54 replies to this topic

[stocks]

As long as we, as a society, continue to look at mental illness as an 'inferior illness' with social and moral implications of 'wrongness' many of the people who should receive help will not, merely to avoid being labelled as 'crazy'.

Which would you feel safer/more comfortable spending an afternoon with, a cancer patient on chemo or a schizophrenic on anti-psychotic meds?

The reality is that we fear mental illness. We need to get over it so those who need it can get help without a social scar being attached.

Also, we need to understand that statements like "crazed with anger" are utterly meaningless and only add to that foolish sterotype. Anger doesn't make you crazy. A chenical imbalance is usually the culprit. Please don't add to the misinformation and distrust of the mentally ill by misusing (layman's) terminology.

Yes, the mentally ill commit 100 suicides for every homicide, but this was the 1 in a 100.

http://www.opinionjo...ml?id=110009977

[TechSkeptic]

As long as we, as a society, continue to look at mental illness as an 'inferior illness' with social and moral implications of 'wrongness' many of the people who should receive help will not, merely to avoid being labelled as 'crazy'.

Which would you feel safer/more comfortable spending an afternoon with, a cancer patient on chemo or a schizophrenic on anti-psychotic meds?

The reality is that we fear mental illness. We need to get over it so those who need it can get help without a social scar being attached.

Also, we need to understand that statements like "crazed with anger" are utterly meaningless and only add to that foolish sterotype. Anger doesn't make you crazy. A chenical imbalance is usually the culprit. Please don't add to the misinformation and distrust of the mentally ill by misusing (layman's) terminology.

Agree completely with your post. Though I would like to add that anger, while it doesn't cause insanity, can exacerbate the situation in an already imbalanced person and make the difference between a mentally ill person who harms other and one who doesn't (which are the vast majority). Don't tell me that the classroom taunting he suffered in middle school and high school didn't contribute. Most of can and do live through that and end up fine as adults, but not someone who is already on the margin. Why do humans have to be so mean to each other, especially to those who are socially awkward and otherwise different? (rhetorical q, no answer expected)

There were many ingredients necessary for this shooting to happen. The long-time taunting by others gave him the motive (anger), the easy availability of guns gave him the means, and mental illness gave him the desperation (depression), utter lack of judgment, and inability to distinguish right from wrong. If any of those had been missing, it may not have happened.

Edited by TechSkeptic, 23 April 2007 - 12:10 PM.

[OEXCHAOS]

I wonder how many people he could have killed and maimed with a whole lot of Molotov cocktails? You ever notice how these things happen at places where guns are prohibited? Why at Va. Tech instead of Virginia Military Institute? I'd say that it was the lack of concealed carry that let this tragedy be as bad as it was. But then, I could be wrong. It might just be what happens when we let our whack jobs out of institutions. And of course, that presupposes that we know who are real whack jobs are. In any case, a rare, random event is no reason to limit access to guns. home intrusions, armed robberies and attempted rapes happen all the time and often they are thwarted by citizens with guns. Twice in our town in the past month, in fact. M

[calmcookie]

I like steak and pork ribs and I haven't killed anyone.

Roger ... protein and fat will help keep anyone sane (meat and veges sound good to mel) ... but try surviving on coke, donuts and trans fat french fries ... mostly carbs ... and I guarantee you'll be into the PROZAC ... or pulling out your revolver.

Best, as always, C.C.

(Mark - sorry ... don't agree with your gun theory ... and I DO wish access were more difficult!)

Edited by calmcookie, 23 April 2007 - 02:35 PM.

[mss]

If you wont to kill or hurt somone or group of someones, there are MANY ways this can be done. I will not list them but to make a point, gasoline, kills lots of people. It all depends on how its used. mss

[colion]

It's well known that the Virginia Tech shooter was deeply depressed and crazed with anger.

He had a sick sick mind and such a mind cannot dwell in a healthy body. The link is undeniable.

Any credible nutritionist will tell you that there is a clear connection between clinical depression
and food intake. Just as there is between drug abuse and nutrition. Most people who are depressed, simply turn their anger inward and may also turn to alcohol or other drugs. But some, like the VT shooter turn their rage upon innocent victims. Depression exists along a continuum ... with a mere lousy mood at one end and insanity at the other.

C.C.

Whether or not there is a solid connection between nutrition and mental health, this tragic affair exposed a major loophole in Virginia's (and undoubtedly elsewhere) legal system. In 2005, Cho was involved the law which led to committment for psychological evaluation. In spite of this history, he was able a couple of years later to purchase weapons without a problem. Why wouldn't his past history have at least raised a question or two? Shouldn't such a history automatically trigger at least a temporary hold while past reports were reviewed? I suspect another case of the right hand not knowing what the left hand is doing in the interest of privacy - another privacy vs. public good issue.

[stocks]

Homicide rates recently declined to levels last seen in the late 1960s

http://www.ojp.usdoj...glance/hmrt.htm


List of countries by homicide rate

http://en.wikipedia....y_homicide_rate

[OEXCHAOS]

More guns = less crime.

http://www.davekopel...un-Violence.htm

[TechSkeptic]

I agree, the shooter could've found another way to kill people. I hear there's plenty of bomb-making info on the Internet, though I've never searched for it personally. Yet he chose guns, for whatever reason, perhaps he was imitating Columbine, or perhaps they were one of the easier weapons to wield in such a way as to guarantee a lot of deaths, I really don't know. The main idea I was trying to get across is that this was a mentally ill person who was treated meanly by his peers. Combining that with the availability of lethal weapons of whatever type he was inclined to choose, and the result was that event. It was not my intention to start a big gun control debate here. FWIW, I do not necessarily favor a comprehensive gun ban in the United States, it would be extremely difficult to enforce. At the same time, I don't think it would be unreasonable for a mental health screening to be part of the process of obtaining a gun license. In any case, this is really a side issue, since to solve a problem you really need to go for the cause, not the symptom. And what we need in this case is more sensitivity and awareness about mental illness and the harm caused by bullying. Yes, the event may have been random to some extent, but that doesn't mean we can't learn from it to reduce the chances of it happening again (and again and again and again...)

Edited by TechSkeptic, 23 April 2007 - 04:24 PM.

[TechSkeptic]

By the way, once again when I said "treated meanly by his peers", I was referring to his middle school and high school experience, I did *not* mean to imply that anyone at Virginia Tech had done anything to provoke him, I'm sure they didn't. I apologize for the unclear wording, should it have caused any offense.

Edited by TechSkeptic, 23 April 2007 - 04:59 PM.