Northern Illinois University

[bohonato]

from http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=4296984

"Stephen Kazmierczak, the 27-year-old who opened fire on a crowded Northern Illinois University lecture hall, killing five and then himself Thursday, was described as "fairly normal" and an "unstressed person" by NIU campus Police Chief Donald Grady."

I thought I had graduated from high school. I thought that metal detectors, bullets, bombs, and knives were a part of my educational past. Unfortunately, it appears that all my Columbine inspired douchebag peers will plaque my generation until we die.

sw33t dudes.

NIU isn't that far away from here. I know people who go there.

[stilltrucking]

I am very curious as to what meds he stopped taking
known side effects and stuff like that

Kazmierczak, whose first name was earlier listed as Steven, was taking some kind of medication, Grady said.

"He had stopped taking medication and become somewhat erratic in the last couple of weeks," Grady said, declining to name the drug or provide other details.

[Arcadia]

sad...
we don´t have here metal detectors, or private/state security in our schools or universities. Every year there is some school violence of that type but with the difference that at least until now is more personalized( a student attacks some specific other one). Never heard about that kind of attacks at universities, though... I hope the idea doesn´t spread out.

[e_dog]

it's the vid. games.

Realitee doesn't ex-ist.

[stilltrucking]

You all jumping to some conclusions, this was not a high school kid, this was not some crazy loner like the Virginia Tech killer. Although he did buy extra magazines for his Glock from the same gun dealer that sold the V-T killer his weapons.
Everybody agrees he was a hell of a nice guy, good grades, belonged to clubs, took part in extra curicular activities.

Chris Larrison, an assistant professor of social work, said Kazmierczak did data entry for Larrison's research grant on mental health clinics. Larrison was stunned by the shooting rampage, as was the gunman's faculty adviser, professor Jan Carter-Black.

"He was engaging, motivated, responsible. I saw nothing to suggest that there was anything troubling about his behavior," she said.

Nobody talking about the meds he stopped taking. I wonder why? Don't tell me I am not paranoid. I think it must have been anti-deprssants.

google SSRI withdrawal and you will get thousands of hits for "Rage"

A 'fairly normal' mass killer
torontosun.com

Arcadia more people die from legal prescription drugs here every year than die from illegal drugs. We are no doubt the most doped up country in the world. Watch a couple of hours of TV here and you watch add after add for drugs, little pills that will solve all your problems.

Nothing to do with anything
lets move on now
I am done ranting

[Zlatko Waterman]

In my former life I stood in front of a classroom ( often I moved around to the side or back) and watched the tone of things at the universities and colleges where I worked for over thirty years change.

Numerically there are doubtless many more really bright, compassionate kids and young ( 20's--ish) folks registered as serious students today. My wife, who still teaches Math ( not everyone's favorite subject) sees them, identifies them, praises them.

But there is "a condition of incivility", as Congress, who thinks sports stars injecting hormones is more important than Iraq, called it.

Simply put by my wife who has now taught even longer than I did (32 years): people don't care about each other as much any more.

The decay of sympathy and camaraderie after 9/11 among New Yorkers in Manhattan is an example. Many citizens there interviewed on NPR deplored the withering away of the momentary sense of a common humanity, a common vulnerability, and the need for a common tolerance. The sense that "we're all in this together, brothers and sisters . . ."

This school shooting came right behind two others nearly the same week, which claimed more than half a dozen other innocent "student" lives. Even though some vicitims were city council members.

But all were in that increasingly dangerous place: a meeting, a congregration of persons, wide-open ( or nearly so) to the public.

Who are we to " build societies" and "democratize" against the wishes of peoples in the Middle East when our own house is so disastrously out of order?

Shame, shame. Or maybe, as Mark Twain said:

" If there is a god, he's a drunken thug with a knife . . ."


--Z

[Doreen Peri]

But there is "a condition of incivility", as Congress, who thinks sports stars injecting hormones is more important than Iraq, called it.

Just because the media covered that story does not mean that congress thinks sports stars injecting hormones is more important than Iraq.

Simply put by my wife who has now taught even longer than I did (32 years): people don't care about each other as much any more.

I don't think this is the case at all. I believe people truly care about each other... in fact, love each other. And even if it were the case, it certainly cannot be the reason why a young man would arm himself and commit mass murder, then suicide.

You all jumping to some conclusions, this was not a high school kid, this was not some crazy loner like the Virginia Tech killer. Although he did buy extra magazines for his Glock from the same gun dealer that sold the V-T killer his weapons.
Everybody agrees he was a hell of a nice guy, good grades, belonged to clubs, took part in extra curicular activities.

He still flipped out. And in his past has been hospitalized for mental illness.

The plain fact is that these massacres will continue to happen if there are no background checks on people who purchase guns.

First off, the media very quickly found out about his past hospitalization for mental illness. If they could find it out, a simple background check by the person/company who sold him the weapons would have revealed the same thing.

