What the hell is going on?

How the hell does this stuff happen?

Some kid just shot up a local high school cafeteria here. He shot 5 kids after chasing them all down one by one. Why aren't parents more in tune with their kids? If they would have paid attention they would have known there was a problem with their boy or that he was being hassled/bullied etc... In the past we used our fists, beat the crap out of each other then moved on... now these kids get a gun and try making people pay the ultimate price.

Short of doing something psychotic to one of his family members what possible reason is there to use a gun to resolve things, especially in a school?

Get a grip people, talk to your kids, engage them, be part of their lives, school is not your baby sitter!!! And no, gun control is not the answer... I don't know how to stop this sort of thing but I think starting at home is the best place to start.

Sorry for the rant kids, I'm at a loss to understand how these things escalate like this especially in the youth at the high school or lower levels.

Dan

See - not just in Arizona.

Take them off the video games!

Kids are just that, KIDS! They have no idea (for the most part) how using a gun to settle things is not a good idea......it works on the video games (and TV!)......the more firepower you have, the more invincible you are.......nobody's gonna stand up to me if I have a GUN! They have no idea how permanent the situation becomes after using that gun.......they are kids.
It does start at home! Those guns should be locked up and there should be no way a kid should be able to have access to them, but, some people think they should bring their children up around guns so they are not "afraid" of them.
Not a good idea! My kids have no idea how many guns I have......my 25 y.o. son (no, he's not a kid anymore, but I have others!) came over this past weekend (has his own place) and saw my new gun safe and asked, "What are you doing with a gun safe?" Like I said, they have no idea, and that's how it should be in my opinion.......kids are kids, let them grow up before you teach them about something only a RESPONSIBLE ADULT should have in their possession!

I'll bet the gun used was his or a friends, parent's gun.
And BTW, I'm a strong supporter of my 2nd amendment!

It is a bad thing Dan...

I have a son and a reared Nephew 14 and 15 respectively. I ask them about their friends and what they've seen done in school. Like the cinnamon spoonful swallow. Why and what for? Now I've heard about Strawberry colored Meth that looks like the poppin' rock candy being offered in school.

What's next? Where and how did that teenager get that gun? Was he a victim of bullying, teased to the point?

Over here we have problems with people migrating from other Islands that bring their lifestyle here. You name they've done it, I'm not stereotyping them but if they're 15% percent of the population and 60% of the crimes committed are done by them then something needs to change. It never ends??

My girls never had video games, Nintendo, playstation at the house. My guess is that they played them some when at friends' houses. I don't own a gun, have no plans to get one. My girls never played with dolls or stuffed animals, their choice. They were involved with horses and sports (baseball/softball), and that and school also served to keep them away from the mall. My oldest graduated from college and has a real job and a boyfriend. My youngest is a junior in Engineering at the university, called me today that she actually did buy a new wiper arm for the 1998 Frontier she drives (the wiper arms are terrible engineering, the splines are too small), she wangled the parts guy into installing it for free. She works two jobs and didn't hassle me to pay $27 for the dealer-only wiper arm. So, of course, since she didn't ask for re-imbursement, she'll get it. They learned long ago that if they weren't happy with how much of something they got, then they'd get none instead.

Yeah, there were plenty of bumps along the way, including the times I took the hall bathroom door off because they were fighting over it, and locking each other out instead of sharing (I learned that from "The Parent Trap" with Hayley Mills where the cousins were forced to live in the same small bunkhouse).

We had cartoons like Roadrunner and Daffy Duck getting his beak shot off, and they never died, but we knew that wasn't reality. We knew the Three Stooges (I actually saw a live show with Moe, Larry, and Curley Joe, some kid's birthday party went) weren't really gouging each others' eyes out as well.

Maybe it was the "mom at home" days, which my kids also mostly experienced, but few of their friends. Those friend's moms had new minivans and fancy work clothes but had to offset the day care, dry cleaning bills, fast food bills, etc.

As Yogi Berra says: "not all progress is progress"...

By the way: I don't consider myself a great dad or great husband either...

