What is in the mind of the Washington, DC shooter? What does he see when he looks though his gunsight? Apparently, he does not see a person. He sees a target. The shooter, I think, knows he’s going to be caught some day. He expects to be caught, even looks forward to it. On the day the shooter is caught, he will step forward and begin his moment in the spotlight. The shooter’s arrest and trial and imprisonment and likely execution will be covered by news media all over the world. When he is at last discovered and apprehended, the shooter’s name will join the other famous serial killers: Jeffrey Dahmer, Ted Bundy, David Berkowitz.
All that, however, remains in the future; for now there are targets. The more targets the shooter hits before he is caught, the more famous he will be after his arrest. The more direct hits he scores, the longer his fame will last, the harder it will be for the next serial killer to break his record.
The shooter has so much to think about, he cannot allow himself to think of his targets as people. He has to think about his getaway each time he shoots. He has to think about his clues – tarot cards, notes, phone messages. He threatens children, better to stimulate fear among the public.
The shooter reads his press, but he cannot dwell for long on the stories of the victims, the targets. He doesn’t think about a husband and father, on the streets of Maryland earlier than the dawn, working to provide for his family and keep his passengers safe. He does not think about a woman who survived cancer, anticipating her first grandchild. The shooter does not think of a 13-year-old, full of potential, lying in a hospital, grievously wounded.
If we cannot understand the mind of a shooter, can we understand the mind of a bomber who parks a car full of explosives on a block of clubs crowded with tourists? Are the bomber’s victims easier for him to ignore than the shooter’s? Unlike the shooter, the bomber does not have to look at each and every person he kills, every target. The bomber, almost certainly, will keep his head down, avoiding faces, as he walks away from his curbside bomb. Does the bomber have a political agenda? Does that make it easier? Does that make it all right?
How about the suicide bomber, driving his explosive-packed SUV into a bus full of commuters? How great is his mental burden? That particular suicide bomber need not see people at all, focusing his attention on the bus that is – outwardly, at least – inanimate. The suicide bomber, in addition to his political rationale, can insulate his conscience with the knowledge that he will die with his victims.
What about the soldier in the tank, firing a machine gun at children that throw stones? Is his mind closer to our own or to the mind of the bomber or the shooter? Does the soldier in the tank insulate his mind with the idea that he is not trying to hit the children with bullets, although sometimes he does? Is he insulated by the thought that the children with the stones would kill him if they could, if the situation was reversed?
How much mental insulation does a soldier have as he sits at the controls of an armored bulldozer, knocking down the houses of poor people, enemy people, in reprisal for a suicide bomb attack? Does that soldier take comfort from the fact that he is not killing people, only making them homeless, only forcing them to flee with the clothes on their backs, destroying all their worldly possessions? Does the soldier in the bulldozer find relief knowing he is not the initiator of his actions, that he is following the order of his superior officer, who is following the orders of civilian leaders, who in turn say they are acting in the best interest of the nation?
How many layers of mental insulation are wrapped around people that sit home and watch their wars on television, fought by an all-volunteer army, no one has to go if he doesn’t want to? Is there an extra layer of insulation provided for the conscience of the citizen who did not vote for the political leader who directs the general to order the soldier to kill the person from the enemy country who would, after all, kill us if he had the chance?
Look At My Face
What is in the mind of the Washington, DC shooter? What does he see when he looks though his gunsight? Apparently, he does not see a person. He sees a target. The shooter, I think, knows he’s going to be caught some day. He expects to be caught, even looks forward to it. On the day the shooter is caught, he will step forward and begin his moment in the spotlight. The shooter’s arrest and trial and imprisonment and likely execution will be covered by news media all over the world. When he is at last discovered and apprehended, the shooter’s name will join the other famous serial killers: Jeffrey Dahmer, Ted Bundy, David Berkowitz.
All that, however, remains in the future; for now there are targets. The more targets the shooter hits before he is caught, the more famous he will be after his arrest. The more direct hits he scores, the longer his fame will last, the harder it will be for the next serial killer to break his record.
The shooter has so much to think about, he cannot allow himself to think of his targets as people. He has to think about his getaway each time he shoots. He has to think about his clues – tarot cards, notes, phone messages. He threatens children, better to stimulate fear among the public.
The shooter reads his press, but he cannot dwell for long on the stories of the victims, the targets. He doesn’t think about a husband and father, on the streets of Maryland earlier than the dawn, working to provide for his family and keep his passengers safe. He does not think about a woman who survived cancer, anticipating her first grandchild. The shooter does not think of a 13-year-old, full of potential, lying in a hospital, grievously wounded.
If we cannot understand the mind of a shooter, can we understand the mind of a bomber who parks a car full of explosives on a block of clubs crowded with tourists? Are the bomber’s victims easier for him to ignore than the shooter’s? Unlike the shooter, the bomber does not have to look at each and every person he kills, every target. The bomber, almost certainly, will keep his head down, avoiding faces, as he walks away from his curbside bomb. Does the bomber have a political agenda? Does that make it easier? Does that make it all right?
How about the suicide bomber, driving his explosive-packed SUV into a bus full of commuters? How great is his mental burden? That particular suicide bomber need not see people at all, focusing his attention on the bus that is – outwardly, at least – inanimate. The suicide bomber, in addition to his political rationale, can insulate his conscience with the knowledge that he will die with his victims.
What about the soldier in the tank, firing a machine gun at children that throw stones? Is his mind closer to our own or to the mind of the bomber or the shooter? Does the soldier in the tank insulate his mind with the idea that he is not trying to hit the children with bullets, although sometimes he does? Is he insulated by the thought that the children with the stones would kill him if they could, if the situation was reversed?
How much mental insulation does a soldier have as he sits at the controls of an armored bulldozer, knocking down the houses of poor people, enemy people, in reprisal for a suicide bomb attack? Does that soldier take comfort from the fact that he is not killing people, only making them homeless, only forcing them to flee with the clothes on their backs, destroying all their worldly possessions? Does the soldier in the bulldozer find relief knowing he is not the initiator of his actions, that he is following the order of his superior officer, who is following the orders of civilian leaders, who in turn say they are acting in the best interest of the nation?
How many layers of mental insulation are wrapped around people that sit home and watch their wars on television, fought by an all-volunteer army, no one has to go if he doesn’t want to? Is there an extra layer of insulation provided for the conscience of the citizen who did not vote for the political leader who directs the general to order the soldier to kill the person from the enemy country who would, after all, kill us if he had the chance?
What about the person who doesn’t vote?
Look at my face when you kill me.