The scapegoating of Nancy Lanza
Sandy Hook has been the most misreported story in recent memory, but a few facts may have emerged. To date, authorities have not located any confirmed diagnosis for Adam Lanza. Relatives and former classmates say he had Asperger’s syndrome, but this mild form of autism has no correlation with violence. The boy is described as anything but menacing – rather, as withdrawn, antisocial, even “meek”, according to an official at his high school, who explained that Adam was only assigned a psychologist because a scrawny, cringing loner might be tormented by peers…
Unnervingly, to our knowledge Adam Lanza never gave any outward expression to the malice festering in his head. Before that awful Friday, he wouldn’t have appeared necessarily more dangerous than any other shy, quiet young man.
Around 270 million weapons in the US are kept legally in private hands. Presumably, a good proportion of American gun owners have families – including college-age boys still living at home. Every such American is thus guilty of the exact same dereliction as Nancy Lanza was. Do they all deserve to die? Indeed, any gun owner assumes the risk that the weapon will be misused, perhaps to horrific effect.
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Yes but if the guns are taken away then the closet-psychos will be kept from using something else to kill people, such as truck bombs parked in front of guvment buildings.
Bishop on December 23, 2012 at 7:26 PM
Oh, so if we’re all potentials … Looking for another reason to disarm us all?
His turn to violence didn’t happen in a vacuum.
IrishEyes on December 23, 2012 at 7:26 PM
It sounds like someone else did it then.
Paul-Cincy on December 23, 2012 at 7:37 PM
Yet his mother told the babysitter not to turn his back on Adam?
Of course, that could be grandstanding by the babysitter.
Wethal on December 23, 2012 at 7:41 PM
What if Lanza had killed 20 kids with a golf club?
Kenosha Kid on December 23, 2012 at 7:43 PM
Something about the American psyche doesn’t seem able to “go there” beyond the 26 victims shot inside that elementary school. From Fox News to the New York Times, there seems to be a wall–a sort of sacrilege in mourning the ‘Woman Who Spawned the Monster’. Although I wonder at this neglect, and hope that Nancy Lanza suffered none of the terror the other victims felt, my mind also stops the massacre’s death toll at 26.
Ladysmith CulchaVulcha on December 23, 2012 at 7:43 PM
Family murder-suicides are common, though usually it’s a husband shooting a wife, and then himself. Their funerals aren’t public affairs. If he’d restricted his killing to his mother and then himself, it would be forgotten in a week. What’s remarkable about this is the deaths of the 20 children and 6 school employees.
Paul-Cincy on December 23, 2012 at 7:52 PM
A smouldering hatred, hidden through cunning.
I’ve seen it all before.
OldEnglish on December 23, 2012 at 7:58 PM
Horribly sad, but true.
p.s. Why do I feel this urge to go, ‘Beef. It’s what’s for dinner–NYAAAAAH!’
Ladysmith CulchaVulcha on December 23, 2012 at 7:59 PM
I hope all the other parents of young people who murder, rape, rob, do drugs and otherwise commit illegal and/or unsocial behavior are appropriately blamed.
Just remember when you jump to the blame her for having the guns you open the door to those who tink since we can never be fully prepared for what someone might do if they have some sort of mental break we shouldn’t have guns around anyone other than police.
katiejane on December 23, 2012 at 8:04 PM
The babysitter didn’t say she said that because the kid might attack him though.
Here’s the full comment:
Sounds just as likely that she was simply worried that he would hurt himself, but who knows? You’d think if the kid was homicidal at age 9 or 10, his father or brother would have revealed that by now.
xblade on December 23, 2012 at 8:06 PM
2014:
From the desk of the Secretary of Homeland Security and Office of President of the United States.
It has been determined that someone within 5 miles of your residence has and may have an undiagnosed mental issue. Under Executive order you are required to hand in your weapons within 30 days of this letter to the nearest police station or location where you purchased the weapons. No monetary compensation is to be issued.
This order is issued, due to the fact that they might steal your legal firearm from your legal gun safe and use them to commit a gun crime. To prevent that no one within 5 miles of this person is allowed their legal right to firearms. If you move to a new city there is no guarantee you will not need to hand in your weapons there as well.
Failure to comply is punishable by 10 years in jail and 1 million dollar fine. Agents will do door by door checks within 60 days of this letter and will have full access to your property to do a weapons check. Under this Executive order, the 4th and 5th amendment is suspended and you must comply. If there is any resistance to a property check, you will be charges with the 10 years in jail time.
tjexcite on December 23, 2012 at 8:23 PM
I wondered about that myself. He doesn’t exactly say who would be hurt if he turned his back on Adam.
Wethal on December 23, 2012 at 8:40 PM
Probably not a good idea to turn your back on most kids. They all can get into trouble fast.
CW on December 23, 2012 at 9:24 PM
It appears some just look for hasty answers. Some people blame the shooter who they believe was evil, but all the evidence only points to a young man with a mental disorder. Some people blame it on a lack of appropriate gun control laws, when all the evidence only points to the fact that there is no law that would have stopped this tragedy. And some people blame it on this mother, the one person who they think could have prevented it all…when there isn’t enough evidence yet to even suggest this.
Blame is just a lazy person’s way of making sense of chaos.
-Doug Coupland
lynncgb on December 24, 2012 at 12:04 AM