[BensMom]

I can't help but think "what if" about the shooting in CT. Watching 60 Minutes tonight, they described him as a genius with Asperger's, homeschooled after 10th grade because his mother fought for support from the school board but didn't get interventions for him. The diagnosis is Ben, but the person they described certainly isn't anything like Ben at all.

How many children are out there desperate for a proper education, but being lumped in with everyone else? For most kids, it just means falling through the cracks, but for kids like this, something obviously snapped. Everyone saw him as shy, quiet, and smart. No one said he was disturbed or weird, other than carrying a briefcase rather than a backpack. That could've been a fashion statement, though. I've seen kids do that.

Something ELSE has to be going on here. By all accounts, his mother was wonderful, and she tried her best to give him what he needed. Why did he kill her (multiple shots to the face implies rage, too)?

I know people say forget the killer and think about the victims, but if we don't do more to figure out how these killers tick, we won't be able to find others before they snap. Yes, I grieve with those parents, because I have a son the same age, but I also can't help but dwell on the cause and how the events unfolded. He wasn't even finished. He planned many, many more killings, but panicked when he heard sirens (according to CNN).

Ugh.

Reply or not... I just needed to get that off my chest. I haven't really known what to post here the past couple of days. The killer's diagnosis is too close to home, and the victims are too close to home.

[Quantum_Leap]

Lurking and wanted to share....I found this article really eye-opening: I Am Adam Lanza's Mother I couldn't agree with you more that something needs to be done about the lack of resources available to these families. By all accounts, most mothers of children with mental illnesses are struggling valiantly to get their children the care that they need, but the system is just broken. If anything good is able to come out of this tragic incident, hopefully it's that it will open a dialogue and lead us forward on the path to some solutions!

[BensMom]

I also read that article (before watching the 60 Minutes episode). It seems to me that the picture painted there is different than the one painted by CBS. We may never know what was really going on with him. Yeah, there are some bad moms out there whose kids are brats because they've been raised that way, but there are also some very disturbed kids whose wiring is completely crossed.

[shari626]

[mamato4andc]

Mental illness and autism are two totally different things. He did not commit this crime because he had Aspergers and to be honest all the news article mentioning that is just ridiculous to me. Regardless of what he was diagnosed as, he PLANNED it. He knew what he was doing. He even smashed his computers to try to destroy evidence.

I do agree that more needs to be done to help the mentally ill though.