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I read somewhere that people with autism/aspergers make up approximately 1% of the population. However, this 1% of the population supposedly makes up 8% of all mass shootings. The percentage is probably even higher when looking specifically at school shootings.
| There is a link | 9 | |
| There is not a link | 19 |
I've read a lot of dumb, ignorant shit on here over the years...and this is fuckin up there.
To be fair, this thought comes from something valid, but it's inaccurate. See my other comment on this post.
I’m autistic, mid level support needs, I’m not dangerous. Shootings are caused by bad people, not the disabled. There may be crossover but autism does not make someone violent, a sense of entitlement does in these shooting cases.
It's less that there's a link between autism and inherently wanting to carry out a shooting than that there is a link between autism and the social treatment that also leads to many others not on the spectrum carrying out such attacks.
By default, most autistic individuals are highly moral, but if their autism by chance coincides with psychopathy in a condition known as autistic psychopathy, they may indeed simply choose to become a mass murderer but this would be an exceedingly rare choice in an autistic psychopath just as most standard psychopaths don't become serial killers. It requires so happening to develop the interest, coupled with lacking the empathy to prevent acting. I'll explain later.
Autistic individuals tend to have extremely narrow and intense interests. They often seek to become the best at something. Max Park has autism and now holds the vast majority of Rubik's Cube solving records due to his intense focus on it.
Unfortunately, the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooter was on the spectrum and his psychopathy allowed him to randomly choose mass murder as what he wanted to hone. He didn't suddenly snap and wasn't particularly emotionally compromised; he simply wanted to be a really efficient mass murderer by some freak chance and didn't have the empathy to change interests.
He was a series of bad coincidences and a big part of what led to people looking for a link though. Autistic psychopathy, however, is rare and doesn't guarantee an interest in murder anyway. The other autistic shooters generally want some sort of revenge just like most mass murderers rather than coincidentally choosing to be one or doing it due to some inherent interest common to autistic people.
Socially awkward people who feel really isolated and are perhaps bullied often become mass murderers. It just happens that autistic people fit this description rather well. That said, the link isn't to autism; it's to a certain type of social experience.
I guess you have to be mentally unstable to wanna go shoot abunch of ppl. Im sure theres a link between many mental issues especially schizophrenia
Ok mr political correctness. They do have mental health problems. You can call it whatever you want. Lol
It's not a matter of political correctness, it's a matter of factual accuracy. Autism is a nervous disorder, not a psychological disorder. You make it sound like Autistic people are deranged. We are not. Our brains process information differently. That's all. We are not mentally unstable. Having autism doesn't make us more likely to shoot up a building. We're not crazy.
The vast majority appear to be on that spectrum yes. The type of issues that cause mass shootings are the type of issues caused by being on that spectrum, so it’s no shocker one might see a link. Eric Harris is possibly the only outlier I can think of.
For those using the psychopath argument it doesn’t correlate. Psychopaths don’t have these issues at all, they are by nature uninhibited and social. They are not the quiet guy who feels awkward, becomes resentful, and shoots up a school. Example, traits very much on display with them are having no issue in establishing relationships with others, glibness and sexual promiscuity.
They represent a large chunk of serial killers rather than mass, a very different kind of character, with very different motivations.
I’ve said it before, mass shooters appear to be people who have social difficulty but don’t go to any effort to fix it. They simply find it easier to blame others for not being included. I have known people on the spectrum who do this, all with striking similarity. They get shitty that they don’t fit in while making zero effort to do so, it’s maddening at times.
All that being said, shooters are a small minority when compared to the amount of those on the spectrum who are non violent. Just as serial killers are a small minority amongst the number of psychopaths. Most with these disorders don’t become either of these things.
No i dont think most people who shoot places up are autistic. Psychopaths, yes.
Mass shootings have a lot of factors and mental illness is often not even related to it. In schools its a the equivelent of cornering a trapped animal. In society its often a political statement or act of terrorism. On rare occasions it has to do with mental illness but often thats much of an escape goat. The fact children are expected to go to school everyday to be reguarly assulted, raped, belittled and humiliated. A punishment which they did not ask for, but goverment strictly enforced.. Why would a child not eventually retaliate? The real question is "How are these people getting these weapons?" My father worked for the sheriff department, I would still not figure out how to steal one without him noticing. Not to mention children are going through puberty. So this is even more traumatic subjecting them to constant abuse for no reason.
My youngest sister has autism and she dose not seem like the sort to commit any type of violence.
Maybe a slight one, in the way they look at the world, but I think if you have autism you're probably more like to be mentally ill in other ways too.
Also autistic guys aren't exactly great at pulling birds by and large, so maybe they're more likely to become the type of incel shooter.
Jesus fucking christ, alli...your reading comprehesion is as good as ever, I see...