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msnbc.com
Although the lay person may think that any person who commits an act of political assassination is, by definition, mentally disturbed, a 1999 Secret Service study of 83 people who made assassination attempts against public figures in America found that only one-third had ever received a mental health evaluation, and fewer than one-fifth had been diagnosed with a mental health or behavior disorder prior to the attack.
Of course, it's possible that others among the attackers had mental health issues but had not been screened or diagnosed. Most of the attackers had a history of suicidal attempts or had expressed suicidal thoughts.
"Although most attackers had not received a formal mental health evaluation or diagnosis," the researchers found, "most attackers exhibited a history of suicide attempts or suicidal thoughts at some point prior to their attack." And, "more than half of the attackers had a documented history of feeling extremely depressed or desperate."
The videos published online in the name of Jared Lee Loughner, who has been named by law enforcement officials as a suspect in Saturday's shooting of a congresswoman and a federal judge, appear to be the work of a "psychotic and paranoid" individual, according to a psychiatrist who reviewed the videos for msnbc.com. The psychiatrist has not treated Loughner and asked not to be identified.
"The YouTube video text by Loughner," the psychiatrist said, "reads like something from a psychotic and paranoid individual who thinks he is being watched/monitored, who is paranoid about the government, who has disorganized thinking, and who feels superior to people around him. (I-have-better-grammar-than-you, you-don't-know-you're-being-brainwashed, etc.) There also is the hint of big event(s) coming soon on the You Tube mid-December posting."
Few threats
The Secret Service study rebuts the common notion that there is a "type" or "profile" of a kind of person who commits such an act. Some are the stereotypical loners, and some have many friends. Some did well in school, and others did not. They were male and female, young and old.
No profile, no type of person, can fit all the attackers, and any profile would include far too many people who are not dangerous, the researchers found. In short: Profiles don't help law enforcement prevent attackers, but do tie up law enforcement resources.
Another insight from the study: Few of the attackers, only 27 out of 83, had conveyed a direct threat to anyone, and only eight of those had communicated such a threat to the target or to law enforcement.
Most attackers don't threaten, and most threateners don't attack.
But many warnings
The Secret Service did find that the attackers shared behaviors in common. The researchers are saying there is not a type of person, but there is a type of action, such as acquiring a weapon, and communicating their intentions (though not a threat) to others. Time after time, in the days after such attacks, the news emerges that the shooter had described the plans to others, who often took no action to alert anyone. This is similar to school shootings, in which the young people commonly warn others what is coming, without making a direct threat to the school, the Secret Service found in a later study.
The Arizona Republic reported that Loughner posted on his MySpace page in December just such a warning, about wanting to kill a police officer:
“WOW! I’m glad i didn’t kill myself. I’ll see you on National T.v.! This is foreshadow .... why doesn’t anyone talk to me?.."
"I don’t feel good: I’m ready to kill a police officer! I can say it."
Clear grievances
The Secret Service researchers also found that the attackers, even when they showed signs of mental illness, often had clear grievances that motivated their attacks. The community college attended by Loughner disclosed Saturday evening that he had been suspened in September, and withdrew under pressure in October, after his videos and actions in class disturbed the school. This sort of loss of status or "severe situational stress" is common just before an attack. He then criticized the school online, calling its actions "illegal" for depriving him of the education he had paid for.
"An attacker or would-be attacker with motives that clearly are not 'political' is likely to be seen as 'crazy,'" wrote the researchers, psychologist Robert A. Fein and Bryan Vossekuil, a veteran Secret Service agent on the presidential protection detail.
"It has often been assumed that mentally ill assailants or potential assailants either have motives that are so irrational that they cannot be understood or have no motives other than their illness. This perspective is also incorrect. Subjects who were clearly mentally ill often had defined (and technically 'rational') motives."
Motives identified in the attacks included:
- to achieve notoriety or fame
- to avenge a perceived wrong
- to end personal pain, to be killed by law enforcement
- to bring attention to a perceived problem
- to save the country or the world
- to achieve a special relationship with the target
- to make money
- to bring about political change
Changing targets
Shifting of targets is common, the researchers found. A person with a grievance against one person or institution might carry out an attack on another person. In the best known example, John Hinckley attended Jimmy Carter campaign events in 1980, carrying a weapon, before shifting his attention to the new president, Ronald Reagan, whom he was able to wound in an attack.
The 1999 study was intended to help Secret Service agents and others look for those behaviors, and to move away from the trite and untrue notions that only certain types of people are capable of such an act, or that people "suddenly snap." Assassins don't snap — they plan.
