Comments on: Charlotte Allen Touches a Nerve on Newtown

By: Randy McDonald

Randy McDonald — Mon, 24 Dec 2012 13:17:42 +0000

Sorry–for “three-quarters” read “one-quarter.” My bad.

By: Randy McDonald

Randy McDonald — Sun, 23 Dec 2012 20:33:32 +0000

Mike:

“So Randy, are you advocating arming teachers? Are we helpless before shooters, except for more guns? Ever hear of movement and cover? Imagining a situation where nobody can win is not very helpful.”

Advocating that people–husky 12 years old boys, men, whomever–run _towards_ people with firearms is profoundly foolish. That foolishness deserves to be called out on.

More seriously, some sort of gun control would be a good idea. Dave Brockington points out

http://www.lawyersgunsmoneyblog.com/2012/12/the-only-thing-that-stops-a-bad-guy-with-a-gun-is-a-good-guy-with-a-gun-except-in-britain

that although rates of violent crime are significantly higher in Britain than in the United States, British homicide rates are three-quarters of American homicide rates. Limiting the presence tools which facilitate the escalation of disputes to the level of murder, and mass murder, would be a good thing to do.

By: David Nickol

David Nickol — Sun, 23 Dec 2012 20:15:17 +0000

Publius,

While I don’t believe I have ever agreed with Heather before, and probably never will again, we really don’t know what went on inside Adam Lanza’s head. While what he did is objectively and horrifically evil, determining his personal, moral culpability may be impossible. Given his upbringing and/or his brain chemistry, did he have a chance? Perhaps he was a truly evil person, or perhaps he was no more responsible for his actions than a wild animal. Only God knows these things for sure.

By: Mike Melendez

Mike Melendez — Sun, 23 Dec 2012 19:18:06 +0000

So Randy, are you advocating arming teachers? Are we helpless before shooters, except for more guns? Ever hear of movement and cover? Imagining a situation where nobody can win is not very helpful.

By: Charles R. Williams

Charles R. Williams — Sun, 23 Dec 2012 12:35:41 +0000

Allen’s comments are certainly not the last word on Sandy Hook. They offer a reasonable perspective with which people can disagree. Nothing that Allen wrote justifies the vicious comments that people have made. My issue with Allen is that she views this event through the lens of her own agenda. I agree with her agenda. I just don’t think it offers a whole lot of insight into this particular incident.

By: Randy McDonald

Randy McDonald — Sun, 23 Dec 2012 03:27:36 +0000

It’s pretty far from obvious that the greater strength of the average male compared to the average female would be relevant in the context of someone with access to ranged weapons like the ones used in the Sandy Hook massacre. Big muscular people can be killed by rifle fire as easily as small petite ones. Arguably, it’s easier to kill them–big people are, if nothing else, bigger targets.

By: Publius

Publius — Sat, 22 Dec 2012 22:06:39 +0000

Heather,

The tears you are shedding for your “Adam” (amazing how you’ve been able to write two lengthy pieces on this massacre and never once mention the name of any of his innocent victims) and comparing him to victims of medieval pogroms and witch hunts is grotesque.

And to add to that obscenity the idea that we “have no idea who did what to Adam for 20 years to make him go on this shooting spree” is to ignore the fact that “Adam” chose to go on that shooting spree — save your tears for his 6 year old victims. I’ll give you their names if you’re at all interested.

By: Mike Melendez

Mike Melendez — Sat, 22 Dec 2012 20:55:18 +0000

Much more civil comments here but still curious. Are there really that many people that believe not agreeing with them is cause for put downs? Perhaps those that argue that women can be just as aggressive with a gun as a man are saying the teachers should have been armed? Well then, say that. If not, then what is the point of your argument? Certainly the simple fact that men, on average, are bigger and stronger than women is not controversial. You can test it yourself with a measuring tape and a scale. The idea that women are, on average, as aggressive as men falls before the fact that all of the shooters so far have been men. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I maintain we are different just as we are both the same species.

By: Tony Esolen

Tony Esolen — Sat, 22 Dec 2012 15:49:14 +0000

I found her comments to be quite uncontroversial. Can’t anybody now distinguish between a general truth and a universal truth? Also, the very presence of male authority figures dampens aggression in young men — or directs it to socially productive ends. That was one of the reasons why the nuns in my boyhood school could manage a classroom of 45 to 51 students (the range in my class over the course of six years). They were backed up by male authority. ALL of those children lived with their fathers at home. The priests — three of them — were across the street, and came into the building to teach religion to the older grades. The boys were distinguished from the girls by dress — the jackets and ties that signified, “You are like your fathers here.” The thing is, it’s hard to see things that DON’T happen — you have to be paying close attention to notice the borderline sociopathic boy who DOESN’T become a sociopath (I am thinking of one kid in high school now)… One thing that our current misery proves abundantly is that women do not make men out of boys.

By: Heather

Heather — Sat, 22 Dec 2012 07:39:54 +0000

Publius: “Adam” — you mean the adult sociopath who thought it would be a hoot to shoot six and seven year old children multiple times at close range with a military style weapon?

Publius, please spare us your complete lack of knowledge on what Adam thought. You have no idea what he thought, what he felt, or what motive he had for doing anything in life.

” Spare us the language of empathy and psychological mumbo jumbo about abandonment and neglect. ”

Why should I? Because I am not evil enough to turn my back on kids who have been mistreated to the point where they develop mental illnesses? One does need to be a heartless human being to call for such an attitude.

Furthermore, one needs to be evil in order to guarantee impunity for people who mistreat kids to the point where the latter develop profound mental problems by never investigating any single case.

What factors most contributed for Adam to develop his mental illness? If we examine this question, what we will find in the answer is various factors, including a concert of very harmful adults (and maybe minors).

“This man (he was not a “kid”) was pure evil.”

As much as witches were in the 17th century. That’s why they burned them. Even 6 year olds were “pure evil” during the Inquisition. That’s why they would torture them to death. Jews too. They spared no “mumbo jumbo” at the time.

You have no idea who did what to Adam for 20 years to make him go on this shooting spree.