Hunting for the Cause of Mass Murders

Mass murders that involve a firearm, generally called “mass shootings” by most, are terrible things. We’ve also seen a lot more of them in the decades since Columbine, which is particularly troubling.

They happened before, of course, and they’ll likely continue to happen no matter what we do. However, that doesn’t mean we should do nothing.

Anti-gunners would have us restrict firearms, as if that’s the totality of what should be done. Never mind that we’ve seen massacres carried out with all manner of weapons over the years, and there’s no reason to think that those who want to hurt others will just give up because they can’t get a gun as easily as they can now.

At America’s 1st Freedom, editor-in-chief Frank Miniter turns his attention to an old but recurring theme in these massacres.

After what used to be called a “homicidal maniac” strikes, mainstream-news coverage typically fills with condemnations of guns. But then, as details typically show the event does not fit anti-gun narratives, instead of following the story to actual answers, gun-control supporters in the media and politics feign surprise that nothing is “being done about guns.” They then blame the NRA for stopping “common-sense” infringements and await their next chance to make the same political argument.

Despite this, some agencies are now looking in another direction. They are asking if medications, such as anti-depressants or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs)—Prozac, Paxil and Zoloft are SSRIs—might have something to do with at least some of these killers’ actions?

Sexual dysfunction, severe anxiety, a reduction in emotional empathy, suicidal ideation and other worrying possible side effects are associated with these medications. These side effects might be statistically rare, but so are non-gang-related mass-murder attacks.

These medications are common. A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study from 2015-2018 found that 13.2% of Americans (or about 44 million) had taken an SSRI in the past month. If just a tiny fraction of those on these medications have side effects severe enough to make them more likely to harm themselves or others, then this is something doctors and the public need to be aware of—if only to be more careful with these prescriptions.

These questions are now being asked by the state of Tennessee and by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. 

Now, this line of thinking was supposedly debunked by the media, but it’s far from new. A 2001 paper, though, looked at a case out of Wyoming where a jury found that Paxil was at least 80 percent responsible for a man killing several family members, including himself.

There have been numerous cases where the drugs were allegedly linked to violent actions by others.

However, this isn’t a common reaction, which is what muddies the water. Millions of Americans take SSRIs for depression and anxiety, and don’t become violent at all.

Yet if a very tiny percentage does become enraged, homicidal, and suicidal because of the drug, they may opt to lash out by carrying out a mass public shooting. As such, it’s not a stretch to believe that SSRIs might have played some kind of role.

The problem is that the methodology used to look at the problem seems to be looking too broadly. It doesn’t take it being a major side effect in a majority of people for it to become a major problem for society.

I’m not saying SSRIs are the issue. I’m saying we should look at it and if there appears to be a link, and there kind of does, then we should dig deeper and see what we can find, then hopefully create some way to keep an eye on patients on these meds so that they can get help if they react that way, versus just banning guns for no reason.

Editor’s Note: The Schumer Shutdown is here. Rather than put the American people first, Chuck Schumer and the radical Democrats forced a government shutdown for healthcare for illegals. They own this.

Help us continue to report the truth about the Schumer Shutdown. Use promo code POTUS47 to get 74% off your VIP membership.