You can read the full study of assassins here, in a PDF file: http://www.secretservice.gov/ntac/ntac_jfs.pdf. And a later report on school shootings is at http://www.secretservice.gov/ntac.shtml.
P.S. A note on the word "rampage": It's popular to call these kinds of shootings a "rampage," but the researchers who study such shootings object to the word rampage. Someone on a rampage is rushing wildly about. Bulls go on rampages, but assassins rarely do. Why do the experts object? Because their research shows that these shootings (assassinations, school shootings, etc.) are hardly ever rampages. The scientists call them "targeted violence." These assailants do shoot one person after another, but they're usually shooting the people they're intending to shoot. Targeted violence. The opposite of a rampage. Maybe a neutral word is attack, or mass shooting, or assassination.
Kari Huus of msnbc.com contributed reporting.
How about just a nice thorough background check before they're allowed to buy a weapon, let alone an automatic weapon!!? This guys erratic behavior would probably have been made clear by all the "friends" who happen to be coming out of the woodwork now.
The NRA is not going to go for that.
Been reading posts all day, and usually I join in on the discussions, but the venom is coming out by the gallon today! For the weak minded, or someone that is already predisposed towards a violent action, I think today proves that there are enough cheerleaders on both sides of the aisle to push them to do the unthinkable.
This guy did not use an automatic weapon. Do you even know the definition of "automatic weapon"? Do you know the process by which an individual legally acquires an automatic weapon?
Chris.... at this point, does it really matter..... semi/full auto.....? The weapon performed exactly as it was designed to, and was wealded to horrifying effectiveness.
"How about just a nice thorough background check before they're allowed to buy a weapon ...." The Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act, enacted in 1993, requires a background check for everyone buying a firearm (not just a handgun) from any Federally-licensed dealer. Since 1998, these have been done using the FBI National Instant Check System. They could be more thorough, but someone would have to pay for it, and some would object on Second Amendment grounds. For obvious reasons, the NRA is highly motivated to prevent people from using guns for criminal purposes.
You have "Straw Buyers" (in some cases retired Americans) purchasing SKS's, handguns, shotguns and ammo for the Mexican Drug Cartels in quantities at a time. What I'm getting at is; There needs to be a huge crack down on these illegal gun sales by many of these nefarious gun shops who would sell a gun to anyone with a handful of greenbacks and can fill out a 4473 with all the "right" answers. We will find out that this NUT JOB is a clone to the wacky bastard who shot up Virginia Tech. There are plenty of professional people out there in Arizona who knew this idiot including the police and probably his "therapist." I heard several law enforcement officials on various channels say that: "Yeah...we've had problems with this person many times." WELL?...What the hell is he doing with a gun? Apparently no one checks out this felonious individual and the gun shops wash their hands. I don't know what the answer is, but it seems to me that this is just one more wacky bastard/criminal who fell through the cracks......again!
Contrary to your beliefs, full auto pistols and rifles are not available to the average gun buyer unless they are investigated and pay a special license fee and then they are certain restrictions. Go down to your local gun shop and try and buy a full auto Ak47 sometime. You will run into a wall. Try and buy guns in lots across the counter and you will run into an even higher wall.
No gun peddler wants to lose their livelihood and freedom for a few bucks. The Media takes certain liberties with the truth sometimes that leads to misstated facts that become legion and outright lies become truths. I have been in the news business for over 50 years and as yet to find a reporter that let the facts get in the way of a good story.
As far as inspecting the mindset of every gun buyer goes far beyond anyone's concept of the task and the possibilityof a constitutional question or two. The only protection we have from the loose nuts out there are our selves and the fellow next to you. And I'm not too sure about him.
Yes, how come none of his lazy friends reported to the authorities when he threatened to kill the police? Gun toting persons especially need to step up and report crazy people right away -- if you don't, people will use incidents like these to advocate for increased gun control.
Like me! I think we should use this opportunity (or the next one, or the one after that, or maybe the one after that) to look into some more sensible gun control. Some on the right are trying to claim the guy was a flaming liberal, which I personally doubt since liberals rarely come out with guns blazing, and some on the left are trying to call this guy a Tea Partier since they stirred people up against the Congresswoman and his manifesto sounds like Glenn Beck. I think the only things that are clear are that the guy had a gun and crazy people shouldn't have guns. And the NRA is a bunch of frightened people who don't want any discussion on the subject.
AMEN!!!!!!
Maybe he didn't have friends?
