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Americans, Autism, books, bullying, Colorado, Columbine, friendship, guns, He Was Weird, Jello Biafra, school shootings, teachers
Why do they do it? What makes someone want to go out and shoot up their school? This has been a big question ever since two boys at Columbine High School in Colorado went into their school with a some guns and shot 12 students and one teacher dead and wounded about 36 more. Of course, everyone had their answers and some of the more ridiculous ones will be the subject of next week’s post but there is no clear agreement as to what makes a person shoot up their school. Therefore, I am going to add my theory to the mix and you are welcome to agree or disagree and venture your opinion here.
- Access to guns: I thought this would have been a simple one. After all, you can’t shoot up your school unless you have a gun. However, many in America do not put this as the number one reason. While I am going to bring up many more contributing factors as to why a shooting occurs, the bottom line is that you need a gun to do it. I can personally attest to this. If I was thirty years younger and went through the hell I experienced between the ages of 10 and 13 and had access to guns, I could have easily gone and shot up my school. By the way, I am not anti-gun.
- Mental Health Issues: This covers a wide criteria ranging from feelings of isolation and being made to feel like a failure and that everyone disapproves of them to more diagnosable mental health conditions like Asperger’s Syndrome or ADHD. These all play a part in influencing someone to pick up a gun and kill the school. In my book, “He Was Weird,” main character, Mark, has been made to feel like a failure by his teachers, peers and even his mother to a lesser degree. While he is diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome and DAMP, it isn’t taken seriously and he is seen as a nuisance by the school. With these feelings of rejection, it is no wonder he takes advantage when he has access to guns.
- Bullying: Ask anyone who has been severely bullied as a child and they will tell you that they would have loved to have picked up a gun and shot all of their bullies down. I speak from personal experience here. I was bullied so bad during those three years that the thought of shooting the bullies crossed my mind several times. Revenge is a popular reason why some kids shoot up their school or it might just be that they fear for their own safety.
- Witness abuse elsewhere: They may see abuse in the home or come from a neighbourhood where violence is common or they may even witness a lot of it on TV, movies or playing violent computer games. While I am not one to say that playing “Doom” or watching slasher movies will exclusively cause someone to commit a school shooting, when combined with the other factors, it could be what pushes a shooter over the edge.
- More minor factors: While for me, the top three are the biggest reasons behind school shootings, there are others which can be taken into account. One is encouragement from social media. Someone might put how they are feeling on a website and others might think it’s funny to encourage that person who is feeling low to murder their school. Drink and drugs can also play an effect. There are many more minor factors which can also contribute to why a school shooting happens.
I think this quote from former Dead Kennedys lead singer and now spoken word artist Jello Biafra best sums up what might make a person shoot up their school.
There is nothing more dangerous than someone who feels they have nothing to live for and therefore nothing to lose. They don’t particularly want to die but they can’t see the point of living. They know who’s responsible for wrecking their lives and figure, ‘If I have to die, I’m taking them with me.’ This has been a fact of ghetto life from time immemorial but now that it’s hit middle class white suburbia. Those who don’t buy into the game are all fair game. But no matter how much we profile, harass and ban music, some vacant stranger out there, raised on guns, raised on hate, molested by paedophile relatives, their minds f*cked by over prescribed narcotics, smothered by more successful siblings and the pressure to be perfect will find a way to be pop star for a day and we’ll tune in and watch every time.
To buy He Was Weird, go to: https://www.amazon.co.uk/He-Was-Weird-Michael-Lefevre/dp/1909740942/ref=sr_1_1?crid=36I8I1G32U0R4&keywords=he+was+weird&qid=1662481810&s=books&sprefix=he+was+%2Cstripbooks%2C148&sr=1-1
Or email me at: tobychainsaw@hotmail.com