Norway

[Purron]

The Prime Minister's speech today: Transcript of the Prime Minister's speech

My heart goes out to Norway.

 

[bbbamI]

There are some things I can not get my head wrapped around. This is one of them.

 

[clifp]

There are some things I can not get my head wrapped around. This is one of them.

+1

Some people are just evil is my only explanation.

 

[Purron]

There are some things I can not get my head wrapped around. This is one of them.

Me too baby

 

[Coolius]

A horrible, horrible Tragedy.

Another indication of how much our world has fallen into prejudice, intolerance, hatred, anger, violence and corruption.

I really do not feel optimistic that this will improve anytime soon.

 

[REWahoo]

A horrible, horrible Tragedy.

Agreed. Really, really sad for the families and for the great country of Norway.

Another indication of how much our world has fallen into prejudice, intolerance, hatred, anger, violence and corruption.

I don't buy into this statement. Humans have demonstrated these attributes as far back as recorded history can reveal. What we are seeing is the result of improved weapons and faster means of mass communication.

I really do not feel optimistic that this will improve anytime soon.

History indicates as long as human beans are around, this is probably going to be the case.

 

[obgyn65]

My thoughts go to Norway this evening.

 

[palomalou]

One article I read quoted someone as saying, "This is the work of a madman." I can only concur. What a tragedy.

 

[Texas Proud]

This is tragic...


And listening to the news there is another tragedy that will happen... according to the news, the maximum sentence the guy can get is 21 years... It is the max allowed by Norway's laws.... IOW, he will be out of prison in his early 50s...

I hope they can figure a way around this.

 

[BigNick]

And listening to the news there is another tragedy that will happen... according to the news, the maximum sentence the guy can get is 21 years... It is the max allowed by Norway's laws.... IOW, he will be out of prison in his early 50s...

I hope they can figure a way around this.

I believe that Norway has a law that allows people to be detained indefinitely if they are considered to be a danger to the public. These laws can be a very two-edged sword (I can't imagine them being constitutional in the US, for example).

The alternative would be if he pled insanity and went into the mental health system, but I don't think that that's very likely.

 

[sheehs1]

There are some things I can not get my head wrapped around. This is one of them.

+1

 

[Brat]

From what little I have heard about the rationale this guy has the personality of a sociopath.

 

[devans0]

A Nordic Timothy McVeigh. I don't believe in capital punishments, but this is exceptional and human society deserves the opportunity for closure. This is the type of single case that could change laws to exact punishments and revenges in the future.

So sad that so many lights are out.

 

[Hamlet]

I think that one issue we have is with the increased autonomy that technology has given us. For most people it has been a good thing, but it does allow for people to get isolated in a more extreme way.

50 years ago, you pretty much had to interact with other people day to day, even if it was just to get groceries, buy things, etc.

Now someone can pretty much live completely in their own world. I can buy groceries now without a cashier. I can buy pretty much everything online without talking to anyone. I work from home.

If I wasn't married, and a little mentally unstable, I would not have much required interactions with sane people to help pull me back to reality. I know that I've had goofy lines of thinking take root in my head, that have been pulled out because my friends, coworkers, and family have said "Dude, I think you need to rethink that, you're in tinfoil-hat-land".

Interactions with other people are a stabilizing influence on dangerous thoughts. Many people have lost a lot of that influence.

I don't buy into this statement. Humans have demonstrated these attributes as far back as recorded history can reveal. What we are seeing is the result of improved weapons and faster means of mass communication.

 

[samclem]

I think that one issue we have is with the increased autonomy that technology has given us. For most people it has been a good thing, but it does allow for people to get isolated in a more extreme way.

50 years ago, you pretty much had to interact with other people day to day, even if it was just to get groceries, buy things, etc.

Agreed, technology allows those on the fringe to avoid contact with normal people who can help them adjust their thinking.

But, perhaps even more important, it also allows those on the fringes to find each other and establish their own "new normality." They confirm each other's world views, conspiracy theories, and need to fix things using extreme measures. It's nothing more than a more dangerous, extreme case of the same info-tailoring and adjustments of objectivity that have contributed to the increasing polarization of the American electorate--and probably others worldwide where the Internet has become ubiquitous.

 

[ziggy29]

But, perhaps even more important, it also allows those on the fringes to find each other and establish their own "new normality." They confirm each other's world views, conspiracy theories, and need to fix things using extreme measures. It's nothing more than a more dangerous, extreme case of the same info-tailoring and adjustments of objectivity that have contributed to the increasing polarization of the American electorate--and probably others worldwide where the Internet has become ubiquitous.

+1

Today's communications technology and "alternative media" have certainly given a voice to the formerly voiceless, which can be a good thing.... but they also tend to create echo chambers in terms of ideologies and world views -- as people tend to "find" sources that match their existing views -- and get people more and more sure that they are right about everything, and everyone else is either stupid or malevolent.

 

[ls99]

A nutcase in Norway did create a tragedy.

It may be useful to assume that technology and alternative media is to blame.

Must remember that in 1978 Jim Jones used pretty low tech methods in addition to the ever useful charismatic BS to wipe out about 900 good but misguided people in Guyana.

There have always been and will be folks bent on evildoing. Discovering them ahead of time and being able to neutralize them, is the very difficult task. And gives howls to those whose civil liberties are infringed upon in the process.

 

[ziggy29]

A nutcase in Norway did create a tragedy.

It may be useful to assume that technology and alternative media is to blame.

It's not to blame any more than guns themselves are to blame for gun violence. (No, this isn't a call to discuss gun control, please!)

The point is that tools can either be used or misused, and in this case when they are misused they make antisocial and militant viewpoints feel more mainstream and perhaps embolden some folks into believing theirs is the One True Way.

 

[ls99]

Agreed.