Article: "Adam Lanza's father in 1st interview: He would have killed me 'in a heartbeat'"

[CMJeepster 2,781]

"Adam Lanza's father in 1st interview: He would have killed me 'in a heartbeat'"

 

http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/10/us/adam-lanzas-father-speaks/

 

New Yorker article:  http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2014/03/17/140317fa_fact_solomon

______

 

I doubt it will happen, but hopefully this will show that it's not the fault of the instrument but the fault of the operator when it comes to violence.  This kid clearly had a lot of screws loose and should have been treated differently.  IMO, anyone sick enough (he was diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asperger_syndrome) to kill their own mother and then kill children should have been institutionalized.

[magnawing 5]

As the parent of a child with Asperger's, I can tell you that Asperger's was not the cause of this tragedy.  Nor was "lax gun control".   No one can argue that either New Jersey, where he lived, or Connecticut, where it occurred, have "lax" gun laws.  Both states have some of the strictest gun control laws in the country, as everyone on this forum is well aware.

 

For the media, or anyone else, to point a finger at Asperger's  as a cause, is ridiculous.  This comes down to a need for mental health treatment and a mother's refusal to recognize problems in her son.  None of us wants to admit that our children have problems because that would be admitting that we somehow "failed" as parents.  That is not the case, we fail if we refuse to acknowledge the fact that our children have flaws. 

 

A good friend of mine was awakened to this fact when his 11-year-old attempted suicide 18 months ago.  The parents knew that their son had problems and was different but could not bring themselves to admit that he needed help.  After the attempt, they woke up to the fact that this was above their paygrade and sought help for their son.  The son is now receiving the help and counseling he needs and no longer has suicidal thoughts. He is excelling in school and is actively making friends and seeking out social interaction instead of being an introverted recluse at 11 years old.

 

As parents, we need to Parent our kids, not be their best friend.  I had a hard time admitting that my son was "different" but I finally came to the realization that I needed to get him the help that he deserves and we're not able to provide on our own.

 

Give your children the parents that they deserve.  Your children will reflect what you show them.  If you teach them respect, they will respect others.  If you teach, through example, hatred, intolerance, and irresponsibility...that's the children that you will raise and release onto society.

[HBecwithFn7 296]

"Adam Lanza's father in 1st interview: He would have killed me 'in a heartbeat'"

 

http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/10/us/adam-lanzas-father-speaks/

 

New Yorker article:  http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2014/03/17/140317fa_fact_solomon

______

 

I doubt it will happen, but hopefully this will show that it's not the fault of the instrument but the fault of the operator when it comes to violence.  This kid clearly had a lot of screws loose and should have been treated differently.  IMO, anyone sick enough (he was diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asperger_syndrome) to kill their own mother and then kill children shouldn't have been institutionalized.

 

Perhaps, you meant "should have been?"

 

Not to sound cruel or speak ill of the dead, but IMHO, the responsibility for this tragedy is with one person only.  Most tragically, she paid for her mistake with her own life.  Adam Lanza was not the registered owner of any of those weapons. They should have never have been near him or within his grasp.  I looked at the video provided by the authorities, and there were absolutely no signs of forced entry into the gun safe. So either Adam knew the combination, or it was simply left unlocked and the weapons accessible.  IMHO (again) the weapons should never have been stored in the house. I'm certainly not trying to deny Ms. Lanza her 2A rights, but with a person "adjudicated" with mental issues, it gets a bit more complicated. I'd have found a locker facility or something off site to store most of that inventory and kept that safe locked (and the combination hidden) in re: the others or the HD/SD pieces.

 

As for Mr. Lanza (the father), I wonder why the big emphasis on his statement "I wish my son had never been born."   That may backfire. Not sure.  I also wonder why he is so sure that his son would have killed the entire family if given the opportunity. There is more to his story than I think we're getting.

[CMJeepster 2,781]

Point taken on Asperger's .  I don't know enough about it, but clearly this kid had one or more things wrong with him to allow him to do this.

 

As for the parents not being able to bring themselves to admit that he needed help, I've seen that first-hand.  A long time ago, I dated a girl with both Anorexia and Bulimia.  Here parents were in such denial that even after a few years of me begging them to do something, they finally put her in an in-patient program... for less than 24 hours because of some bullshit reason like she didn't like the fact that they wouldn't let her smoke inside the building or something like that.  I eventually couldn't take it anymore and got the hell out of there.

