Why?

In the interest of perspective and understanding, I offer two simple quotes.

First:
“We’re trying to find someone who knew him. The university has been calling him a loner.”
--Amie Steele, editor of Collegiate Times, the campus newspaper at Virginia Tech

Second:
“In studying mass murderers over 25 years, my colleague, Jack Levin, and I have identified five factors that exist in virtually all cases.

“First. perpetrators have a long history of frustration and failure and a diminished ability to cope with life’s disappointments.

“Second, they externalize blame, frequently complaining that others didn’t give them a chance. Sometimes they argue that their ethnic or racial group or gender isn’t getting the breaks that others are.

“Third, these killers generally lack emotional support from friends or family. You’ve read the ‘he always seemed to be something of a loner’ quote? It has a grounding in reality.

“Fourth, they generally suffer a precipitating event they view as catastrophic. This is most often some sort of major disappointment: the loss of a job or the breakup of a relationship. In massacres at colleges and universities, it’s often about getting a grade the shooter feels he didn’t deserve.

“Fifth, they need access to a weapon powerful enough to satisfy their need for revenge.”

--James Alan Fox, professor of criminal justice at Northeastern University, in today’s Los Angeles Times.