American Mass Shootings Is Not A Mental Health Issue.

[jonharrison]

Your presupposition is also that these traits are genetically transmissible which is far from proven.

A country like Germany who suffered some of the worst male population losses, and whose survivors lived through some of the most horrendous aspects of war as Soviet POW`s present themselves as better candidates for promulgating a lineage of antisocial personality behavior resulting in mass violence to the likes that we see in the U.S. There are too many holes in your logic to support your claim.

Not necessarily, while PTSD is linked to APD, it isn’t a requirement. In fact, in your German example, someone with APD wouldve been more likely to be executed by the Soviets, although I would imagine the rates would’ve already been lower in Germany prior to WW2 anyways. Someone who’s personality doesn’t lend itself towards following the rules doesn’t last long in an authoritarian government. There have been genetic links found with APD. I encourage you to check out the study I replied to your other post.

 

[Andy Capp]

I'm with TS in one respect. There is no correlation (if my sources are to be believed) between PTSD and violent behaviour. There may be other mental illnesses involved, and certainly many people have more than one, but there are a lot of examples lately of people being involved in violence where the report makes a point of mentioning the person was being treated for PTSD. It's misleading and it really stigmatizes people with the condition.

I can't comment on the likelihood of acting out violently in the case of other illnesses, but I'm inclined to agree there's more to being driven to kill a bunch of (relatively) innocent people than being sick in the head.

I'll be watching to see if everyone ITT and the Florida shooting thread will be jumping up and down to post that the person was mentally ill the next time a brown person shoots a bunch of people, mind you.

 

[Gazwald]

I don't like the stigma either. I've also worked in mental health, and I learned society's shit in that way. The number of people who just turn their back on someone because they're diagnosed with a mental illness because they're "crazy" without a minute's thought is sickening.

Having said that though, the vast majority of shooters are severely mentally ill. Being for religious/political/personal reasons, to believe that shooting up a load of people is a good idea requires a certain level of psychosis at the very least. Not to mention a large proportion are social outcasts with personality disorders.

Mass shootings are associated with mental illness, quite rightly.
Mental illness being associated with mass shootings is ignorant, insensitive and shows a lack of awareness on the issue. If you're best mate gets diagnosed with depression, be there for them. They're not going to shoot everyone. They just need some help and support.

Let's not kid ourselves though. Most shooters are mentally ill, and the mental illness is a big factor in the incident almost always. Doesn't change the fact that the vast majority of mentally ill people pose no more of a threat to society than your average Joe.

 

[Damien Karras]

This isn’t true. We do have a higher rate of personality disorders than the rest of the world.

https://psychnews.psychiatryonline.org/doi/10.1176/pn.44.17.0018a

It isn't the highest, and still doesn't account for the disparity in mass shootings in comparison to the rest of the world.

I'm not an expert on the matter, and like anyone else on this forum I can only guess as to why this phenomenon is so unique to U.S culture. Access to mental health or any health service in the U.S is some of the most incomprehensively dense and difficult processes in the industrial world. I currently have a life threatening condition and I can't imagine living in the states with what I have. I'd go bankrupt. The U.S government isn't very good at taking care of its people, and the experiment in which people think they can take care of themselves without state intervention isn't doing so well. The U.S is 43rd in life expectancy, 19th in obesity rates (ahead of a bunch of pacific islands and M.E oil nations), and, to be on topic, is first in mass shootings with 33% of the world's mass shootings despite holding 5% of the world's population. I don't see how any country can lie to its people about having sound federal health policies with these kinds of statistics.

But Trump wants to make it easier for people with mental health issues to bypass gun regulations. I mean it's just nuts. The world looks towards the U.S with their binoculars and it sees a chaotic shit show of improvisation with a snake oil salesaman in the middle, and a bunch of a cool military toys paid for by the taxes but no underlying netting for health or other crucial social services. Your country is rich, I'll give you that but there is a massive misapproppriation of resources that is causing a lot of death and needless pain for its population.

 

[cincymma79]

As a nurse who has worked in mental health, I am strongly against the media trying to further stigmatize people, who suffer from mental health issues, by attaching them to these perfectly logical acts of violence.

To premeditate mass shootings type of attacks, you have to think clearly about it. The attacker searches for a weapon of choice, learns to use the weapon of choice, keeps a back weapon, scouts the future scene of the crime, and most importantly, he has enough will power and patience to wait for the perfect opportunity to strike.

This is military style thinking. Are our soldiers "crazy"? In my experience, people with mental health issues will commit suicide before homicide. They often get violent towards others, only when others get in their space. It is rarely premeditated, and most often a reaction towards typically a single individual.

The idea that a human has to be "crazy" to kill a bunch of people is just ridiculous. American soldiers go overseas and kill a bunch of people, who have never directly done anything wrong to them. The motives may be different, but the execution is the same.

As a nurse you are not qualified to make those decisions any more than as a therapist I am qualified to say the same and I bet have a lot of years on you as well. These people are crazy. They are overwhelmingly on antidepressants and by definition giving them weapons is a bad idea, even though someone like that will just do it another way but at least they wouldn’t have our stamp of approval.

 

[jamel]

At the core, it is the same. If you want to carry out a certain act, and you understand why, then you are not "crazy."

You are doing as you will. Just because other people may not agree, it doesn't make you "crazy."

"Crazy" people either (1) don't understand and/or (2) they have a fantastical/magical understanding what they are doing.

A "crazy" person doesn't make a good killer.

Oh now you dont want to address logistics...

Come on man, you cant pick n choose like that.

Hell yeah you have to be a lil crazy to WANT to join any branch of service.

BUT THIS IS A WHOLE OTHER LEVEL OF CRAZY THAT NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED AND IT ISNT BECAUSE PEOPLE LIKE YOU WANT TO GENERALIZE.

basically you are what gun rights activists are talking about.

I agree with them. This should be approached from a common sense perspective.

Not the act on impulse and emotion type of shit you are talking.

Strange how a psych nurse doesnt know that there are levels to this shit, but an ownry old vet does cause he learned it in group.