Autism & Serial killers/Mass shooters.

[Hugo Drax]

Two more people with autism involved in mass killings. My theory/prediction is to expect more and more of these events as the Autism population continues to grow in the US. Especially with the combination of psychotropic drugs and constant exposure to violence.

Think "A Clockwork Orange."

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0066921/




#1 Dude kills his dad and GF and attempted to kill others in the classroom with a bow and arrow.

http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/201...ck-in-classroom-saving-students?lite=obinsite

"He told me his dad gave him Asperger's (syndrome), that his dad shouldn't have passed it on," DiPinto said. "He said his dad should be castrated. I didn't know him that well, he just kind of said it out of nowhere, so that kind of threw me off a little."


#2 the elementary school shooter. (27 dead)

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-1215-shooter-20121215,0,3373353.story

In interviews with neighbors and people who grew up with him, no one claimed to know the tall, gangly young man well. Family members told others he had Asperger's syndrome, a mild form of autism whose sufferers are often brilliant but socially inept.

 

[Geekbabe]

My 25 yr old son carries a diagnosis of classic Autism, he has been "different" since the day he was born, reading the phone book aloud, reciting TV commercials in an echolalic fashion. Did not speak reliably till age 5 years. When frustrated by communication difficulties he would head bang & bite himself till around age 10. In high school, tormented by bullies he made verbal threats & was promptly hustled off to a .4 IEP school (.4 is one step before residential)

Flash forward 10 years, my son is finishing his second semester of college, he's a regular blood donor, he volunteers for charitable causes, he has an active social life with friends he cherishes. He still has some self- stimming behaviors ie: he talks out loud to himself, he has trouble tolerating certain fabrics & foods due to their texture, he at times has overwhelming episodes of anxiety.. but he has learned how to reach out for support & how to express feelings appropriately.

My son is very worried that a life with autism that's already difficult enough will get even harder now for not just himself but for every other person carrying an ASD diagnosis.

He wants you to know that not all people with ASD disorders lack empathy & that his biggest problem stems with being able to adequately communicate his thoughts verbally & that for many on the spectrum the biggest issue is disorders of speech/communication.

"just because my wiring doesn't allow me to chatter away with people doesn't mean I would ever think it was okay to pick up a gun & go and kill people"

 

[Geosurface]

My 25 yr old son carries a diagnosis of classic Autism, he has been "different" since the day he was born, reading the phone book aloud, reciting TV commercials in an echolalic fashion. Did not speak reliably till age 5 years. When frustrated by communication difficulties he would head bang & bite himself till around age 10. In high school, tormented by bullies he made verbal threats & was promptly hustled off to a .4 IEP school (.4 is one step before residential)

Flash forward 10 years, my son is finishing his second semester of college, he's a regular blood donor, he volunteers for charitable causes, he has an active social life with friends he cherishes. He still has some self- stimming behaviors ie: he talks out loud to himself, he has trouble tolerating certain fabrics & foods due to their texture, he at times has overwhelming episodes of anxiety.. but he has learned how to reach out for support & how to express feelings appropriately.

My son is very worried that a life with autism that's already difficult enough will get even harder now for not just himself but for every other person carrying an ASD diagnosis.

He wants you to know that not all people with ASD disorders lack empathy & that his biggest problem stems with being able to adequately communicate his thoughts verbally & that for many on the spectrum the biggest issue is disorders of speech/communication.

"just because my wiring doesn't allow me to chatter away with people doesn't mean I would ever think it was okay to pick up a gun & go and kill people"

:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

The kneejerk reactionaries should be ashamed of themselves.

 

[bigrash]

My 25 yr old son carries a diagnosis of classic Autism, he has been "different" since the day he was born, reading the phone book aloud, reciting TV commercials in an echolalic fashion. Did not speak reliably till age 5 years. When frustrated by communication difficulties he would head bang & bite himself till around age 10. In high school, tormented by bullies he made verbal threats & was promptly hustled off to a .4 IEP school (.4 is one step before residential)

Flash forward 10 years, my son is finishing his second semester of college, he's a regular blood donor, he volunteers for charitable causes, he has an active social life with friends he cherishes. He still has some self- stimming behaviors ie: he talks out loud to himself, he has trouble tolerating certain fabrics & foods due to their texture, he at times has overwhelming episodes of anxiety.. but he has learned how to reach out for support & how to express feelings appropriately.

My son is very worried that a life with autism that's already difficult enough will get even harder now for not just himself but for every other person carrying an ASD diagnosis.

He wants you to know that not all people with ASD disorders lack empathy & that his biggest problem stems with being able to adequately communicate his thoughts verbally & that for many on the spectrum the biggest issue is disorders of speech/communication.

