Are people seriously this stupid?

[gall]

I've seen this quote floating around the internet:

"If James Holmes was Arab, the shooting would be 'terrorism'. If he was Black, he'd be a 'thug'. But he's White, so it's a 'mental illness'."

And I've seen a majority of comments that are agreeing with this. Are people really this stupid?

From what I've seen, there isn't a clear motive for what this guy did (the Dark Knight Rises murderer). Reports are saying there isn't really a definitive reasoning behind it all. The point of terrorism is to instill terror for a certain objective, generally for political or religious purpose. This guy showed no intention of either of those reasons. That fact alone says it isn't terrorism because a terrorist does those acts to get the attention or their cause, so without making it more or less obvious to what he wanted, his acts were pointless and terrorism isn't about making people say "well, maybe it was for this reason? I'm confused." No, when a terrorist acts, people know EXACTLY why they did it - which is the point of terrorism.

So clearly, this guy wasn't a terrorist; why would we call him one?


Next we have "thug". Uhh...

Well, what is a thug? To most people, it's someone who cause trouble. Someone maybe a little intimidating and in a threatening way. Maybe they're into drugs and getting into fights, or robbing stores, getting into shootouts, whatever. They cause trouble, and they aren't really friendly people.

>>>"“James was very nice and quiet,” his family’s next-door neighbor in San Diego, Tom Mai, told The Denver Post."

>>>"Holmes had a sterling academic record all the way back to high school and no criminal record more serious than a single speeding ticket. He does not seem to have had any psychiatric hospitalizations or any history of violence. He preferred Guitar Hero to guns as a teen."

>>>"In interviews, neighbors and friends from Southern California and Aurora described a young man as anonymous as a glass of water, more Invisible Man than Joker, who left the lightest of impressions on people."

>>>"“He was really shy, really quiet, but really nice and sweet,” Ms. Hath said."

What about that makes him sound like a thug? Was it the "nice and quiet" or the "no criminal record" that gave him away as a thug? Or maybe it was his "sterling academic record"?

He was nothing close to a thug. So why would we call him one?

Now let's think back to something more recent event regarding "thug": Trayvon Martin. He was black. Some people considered him a thug. Sure, the people who only saw the oh-so recent, put-up-everywhere picture of him from when he was 12 didn't believe it at all. However, his facebook account showed a different character. I remember looking for it when I first saw the news and immediately though "well this kid looks pleasant [/sarcasm]". There were pictures of him sticking his middle finger up, holding money up, and if I recall correctly, there were comments he made that weren't exactly the ones a "good kid" would say. I didn't have any of this stuff copied and saved anywhere though, so I'm only going by my ultimate conclusion that he was trouble. Also, he was suspended from school 3 times (on suspension when he was shot, I believe). I think one was because he had a bag with him that had marijuana residue on it, and another time because he had written "W.T.F." on a locker and then was found with a screwdriver and some women's jewelry, and I can't remember the other stuff. The point is, everything about him basically made him seem like a thug (except the picture of when he was 12. Couldn't they have just put a baby photo up?). So because he was a thug, people called him a thug. It wasn't his race.

A friend of mine is black. He's extremely quiet and very shy. He does well in school and doesn't get in trouble. If he did something like this, he wouldn't be called a thug because he isn't one.



So yes, seeing as James Eagen Holmes was not a terrorist nor a thug, he was not dubbed a terrorist nor a thug. I'd say that makes sense. And he didn't give much indication of something like this happening...Which leads to mental illness. Is it really so hard to arrive at that conclusion? Why do they have to act like there's more to it than a simple logical conclusion to get that he isn't a terrorism or a thug but has a mental illness/is just insane?

[jabarl]

Very interesting and thought filled post.
I do think he was likely a very sick young man. But I don't agree with letting people with mental illness continue to live. They are likely incurable, and should be put to death just like any other violent criminal.
I very much hope he doesn't get off from this on an insanity plea.

[thacher]

Logical people don't kill & massacre !

Here it COMES : The endless reviews, analysis, the non-stop singing of amazing grace, the name calling & labels !

There is No outrage on the streets, there are No protests & people demanding these kind of weapons should be banned...so life goes on

The Mayans were considered violent for sacrificing human life, our society loves it's freedoms & the loss of life at the theater is the sacrifice our society will continue tolerating, so cry, sing, buy, spend & watch the next movie.

The lives of the people who died & injured are as mediocre as the demand for tighter gun control !

I used to get very upset with this sort of senseless violence, not anymore. Those who make the laws, enforce the laws & dictate the laws (people) are as pathetic as the person who decides to kill on this level.

God Bless America

[herald]

People are blinded by stupidity and ignorance... If you were able to commit the crime, be prepared to deal with the repercussions that follow with it... That "legally insane" sh*t is over blown and a cop out...

[kalvin71]

It's not about Holmes, it's about how the public perceives it. I'd dare say the majority think like this:
When "Arabs" do it, people are mad.
When Black people do it, people are angry.
When a White person does it, people are sad and don't understand.

You don't see comments like: "Kill all those crackers! They deserve to die." or "God damn Towel heads."
I've personally seen: "I hope he killed some black people"

That's the double standard. In a lot of cases like these.

[colum]

Don't make stup|d & ignorant people make YOU stup|d & ignorant. James is indeed a deranged terrorist who needs treatment & be locked away from humanity!

[morcan]

Yea i seen the quote too from Facebook to twitter..but some people think its a terrorist because he been planning it. Like how he had bombs at his apartment. call him a terrorist..a thug..a mental patient..whatever. The bottom line is he killed innocent people. 4month old being the youngest. people just worrying about the wrong things.

[madison86]

hes a f*cking terrorist no doubt about it.

"There is no single, universally accepted, definition of terrorism. Terrorism is defined in the Code of Federal Regulations as “the unlawful use of force and violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives” (28 C.F.R. Section 0.85).

[caffar]

... Are you that stupid? Hes clearly a terrorist... Acting to instill terror...

[dalon]

I am not stupid at all, hell yeah I believe that is just how it would pan out and I have either seen it first hand or seen it on the news.Now you tell me when in the past couple years have you seen any of the mass murdering done by white people called anything but mental illness? Come on give me examples, to my knowledge the first thing law enforcement does is order a mental evaluation done. .