http://news.yahoo.com/video/gunman-...l?soc_src=mediacontentsharebuttons&soc_trk=ma
You judge. But our government is down playing this as a non act of terrorism. Rather, it's a mental illness. Get use to it, mental illness is the new "talking point" our our current administration. Why is that a problem? Well everything from ADD, anxiety, depression etc. is categorized as mental illness.
Terrorism, the
unlawful act of using threats against that which others value in order to garner attention or further political means, may or may not be a manifestation of mental illness, depending on the circumstances.
Case 1: When a lone nutcase attempts to slaughter a cop before claiming he did it in the name of Islam, then the guy truly has a screw lose, as it doesn't further anything other than his incarceration and the ire of the 90% of Americans who are honest, law-abiding people. It also causes them to increase their firearms purchases to the point where it becomes increasingly difficult to pull these kinds of stunts in the future.
Case 2: "When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them," even if that means backing that up by force, an act which the crown considered "unlawful," that is NOT terrorism. The point of the American Revolution is that although God instituted the powers and authorities on Earth, one such authority -- the crown -- had gone off the reservation, thereby violating a higher law (God's law i.e. "the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God").
The problem lies in distinguishing the difference between the "god" of acceptable, civil behavior -- even war as sanctioned by most nations -- and the "god" of some extremists groups, the ones that condone beheadings, child marriage, rape, bombing densely populated areas filled with innocent people, and many other acts[SUP]1[/SUP] that most of us would find heinous but which at least a third of their followers actively support.
As for mental illness:
"An estimated 26.2 percent of Americans ages 18 and older or about one in four adults suffer from a diagnosable mental disorder in a given year. When applied to the 2004 U.S. Census residential population estimate for ages 18 and older, this figure translates to 57.7 million people."
By definition, anything within one standard deviation (68%) from norm cannot be a "mental illness," as it is considered "normal." That leaves 32%, which is slightly more than the 26.2 percent figure in your quote.
Is that reasonable? I say, "No."
People are, by their very nature, highly differentiated creatures. Whether by design or natural selection, this trait of the human condition adds to our overall ability to survive. It ensures that in dramatically changed and harsh environments, at least some humans will survive.
The problem with labeling something as a "mental illness" just because it's "different" is that aberrations in behavior are almost always not harmful to self or others. Aside from drug and alcohol abuse, most aberrations in human behavior are not harmful to either self or others at all. They may not be helpful, as when someone on a tight budget is obsessed with buying 100% organic food, but that's almost certainly not going to kill them and may actually be beneficial if they're eating less than the average American while getting highly nutricious, -cide free food in the process.
Psychologists do not appear to be well equipped to determine the difference between "mental illness" and "propensity towards harm." At best, the underlying science is poor, subjective, and rife with false positive and false negative diagnoses. At worst, it's a crap shoot, a guessing game. I've had friends who were wrongly disarmed even though they never have been and never will be a threat to anyone (except violent criminals in accordance with the law). I've also personally known individuals who I thought were a bit off-kilter, who were judged by the system to be stable enough to possess firearms, yet who wound up harming themselves and others. I also know two people who were as sane as could be, but in with a terminal diagnosis of cancer, took their own lives rather than live through the incredible family financial drain and agony of being eaten alive by cancer.
So, what's the solution?
I propose taking the Second Amendment as is without any of the usual un-Constitutionally illegal infringements imposed by the courts and Congress: "...the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed." If someone gets hold of a gun when they shouldn't have, it's likely their contribution to the gene pool will soon be over.
If some of you can't stomach that draconian approach, then at the very least, no one should be deprived of arms except as confirmed by BOTH competent psychological authority, as confirmed by a second, non-associated psychological authority, and even then, only if confirmed by two or more family members (close friends, if family is unavailable).
Finally, that percentage should be at about 5% (two standard deviations), and should include all criminals, whether incarcerated or on parole. The 26.2% figure is WAY too high.
[SUP]1[/SUP]The Qur'an states:
2:191 - slay unbelievers
3:28 - never befriend infidels (unbelievers)
3:85 - Islam is the only acceptable religion
5:33 - maim and crucify any infidel that criticizes Islam
8:12 - terrorize and behead those who believe in scriptures other than the Qur'an
8:60 - must all weapons to terrorize individuals
8:65 - unbelievers are stupid; fight them
9:5 - kill the infidels whenever you have the opportunity
9:30 - Jews and Christians are perverts - fight them
9:123 - make war on infidels living in your neighborhood
22:19 - punish unbelievers with garments of fire, hooked iron rods, boiling water, melting their skins and bellies
47:4 - do not seek peace with infidels; instead, behead them
According to Islam, if you're not Muslim, then you are an unbeliever, an infidel, and deserve to be the recipient of these heinous atrocities.
And if you try to prove you are not nuts, then it just shows how nuts you really are!
