left alone at school, which is what he wanted anyway. And by the way he killed Nancy first. Did she bully him? I think not.

 

[jjenny]

They mention a Jamie, but Adam Lanza's brother is Ryan. Where did they come up with Jamie? As for bullying, why he did it at age 20 and at children who did not bully him?

And the boy in the photo that is supposed to be Adam Lanza doesn't even resemble Adam Lanza. Where did they get this photo?

 

[Darkman00]

ITA. If he was obsessed with serial killers as reported, what did bullying had to do with any of it anyway? Frankly it sounds like he was mostly left alone at school, which is what he wanted anyway. And by the way he killed Nancy first. Did she bully him? I think not.

In his twisted mind .. maybe she did

As to him being bullied .. and a level of it ... you don't know how exactly he was bullied (and I don't know either).

Other than that ... were you EVER severely bullied? ... do you know what it's all about?

I mean SEVERELY bullied .. and none of that "child's play"

As noted, if bullied ... -- he wasn't the only one who was bullied at one point of life or another ... BUT other people don't go shooting..

Well ... they don't .. but he DID

And that's the reality of of things... the rest is just a word play .. and speculation .... and we can do it here for another few years and dozens of threads.

Who knows... possibly it didn't help that he wasn't as every one else there in school .. -- autistic .. with Asperger syndrome.

p.s.

BTW ... I hate bullies ... always stood up to them .. always will try to stand up to them.

 

[michmi]

But go ahead ... "bury your head in the sand" ... until something similar occurs again.

It was not the first and would not be the last time when a shooter or potential shooter was bullied (or felt like was bullied).

They DON'T have a right to go and shoot innocent people because of that ... but ... it's not like we can go sue them or something after they do ...

Better to try and pay more attention to people's mental state ... bullying (or potential bullying) in general, and other such important things... than to bicker (after it already happened) about something someone said or suggested might seem disgusting to you or might offend you.

As long as at least some of similar incidents can be prevented because of paying more attention to what I am saying above ... even if someone gets offended a bit "in process" ... -- would be a VERY SMALL price to pay, if you know what I mean.

Better than "buring one's head in the sand", anyhow.

You know what? Bullying doesn't do it for me----I was HORRIBLY bullied from elementary through high school.

Have I ever felt like shooting up a school, let alone spend a disturbing amount of time and energy planning and obtaining weaponry to do so?

Heck no.

Here is a FACT. Bullied children do not turn into mass murderers. Mass murderers are DISTURBED, MENTALLY ILL people.

And as for Ryan Lanza leaving home, he probably couldn't wait to get out of there because I think NL was off her rocker also.

 

[Darkman00]

LOL ... now you're talking ... "off her rocker"

of course, though, Adam was disturbed and mentally ill ... who is even debating it ... we established that months ago, I thought....

But it doesn't mean he could not have or wasn't severely bullied in school(s).

And of course all those people who were bullied in school don't go shooting other people (or, by now, we wouldn't have any people left on earth, more likely).

But what i don't understand ... why are we even debating the (real) possibility of someone who is "DISTURBED, MENTALLY ILL" plus diagnosed with Aspergers and being autistic, and who reportedly was being bulied in school as well, and severely at that .. - why can't we accept the possibility that him being bullied didn't "help his cause" .. but more likely simply made him EVEN more SICK than he already was... and with weapons around him as teddy bears around the toddler, some day simply pushed him over the edge...

Would you guys mind if some MORE attention was being paid to disturbed, mentally sick people, to bullying ... and mental health in general ... would it really be so bad?
Am I suggesting something terrible, I don't understand

and by replyng to me something like: "It's a preposterous excuse and embracing it only serves to defecate on the graves of the victims and on the faces of their loved ones." ... simply doesn't cut it with me ...

I saw several interviews ... with parents whose kids were murdered that day ... and they are looking for answers the same way as we are looking for here...
And pretty sure I already heard some of them say the same thing that I am suggesting here .. about more attention should be paid to mental health, bullying etc.....

And they are also concerned about automatic weapons .. that Lanza's had plenty of.....
... at the same time however voting for armed personnel in all the school (which even though might sound controvercial, possibly not such a bad idea after all).

