About the massacre of Virginia Tech?

Question

I've noticed that in nearly every school shooting that has taken place in the united states, the police and newscasters make sure to point out social status. Is it relevant that the gunmen in Columbine and the gunman at Virginia Tech were loners? If anything, wouldn't this cause the outsiders to be singled out more in school? Are we now going to point at every student who is an outsider and be afraid that they will shoot up a school just because they don't fit in? What are your thoughts on this?

Answer 1

The fact people alienate and don't understand why people choose to be introvert is the reason why things like the shootings take place.
The fact that people are loners or introvert are not the problem the problem is the way extroverts treat the minority introvert and people that are different.

Cho had zero social skills for what ever reason. His speech was horrible, he couldn't communicate but he could write. That is the reason for learning to write english. He couldn't have a normal life and was teased and ostrizied by the social circles because he was different. He was unable to communicate and was obviously teased when he did so he choose to not speak.

Society needs to wake up.

Answer 2

Everyone always judges people by the actions of a few. We are all guilty of associating someone as "those type of people."What we fail sometimes to realize is that we are all individuals and have free will. We sometimes make our choices without thinking about the consequences. Some people are classified as loners but are just simply shy. It would be a boring world if everyone was the same. Anyone put into the right state of mind and circumstances can snap. There is no set characteristics one can say describes all loners just as we all can't be grouped together.
Identifying loners as the ones to go off into the deep end is only going to further isolate them. What happens when someone is pushed to the limits and feels like they have nothing to lose?

Answer 3

The fact that they were loners is not the only thing pointed out.
In both the VT and Columbine massacres, the killers were already known to have serious problems; the signs were there, but preventive action was not taken for some reason.
I think it behooves us to be aware of the signs of impending violence. Of there are many cases in which only 1 or 2 or 3 are killed. Large massacres are rare.
And if somebody does show signs, it is better to be safe than sorry.
In a school near me, a student wrote a scary story for English class. The story was so disturbing that the school called police; the student was questioned and his locker was searched (with his permission) and they decided there was no danger after all. I congratulated him on his early debut into the "thriller" genre of fiction.
In another case, a student was making threats, so that his friends frisked him on the way to school, but they didn't find the gun and they didn't report his threats, and he killed two people. Imagine how the friends must have felt. People were really mad at them for not saying anything.
Another case, a man was telling his friend he was going to kill somebody. The friend didn't believe him. Then he killed his two roommates and himself. I talked to the friend who didn't believe him after it happened, and he was distraught and crying, as you can imagine.
So, if you know somebody who is showing signs of violence, even if you don't want to believe it, it's better to tell somebody. If you are wrong, you might be embarrassed. But if not, somebody could be dead.

Answer 4

I don't know if you've read the most recent story about the shooter sending a tape to NBC but in the tape he made references to the kids in Columbine. He called them martyrs and that he too would be a martyr.

I think that the shooter at Virginia Tech looked up to the guys at Columbine which is sickening but probably true. Obviously, it wasn't the fact that he was a loner that fueled this but because he some kind of mental disease.

I do think that outsiders are already targeted in schools and even in the work place. The discrimination will continue because everyone is too afraid to become friends. People don't realize that the "loners" need help. They also need someone to talk to and confide in. It's a sad thing that we still discriminate against anyone different--foreign born students, "gothic" people, "geeks," and people who don't or can't conform to what society deems as normal.

I feel that on the college level these things cannot be prevented [such as depression and feelings of suicide] unless a kind classmate takes the other kid under his wing--rarely happens but possible. College doesn't have that much pull on what their students do. As a country we need to say no to bullying. We need to teach tolerance and acceptance to our children. We need to instill a no bullying policy as early as kindergarten. As parents I feel we need to stop our own bigotry. [Believe it or not many parents are just as bad if not worse then kids.]

Hopefully, we can take as much good out of this tragedy as possible. This might be the eye-opener we needed in order to get serious about our schools bullying problems. I hope this answers your questions. Somehow we just need to reach out across America not only for the safety of college campuses but for the early prevention to these problems.

Answer 5

Well actually, with as many red flags that went up about this guy. Something should have been done. But I do not feel that people are going to stereo-type all loners, and those who are different as killers. But I do feel when someone has to be removed from a class, because he makes other students, and the teacher very nervous, been recommended for mental help, and has been reported to the police several times for stalking. You may want to take a closer look at them.

Answer 6

I think alot of lonerish people are going to feel pin pointed and I felt the typecast was a bit over the top.I think some quiet asian kids and many asians are introverted [part of the culture] are going to feel very uncomfortable now.

The majority of Loners are not mass murderers thats just a plain fact.

Saying he was a loner I guess is an attempt to emphaize the fact that he was not part of society - to otherize him.

To emphasis the fact that he was on SSRIs,heavily medicated by drugs which interfere with the brain is not as compelling as throwing him in the outsider catergory.

Answer 7

Being a loner is often a symptom of mental issues which are found in many of the shooters. I don't think they should all be singled out and have their lives turned upside down for showing one common trait with these murderers, but I think it should be overlooked. If others traits are also present, then the individual should be investigated.

Answer 8

There were so many signs surrounding this kid that the university should have taken him out of school long-term and sent him back home until they were certain he was treated. College life is very stessful (for those who study hard). He knew he didn't fit in and it troubled him a great deal. He may have been sexually abused as his writings mentioned. He should have been forced to get real help or get expelled.

Answer 9

Loners feeling rejected and full of hate are more easily recruited by a certain mental disorder quite active on the web, and our government is lying to us about jihad occurring right here. You never heard on the news that the Salt Lake City mall shooter was a jihadist? Or that he was droppped by a legally armed civilian? Returned to Bosinia and give a hero's burial for his good deeds? Where do you think the reference Cho penned on his arm, his alias, came from? Do you think you can spot a jihadist by their "race"?

Answer 10

I have to agree with you. There are many shy korean loners in every school who do not resort to any inkling of violence.

But the columbine killers and cho showed other signs of disturbance that should have flagged authority figures.