The laws need to change and change quickly.

Also, I don't see any reason any other weapons than guns used for the "sport" of hunting should be sold. Why are assault weapons legal?

I don't even like the idea of hunting, but we'll never be able to change the fact that some people do.

Still, hunting for rabbits, squirrels and deer is very different than hunting for students attending a lecture.

Bottom line is, the guy went whack, and he had the opportunity to purchase weapons. He had a history of mental illness and his background was not checked which is why he was able to buy the weapons.

This is so sad. And even with the repeated massacres, no laws are changing. *shaking my head*

[mnaz]

Who are we to " build societies" and "democratize" against the wishes of peoples in the Middle East when our own house is so disastrously out of order?

Much truth in this observation, IMO.

[e_dog]

Although he did buy extra magazines for his Glock from the same gun dealer that sold the V-T killer his weapons.

I didn't know that.

Everybody agrees he was a hell of a nice guy, good grades, belonged to clubs, took part in extra curicular activities.

Probably a Republican.
nice guys always, some times goodgrades. mostly murderers.

is shooting up the classroom an "extra-curricular activity"?

Gotta get toiugh on crime.

Ban all video gamez.

[e_dog]

also, notice that like not naming the meds, they also don't mention that it was Valentine's Day but Thursday. bad for business. greetingcard lobby, says.

stilltru' you dig whati'msayin' ?

[stilltrucking]

I don't know about the uncivility angle ZW, maybe so. No country I know of more civil than Canada and they have had some university mass murders too. Concordia and McGill. Maybe there were others.


Doreen Peri said:

First off, the media very quickly found out about his past hospitalization for mental illness. If they could find it out, a simple background check by the person/company who sold him the weapons would have revealed the same thing.

What media found out about his hospitalization for mental illness?

Kazmierczak possessed a valid Firearm Owners Identification (FOID) Card.

A FOID card must be issued before the purchase of a firearm. The FOID application asks questions about the person's mental health hospitalizations, previous convictions and citizenship. Though Kazmierczak was treated for a mental illness, he had never been hospitalized. Once the Illinois State Police review a FOID application, they run a background check on the individual.


http://media.www.dailyillini.com/media/ ... 3095.shtml

ten four e-dog
I noticed they are not naming the meds. And the more they don't name them the more curious I don't get.

Maybe I am jumping to conclusions. I don't know what meds he stopped taking, maybe it was Viagra, or something for his restless leg syndrome.

Too many doctors have become pill pushers. It started a few years ago when the they changed thr rules on how drugs are advertised. "Ask your doctor about..." The pharmco companies never used to be able to directly advertise to the consumer.

I am sure those anti depressants have helped a lot of people and it is only a statistically insignificant number of patients that become suicidal or go on rampages.
But, if you google "withdrawal rage anti depressants" you get 152,000 hits

[stilltrucking]

Freud predicted that bio-chemistry would solve the problem of mental illness.

"Meet My Maker The Mad Molecule" J P Donleavy collection of short stories, nothing to do with all this but I like the title.

PEP Web - Freuds psykoanalyse (Freud's Psychoanalysis): Ole ...Such expectations seem to me to be about as naive as Freud's own hope that biochemistry might one day solve the riddles of psychoanalysis. ...
www.pep-web.org/document.php?id=spr.005.0107a - Similar pages

[Doreen Peri]

What media found out about his hospitalization for mental illness?

It's all over the news.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23171567/

While friends, family, educators and investigators remain baffled and shocked at the gunman's acts, a closer look reveals that Kazmierczak's friendly exterior masked a troubled mind.

University Police Chief Donald Grady said, without giving details, that Kazmierczak, 27, had become erratic in the past two weeks after he had stopped taking his medication.

A former employee at a Chicago psychiatric treatment center said Kazmierczak's parents placed him there after high school. She said he used to cut himself, and had resisted taking his medications.

[stilltrucking]

A former employee at a Chicago psychiatric treatment center said Kazmierczak's parents placed him there after high school. She said he used to cut himself, and had resisted taking his medications.

I don't watch enough news, I got no cable.

What interests me about it is why they are not saying what meds he stopped taking. Have I missed that? Is that all over the news?

University Police Chief Donald Grady said, without giving details, that Kazmierczak, 27, had become erratic in the past two weeks after he had stopped taking his medication.

Inquiring minds want to know, andI bet about fifty million trial lawyers want to know too.

Who are they protecting by not revealing what meds?

Ten four on the Valentine's day massacre, they are checking to see if he had just broken up with his girl friend.

[Doreen Peri]

They haven't disclosed the info about the meds yet. I'm assuming it's because they need to verify it. They'll tell us eventually. If I hear info about his meds, I'll let you know. I don't think it has anything to do with protecting anybody. I think they probably want to be sure of info prior to disclosing it.