So, an inanimate object (gun) is responsible for a Virginia Tech 2.0 style shooting? Come on! The college knew this kid was suffering from some kind of mental/psychological problem and FAILED to report it to County mental health professionals -- exactly like what happened at Virginia Tech. Instead, fearing that the kid would eventually shoot up THEIR campus, the school just kicked him to the curb, telling him to get a mental health okay before he could return to classes. So, without a negative mental health evaluation on his record, the shooter was able to buy his weapon and shoot the person he had targeted years earlier along with all the other people meeting with his target. This is not the first time a school has ignored its responsibility to both one of its students and the community at large. The school needs to take responsibility for THEIR inactions that led to this carnage. You can't kick a ticking time bomb off campus, thank your lucky stars and pat yourselves on the back, and then quietly allow that the bomb to off somewhere else. The college is as guilty as the shooter.
If he was really plotting this for 3 years his intentions predated the tea party's rise to prominence and even the recession, you really aught to think more critically. As to why no one said anything maybe because they thought he was just venting and didn't think he would really be capable of such a thing? Murder is a very rare occurrence, particularly amongst whites, contrary to the media hype. Whats more the vast majority of murders are committed by people against a person they know well and rarely against strangers.
Well, I feel extremely bad about what happened to the Congresswoman and the people who were around her, just terrible! But are terrorists the only poeple that we have to fear. Nope! Just these crazy white men with automatics!
He did not use an automatic weapon? Do you even know the definition of "automatic weapon"?
What's the point Chris? So many innocent people died today to really care about semi/full auto operation.
I bet if Chris had used the "n" word instead of African-American you'd suddenly be concerned about using the proper terms.
The point is that some misguided souls will attempt, hopefully for us law-abiders unsuccessfully, to use this tragedy for transference of their fears about "crazies" onto regular citizens like you and me. This will lead to more fascist gun control schemes that ONLY apply to you and I, as WE are law-abiding citizens.
No rules apply to criminals, as by definition they disregard any and all laws.
If anything, we need new laws and regulations to prevent another catastrophe by the WikiLeaks rapist, Assange.
@Robert M-2892570 it woould probably affect you more than I, you must be one the persons that I mentioned in my previous post, please don't be offended by a truth that does exist in our society. Maybe we need to start profiling individuals like yourself and Chris in order to maintain safety and security. I am sure that would indeed curb most of the violence that does exist in this nation, to say the least. After all if you really look at history you would find that there is a trend that is common with a particular group of individuals who indirectly incite the use of arms when things don't go their way! Hmmm!
It is almost impossible to detect a wacko until they act out their obsession. Today's rhetoric being spewed through television, books and slanted news will turn many an unknown wacko into a national media news event when they act out there obsession.
Don't forget the fifteen minutes of fame. Many people who commited crimes such as these were nobodies before the horrific event and after the fact they were in the limelight. Charles Manson comes to mind.
Are you talking about all the Lefties spewing hate and encouraging the bringing on of a new, violent revolution, like Frances Fox Piven? How about the Daily Kos who targeted the Congresswoman as a traitor just days before the shooting? Shall we silence them before they encourage more chaos? Or, should we require all schools to refer suspected mentally ill students to their county's mental health agencies for screening BEFORE they explode into violence? Gun-grabbing isn't going to solve the problem -- the mentally ill WILL find a way to kill, perhaps using common items from the local Safeway. Early mental health screening of troubled youths might catch the mentally disturbed before they have a chance to act. The shooter was already self-medicating using pot, perhaps pharmacuticals would have worked better for him. If not, then institutionalization would have solved the problem before all the carnage.
I agree with you about a required mental health evaluation at school if mental illness is suspected. The police are powerless unless he has committed a crime.
Initially I thought the violent political rhetoric in the US and AZ may have put him over the edge. I cannot find any research suggesting, "hostile language accelerates violent behavior". What are your thoughts?
Loughner didn't use an "automatic". He was using a Glock 19, apparently the one featured in his Youtube videos.
The guy didn't use an automatic weapon!
Chris....as I understand it, he used a semi automatic handgun to shoot these people, and it was very effective. I would think that the only purpose of a semi automatic is to kill and maim as many people as possible in a very short period of time. Why do we need weapons of this type in the hands of anyone but law enforcement, and why are we allowing arms dealers here in the USA to illegally sell firearms for profit across our borders.