"just because my wiring doesn't allow me to chatter away with people doesn't mean I would ever think it was okay to pick up a gun & go and kill people"

:thumbsup:

 

[DCal430]

People with Autism do not lack empathy, we can be deficient in knowing how to respond to emotional situations or expressing our own emotions, but we do not lack empathy.

 

[Binarycow]

My 25 yr old son carries a diagnosis of classic Autism, he has been "different" since the day he was born, reading the phone book aloud, reciting TV commercials in an echolalic fashion. Did not speak reliably till age 5 years. When frustrated by communication difficulties he would head bang & bite himself till around age 10. In high school, tormented by bullies he made verbal threats & was promptly hustled off to a .4 IEP school (.4 is one step before residential)

Flash forward 10 years, my son is finishing his second semester of college, he's a regular blood donor, he volunteers for charitable causes, he has an active social life with friends he cherishes. He still has some self- stimming behaviors ie: he talks out loud to himself, he has trouble tolerating certain fabrics & foods due to their texture, he at times has overwhelming episodes of anxiety.. but he has learned how to reach out for support & how to express feelings appropriately.

My son is very worried that a life with autism that's already difficult enough will get even harder now for not just himself but for every other person carrying an ASD diagnosis.

He wants you to know that not all people with ASD disorders lack empathy & that his biggest problem stems with being able to adequately communicate his thoughts verbally & that for many on the spectrum the biggest issue is disorders of speech/communication.

"just because my wiring doesn't allow me to chatter away with people doesn't mean I would ever think it was okay to pick up a gun & go and kill people"

I dont know your son personally, however, hopefully with all the supports he has in his life he will not encounter a situation where his protective armor that everyone including himself has worked so hard for is overwhelmed and it lets loose all the frustration and anger that he's by nature cannot handle as well as others. All it takes is one inncident.

 

[Geekbabe]

I dont know your son personally, however, hopefully with all the supports he has in his life he will not encounter a situation where his protective armor that everyone including himself has worked so hard for is overwhelmed and it lets loose all the frustration and anger that he's by nature cannot handle as well as others. All it takes is one inncident.

There are no guarantees in this life.. not for him, not for me, not for you or for the thousands upon thousands of other people who suffer from a momentary loss of self-control for whatever the reason.

My point is that painting people with ASD disorders as potential serial killers is so wrong & will only add to the struggles & suffering that many of these people face on a daily basis. Btw, my son has never laid a hand on anyone, if anything he's been the victim of physical, verbal & emotional abuse at the hands of so called " normal people"

 

[DCal430]

Another relative has come and said the shooter also suffered from personality disorder. This is more likely to have contributed to the shooting then ASD.

 

[DCal430]

I dont know your son personally, however, hopefully with all the supports he has in his life he will not encounter a situation where his protective armor that everyone including himself has worked so hard for is overwhelmed and it lets loose all the frustration and anger that he's by nature cannot handle as well as others. All it takes is one inncident.

Studies have shown no correlation between large acts of violence and autism. In cases like these where the shooter may have had autism they also had other disorders that would have better accounted for the behavior.

 

[Mixolydian]

My 25 yr old son carries a diagnosis of classic Autism, he has been "different" since the day he was born, reading the phone book aloud, reciting TV commercials in an echolalic fashion. Did not speak reliably till age 5 years. When frustrated by communication difficulties he would head bang & bite himself till around age 10. In high school, tormented by bullies he made verbal threats & was promptly hustled off to a .4 IEP school (.4 is one step before residential)

Flash forward 10 years, my son is finishing his second semester of college, he's a regular blood donor, he volunteers for charitable causes, he has an active social life with friends he cherishes. He still has some self- stimming behaviors ie: he talks out loud to himself, he has trouble tolerating certain fabrics & foods due to their texture, he at times has overwhelming episodes of anxiety.. but he has learned how to reach out for support & how to express feelings appropriately.

My son is very worried that a life with autism that's already difficult enough will get even harder now for not just himself but for every other person carrying an ASD diagnosis.

He wants you to know that not all people with ASD disorders lack empathy & that his biggest problem stems with being able to adequately communicate his thoughts verbally & that for many on the spectrum the biggest issue is disorders of speech/communication.

"just because my wiring doesn't allow me to chatter away with people doesn't mean I would ever think it was okay to pick up a gun & go and kill people"

Thank you so much for posting this!

Some of the replies in this thread really sadden me.

