[theapportioner]

Note: these comments were posted by me in response to a discussion elsewhere, so it reads like a response to something. Apologies, but it's late and the point is still made.

Although many are quick to blame easy access to guns, gun laws, violent video games, and so on as underlying causes for the VT massacre, I'm not convinced that some sort of cultural pathology is to blame here. Sure, certain things about our society make it easier for school shooters to act out in a violent way, but at least with this kid, there was obviously a psychological problem that greatly predisposed him to what he ended up doing. Just calling him and other kids like him "narcissistic" implies some sort of moral problem that requires some sort of cultural fix, when there are often deep psychological issues that these people are facing. Not to mention, narcissistic personality disorder is a diagnosable condition.

Mental illnesses are terribly undertreated in our society, and in my opinion, if you're searching for underlying problems, that's it. Without knowing the full details of any interventions he might have received, it's likely that cultural barriers, economic barriers, poor access to mental health care, and the stigma of mental illness all contributed to Cho not getting the help he needed. Speaking from my perspective as an east asian, there are definitely cultural peculiarities to how mental illnesses are viewed--as moral defects, physical problems, etc, and an unwillingness to discuss these matters openly.

I think it's unfortunate that calls for improved access to care haven't gotten nearly as much attention as gun control, violent video games, and "security". These warning signs need to be acted upon, by the university, the government, the community (in this case, the Korean-American church community), the family, and in situations where one actually has friends, the friends. The responsibility lies with all these parties.