All the arguments about open carry laws and how it keeps us safe because someone carrying a weapon could prevent an attack like this one all went out the window with this incident. I'll bet there were plenty of responsible citizens carrying on that day, and not one of them was able to react in time to get off a shot to stop this crazed individual. As usual, he was tackled by one or more people who risked their lives to save others, and they didn't have to use a gun to do it.
The NRA and their supporters have lobbied for the use and availability of these kind of weapons, and our lawmakers have looked the other way to the point that we now have a society that is governed by violence, and the ones with the biggest guns are in charge, as evidenced by the drug cartel in Mexico who are getting their supply of weapons right here in the USA. We let this happen with our failure to stand up and demand change with implementation of responsible gun control laws. The average citizen is no longer safe on the streets or even in their homes because this has been allowed to get so out of control. Of course the criminals have weapons, and I dare say that when they decide to use them against you, you will be helpless to respond, even if you are armed to the teeth. You will go down in a blaze of bullets fired from an assault rifle.
I'm not suggesting that people not arm themselves if they feel safer in doing so; however, we need to demand that our current laws on the books be enforced, and that additional laws be put into place that will stop the unlawful sale of weapons to people who should not have them. If illegal arms dealers were prosecuted for murder because of their complicity in carrying out a crime, it would send a powerful message that we will not tolerate this kind of activity.
Nah, man, he used a 9-mm Glock 19 semiautomatic handgun, WHAT THE HELL difference does it make to add what type of weapon he did or didn't use? Get over it or get a life! The point is that at the moment it is redundant. He used deadly force on innocent PERSONS! A nine year old girl was cut down in the crossfire, a nine year old WHO HAPPENED TO BE BORN ON THE DREADUFUL DAY OF 9112001! KEEP THAT IN MIND WHEN YOUR TELLING EVERYONE THAT IT WASN'T AN AUTOMATIC! The point is, and I know many of you will want to disagree due to your own ignorance, but guns need to be banned, plain and simple!
@ DistheMcC Guns aren't the problem, insane people are the problem. The school knew he was a danger to the school (and probably to himself) but they turned their back on the problem -- just like at Virginia Tech! Had a gun not been available to the guy he might have used a bomb -- or, home-made mustard gas from innocent household cleaners freely available at the Safeway where the event took place. And, if someone in the crowd was actually carrying a gun, they could have shot the perp the minute he opened fire on his first victim. Guns don't kill people, people kill people -- and they have been doing so since the begining of time, long before guns were invented.
Oh yes....this moron would fit the profile of a typical terrorist....a male Muslim with a beard, foreign accent and a turban....No blue eye red neck American with a Texan drawl and a mistrust for government would ever fit the bill....
It's not necessary that 'most' assailants fit some profile, as the one third that do (according to this article) is more than enough.
While I wouldn't ask anyone to put too much faith in the Hollywood version, I'd say in this instance that it's well worth noting the similarities to "The Parallax View". If there is a group with a political agenda (say...increasing the level of security for politicians at the expense of the rest of us), this would serve that agenda quite well.
Nothing here is as it seems...
You people who want to point the finger at everyone BUT the shooter make me sick. Why can't you just allow the shooter to be held unilaterally accountable for his actions? I don't care what books he read, what web sites he looked at, or whether or not his mom held him too much or not enough... all nothing more than a sad attempt to detract attention from the act itself and irresponsibly place blame.
Chris, I believe that mapleleaf3 was employing what we like to refer to as "sarcasm." Say it with me now. Sarcasm. You know, that thing where you say something but don't mean it seriously. You're one to speak about people detracting attention from the act itself when your first few comments were pointing out the type of weapon used. Yes, we get it. It wasn't an automatic.
Placing blame?...
Alright...
Manson never killed anyone....he only used words.
Hitler never killed anyone...he only used words.
Say something terrible and there will always be a crazy out there ready to receive it as scripture.
Words are terribly powerful when used by those that are considered "authority"
example..."we've diagnosed the problem...help us prescribe the solution" Now add a gunsight graphic with a name under it...voila'
He wasn't from the left, right, tea-party, or anything else. He was mentally ill. Not the first in history nor sadly will he ever be the last. I feel very sorry for the victims of this senseless act.
the most senseable thing i've read. Politics be damned!
No no, the fact that he was mentally ill is how he was admitted into the RepubliCan't Party, don't you know?
@ carles No, liberalism is a mental disorder. Which is perhaps why the college didn't automatically refer his name to the county's mental health agency. They saw him as one of their own, a useful idiot, and wanted him out among the public. So, when he went off and shot someone the liberals could then blame a gun and those who respect the Second Amendment (usually Republicans) -- which is exactly what the libs did before any of the facts were known.
