I’m a little impatient with the “what causes this to happen” approach. Many people are loopy, neurotic, depressed, drug-addled, angry, or even psychotic. They get this way for all kinds of complicated reasons that mostly no one will ever completely figure out. What causes it to happen in practical terms is that they all have easy access to guns. Only in America.
Yeah, yeah, that too. Prison has many therapists. Maybe after he watches video of all the funerals he’s caused.
I’m betting that gun came from mom and/or dad. I wish we prosecuted the registered owners after this crap. Your kid takes your gun and shoots it, you get 5 years and $250,000 fine. That might change some “home protection” thinkers.
The availability of guns. Duuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuh.
Yes, and that they can so easily get into the hands of people who should not have them.
I was at the dentist’s office when I heard about it - from an elderly patient who was on her way out and had found out during the appointment when her stepson, who lives in Santa Clarita, texted her to say that his son did not attend that school, and was safe.
:eek:
I heard on the news that the shooter was found with an empty magazine in his gun. Hopefully, California will wise up and allow bigger magazines so this guy could kill even more people.
I don’t deny that the access to guns IS a part of it, but - this didn’t used to happen in the 70s and 80s, did it? I’m 33 so I really only remember the 90s, which is when it seemed to start - but even then, it didn’t seem to be as common as it is now. Hell, even 10 years ago it didn’t seem to be as prevalent. I feel like in the past 5 years it’s hit a fever pitch.
My only guess is that information travels faster, and so … motivation also travels faster?
When arrested his only comment was “OK, boomer”
That’s what I would call an orthogonal issue – perhaps a sociological/technological phenomenon contributing to the problem, but the most significant fact has to be that these kinds of mass shootings remain extremely rare in other countries where similar transformations have taken place. Again, I think this quote is very relevant:
“If you have a country saturated with guns – available to people when they are intoxicated, angry or depressed – it’s not unusual guns will be used more often,” said Rebecca Peters, a Johns Hopkins University fellow specializing in gun violence. “This has to be treated as a public health emergency.”
Republicans will blame it on mental health, not easy access to guns, then will continue to cut funding for mental health services. God forbid we inconvenience law abiding gun owners.
It wouldn’t matter.
“Simplistic conclusions ignore the fact that mass violence is caused by many social and psychological factors that interact in complex ways; that many, if not most, perpetrators do not have a major psychiatric disorder; and that the large majority of people with diagnosable mental illnesses are not violent toward others.”
Mental health problems are pointed to often because “no sane person would commit a mass shooting”.
“Incidents of mass violence — especially those that appear to be senseless, random acts directed at strangers in public places — are so terrifying and traumatic that the community responds defensively and demands an explanation. After such events, political leaders often invoke mental illness as the reason for mass violence, a narrative that resonates with the widespread public belief that mentally ill individuals in general pose a danger to others. Since it is difficult to imagine that a mentally healthy person would deliberately kill multiple strangers, it is commonly assumed that all perpetrators of mass violence must be mentally ill.”
From a report from the National Council for Behavioral Health (PDF warning):
Better treatment for mental illness, while good for society in general, is not going to prevent these incidents. You don’t need to be crazy, just angry enough to overcome reason and with an opportunity and means to do it.
Yes. Specifically, the 15 minutes of fame travels much, as people have learned by hearing about other school shootings every fifteen minutes.
No matter what their underlying motivation - angst, bitterness, political ire, sexual frustration - there’s no point on getting yourself killed for it if you can’t die knowing you’re about to be famous.
So yeah. Guns, the internet, children. Pick two.
Right. People are highly imperfect creatures, and highly imperfect creatures equipped with easily obtainable and extremely lethal means of inflicting mass casualties are inevitably going to do so some small percentage of the time.
It’s also worth noting that despite their notoriety and wide publicity, mass shootings are rare. Even in the US, where it is at the most extreme, they account for less than 0.2% of deaths by homicide. That’s not two percent, that’s two-tenths of a percent. Not to detract from the horror of them but if you focus all of your attention on stopping them, you still have the other 99.8% of homicides to deal with.
On the other hand, about 2/3 of all homicides in the US are from guns. So there is a lot of logic in gun control for public safety. It’s just that most of those gun homicides involve a single victim.
No, I’m not saying it would make a difference. I’m just bitching about the Republican hypocrisy, and willingness to blame it on anything but guns.
Which is the other argument for dealing with guns themselves as the root of the problem. There is also what might be called collateral damage – in addition to all the homicides and accidents, the gun culture makes police skittish and inclined to shoot first and ask questions later, assuming that anyone they encounter may well be armed. That’s happened again and again, in situations where no shot would have been fired if the incident had happened where guns were not as common as candy.
Dammit, The Onion is supposed to be funny.
We have a culture of violence as the solution to any problem. See here: https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=885310
Yes, I know you were all joking. Nonetheless, it’s a solution that came to your mind, even though you consciously reject it.
And many of you think it’s funny.
Fair enough.
Why are these still considered breaking national news? A car crash, fire, or flood that caused an equivalent number of casualties would most likely only be reported locally.
If an unlicensed 15yo borrowed his Dad’s car, then crashed and killed his mates aged 16 & 14? Would be national news this side of the puddle, anyway.