Mass Shootings and SSRIs

For the liberal media establishment, mass shootings facilitate hype that not only drives ratings but contributes to the incremental assault on gun rights. However, increasing infringement on the Second Amendment has done nothing to reduce mass shootings. This is underscored by 97.8% of public shootings occurring in gun-free zones. A more constructive response to the violence might be to infringe on antidepressant medication instead. Moonbattery.com sponsor Ammo.com investigates the role of the most commonly prescribed antidepressants in the USA, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs):

SSRIs have a risk of increasing violence in patients, even in patients who have no previous history of violence or aggression before taking the medication.

This risk of violent behavior, both to the individual taking the medication and those around them, is so significant, it has led to the FDA mandating a black box warning on all SSRI medications.

A common trait among mass killers is emotional blunting, which prevents them from appreciating the seriousness of what they are doing. Emotional blunting has been linked to SSRI use, as have psychosis and hallucinations.

Depression does not cause people to go on shooting sprees. But there is anecdotal evidence suggesting that SSRIs might. A list of examples is provided, including these familiar cases:

Eric Harris, 17, with Dylan Klebold, killed 12 students, one teacher, himself, and wounded 23 others during the Columbine school shooting; he had been prescribed Zoloft and then Luvox…

James Holmes, also known as the Batman Movie killer, was taking sertraline when he walked into the showing of The Dark Knight with two .40 caliber pistols, an AR-style .223 rifle, and a 12 gauge shotgun, killing 12 people and injuring 70 others. …

From the moment it occurred, the Charleston Church shooting has been deemed an act of white supremacy, a race crime against blacks. But two years after Dylann Roof shot and killed nine people and injured another, the court released documents that show it was more mental health than hatred that led to the murders. The documents confirmed he was taking antidepressants.

The list is long and might be much longer, but the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act suppresses information regarding medications taken by mentally ill criminals.

Serious journalists would be more likely to investigate the link between SSRIs and mass shootings than to rehash tired political spin intended to erode constitutional rights. But serious journalists are a rarity, having been displaced by propagandists with an agenda.

The post Mass Shootings and SSRIs appeared first on Moonbattery.