I now live in Japan - No guns except military and law enforcement - NO GUN shootings.................
Yea, a death here and there, but no knife welding madman running around or video announcements of their intentions.
Actually in the process of relocating to Japan myself. I figure it will be a nice change of pace. Until I am fluent in the language, I won't have to concern myself with reading about some nutjob shooting up a bunch of people because they didn't want his new currency or because he didn't feel their grasp of grammar was up to par.
Cammie - You're an idiot. In Japan... no guns.... but the weapon of choice is the common baseball bat! Before guns were invented savages used clubs, then bows with arrows and knives. Guns are illegal in Mexico also and look how well that's working there!
yeah, in Mexico they have the occasional shooting, courtesy of drug cartels, failing that they behead you with a machete and leave your mutilated corpse out for the sake of fear and intimidation.
Sad to say that I could see this coming. A depression brings out some very antisocial people. All we have to do is look at the characters from the late 1920's thru the 1930's. I hope for the best for all the families concerned. What I dislike is that this politician was actually trying to reach out to the people.
We need the elected officials to be safe in public. Politicians need to find out what is best for the country by listening to those caring americans who still believe in the constitution.
The gun used was a semi-automatic handgun. People always say automatic, when in actually it is very dificult for anyone to purcase a fully automatic weapon. Also background checks are not required of people purchasing firearms at gun shows or through private person sales. If a person really wants to aquire a gun in America he/she certainly can without much bother. And I might add, as most of us know, that very few legal gun owners ever commit crimes with their firearms. Prayers to the victims and their families and a speedy recovery for the survivors. This nut-job will get his just rewards.
I don't know where you are but they do a complete background check at all the guns shows in PA.
clark....I don't know what gun shows you've been attending, but I seriously doubt your statement. I've been to enough to know that anyone can sell a gun at a show without a background check.... cash on the spot...no questions asked. Please stop with the NRAspeak because no sensible person believes it.
I believe, the best way to stop a lot of this going on is for everyone to STOP, Step back, Think. Politicians of either or any party needs to STOP their damn bickering and do the peoples will, NOT THEIR OWN. Let's bring some civility back into politics and our lives. Its gotten way out of hand. THANK YOU Dr. SPOCK, for advocating NOT to punish a child but to give a "time out", that a child needs to be talked to as a miniture adult. BS. A child is a child, and should be treated as such, with love and compasion, but with firm authority if they do something wrong. Of course you are free to either agree or disagree, I fought for your right to have your say.
There is always going to be some misdirected individual who wants to take matters into their own hands. One only has to look back to the murder of the Kennedy brothers, Martin Luther King, and John Lennon, or the rampages of Ted Kaczynski to see that pattern. In my opinion it is nearly impossible to protect people from this type of threat without giving up many of the rights and freedoms we have fought so hard to keep.
While we need to be aware and cognizant of this type of possible threat, we also need to be careful not to restrict access to our legislators too much, since they are our only voice in Washington. My hope is that a positive lesson will be gleaned from this tragedy that will lead to better protection for our representatives while still allowing us to voice our opinions to them directly.
One thought is that although it may not provide as personable a meeting as a local gathering, our representatives could use more online chats and direct contact forums as virtual "Town Hall" meetings. This would allow their constituents an opportunity to voice their opinions and receive responses by providing an uncensored accessible platform.
Another option might be to have more live TV and radio events that allow constituents to call in and voice their opinions. The representatives could broadcast an immediate response and their constituency could discuss and debate the issues live over the air.
Of course there will still be times when a personal appearance might be desired or even required and it is my hope that this terrible incident will spark a debate over better security for these times. However, I believe that the increased use of either of these options mentioned above could provide direct contact to elected representatives while still protecting the person from face to face threats of violence.
@Chris K-2768739
Automatic, semi-automatic, whatever. jackass lunitics shouldn't have this: "A 9mm Glock handgun that had what police described as "an extended clip" with 30 bullets was recovered at the site". The idiots (Bush,etc.) that let the ban on this sh*t expire need to feel this tragedy extra badly (although I know they probably won't..)
Don't blame a gun for these peoples actions. If a gun was not available they would use other means to commit the same crime. A lack of gun is not going to stop a killer.
Are you for real? 30 bullets will do a lot more damage in a short amount of time than a butcher knife or something similar. oh yeah, the solution is not to use common sense on this to limit the possible loss of life... Good god, people need to think on this subject and not cling to some stupid principles that don't apply here...
