People are killing People !

[kandrathe]

What is going on these days...People are on a killing spree.

We used to lock away psychotics. Now we just give them medications and hope it works too. Now, I'm not for locking people away in padded cells for the rest of their days either, but we've swung the pendulum pretty far over to the ridiculous as well. For example, the latest VaTech shooting, and the NIU shooting both involved individuals who were known to be psychologically disturbed and on medications, and even with background checks and no prior felony convictions to prevent it these guys bought guns and murdered a bunch of people. You can point at the guns if you like, but society would be safer if we made sure that the psychotic people are cared for. Take away the guns and they'd use a 5 gallon can of gasoline. We can't just set them loose on society and hope for the best. In the VaTech shooting, a prominent professor went to the administration and point blank told them that unless THIS KID is removed from his class he wouldn't teach it. That is how scary he was, so why was he just left to continue on this collision course without intervention?

Homework assignment: http://www.michaelgurian.com/ I would recommend "The Good Son" I read this when I found out we were pregnant with our first son. Couple our natural human propensity for tribalism, and barbarity with the current cultures moral ambiguity and detachment and it is no mystery of why we are beset on all sides by monsters.

Editorial review of that book; From Publishers Weekly
Gurian (A Fine Young Man), one of today's premier writers on the subject of male development, moves beyond the realm of sociological and psychological analysis (offered in Eli Newberger's fine The Men They Will Become, see p. 71) to provide a timely and practical parenting guide. Focusing specifically on the subject of moral development, a matter of hot debate in the wake of such tragedies as the Columbine High School shooting, Gurian writes from his own experience as a family therapist. Citing an "increase in ethical numbness, moral distraction, and spiritual emptiness among boys and young men," he examines the roots of potential problems, such as the abandonment of our children's moral development to "potentially toxic" visual media, and then lays out a well-organized blueprint for ushering boys into adulthood. Gurian discusses such topics as biological and neurological development as well as building spiritual life and dealing with media influence (for example, he notes that a boy of nine or 10 should not "see images he cannot or should not experience with his own body and soul at this time in his life"). Gurian concludes with a list of age-appropriate books and movies that "stimulate moral growth in boys." Parents and caregivers will welcome the direction and reassurance of this outstanding book in their efforts to guide boys "toward loving, wise, and responsible manhood, and the compassionate life."

One line from the book that still resonates with me was when he described how he found himself in his early 20's realizing he was not a good citizen, and not a man.