Do you think most mass shooters are mentally ill, or are just

[raccoon]

Assholes who need a PhD in anger management?

Or something else?

I think the mass murderer in Las Vegas was just an asshole. I was reading on Yahoo this morning where a woman who was shot by him two years ago died from her injuries. The sister said the woman had pieces of shrapnel all In her body because the killer used exploding bullets.

Why would the killer do that, except to be a sadistic asshole?

[veganlush]

1. They think they're important...

... but they know they're impotent...

[Freddie]

2. Suicide by cop

I think many of them want a memorable suicide.

[beachbumbob]

3. depends on how you want to classify abnormal behavior. I don't see it as being an "excuse"

[Mike 03]

4. In case anyone is interested

Here is the final, full report on the Las Vegas mass shooting. IMO it is extremely thorough and includes the research that Stanford University did on his brain. The media often said his motive was unknown, but there's enough here to put together the portrait of a gambler who was running out of ways to get an adrenaline rush. As you said, IMO too, he was a bored "asshole" who no longer found joy in living and wanted to take with him as many people as possible.

Link: https://www.lvmpd.com/en-us/Documents/1-October-FIT-Criminal-Investigative-Report-FINAL_080318.pdf

Stephen Paddock was quite unique. Someone a few months ago said "Each mass shooting is different, and the ways they are different is important." Even if it's possible to say a shooter is mentally ill (Sandy Hook, Aurora Colorado, Virginia Tech) there is such variance in the type of mental illness. But the racially motivated mass shootings IMO are not carried out by individuals who meet the definition of having a mental illness. People will surely argue, but IMO they are ideologically-driven murders, which is why it's sensible to define them as acts of terrorism.

[MyNameGoesHere]

5. Might be worth having every gun owner and buyer

submit to psychiatric examination prior to owning or purchasing a gun. That way we don't have to guess so much about why they gun people down. Or just not let them have a gun if they are mentally deficient. I have to prove I am not blind before I can drive, so why not prove you're not insane before buying a weapon. By the way something I've always found just crazy, you can get a hunting license if you're legally blind to hunt with a gun in some states. But you can't drive a car if your blind. What the fuck?

[tblue37]

8. Here in Kansas, some years ago the GOP controlled legislature removed blindness from restrictions on

being granted a concealed carry permit.

[mopinko]

6. there is a lot of research out there to find the biomarkers for mi.

honestly, right now, dx'ing mental illness is still in the dark ages.
we likely dont even know all the possible chemical malfunctions in the human mind.

right now, it's about checking the boxes on a 100 question test.
i have taken that test, and i can tell you that it is simplistic, and rather sexist. clearly rife w situations where life is very different for men and women.

pet scans are getting better, but they are still sketchy.
we truly need better dx, and also better research into how medications affect mental stability. steroids, for instance, cause serious manic behavior in some people.

mental illness is the red headed step child of medicine, and it is time to get it adopted into the medical family.

[abqtommy]

7. Let's remember that psychopathy/mentall illness and "just being an asshole" are conditions

that can co-exist together quite nicely, and often do. Let's put our efforts into recognizing these persons
and minimizing their destructive impulses, not discussing motives.

[CentralMass]

9. I think anyone who commits mass murder is mentally ill.

[ck4829]

11. I think I'd extend that to murder generally though

Not "mental illness" as anxiety, OCD, depression, etc.

But to take the time and plan to end someone's life for any reason... there's something off about that person.

[JonLP24]

13. That is not true

--

As family physicians, we are no strangers to mental health care. In fact, my most common diagnoses (after "health maintenance" are anxiety and depression. Every day, I see patients who are struggling with sleep, appetite, concentration and energy. These are hallmarks of mental health issues. Committing a mass shooting is not.

That's why it's important for family physicians to combat the persistent myth that mental illness is a leading factor in mass shootings. This is unsupported by evidence.

Study(psychiatryonline.org) after study(www.sciencedirect.com) has demonstrated that people with mental health issues commit only a miniscule percentage of mass shootings and account for less than 1% of annual gun homicides. According to a study based on Swedish data published in the American Journal of Psychiatry, only 3%-5% of violent crimes are perpetrated by someone with a mental illness.(ajp.psychiatryonline.org) In fact, people with serious mental illnesses are more likely to be the victims of violence.(www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov) And the vast majority of gun deaths in America are from suicide, meaning those with mental illness are far more likely to harm themselves than others.

Blaming mental illness only serves to further stigmatize patients who have mental health issues as inherently dangerous. And it deflects attention from a real predictor of mass shootings: easy access to guns.

https://www.aafp.org/news/blogs/freshperspectives/entry/20190918fp-massshootings.html

Blame mental illness all you want but it is not going to stop gun homicides.

[CentralMass]

16. No it is true is that I beleive that people who commit mass murder are mentally ill.

However clearly,statistically, only a small pecentage of mentally ill people are mass murderers.

[JonLP24]

18. Belonging to a far right website is is a bigger sign

Than mental illness. Sociopaths may be serial killers or mass murderers but that is a personality disorder more than a mental illness.

[albacore]

10. Mental illness is roughly a constant thru our species...

We don't have a higher rate than anybody else in the developed world.
"Mental illness" is not the magic explanation for why Americans shoot each other so much.
Other developed countries have violent video games and movies, too.
And pissed-off minorities.
And gangs.
And all the other lame explanations for the slaughter.
What we DO have is virtually unhindered access to all kinds of firearms.

[JonLP24]

14. You are 100% correct

[JonLP24]

12. Why don't you look up the facts?

https://www.aafp.org/news/blogs/freshperspectives/entry/20190918fp-massshootings.html

[raccoon]

15. Great article. Thanks for the link. Nt

[lastlib]

17. The one common denominator is.....

...that they have industrial-strength killing machines. End of discussion, as far as I'm concerned.

[TexasBushwhacker]

19. Well, about 80% of school shooters were victims of bullying n/t