My daughter was given a video game for a gift when younger and she tried it once, never picked it up again. She'd rather play outside or spend time with her family members doing fun things. If she watched TV we made sure it was educational. I think we lucked out and got a really good kid and we just set her in the right direction. I only spanked her twice in her life and she is really smart. She applied to 6 nursing schools and was accepted to all of them!!

We were very active and attentive parents all through secondary school. Teachers would ask why we were at the teachers conferences since they had no trouble with my daughter in school. When we told them we were active parents in our daughters life/education and they were truly surprised!!

We've been rewarded with a top notch college student and a very good passionate and caring person.

It turns out the kid from today was from a well to do family, living with his grand-parents. What a waste. (luckily only one dead - at this point) Dan

Lol @ video games.
What did you grow up watching? War flicks on Sunday (same as me) shooting Japs and Germans and Cowboys and Indian films, settle everything with a gun, get what you want with a gun, defend things with a gun. We then went outside and SHOT ONE ANOTHER. lol.
This sort of shit has always happened but it's now reported much more often, there are more people in the world and "hell is other people". He didn't play games and think "that looks like fun" and decide to play for real. It'll be some poor prick who's been bullied like heck and said "bugger it, you want to bully me well I'm bullying you!".
Bet there wasn't a "stop being a little arsehole" program (aka anti-bully) at the school, and if there was it was just lip service.
It's really hard being nice to people and that's one of the reasons people are arseholes, it's easier.
Difference from someone beating someone at school, knifing someone at school, shooting someone at school? The choice of weapon.
Who thinks if the kid had learned to box and beaten the crap out of his bullies that would have been a good thing instead?
I would, but it's not much of a difference to be honest.

Friggin sad all around.

Yes, could have been stopped at home
"Son stop beating on kids, they'll shoot you if they get really angry/depressed"
"Son don't worry about kids at school, as long as you're happy at home, I'll sort it out"

At least on here we're all giving parenting a damn good try... and that IS damn good parenting!

I was lucky at school, once I grew a foot in a year I got to beat up the "cool kids" when they were beating on "nerds" undeservedly and put the "nerds" in their place when they were being little twits.(they had the brains to realize they were idiots before I got close usually).
But straddling the line between the two "clique" was hard but I just did my own thing and to hell with everyone else.
Was still a depressed little bastard and I wonder if I'd been in one of the "cliques" if I'd have wanted to do the same thing as this bloke, but luckily I had no particular targets
I was lucky and the teachers thought it was just fine... lol... Even did it infront of a teacher once as I picked up a "jock" put him in a full nelson (as he had a "nerd" bundled into a corner beating the heck out of him for NO reason, I saw the whole thing!) and told the "nerd" to hit him. The "nerd" didn't but the teacher just looked at us, I smiled said hello and went back to telling the "nerd" to hit him, and the teacher carried on into class after telling us "Don't be late into class". hahaha.
In the end everyone just left one another alone as it was too much effort otherwise.
Perhaps that's what we need back again, corporal punishment so we're all too busy trying not to be beaten that we don't have time to hate one another too much? Common enemy, used for years to control populace.
end rant.

I don't think video games are to blame, solely. I think they contribute.

Sure as a kid I played cops and robbers, cowboys and Indians (yes I used the word Indians) GEEZ...(not you guys the politically correct bunch) any way... I think the difference is when you played a physical game and hurt someone you see blood or injury and you know it's wrong or you immediately try to help or say "sorry" etc etc. In a video game you kill, rape, and maim without consequences or "experiencing" the carnage. I think experiencing makes all the difference.

Sure some people are wired wrong and they will not react the same as most people and whether or not they played video games or not would end up the same but I think we've lost touch with reality through virtual reality, just as instant gratification has taken over the world we live in now...

A second kid was pronounced brain dead last night... What a waste.

I talk with my kids. I know their issues with others. I have a good relationship with them.
Parents who don't raise their kids properly, by default, let society raise them its own way!
Pure and Simple!

+ 1 SinCityLocal!!