Could My Child Become a Violent Shooter?
By Chris Hammond
Yes, no and maybe.
Remember the Hulk? A normal
looking man who turn into a green monster in a matter of seconds. As a man he seems kind, understanding,
logical, sympathetic, and systematic but given the right opportunity, he
becomes unreasonable, angry, aggressive, spontaneous, and violent. In a very simplistic way, this illustration
clearly describes what happens to a violent shooter. Yes, there are personality profiles, addictions,
disorders, environments, and relationships that all contribute to the
likelihood that a person will become a shooter but the bottom line is there is
still a willingness to become the monster that lurks deep inside.
Who does this happen
to? Be honest for a second and
recall your last monster like appearance.
Were you ranting and raving about something meaningless, were you
throwing something across the room, were you crying uncontrollably, or were you
wishing harm on someone? If you can
honestly assess your own monster like tendencies than you have the ability to
discern your child’s monster like tendencies.
Everyone has this, it is just a matter of degree and triggers.
How does this happen? It is like the flick of a switch. One moment everything seems fine and then the
switch is flicked and things are out of control. Behind the switch however is a trigger that
provoked you or your child into becoming the monster. So the key is to know your own switches first
and then you can more clearly see your child’s.
After all, some of your switches are likely to be the same or at least
similar areas of frustration.
Why does this happen? Well, within all of us lies an evil nature
that if properly provoked could result in behavior uncharacteristic of you or
your child. Yes, it is hard to believe
that your sweet innocent child might have some evil lurking inside but there is
only person to be born without an evil nature and subsequently die without
committing a sin and it is not your child.
Accepting the reality is far better than living in a fairytale land and
pretending that your child is incapable of any harm.
What can I do to stop
it? Once you have accepted the
possibility that your child could cause harm to others and learned their
triggers, then you are in an excellent place to discern what type of care or
treatment is needed. If your child has
numerous violent video games, talks about killing people, is easily angered
into rage, has a history of causing harm to animals, or shows great disregard
for authority, then your child needs immediate help from a trained
professional. If the reaction is less
severe, then modeling proper behavior is the best place to start. Your child will learn far more from how you
act rather than what you say.