Monday, July 30, 2012

Tragedy in Aurora

I haven’t written here in awhile…  I think I’ve pretty much covered my views on religion in general and in my reasoning for my departure from the conservative movement, so I have seen any need to expand on this subject.  But, since last Friday’s tragedy in Aurora, Colorado, I find my thoughts bound to that horrific event.
For days since the events in Colorado been unfolding, I have tried to focus on other more pleasant topics.  As hard as I try, cohesive coherent thoughts have evaded me, as the media continually bombards us with news of the worst mass shooting in U.S. history, the “Tragedy in Aurora.”  By now, everyone is painfully aware of this tragedy, 12 people killed and another 50 wounded by a gunman at a midnight screening of the latest Batman movie in Aurora, Colorado.  A little more than a week has past, and we still now very little of real value about what might have occurred that cause the gunmen to had he did, and I have tried diligently to avoid writing this essay, but it is, as I am seeing it, equally unavoidable.  So I seem destine to complete it, if I ever want to get back to things that bring me much greater pleasure.

Before I get into why I feel compelled to write this essay, I want to send my truly heartfelt sympathies and condolences to the victims… which, of course, includes the family and friend of those killed or wounded… of this horrendous act.  Nothing I could say would ever be enough to console the grief caused by this event, and nothing I might says here is intended to cause any additional grief to those affected.

When I awoke on Friday morning, my Facebook, as well as other frequented social media and news feeds, was already blowing up with comments, and tidbits of info about this horrific tragedy.  Since then, you cannot go an hour without something somewhere bringing us back to it, again, and again, and again…

What strikes me, and has worried me, is the output from our instantaneous news cycle today.  Within moments of this event, the internet was abuzz with all manner of analysis, conjecture, and comment about this mental, physical, and emotional state of the perpetrator, with no real data to backup the claims.  Within moments of my starting to read through the posts and articles hitting the web, I “learned” that

this assailant was; a mad, crazy, mentally unbalanced schizophrenic paranoid who had a bad childhood, or experienced some massively devastating even in his life, which caused him to lack the coping mechanisms or filters needed to live in today’s society.

Okay, yeah that’s a hyperbolic compilation of dozens of posts in one statement, but, it is an accurate representation of what many people thought they knew shortly after this event.  The sad part has been watching many in the mainstream media pandering to this picture.  Fact is, several days after the event, and we still know very little about this person, and yes, I am avoiding naming him.  What we do know at this point, is that, the guns and ammo used in the crime were legally obtained, as were the chemical used to booby trap his apartment, he was not a stupid individual – he was in a PhD program from which he’d recently withdrew, that he had no criminal record, and there was no overt evidence to indicate a reason for his actions.  What we do not know is what triggered this event, even as we (most of us because of our impatience) continue to draw conclusions from an incomplete picture.  The only thing we can conclude with certainty, at this time, is that this individual was not mentally sound at the time.  In coming weeks, we can hope that we learn why, and can learn a little bit more about how to identify the problem earlier.

We all remember the idiom “Nature abhors a vacuum.”  Well, it’s not really true – you can just look to the night sky to see that – but, I do think it can be reformed to say, “The human mind abhors a lack of data.”  Meaning, in absence of accurate information, we will naturally create information to support the conclusions we have already formed.  But, why does this need to have immediate answers exist, and in particular after events as horrendous as this tragedy?  My opinion is that, while each of us will staunchly maintain that we could not be drive to such atrocities for any reason, none of us knows what event in our own lives might trigger a mental imbalance which could lead to such devastating behavior.  In my experience and observation, I have seen that anyone can be driven to a breaking point, and most do not know where that line exists.  I’ve also seen that many, if not most, people have demons lying dominant in our subconscious’s just looking for a reason to unleash their wrath.  I have personally experienced this release of demons upon experiencing events which created great anger in me.  I have been fortunate that my actions, at such times, did not result in actions even close to degree in Aurora, but, I recognize the possibility.  For all the understanding we have developed about human psychology, no one to my knowledge has yet been able to catalog all that can cause or contribute to mental illness, nor has anyone been able effectively predict mental illness.  I personally equate mental illness to earthquakes, we all have faults in our psyche, and like fault lines in the earth’s crust, no one can predict how much stress these faults can take, or how devastating the damage will be when in breaks.  So, how does this relate to our need to have a definite and rapid conclusion after events like what happened in Aurora?  I think each and every one of us is scared that it could have been one of us who broke with such damaging effect, and for most the fear exists so deep within the subconscious that it manifests itself in the need to know why someone else cracked, so we can comfort ourselves that those faults don’t exist in us.  And… So much the better if we can point to external sources outside our control as the problem.  For then, we can ask society as a whole to take ownership in controlling those external sources.  All I ask; the next time you find yourself really angry, stop for a moment and think about why and look internally for the source of your anger.  It may just help you to relieve that stress in a less destructive manner.