 

[HastingsChi]

Darkman : It's quite telling that you feel that my reply was directed at you (I didn't quote a post of your's in my post that seemed to get your hair on fire)...

Frankly I've been posting my feelings about the media's merry-go-round of inane reasons that the killer committed these atrocities since day one.

I read and posted the article Sunday with the drivel that the killer was bullied and that's why he massacred innocent children. Then I followed it up with a post that was a scathing response to the media. When additional articles on this topic have been posted I've continued to reply.

Understand that here at WS other's opinions are respected and allowed. When someone (me) posts an opinion that is not shared by you; it seemed to set you off. Not everyone is going to agree with you, understand that.

I've consistently made a point to thank you for posting all the articles you come across and publicly stated how lucky we are that you do it.

 

[michmi]

Darkman, the reason I say any bullying had little to no effect on him is because my brother has Asperger's---and he thinks everything he does is right and normal and everyone else is abnormal or inferior.

He thinks it's normal and right to spend an inordinate amount of time playing a board game about WWII with....well I'm not sure who he is playing against, himself I guess.

He thinks it's normal and right to drive from home to a grocery store parking lot and read a book in the car, then drive home.

He thought it was normal to write "F you" on the portion of the bill he sent back with his check to the insurance company because they raised his auto insurance. Actually was OUTRAGED that they called to find out what the problem was--I happened to answer the phone and had to discuss with him how inappropriate that was.

He's 43 years old. He was bullied too---I can tell you his being bullied has nothing to do with how he functions today, mostly because he has always had a rigid set of standards and beliefs that nobody else shares, yet he thinks his way is the only way.

Frankly, I can tell you I'm 100% certain he'll never shoot anyone up because he wouldn't waste that much time or energy thinking about people inferior to himself (me included).

 

[Darkman00]

But what to do about Lanza then ....

Sweep "him" under the rug .. completely stop talking about him ... etc?

Don't know .. All I know that with few previous mass shootings it was established that the shooters were bullied (or they believed that they were bullied) ... and of course they were EVIL ...

However bullying DOES exist and is a big problem in our society .. - cuz of it .. people were known to kill others, to kill themselves .. etc..

So some of you ask .. "if he was bullied years ago, why didn't he go shooting earlier" etc .. -- I can't read minds though .. who knows why ... If being bullied contributed to his decision to go mass shooting ... earlier he simply wasn't ready to do it .. wasn't "ripe to do it" so to speak ... became 20 .. more mature .... fed up with it all ... and figured to go and take as many lives "with him" as he could ... EVIL? - YES he was!

 

[Darkman00]

HastingsChi

OK .. I hear you .. It's all good then!

Sorry if i get excited sometimes .... occasionally I can, I admit :blushing:

No offense was intended though!

 

[Darkman00]

Texas experts split on mental illness, gun checks

By Trish Choate

Posted April 9, 2013 at midnight

Dr. Daniela Badea-Mic of Corpus Christi said her jaw dropped when she heard about the shooting.

“What impressed me as a psychiatrist, there were a lot of warning signs of a mental illness that family or friends have ignored,” Badea-Mic, medical director for the Behavioral Health Center of Nueces County, said.

Badea-Mic wonders if Adam Lanza’s family had a history of mental illness.

“I know this is the Monday morning quarterback, but there were a lot of warning signs that this tragedy could have been prevented,” Badea-Mic said.

Read more: http://www.timesrecordnews.com/news/2013/apr/09/texas-experts-split-on-mental-illness-gun-checks/

 

[4MYGUYS]

Texas experts split on mental illness, gun checks

By Trish Choate

Posted April 9, 2013 at midnight



Read more: http://www.timesrecordnews.com/news/2013/apr/09/texas-experts-split-on-mental-illness-gun-checks/

I don't have a link, but I remember Dr. Drew saying very similiar things about warning signs being ignored . This is the "why" that will never be fully answered.

 

[Darkman00]

Want to Ensure There’s Not Another Adam Lanza? Look at the ‘Lost Boys’ Around You

Takepart.com – 19 hrs ago.

Following the shootings in Newtown and other recent mass shootings, the White House issued the following announcement: “The Administration is proposing steps to identify mental health issues early and help individuals get the treatment they need before these dangerous situations develop.”

