Hello Bunglehorn,

In the aftermath of the Virginia Tech massacre, a coup de grâce for our Master below, we see the community demanding accountability from someone, anyone. They will not be satisfied with the sheer horror of the event. Their anger at Cho Seung-Hui shifts to the school administration, because they did not anticipate Cho’s violence or respond quick enough.

This reaction is useful to us in a couple ways. First, a demand for people to anticipate worst case scenarios will cause them to be hyperaware of the presence of evil, even where it does not exist. Such is the consequence of a constant state of fear. Like the Israelites who begged for a king, American university students will sacrifice liberties for a false sense of security. Better to be safe than sorry!

The second benefit is a retreat from real life to virtual worlds. Permanent isolationsism is counter to the Enemy’s call for men to join in communion via a single body of Christ. It is through this communion that people come to know the Enemy. The Enemy’s very definition of sin is the disorientation away from Him. It is his intent that men bring each other to him. It is our intent, then, for men to become isolated, fenced off in a world of our making.

You might say that people interact with each other in virtual worlds. These connections are not the same as they are in person, or even via the lost artful expression of letters. The anonimity of the web removes the hassle of self-control when dealing with their fellow man. In virtual reality, people are inclined to become someone they are not. They’re prone to allow instances of mean spiritedness to enter their personality (if not full blown nastiness and violence!), much like the strange insular environment of one’s car in traffic. There is a diffusion of responsibility between the real person and their virtual avatar.

Therein lies our deception. Real people are truly hurt by what happens to them in virtual worlds. Look at internet addiction, online affairs that hurt marriages and kids going crazy while playing games. MMORPGs like World of Warcraft and Second Life allow an entire generation to escape to an alternate universe with it’s own economy, language, code of ethics and sense of time. This has the potential for great good and for great evil.

Virtual reality allows one to behave in two moral constructs. One in a real world where they more readily appreciate the consequences of their actions and one in a virtual world where they easily avoid consequences. What does such a mindset do to the person? It may be too early for humans to tell, but you and I, existing beyond the constructs of time, can better see the effect. People will disconnect from others both because their trust in their fellow man is eroding and because facing consequences of their own behavior will become too burdensome.

I noticed with glee that NBC decided to play Cho’s manifesto “so that we may better understand him.” Peacock poppycock! How can one reason with the unreasonable? Playing the killers package immortalizes him in death, exactly what he wants, his sick protest of over-commercialization. This from the same network that just fired Don Imus over righteous indignation for poor remarks that he repeatedly clarified and apologized for. So while NBC faced lost revenue from sponsor pressure, they play a killer’s manifesto against the wishes of police and the pain of the survivors in a ratings grab to attract sponsors. Don’t you love such twisted morality?

How can you parley these benefits to your patient? First, shift his anger from a lone killer’s decisions to those who couldn’t reasonably foresee it. Confuse his rationale, which is only reasonable with hindsight, as plausible without hindsight. Then, imbued with a sense of insecurity, dispair and distrust, suggest that he “check out” for a while. Not in a healthy way like a holiday outdoors or time before the “Blessed Sacrament,” but in a way that feels good. Perhaps killing an entire weekend playing video games. LMK how that goes.

Warmest Regards,
Wigglebrick

One Comment to “Our Kind of Cloister”

1. 1

   Also, social isolates tend to neglect their own welfare.

   Chugabug
   April 22nd, 2007 @ 12:35 PM

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