Mass murderer Anders Behring Breivik isn't a bad man, although he slaughtered 77 people and injured 151. He's suffering from an illness.
Actually, Breivik's profile reveals this mad man shared a good deal in common with those considered sane.
Anders Behring Breivik, a 32-year-old Norwegian national, claims to be a fan of Winston Churchill, classical music, and gory movies like, "300," and "Gladiator," on his Facebook page.
He also claims on the page to be a fan of the sappy HBO vampire drama, "True Blood," and the serial killer show, "Dexter."
...He studied at the Oslo Commerce School, an instituion devoted to business and financial management.
In published photos, the alleged killer is shown to don a half smile, preppy clothing, and piercing green eyes that stare into the camera.
The Huffington Post goes on to cite a Twitter account for Breivik, in which he chillingly quotes the philosopher John Stuart Mill, saying, "One person with a belief is equal to the force of 100,000 who have only interests." The tweet was posted on July 17 and was the only one attributed to the account.
Breivik may have used a front company, Breivik Geofarm, he founded in 2009 as an excuse to legally stockpile large quantities of fertilizer and other chemicals which he could have used to build the bombs, according to Norwegian news stations.
On his Facebook page, Breivik describes himself as a fan of shoot-em'-up video games like "Modern Warefare 2," as well as the fantasy epic, "World of Warcraft."
So Breivik's killing spree has been declared the result of his illness.
The poor guy was sick. He's not responsible in that he didn't chose to commit heinous crimes. He didn't know what he was doing.
He needs treatment. He needs help, not punishment.
From the BBC: Norway massacre: Breivik declared insane
Psychiatrists assessing self-confessed Norwegian mass killer Anders Behring Breivik have concluded that he is suffering from paranoid schizophrenia.
They believe he was in a psychotic state during the twin attacks on 22 July that led to the deaths of 77 people and injured 151.
He was also insane during the 13 interviews he held with two psychiatrists, a news conference heard.
...The two psychiatrists, in their report, concluded that he lived in his "own delusional universe where all his thoughts and acts are guided by his delusions".
...Breivik, 32, is due to stand trial on 16 April for a hearing scheduled to last around 10 weeks.
It is unclear if the conclusions of the report - if approved by the panel - will prevent the trial from going ahead in its current form.
It will almost certainly mean that Breivik is detained into psychiatric care rather than receiving a lengthy jail term.
Before the report was made public, a lawyer for the victims said it did not matter what the conclusion was as long as Breivik was not allowed to go free.
"What will happen in the case, no matter what the conclusion, is that he (Breivik) will of course be incarcerated," John Christian Elden said.
"And if the outcome is criminally sane or insane, that is, first and foremost a psychiatric question. The most important thing in our clients' opinion is that he will not be able to walk the streets."
Breivik won't be free to walk the streets, but certainly being in a facility for the mentally ill is far different from being in prison.
I assume he'll receive treatment and medication to control his psychosis.
If Breivik is "cured," then what?
Will he be like John Hinckley Jr., the man who tried but failed to assassinate President Ronald Reagan?
From CNN, October 4, 2011:
Mental hospital wants to release failed Reagan assassin John Hinckley Jr.
The government mental hospital where John Hinckley Jr. has spent most of the last 30 years since he shot and tried to kill President Ronald Reagan is asking a federal court to allow Hinckley's eventual release to live with or near his aging mother in Williamsburg, Virginia.
The prosecution, in its own filing with the court on Friday, described Hinckley as "a man capable of great violence" and said his mental condition has not improved to the point of eliminating concerns "that this violence may be repeated."
U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman has scheduled up to a week of court hearings on the issue to start November 28, the Monday after Thanksgiving.
Hinckley is now 56. He was committed to St. Elizabeths Hospital in 1982 after a jury found him innocent by reason of insanity in the shooting of President Reagan and three others, including the president's severely wounded press secretary, James Brady.
The hospital's lawyers and doctors filed their motion under seal, withheld from the public, when they asked at the end of this past July that Hinckley eventually be placed on "convalescent leave."
But government lawyers quoted the hospital's proposal, making it part of the court's public record, in their response Friday in opposing his release.
The day that changed presidential security forever
According to the government, the hospital has asked first for a series of extended visits to Williamsburg and then, "it be given the sole discretion to place Hinckley on convalescent leave in his mother's hometown."
His widowed mother, Jo Ann Hinckley, is now 85. She lives in a gated resort development not far from the James River in Williamsburg. Hinckley has been allowed several visits with her for up to a week and a half at a time over the last couple of years.
But he has been required to carry a GPS tracking device when away from the house and the Secret Service has kept watch on his movements. That surveillance would be loosened under the hospital's proposal.
I think the hospital's lawyers and doctors appear to be suffering from some mental illness.