Mental health treatment is not easy to get. It's expensive, and takes forever to even schedule an appointment. If you don't have health insurance then you're screwed because if you apply for free they turn you down right just to push people away.
Maybe if people had easier access to treatment less incidents like this would occur.
And unfortunately, along with the enactment of a real Death Panel, Arizona cut off significant portions of mental health funding years ago.
@c mabrey Yes, I remember back in the 1960's when the libs decided that the mentally disturbed needed to be freed from the mental institutions, if they had not (yet) committed a serious crime. Then, along came all the psychiatric medications to "stabilize" those with mental disorders (with their wierd side effects). Unfortunately, the disturbed tend to stop taking their meds when they aren't institutionalized and then all kind of things happen.
People need to be educated from a young age over the fact that if they feel like killing themselves or others, they need to call 911 because there is a better way. And serious threats have to be taken seriously and reported.
An immediate threat to the soverignity of of our nation is the frequent misinterpretation of our constitution. It has become quite rampant that every one standing outside in a public place can claim to understand the workings of the US constitution and lead a mob. This non-sense must be controlled. The US constitution is quite a complex document and although in most articles the language may be easy to read, but the legal intent is quite hard to comprehend. But, sadly, nowadays any one angry enough to be pissed at some branch of the government can make references to the constitution and incite violance to justify their own interpretation. In an ironic way, America is learning what Osama ben Laden has done to Islamic teachings. And, yes misrepresentation exists everywhere and comes in all sizes and forms.
This young man was obviously mentally ill.
Was he on or coming off of anti-psychotic or anti-depreeant medications? The shooter in Virginia and the Columbine shooters had been prescribed this type of meds, though that aspect of the incidents has been supressed or ignored ( same thing ) by the media. Discontinuance events ( pharma doubletalk for all hell breaking loose) include uncontrolable murderous and suicidal rages and the durg companies own disclaimers clearly state that. I believe that those two incidents would never have happenned absent this unintended but predictable effect. It may well be that the dead in those events actually died of the side effects of pharmaceuticals they never even took themselves. A thorough and transparent investigation should explore those possibilities and make public which drugs these were, which Phama Giant manufactured them and profited by their sale, and the names and profiles of the doctors who were responsible for prescribing them and regualting their effect on the young men in question ( girls don't do these things ). But with the stranglehold the drug giants have on Washington, this will NEVER HAPPEN.
alexander:
I believe you have a very valid point. The authorities and press should both determine if any kind of pharms or street drugs were involved. Especially Pharms. I would believe that the pharmaceutical companies may possibly cooperate, at least with the proper state and/or federal authorities.
Alexander...a point well taken. On a much smaller scale, I have watched friends of mine completely implode after they have become addicted to these anti depressants and other prescribed meds. They have been convicted of domestic violence and assault because they have no control over their rage.
Now we allow them to purchase a gun because they don't happen to have a criminal record and you have the recipe for disaster.
What type of mental illness does the AZ shooter have? Why do you think he was on meds? Often anti-psychotics are effective, if taken regularly...
Hey Chris did he use a automatic weapon!
After reading some of the comments posted here, I believe a couple of these people need to contact a mental health organization and get some help.
Crazy is as Crazy does, but I can't help but think that if we, as a culture, didn't legitimize the use of violence as a virtuous and redemptive force, (You know, the good guy wins by being the best at beating and killing everyone else into submission.) then these events would be far less frequent. But its probably easier to enact tighter gun control. Like any addiction, if you can't change the impulse, take away the opportunity, or limit the impact.
He might be crazy , but had a skill level to be envied by the best pistol marksman. This must have been his TO weapon in the service. No one mentioned his branch of service.
According to the main article, he applied for military service but was rejected. No mention of why he was rejected, but one can guess. That's why they aren't mentioning the branch.
Watch as the anti gun establishment use this to step on my Constitutional rights.
There is no profiles for these losers that kill innocent others. The one thing in common is that they all have a gun. The solution is to ban all the frigging guns. To hell with the second amendment!!!!!
The article states that most threateners rarely attack and most attackers rarely threaten. But the FBI is good at taking the threateners or more likely disgruntled ones and setting them up with pseudo bomb that they made and then taggiing them as terrorist. No wonder why the FBI cannot catch any real terrorist. Eveybod alive is one of two things: you are a murderer or you are a potential murderer. In the right situations, most people have the ability to murder. Technically speeking, every single person alive is mentally unstable.