Why Do People Shoot Strangers

THIS IS NOT A GUN CONTROL THREAD SO DON'T GET STARTED!

It's sad, very very sad.

In the last few days two young people shot strangers. What has happened to these people and what is in their minds that compels them to go out and shoot strangers? Where does the anger, hate or whatever come fome? These young men were troubled souls.

Some people just want to kill, whether for fun or to make a fantasy become a reality.

I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that people just don't grasp the severity of their actions...





Man, as a whole, tends to be very short sighted and pre-occupied with his own desires.

While some people kill people that they know intimately, there are others who kill strangers. They are serial killers and mass murderers.

These serial killers, who are often physically, emotionally and sexually abused as children, become revengeful against a particular group, be they blacks or women, gays or Hispanics, whom they kill indiscriminately until they are caught by police. Many such serial killers have psychopathic and sociopathic personalities.

The really scary ones are the ones that kill for the shear pleasure. They suffered very little abuse when they were young and seem to have been raised by very normal families.

These folks seemed like regular people under some kind of self imposted or emotional distress. They didn't do it for fun or are serial killers and mass murderers.

I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that people just don't grasp the severity of their actions...

How does that happen...stress I think but what kind?

I think everyone is capable of great violence, we are taught it from an early age. Most people have restraint and don't go around shooting strangers, but those who do are usually no different from you and I.
People don't always have the same reality and anger and rage is normal to some, they don't necessarily go out and shoot people, sometimes it's the quiet, even tempered folk.
Everyone has a limit. :evil:

Rickie The Grey wrote: These folks seemed like regular people under some kind of self imposted or emotional distress.

"Seemed" is a key word here. There is too much information missing to make an accurate analysis. It be interesting to read the article.

If I cooked 7 billion cakes I wouldn't expect every single one of them to come out right.



Also humans are pack animals. While some of us aren't interested in power, most of us don't want to be at the bottom. As such anyone who feels too close to the bottom will take action to climb up in the hierarchy... As wescli brilliantly expressed, to take another's life is to completely crush everything they are and will be. That's a lot of power.

ren wrote: If I cooked 7 billion cakes I wouldn't expect every single one of them to come out right.

I see your running the desert cartel with Alexandre and Jestor there Ren.

Alexandre has the tea, Jestor takes care of the cookies, and your in charge of the cakes.

Its all coming together.

Rickie The Grey wrote: What has happened to these people and what is in their minds that compels them to go out and shoot strangers? Where does the anger, hate or whatever come fome?

I ask myself these questions and more on quite a regular basis and I still have no answers. I suspect I never will.

I agree with a lot that has been said but I also want to add I feel much of it has to do with a lack of respect. A person to aim a deadly weapon at another human being who shows insufficient threat, is to show an utter lack of respect for simple human life.

But there are a million reasons. Parents failed to teach respect, kids failed to learn, mental disabilities, disconnection between reality and fantasy. A thirst to feel power. No idea. I've taken a job with the full knowledge that I will be responsible for carrying weapons but that is in defense of me, my comrades, and my country. I won't even point Airsoft weapons at people outside of the game field. I can't imagine aiming a deadly weapon at some random person. I couldn't do it.

Not completely connected to the OP, but I thought of it after seeing Jayden's avatar:

"Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them? Then do not be too eager to deal out death in judgement. For even the very wise cannot see all ends" -- Gandalf.

The expression "impotent fury" always comes to mind when I think about people who do this sort of thing.

I believe that what they do is in part a response to a constant and overpowering need to do something. To take action of any kind that even temporarily releases whatever frustration, anguish or indeed anger they are holding onto. I think it is in part a form of emotional release.

But at the same time, I wonder if it not just that these people have thrown off the expectations of behaving like reasonable members of society. I read a very interesting article the other day about peoples online behavior vs their offline behaviour. Seemingly ordinary, mild mannered people living an online life of truely horrific and illigal behaviour. People who when finally caught fight for legal name suppression, knowing full well that their disgusting online behavior will result in losing everything.

Have the people who shoot strangers maybe just reached a point where the concequences dont matter?

Learn_To_Know wrote: Not completely connected to the OP, but I thought of it after seeing Jayden's avatar:

"Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them? Then do not be too eager to deal out death in judgement. For even the very wise cannot see all ends" -- Gandalf.

I've always loved that quote.

Brenna, what can anyone do online that's so bad? steal credit card numbers?

ren wrote: Brenna, what can anyone do online that's so bad? steal credit card numbers?

They can do all kinds of things. Cyber-bullying (which has led to people committing suicide), trolls (which we see a lot of all over), stealing money and personal information, fraud... if it can be done in the real world it can usually be done online as well.

I

I believe that the answer to this question is simple; violence is nature. Though it is a sad truth.