 

[SandEagle]

i wonder if the shooter was on some kind of SSRI? SSRI side effects can cause mood swings, agitation, and who knows what else kind of behavioral changes.

http://ssristories.com/
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC167189/
http://www.naturalnews.com/034433_SSRI_drugs_children_murder.html

 

[gideon2]

Here is actual information from the psychological community regarding the idea that Autism leads to killing:

A peer-reviewed paper published as early as 1991 found no evidence for any correlation between violence and Asperger Syndrome -- further finding that the incidence of violent behavior in those with Asperger's is lower than the incidence in the total population -- the media has continually and repeatedly conflated being Autistic with a propensity toward violent or criminal behavior. The fallacious and damaging assumptions still widely held today that Autistics lack empathy, do not recognize that other people have minds, and are incapable of expressing emotions -- especially concern for others -- make it very easy for the uninformed journalist to hear "autism spectrum disorder" in reference to a criminal defendant and jump to the unfortunate conclusion that serial killers, murderers, rapists, and terrorists must be Autistic because of their apparent lack of empathy for others or any other traits that fit neatly onto a checklist of Stereotypes about Autistics.

 

[OverVolt]

They are also from broken families, usually living with their single mom in some shape or form.

 

[Binarycow]

Speaking in general, it takes an incredible level of mental disfunctioning to carry out an act like in Newtown. Everyone is capable of killing other humans, especially males. Myself included. Does that thought ever cross my mind, killing somebody when anger overwhelms me? absolutely. However, the act of killing a child much less 20 children, one at a time, is beyond my capability and imagination.

It takes a really sick mind to do it. The victims were random; The killer was not. As a society of 300+ million people, it is wishful thinking that we would somehow be able to stop all killings. However, horrific acts such as this cant be carried out by just anyone.

Much like terrorism, we as a nation somehow by luck or by intelligence has been able to avoid a repeat of 9/11 even though the willingness (of the terrorists) to carry such acts is always there. We need to figure it out ways to stymy this mass shooting pandemic.

 

[allisolm]

Two more people with autism involved in mass killings. My theory/prediction is to expect more and more of these events as the Autism population continues to grow in the US. Especially with the combination of psychotropic drugs and constant exposure to violence.

Except that there is no evidence that 2 out of the 3 (Holmes or Christopher Krumm) you mention are autistic.

 

[Wyndru]

Irrelevant, deleted

 

[surfsatwerk]

The term you are looking for OP is sociopath. Not autistic. Most traditionally diagnosed autistic people would covering their ears and crying at the sound and sight of gunfire and muzzle flash.

All a clever ruse to hide their true nature.

 

[TheVrolok]

Idiotic OP bumped this idiotic thread? This thread needs to DIAF.

 

[Hugo Drax]

Looks like my theory is correct.
http://www.cnn.com/2014/05/27/justice/california-elliot-rodger-wealth/?iref=obinsite

The divorce documents also confirmed that Elliot Rodger was diagnosed with Asperger syndrome, a form of autism, when he was 7. "Elliot has special needs," his mother said in a sworn statement. "He is a high functioning autistic child."

 

[Don Vito Corleone]

I had never seen this thread, but I find it surprising people in it were so hostile to the idea that there could be a correlation between autism spectrum disorders and mass violence. Certainly it is not a perfect correlation, but there have been many instances of people on the spectrum committing crimes like this, including, in the recent past, James Holmes, Adam Lanza and Elliot Rodger.

A more interesting question would be, was the autism causally connected, or were the shootings in fact motivated by other co-morbid mental illnesses suffered by the shooters? Clearly all three of these guys seemed to suffer from other profound personality and mood disorders, and frankly I think those, not autism spectrum disorder, were more clearly causally related to their crimes. I think it's unwise to dismiss out of hand the idea that autism may have played a role, however. When we ignore data based on our emotions, it greatly impairs our ability to draw useful conclusions.

 

[Hugo Drax]

I bet the Oregon shoot fits the profile.

 

[AznAnarchy99]

I bet the Oregon shoot fits the profile.

I feel like many people on 4chan fits the profile.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

I bet the Oregon shoot fits the profile.

Careful Social Justice Warriors will hear this call

 

[Printer Bandit]

The movie American Ultra comes to mind.

 

[MongGrel]

I worked with a guy who was autistic for 10 years at a high level place, he volunteered for things, most of the time seemed pretty normal, just a bit disconnected.

I heard a story when I started there someone came into the shop and a guy had a heart attack laying on the floor and he was standing there watching him. "Bobby, why aren't you doing something ?"

He was not violent, he just was not empathetic, even if he did do volunteer work, etc. Most of the people I have encountered are actually almost the complete opposite.

Autism in itself would not seem to me to cause a mass murderer, he was laid back, but link that with an additional problem and I could see issues.