My psychology teacher for the class titled "Learning and Memory" said a very important and interesting statement when it comes to human behavior, "If you want to get attention, you're going to have to act crazy". School shootings have become more frequent and calling the people responsible for this shootings crazy is an understatement. Yesterday, Wednesday October 10th, a 14 year old named Asa Coon brought a gun to his school in Ohio and shot three students before killing himself. Not even 24 hours have gone by and another 14 year old student was arrested in Pennsylvania for planning a "Columbine like" school rampage, found in this article from CNN.
When police searched his home they found a 9mm rifle with a laser scope, air guns and even grenades. In addition to finding the weapons the boy had a hand painted Nazi flag and a video containing information about the Columbine shootings in 1999. What is even more shocking is that the boy's mother had purchased a rifle for her son from a gun show several weeks ago. In this case not only do I believe that the child should be prosecuted but also the parent for purchasing the weapon.
Where are the parents? Why would any sane parent buy their child a rifle? What is it about a school setting that would make a teenager want to bring a gun to school and shoot classmates? I believe it is a sense of power and the shock value. It seems that each school shooting that is carried out is worse than the ones proceeding it. District Attorney Bruce Castor said "It is my judgment that this individual considered that something to be glorified and was doing so". What twisted soul finds glory in plotting to hurt or kill other people?
More and more of these school shootings are occuring each year. When will parents or guardians get the hint to lock and hide weapons from their children? The 14 year old looked to the internet in order to learn how to use and make a grenade.
Government officials need to crack down on internet sites that display information on how to make bombs and grenades from household items. It seems that any young child with access to the internet could find these sites and make a grenade themselves.
So how many more school shootings or attempt at school shooting will it take for parents to get a clue and look for warning signs if their child is acting a little out of sorts?
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4 comments:
One would assume or like to believe that after the horrendous event that happened in Columbine, parents and school officials would be more aware of their at-risk children. It is imperative that intervention for high-risk behavior children begin early on, preferably beginning at home. I think there has been enough violent school shootings to merit an effective awareness and education program that should be implemented by the Department of Public Health to ensure that these events are not taken lightly. There must be a heightened effort on someone's behalf to step in and look at such violence from a public health perspective.
While the existance any shootings at all gives reason to question why it happens, I would not agree that, "More and more of these school shootings are occuring each year." It seems, though I don't have the stats in front of me, and correct me if you do, that there was a surge before and after Columbine in 1999 and then just within the past few months, but without much activity in the interim. And they haven't been getting progressively worse, because Columbine is still at the top of the list.
But more importantly; instead of putting all the questions into "what to do with a troubled kid" and whats "wrong" with said kid, and at least also question what is in their school and society that makes them so upset?
some related thoughts
Interesting post - but I am quite appalled that addressed the role of the guns themselves in these tragic shootings. Children in every society can have dangerous personality disorders or display worrisome "at-risk" behavior. But in the western world, it is only American children who have such EASY access to what I will call "weapons of mass destruction," because that's what they actually are. Heinous schools shootings are indeed a distinctly American phenomenon - I have read of one foolheardy attempt in England to bring a gun to school, but no effort or event has been nearly as successful as the frequent occurences in the U.S.. Is it that hard to see that these horrible shootings are much more prone to happen while guns are kept legal in this country?....
I am so absolutely opposed to our backward and irresponsible interpretation of the second amendment, and am consistently disgusted by the unwillingness of the American people to recognize that our "gun culture" has got to go. Psychological assessment is a TENUOUS tool for prevention, but ultimately cannot make a quick or effective difference in stopping shootings. The limits of such assessment for the Virginia Tech shooter are evidence enough of this.
See my response to the VT tragedy for more.
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