Kids have always been angry. Nothing new there. Boys have always been overactive. Nothing new there, either.
But, when you take away "tag" as too rough, dodgeball as "too competitive" and so on and so forth...that outlet to channel some of the aggression is lost. Tell the boy he's got ADD or OCD or ADHD and that he's a "problem child", and trying to live down that label will make him angrier.
Throw in a handful of heavy-duty, mood-altering drugs. Then, add 24/7 news-coverage - INSTANT NOTORIETY - of every maladjusted twit that shoots up a school and...Presto.
I'm not making excuses for it. I'm not even saying that all of these were factors in this particular instance. I'm just putting the ideas out there. Unfortunately, short of a total societal revamp, I don't see any way of changing things, anytime in the near future.
“Throw in a handful of heavy-duty, mood-altering drugs. Then, add 24/7 news-coverage - INSTANT NOTORIETY - of every maladjusted twit that shoots up a school and...Presto.”
You may have something there. In the current celebritocracy, it doesnt matter WHY you are famous, its just the fame thats important. And what can a kid do to become famous faster than to shoot up a school?