"Good wombs hath borne bad sons" was a quote from Shakespeare that Eric Harris (the Columbine shooter) said once. The quote should be self-explanatory. It's amazing how someone like Shakespeare back then could grasp this concept, but so many modern and intelligent people in this day in age refuse to accept it.
Has anybody actually researched what their parents ar like? Let me enlighten those who are quick to assume.
Wayne Harris (Eric's father) DID find a pipe bomb in Eric's room. He grounded Eric, took away his privileges, AND did searches in Eric's room. As a former teenager, I know that grounding isn't necessarily going to to stop me from doing what I want to do. If anything, grounding just inspires kids to get even sneakier. They come up with smarter ways to NOT get caught next time. It doesn't matter how snoopy or involved a parent is. A lot of kids still find ways to deceive their parents. You may think that you know everything about your child, but don't be so sure. Some of the most screwed up kids come from the strictest families. Of coures, the parents are arrogant and clueless because they think they have their kids under control and are too busy criticizing other parents for their skills.
The Harrises and Klebolds were described by neighbors and friends as being involved and caring parents. Mr. Klebold regarded Dylan as his soulmate, and often told Dylan that he was there for him. The Harrises always drilled the concept of hard work into their kids. Eric couldn't do anything, until he finished his homework FIRST. Don't think that these parents didn't set rules and limits for their kids, because they did. They were like any other suburban family.
The Harrises knew that Eric had problems. They took to a counselor and put him on anti-depressants. Guess what the counselor and anger management leaders said? They praised Eric and said he was fine. The same thing goes for Dylan, when he saw some counselors when he got into trouble with the law. You would be surprised at how easy it is to fool someone. So, whose fault is it now? What are you as a parent supposed to do when a LICENSED MENTAL HEALTH PROFESSIONAL says that your kids are going to succeed in life and are fine?
The Harrises also complained to the faculty that Eric was getting harrassed. We all know how jock-oriented schools are biased, so do you think they're actually going to do anything? My school sure as heck didn't anything when I complained about getting made fun of.
If you watch the last video that the Columbine shooters made, they said that their parents are the greatest in the world and to not blame them for their actions. They clearly said that it was their own individual fault for the massacre. In the end, I personally believe that I'm the one making the decision last decision and that I should be held responsible for my actions.
Some sources say the shooters were driven by external forces to do what they did (victimization of bullying), but others say that Eric Harris was a sociopath. Sociopathy/psychopathy is INCURABLE. Most people are shocked to find out that such people are killers, because they are so good at fooling other people with their superficial glib and charm. They will NEVER tell you their real intentions, or show you their real face. Why tell someone that you're going to kill, when they're just going to stop you? That defeats the purpose of the plan.
For those who have family members that are like this, keep in mind that these kind of behaviors are sometimes genetic. If you look at the history of some serial killers, they had people in their gene pool that displayed similar behaviors. Is it a parent's fault, because her great-grandfather was a pscyhopath and that ancestor happened to pass on his genes to her kids? No. Parents can do the best they can.
Losing your son, facing societal stigma, and having the world hate your kids is enough for the Harrises and Klebolds, if you think they deserve to be blamed and punished. I guess other parents will never know how it feels unless it happens to them.
I figured that this tragedy would be a wake-up call to America that such things can happen in rich, consevative, prestigious neighborhoods and that parents aren't always the ones to blame. But, I guess not. Everyone just wants to point fingers and criticize, instead of just praying for the community to heal. People don't realize that that same hatred and negativity is what fueled these boys' anger in the first place.
P.S. I'm not talking about this forum, as it's nice to see some people that are a bit more-open minded on the tragedy. But on other forums, people have made rather cruel comments towards the Harrises and Klebolds, without actually finding out what they were like.
