Why isn't there the same kind of sympathy for Adam Lanza?

Lots of stuff we don't know in that speculation. We don't know he tried to kill himself. Reports are conflicting about the origins and extent of his wounds. I doubt we will ever know the truth of that. Also, if you are saying he can't face what he's done, that would imply guilt, realization and remorse. Unlikely emotions in a 'monster'.

Anonymous wrote:That's why I said 'feel'...not 'know'. Facts are funny things. Knowledge is subjective. If we waited to form an opinion until we had all the 'facts' and 'knowledge' we would be as silent as Dzhokhar is right now.

He's silent because he tried to kill himself. Most likely so he wouldn't have to deal with prison capture.

Can't face what he's done.

You were probably the same people who felt bad for Harris and Kleibold, if only they weren't bullied...boo hoo. Until, mo this and years later the investigation turned out that they both had serious emotional and psychological problems and the "bullying" was more a cover.

Before you spend your feelings on them, wait and let the investigators do their jobs.

And, there IS sympathy fatigue, so you can only feel so much - before you are drained. Why waste it on these boys?

That's why I said 'feel'...not 'know'. Facts are funny things. Knowledge is subjective. If we waited to form an opinion until we had all the 'facts' and 'knowledge' we would be as silent as Dzhokhar is right now.

[/b]I feel sure [b]Dzhokhar would never have committed this crime had Tamerlan not pushed him into it.

Seriously? I am not trying to be snarky but I am seriously confused. How can anyone " feel sure" that he would not have acted independently. We don't know this man.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think most people are confused/dismayed by the portrait of this guy as a normal kid who suddenly did something heinous. A lot of other perpetrators of terrorist acts or violent crimes have a more predictable pattern: they became religious extremists, or they behaved oddly and had no friends (Loughner or Holmes), or they would charm people and then screw them over (Ted Bundy). None of those patterns seem to fit the bill here.

The whole thing has made me want to do some research on people who seem to just snap. Will it turn out, as some posters suggested, that there WERE warning signs? Do most people have the potential to do evil things? Do some people have the potential, and a precipitating act sets them off?

Says who? The media? His friends? His 3rd grade Spanish teacher.

We don't know anything about this guy...before you start pining for the adult he could have been, wait for the true investigation, not a few wrestling buddies who said "yeah, he's great! I smoked weed with him and he's awesome "

That is all we have to go on in really any case until the investigation and yet in almost every case we hear things...

Cho and Holmes....people spoke of signs and evidence they were mentally ill
Lanza - loner, at home, history of problems throughout life

Even the older brother in this case we have heard things...
...arrested for domestic violence, wife and child left him and living with her parents
...dropped out of school
...interviewed by FBI
...didn't fit into culture here, had trouble making friends
...became more involved in religion and in radical thinking in recent years
...left the country for unknown reasons for 6 months last year
...shared or posted jihad / al-Queda videos on Youtube

Anonymous wrote:I think most people are confused/dismayed by the portrait of this guy as a normal kid who suddenly did something heinous. A lot of other perpetrators of terrorist acts or violent crimes have a more predictable pattern: they became religious extremists, or they behaved oddly and had no friends (Loughner or Holmes), or they would charm people and then screw them over (Ted Bundy). None of those patterns seem to fit the bill here.

The whole thing has made me want to do some research on people who seem to just snap. Will it turn out, as some posters suggested, that there WERE warning signs? Do most people have the potential to do evil things? Do some people have the potential, and a precipitating act sets them off?

Says who? The media? His friends? His 3rd grade Spanish teacher.

We don't know anything about this guy...before you start pining for the adult he could have been, wait for the true investigation, not a few wrestling buddies who said "yeah, he's great! I smoked weed with him and he's awesome "

Jeffrey Dahmer's father has made himself available to interviews and his thoughts are very interesting. Everyone of these people mentioned in this thread, even Ted Bundy, started out as baby, tabula rasa if you will. Maybe not-are sociopaths born that way? I think it's important for us to research these topics as opposed to simply compartmentalizing human beings into neat fit categories. That is what will help us possibly move closer to becoming a more evolved species.

This thread reminded me of when I watched Timothy McVeigh's dad testify for him in the death penalty phase of his trial. It was only then that I could even see any humanity in McVeigh, that at one point in his life, he was a little boy doing all the same things are kids do. Of course, his parents were devastated. While my sympathy went to his parents, it did make me think twice about the death penalty.

Love can and does make people do completely crazy things. Even if - maybe especially if - it's the love for an admired sibling. Family is the deepest tie of all. Blood is blood. I feel sure Dzhokhar would never have committed this crime had Tamerlan not pushed him into it. Tamerlan had, by his own admission, no friends here. He needed his younger brother's help to carry out his terrible plan and had no qualms about pulling Dzhokhar out of the life he was making for himself here and dragging him into the hell he was creating for them both. Yes, damn it, I do feel sympathy for Dzhokhar. He is alone, wounded and totally screwed. He's probably wondering what the hell just happened. Yes, his victims are also hurt but they will survive with love and support. But, as he said, there is no love in the city - or anywhere else - for this boy. Yes, his victims are dead, but so is he. One way or another, his life is over. There are no victors here. All are victims.

An ideological motive can turn even non-sociopaths into evil killers. We've seen it throughout history. Certain types of people are particularly vulnerable to ideological manipulation: dislocated people who are in economic and social distress, who aren't necessarily sociopaths, can be manipulated by a skillful leader into doing evil things. The Nazi movement, which appealed to Germans in the midst of rampant inflation and economic crisis in the 1930s, is a good example of this.

I feel sympathy toward the 8-year old boy's family. His sister that lost her leg. The mother that most likely suffered brain damage. The father that harbors guilt that it was his fault they were there. I feel sympathy towards the multiple victims that are amputees and double amputees.

Those two selfish, dumb fuckers--ZERO sympathy. He was 19. You have your own mind at 19.

Anonymous wrote:I'm tired of some posters telling other posters what to think and how to feel. You can be sympathetic towards the person Dzhokhar was a few short years ago and mystified about the person he became and wonder how he got from Point A to Point B and, all at the same time, it's amazing what the mind can handle, recognize that Point B was an atrocity.

+1000

ALSO

Anonymous wrote:I think you might be missing my point. Is it not possible to attempt to walk in the shoes of both the victims and the perpetrators? Do you really think that wondering about what makes a person act this way obviates our primary sympathies for the victims? Is it really that black and white for you? Some of us are trying to think outside of the box for a minute. Why do people do such things? How can we prevent a person from becoming this way? Churn 'em and burn 'em ain't gonna get us there.

+1000

10:25 This is a problematic comparison. What you describe is bullying. An easy call. The path to terrorism is complex, and terrorists find all sorts of justifications that are often rooted in acts bu nation states, including the U.S. Our government is presently killing civilians, including children, with drones. In some ways this is more frightening to me, because it's not radicalized. It's the system.