Jeffrey A. Setaro

Political & Cultural Commentary from a Constitutional Conservative.

Madman Kills 26 at Connecicut Elementary School

By

I’m reluctant to write about the act of evil visited on my neighbors in Newtown yesterday… To be honest I’m a bit numb, and still trying to make sense of senselessness.

I live a little more than 10 miles from the Sandy Hook Elementary School where a madman went on murderous rampage that left 20 children and 6 adults dead.

There’s so much we still don’t know about happened yesterday, what we do know is this; sometime yesterday morning that 20-year-old Adam Lanza killed his mother Nancy at their home in Newtown, then drove to the Sandy Hook Elementary School with at least 3 weapons and forced his way into the school. Once inside he shot and killed 26 innocent people and himself. One faculty member was wounded.

We still don’t know what motivated Mr. Lanza, but his mother reportedly pulled him out of the Newtown public school system at some point:

The aunt of Connecticut shooter Adam Lanza said the shooter’s mother pulled him out of Newtown’s public school system because she was unhappy with the school district’s plans for her son.

Adam Lanza’s mother Nancy, 52, was the first victim of his Friday shooting spree. Lanza shot Nancy in the face and then drove her car to Sandy Hook Elementary School, where he killed 20 students and six adults before taking his own life.

Marsha Lanza, who is Adam’s aunt and Nancy’s ex-sister-in-law, told Evelyn Thomas of ABC-owned-and-operated station WLS in Chicago that Nancy had once been a classroom aide at the Sandy Hook school.

His brother, Ryan, of Hoboken, NJ reportedly told police his brother had a “personality disorder” and that he hadn’t talked to him roughly two years… Many of new reports have describe Mr. Lanza as troubled and withdrawn. Dr. Alan Lipman, a top Criminal Psychologist, explained on Fox News this morning “Every one of these episodes is proceeded by undiagnosed mental illness”:

http://youtu.be/RZDHeN1IOn4

In the coming days and weeks we’ll learn more what motivated Adam Lanza’s murderous rampage, but I think it’s safe to say it wasn’t the act of sane man.

One finally note for those of you who are calling for more gun control laws. Connecticut already has some of strictest gun control laws — including a ban on so-called “assault weapons”, in the nation… They didn’t stop this shooter.

No so-called gun control law has ever prevented a single shooting.

Europe’s strict gun laws didn’t stop Anders Breivik from killing dozens of people in Norway.

The sad reality no law can stop a person who is hell-bent on killing others. As Plato said “Good people do not need laws to tell them to act responsibly, while bad people will find a way around the laws.” Simply put: laws only apply to those who are willing to abide by them.

Even if by some miracle we could remove every gun from the planet it wouldn’t end violent crime. People would just back to killing each other with sticks and stones, or swords and knives, or bows and arrows or their bare hands. Laws can’t stop a deranged, murderous, anti-social moron from committing a violent act. The only thing that can, is people who are willing and able to protect themselves.

If you think otherwise you’re in denial.

If we’re going to place blame or point fingers, point them at Adam Lanza, he’s the one responsible for this senseless act.

Edit: Authorities have released the names of the of the victims killed in Newtown, they are:

Adults

  • Rachel Davino, 7/17/83, female (age 29)
  • Dawn Hocksprung, 06/28/65, female (age 47)
  • Anne Marie Murphy, 07/25/60, female (age 52)
  • Lauren Russeau, 1982, female (age 29)
  • Mary Sherlach, 02/11/56, female (age 56)
  • Victoria Soto, 11/04/85, female (age 27)

Children

  • Charlotte Bacon, 2/22/06, female (age 6)
  • Daniel Barden, 9/25/05, male (age 7)
  • Olivia Engel, 7/18/06, female (age 6)
  • Josephine Gay, 12/11/05, female (age 7)
  • Ana M. Marquez-Greene, 04/04/06, female (age 6)
  • Dylan Hockley, 03/08/06, male (age 6)
  • Madeleine F. Hsu, 07/10/06, female (age 6)
  • Catherine V. Hubbard, 06/08/06, female (age 6)
  • Chase Kowalski, 10/31/05, male (age 7)
  • Jesse Lewis, 06/30/06, male (age 6)
  • James Mattioli, 03/22/06, male (age 6)
  • Grace McDonnell, 11/04/05, female (age 7)
  • Emilie Parker, 05/12/06, female (age 6)
  • Jack Pinto, 05/06/06, male (age 6)
  • Noah Pozner, 11/20/06, male (age 6)
  • Caroline Previdi, 09/07/06, female (age 6)
  • Jessica Rekos, 05/10/06, female (age 6)
  • Avielle Richman, 10/17/06, female (age 6)
  • Benjamin Wheeler, 9/12/06, male (age 6)
  • Allison N. Wyatt, 07/03/06, female (age 6)

Our thoughts and prayers go out to their families and friends.

Related