> Cullen actually argues that it is imperialist violence and warfare on the
> part of the US that is connected to these sorts of killings. In that
> climate, we see more and more pscyhopathology.
I am sort of surprised no one has brought up Mark Ames book Going Postal in this thread so far - but maybe I missed it. He makes many of the same observations as Richard about the emasculating abuse of workers by their superiors and also notes that there is a sense in which the psychotic element is actually indicative of some recalcitrant nugget of rationality on their part.
He doesn't celebrate this, just profiles a swath of the workplace rage murders and notes that it is no surprise that many of the people who will defy the social norm are also a little off mentally.
"Several things are interesting about Nat Turner's doomed, gory rebellion. First, Turner was clearly delusional and yet his response to the madness of slavery was, from our vantage point today, the most sane and heroic of all. Joseph Wesbecker (perpetrator of one of a string of workplace shooting sprees) suffered from depression and was belittled for having a persecution complex and for being generally crazy, yet some of the normal people who worked with him sympathized with his attack on the company. The fact that Nat Turner may have been schizophrenic of delusional does not disqualify the inherent political nature of his rebellion. Rather, it suggests that sometimes only someone not mentally healthy - not normal - is capable of rising up against objectively awful injustice. A normal, healthy person finds a way to accept his condition, no matter what."
He goes on to offer a similar critique of Cullen's article on Harris and Klebold, e.g. "Blaming evil or psychology is far more comforting [than examining the context for actual enraging elements]. Cullen even admits this, calling his explanation for Columbine 'more reassuring, in a way.'"
In the present context - which I've found deeply disturbing - I think it is worth exploring the fact that, whatever this kid's mental status, his mother was a bit nuts as well. The Telegraph reports that she was one of the rather nutty crowd called "preppers"
BLOCKQUOTE
Nancy Lanza, whose gun collection was raided by her son Adam for Friday’s massacre at Sandy Hook school, was part of the “prepper” movement, which urges readiness for social chaos by hoarding supplies and training with weapons.
“She prepared for the worst,” her sister-in-law Marsha Lanza told reporters. “Last time we visited her in person, we talked about prepping – are you ready for what could happen down the line, when the economy collapses?”
BLOCKQUOTE END
These proud, survivalist views were discussed around town, with anyone who would listen, and made her possession of a high powered assault rifle seem rational. No doubt she had shared these views with her seemingly "off" son on some level. What part the local elementary school played in this. In any case, there is certainly a combination of factors here, but it is inarguable that, without a high powered assault rifle, he couldn't have mowed down 20 first graders and their teachers in a matter of minutes.