I disagree that calling for some sort of action in mental health hollow, it is the common driving factor in all these types of shootings and all suicides. The sooner we start addressing the issue the more lives saved.
Theoretically we can make a case for every criminal shooter being insane. However, as in this case, there were no signals of a mental health causative factor. Additional mental health actions would not likely have prevented this shooting. Let's also not muddy the waters by including suicide in this matter, tho I will address suicide after I finish explaining why I label mental health as a hollow causative excuse for all the shootings we are witnessing.
Psychology, psychiatry and sociology, like medical practice in general, are not exact sciences, they are arts. Tho at times they may be based on science, they are not exclusive to science, and at times are subject to schools of thought which can be defined by fashion. In matters like those under discussion, fashion preempts scientific basis, thus becoming eminently vulnerable to error. And as well, as semi-scientific, the provision for recognizing other motivations becomes impossible as those motivations don't fit the fashion. 30 years ago heart attack sufferers were told by their doctors to not drink coffee, today, those seeking to prevent heart attacks and those who have suffered heart attacks are told to drink coffee. Fashion, based on observation and educated guesses. As recently as 5 years ago, patients with high blood pressure were told to reduce salt intake, now evidence shows those with low salt in their system are more prone to greater frequency of fatal heart attacks. No one knows how much is too much or not enough. Salt or sodium sensitivity can cause high blood pressure, but not for those who do not have that sensitivity. Less than 50 years ago, those who suffered Tourette’s syndrome were judged insane and sent to long term psychiatric treatment centers, even tho Tourette’s was identified as a neurological defect or disease in 1885. Now we have medicinal therapies that can reduce the effects of Tourette's syndrome, and no one claims it is psychological in origin for any individual.
Mental health becomes an excuse, and preventative mental health treatment or actions is as useful in this matter as for treating homosexuality. Moreover, I firmly believe in evil. Not in the religious sense, but in and of itself. And adherents of mental health issues reject evil as a holdover of earlier superstitious beliefs. When we separate the existence of evil from religion, evil then has nothing to do with superstition, and can be viewed as much of causative factor for criminality as mental health. Whether or not I am correct, does not dispute the reality that this felon went undetected by existing mental health methods of identification, nor those of many others. Ted Bunny was never detected as insane prior to his being caught. After fact he was labeled as a psychopath. I contend he wasn't except that the pseudo sciences of the day could not explain him as plain evil. How many other possible motivators for this behavior are not being considered, let alone identified, because of mental health being used as an excuse?
As for the immediate, armed security, metal detectors, and all large items searched, would stop some from even getting a gun into the school, especially long guns, and provide an immediate reaction team in the event someone does manage to attack our schools. That is just common sense.
Without a doubt, these exigencies may limit the shootings we are witnessing. However, there are schematics for using 3D printers to create automatic, semi automatic, and repeating fire arms made from paper and plastics than can bypass each of these security steps available on the internet. And those with an engineering background can devise their own. The determined criminal cannot be simply stopped.
We do our best to take down rabid dogs before they do damage. Our laws, our sense of fairness, prevent us from taking down dogs with two legs who are predators for the sake of being predators. The labels of mental health issues or evil, offer in and of themselves, no solutions.
As to suicide: Last week we saw a story in the media of a man who had lived more than 100 years who chose to take his own life in Switzerland, because here assisted suicide was not lawful and he needed help to do so. He made the decision because of quality of life issues for him. He chose a death of dignity. He was not insane. To determine that suicide is insane is immoral. It leaves no room for other states of mind, which are perfectly rational for those who need or want to take that step in life's journeys. Amalgamating criminal acts with suicide which may be righteous is plain wrong. Besides, death couldn't be all that bad, or we wouldn't all die.