[CMJeepster 2,781]

Perhaps, you meant "should have been?"

 

Fixed, sorry.

[Albanian 121]

I don't know why people think being someone's friend means letting them walk all over you and act like an animal... Anyway...

 

This has nothing to do with Asperger's. He had deeper mental problems. (I see you noted this) His mother was incredibly foolish and that combined with strict gun laws and people not taking their safety and the safety they are responsible for realistically and/or seriously and ultimately Adam Lanza are the reasons for that tragedy.

[bulpup 98]

Great article. Thanks for the link. sad as hell.

 

Expect the term pseudocommando to be thrown around more in the near future, as defined on page 7.

[leahcim 680]

As the parent of a child with Asperger's, I can tell you that Asperger's was not the cause of this tragedy.  Nor was "lax gun control".   No one can argue that either New Jersey, where he lived, or Connecticut, where it occurred, have "lax" gun laws.  Both states have some of the strictest gun control laws in the country, as everyone on this forum is well aware.

 

For the media, or anyone else, to point a finger at Asperger's  as a cause, is ridiculous.  This comes down to a need for mental health treatment and a mother's refusal to recognize problems in her son.  None of us wants to admit that our children have problems because that would be admitting that we somehow "failed" as parents.  That is not the case, we fail if we refuse to acknowledge the fact that our children have flaws. 

The father says that in the interview.  That Aspergers was not the cause of this, but may have masked an underlying disorder.  Since he has the Asperger's diagnosis, they would attribute any odd behavior to Asperger's rather than think there could be something else.

 

"Adam had what was then called Asperger’s syndrome and what would now be autism spectrum disorder,'' Solomon said. "He had a certain amount of autism, and the autism made him as his father said, ‘very weird.’ Because they had a diagnosis, it didn’t occur to them that anything else was wrong."

And

"Lanza indicates that he believes Adam's diagnosis of Asperger's syndrome may have masked potential schizophrenia. "

[wooly bugger 1]

Wasn't his mother trying to get him hospitalized around that time?

 

I know the mother of the guy who shot Chris Kyle was pretty much begging the VA to hospitalize him because he was a danger.

 

It's incredibly hard to find hospital beds even for the dangerously psychotic. It's sad that Weinberg and gang don't spend any time addressing it. Maybe because fixing the problem would cost money, as opposed to passing meaningless legislation, which is free. It also doesn't score photogenic points the way holding up a evil black rifle and claiming to have protected society from it has.

 

I think they should be held criminally responsible after the next shooting by a floridly psychotic individual.

[CMJeepster 2,781]

It's sad that Weinberg and gang don't spend any time addressing it... It also doesn't score photogenic points the way holding up a evil black rifle and claiming to have protected society from it has.

Ding, ding ding!  You don't see anyone trying to ban cars because someone didn't know their limits, got behind the wheel while intoxicated and hurt or killed someone, do you?  16 people:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lizzie_Grubman

[Newtonian 453]

The mental health system in this country is the pits. We used to institutionalize psychotics. Now we have the money for a million other things but not for that.

 

Psychiatry was always regarded by the medical profession at large as voodoo. One of the few positive things you could say about clinicians years ago, particularly those who used cognitive and behavioral therapy, was at least they couldn't fukc you up with drugs because they hardly had any. Now you see a psychiatrist and five minutes after walking in the door you walk out with a prescription.

 

It can take an awful lot of effort to figure out what's wrong with someone. I'm convinced, based on recent experiences with two friends, that they often never find out. They guess at something, and give you pills.

 

 

Don't be quick to make associations between purported diagnoses and the Lanza case. We don't really know what was wrong with him, what he was taking or not taking, whether his mother drove him crazy, if he was having a mini-stroke. These are exceptionally rare events. Black swans. Unexplainable.

[bulpup 98]

Well said newtonian. Additionally, having someone diagnosed is one thing, wrapping your head around the fact a loved one will never get better, or looking at a lifetime of expensive treatment once accepted can make people put their heads in the sand.

 

I know a family that has had their now 50 year old sister in and out of institutions all her life that still say "she's just trying to get attention."

 

The system is as broken as anything else in this country. What is truly sad is the ordinary person's beliefs and prejudices about it - the system and the mental health in general. Your average joe on the street says it's all mumbo jumbo.

[paulnj088 9]

BS 

Newtown= BS