Next I’d like to touch on something regarding the victims of this tragedy.  First, I am, in no way, blaming the victims of this mentally ill person, or claiming that they should bear any responsible for the results.  But, particularly over the last decade or so, I’ve observed something that troubles me greatly.  It is what I call a societal numbness, or lack of situational awareness.  I see dozens of examples of this on a daily basis… in the drivers on the freeway, who can’t seem to stay in their own lane, or changing lanes without notices there is a car in the lane next to them… or in the malls and stores, where people can’t be bothered to look where they are walking, instead doing their window shopping on the move…  and of course, in this day of twitter, facebook, and texting, almost everyone move about oblivious to their surrounding while their eyes are focused on that little screen in front of them.  Our military teaches young recruits and officer about situational awareness on the field of combat, but that concept is one that should be taught to everyone.  It is something I have adopted as part of my everyday life, and something I have thought my children (no longer children).  Being aware of where I am at (environment) and what is happening around me has afforded to opportunity to avoid many problems or potential disastrous situations.

I have to wonder how many in that theater saw, without seeing, someone go to the exit door only to re-emerge moments later.  Even though it’s not uncommon for people to attend movies like this one in a costume, combing the costume with an exit and return, I think, should have raised a red flag. I know it would have for me.  A smoke canister going off??? Definitely a red flag!!!  Yet, I heard several accounts of people thinking it was just part of the show.  Again personally, I’ve never been to an event – movie in this case – where there where extra-sensory additions to the show that were not at least acknowledged beforehand.   Even though history is littered with examples to the contrary, we seem to possess this misguided idea that we are protected and safe (or should be) from illegal or dangerous activities, or that we can live our normal everyday lives without much concerned for our own safety.  It is a foolish supposition, and most would probably deny believing it.  But, look at how so many people go about the everyday business acting as if it was so.  The simple truth is that the best way to avoid becoming a victim, is to quit acting like a victim, and the simplest way to stop acting like a victim is to pay attention to your surroundings…  if you’ve got a bad feeling about something, there’s usually a pretty good reason.

Finally, even as tragic as this event was, particularly in the scope of individuals lost or wounded, let’s not forget all the people lost or injured in senseless violence throughout the country or even the world, on a daily basis which never draw the attention of the national media.  But…  We should not forget as well, that there is little that could have been done to honestly prevent this from happening.  Yes, maybe more and tighter gun control might have forestalled this event, but, not prevent it.  There is no way we can legislate a perfectly safe society, and it is my contention that it is a waste of time to try.  Once this individual decided he was going to wreak this kind of destruction, there are any of a multitude of methods which could have been employed to achieve a very similar result.  People killing, for whatever reason, has been with us since the beginning of the human race, and will, in all likelihood, be with us until are end.  There is really little that can be done to prevent such act, without making criminals of all of us, or taking away those tools with which to protect ourselves or our families.  Or, for that matter, taking away or criminalizing everyday tools which could be use for destructive purposes in the hand of someone with a little bit of knowledge.  I try to live in the real world, and that tells me we have the laws we have and we have to learn how to live with them.

I’ll close with this… the first step to safety is awareness…  so, start by being aware.


Your comments or questions are always welcome, and I have added an email address for those not wishing to comment openly in this forum.  Emails can be sent to recoveringcathcon@gmail.com. However, please know that if this account is used to flood me with trash and hate mail, I will shut it down.


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