--- On Thu, 3/12/09, Dennis Claxton <ddclaxton at earthlink.net> wrote:
>
>
> Depends. Are you saying drug trade violence is rational
> somehow?
[WS:] If it is carried out to eliminate competition and maximize one's gain - it is as rational as any other business venture, no?
Shooting people for no apparent reason other than to "be taken seriously" (which according to the latest news report was the reason the German gunman gave in his internet chat before the shooting spree), is not rational, at least in the ordinary meaning of the term. As I understand, a lot of juvenile violence fits this category.
Wojtek