But as a clinical psychologist, I have to ask whether earlier mental health treatment is what will actually make the difference in preventing more of these tragic shootings. Do we need to rethink mental health care altogether so that it includes all of us, not just mental health professionals?

There are a few things we know about these types of mass shootings. First, most mass shooters have been young males. In his classic book Lost Boys, psychologist James Garbarino concludes that “when boys kill, they are seeking justice—as they see it, through their eyes.”

These boys see themselves as having been wronged, often by peers, by schools, by authorities, by society, and/or by life. They have been either bullied or ignored, and often come to feel like a burden to their parents; an unpleasant irritation to their teachers; and/or a pariah among their peers. They become hopeless that they can ever be a joy to someone. And they experience overwhelming emotional pain, a major fuel for violence.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/want-ensure-not-another-adam-lanza-look-lost-173400036.html

 

[michmi]

^^^again, I don't see how AL could have had Asperger's or any other form of autism.

All of those signs indicate a person who is oriented to the feelings of others or is even aware that others are perceiving them in a particular way.

My experience with a high-functioning autistic person is, even when younger, he was oriented to his own feelings and his own needs. The only time others figured in was if they somehow interfered with his schedule or some other need he had.

Example - He takes a shower at 7 a.m. no matter what. If someone was in the bathroom at that time he would be extremely uncomfortable and irritable because his schedule was off. If someone was doing plumbing work on the house and there was no water available that day, he would end up having a meltdown by afternoon because he was unable to have his shower that day.

 

[HastingsChi]

To sum up my thoughts on the media's never ending merry-go-round of excuses/motives for the massacre at Sandy Hook, I'd like to quote the great philosophers Milli Vanilli:

"Gotta blame it on something
Gotta blame it on something
Blame it on the rain that was falling
Blame it on the stars that did shine at night
Whatever you do don't put the blame on you
Blame it on the rain yeah yeah
You can blame it on the rain
Cos the rain don't mind
And the rain don't care
You got to blame it on something"

 

[FragileSugar]

Newtown task force meets to decide future of Sandy Hook Elementary School

A set of 10 principles were presented by the task force, based on private meetings with parents and school officials:

• Do not redistrict Sandy Hook School students.
• Locate the school in, or "immediately proximate to," Sandy Hook.
• Ensure enough land at the site for a school, playground, parking lot and ball field.
• Allow faculty/staff's perceptions and emotional status to influence recommendations.
• The emotions and perceptions of victims' families and survivors are considered "very influential."
• The opinions of Sandy Hook parents and community must be considered.
• The location and site must be compatible with safety expectations.
• Students should be returned to Newtown "as soon as good planning can allow for."
• Both short-term and long-term thinking should guide site selection and building design.
• Positive and negative physical attributes associated with the chosen site should be considered (for example, Dickinson Drive, the Sandy Hook firehouse and the Children's Adventure Center.)

 

[Gardenlady]

^^^again, I don't see how AL could have had Asperger's or any other form of autism.

All of those signs indicate a person who is oriented to the feelings of others or is even aware that others are perceiving them in a particular way.

My experience with a high-functioning autistic person is, even when younger, he was oriented to his own feelings and his own needs. The only time others figured in was if they somehow interfered with his schedule or some other need he had.

Example - He takes a shower at 7 a.m. no matter what. If someone was in the bathroom at that time he would be extremely uncomfortable and irritable because his schedule was off. If someone was doing plumbing work on the house and there was no water available that day, he would end up having a meltdown by afternoon because he was unable to have his shower that day.

I wonder if Nancy Lanza latched onto the idea of Aspergers because, at least popularly, the perception of someone with AS is of someone who is highly intelligent, yet socially awkward, and with some of the "odd" behaviors typical of autism, but not to the same degree.

Perhaps this was easier for her to swallow, in regards to her son, than mental illness might have been. Then she could reason, or say to others, "oh, Adam is quirky, sure, but very intelligent", rather than have to deal with the implications and possible embarrassment that a mental illness might. Se might have seen it as more "socially acceptable" than a mental illness. The books on Aspergers found in the home may point towards her belief that that is what he had, and was attempting to "treat" him herself.

(Apologies for any incorrect terminology, etc.)

I'd like to know for sure if AL was ever diagnosed officially with AS (or anything else, for that matter).