Controversial thoughts about the school shooting today
Posted: December 15th, 2012, 12:45 am
So let me make this clear: what happened today at Sandy Hook Elementary school is absolutely terrible. I don't disagree with that one iota. My heart breaks for the families of those who are now no longer with us.
I am disturbed by the reaction, however. Already, before the dust has even settled, before the first tears have settled, writers have already been blamed.
"Violence in the media is to blame for this," they say. "Violence in our TV shows, movies, and literature the cause of this tragedy."
Wrong.
Such a view is incredibly simplistic. While it's true that visual learning is powerful, Humans are not robots- we are not doomed to repeat whatever we see. If this were so, all we would need to do to help someone is show them a video of the right way to react. Out of the millions and millions who watch and read works and shows with violence, only a couple hundred commit violence in real life. If you're looking for a direct correlation, that's some amazingly bad statistics.
If anything needs to change out of this situation (and it does), its the way we treat mental illness. It's very likely that the perpetrator of this crime was severely mentally ill. If you're looking for a cause, go there. Because of the stigma we put on diseases of the mind, many people don't get treatment. Many of those affected do not get treatment, because they are scared, embarrassed, or perhaps don't recognize their own symptoms.
And mental illness is prevalent. Very prevalent. According to a 2005 study (http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/25766.php), more than 1/4 of the U.S adults participating experienced symptoms that qualified for medical disorders. Another report puts the ratio at one-in-five (http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/health/2012 ... l-illness/), but the point is, that's a lot of people in trouble. Many of those people don't get the help they need. Don't take my word for it. In that same report, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration reported that only 60% of those affected get help. This number is not acceptable.
So, don't go blaming violent media for what happened today. Blame backwards, unhelpful, and prejudicial attitudes towards mental illness for allowing dangerous tendencies and thoughts to run unchecked, until they consume both the person and his or her victims. And let's address the actual problem together.
I am disturbed by the reaction, however. Already, before the dust has even settled, before the first tears have settled, writers have already been blamed.
"Violence in the media is to blame for this," they say. "Violence in our TV shows, movies, and literature the cause of this tragedy."
Wrong.
Such a view is incredibly simplistic. While it's true that visual learning is powerful, Humans are not robots- we are not doomed to repeat whatever we see. If this were so, all we would need to do to help someone is show them a video of the right way to react. Out of the millions and millions who watch and read works and shows with violence, only a couple hundred commit violence in real life. If you're looking for a direct correlation, that's some amazingly bad statistics.
If anything needs to change out of this situation (and it does), its the way we treat mental illness. It's very likely that the perpetrator of this crime was severely mentally ill. If you're looking for a cause, go there. Because of the stigma we put on diseases of the mind, many people don't get treatment. Many of those affected do not get treatment, because they are scared, embarrassed, or perhaps don't recognize their own symptoms.
And mental illness is prevalent. Very prevalent. According to a 2005 study (http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/25766.php), more than 1/4 of the U.S adults participating experienced symptoms that qualified for medical disorders. Another report puts the ratio at one-in-five (http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/health/2012 ... l-illness/), but the point is, that's a lot of people in trouble. Many of those people don't get the help they need. Don't take my word for it. In that same report, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration reported that only 60% of those affected get help. This number is not acceptable.
So, don't go blaming violent media for what happened today. Blame backwards, unhelpful, and prejudicial attitudes towards mental illness for allowing dangerous tendencies and thoughts to run unchecked, until they consume both the person and his or her victims. And let's address the actual problem together.