Violent video games are being linked to yet another mass murderer as friends of Aaron Alexis, who murdered 12 people yesterday in the Washington Navy Yard say he would play these games for up to 16 hours at a time.
The Telegraph is reporting that friends of Alexis’ say his addiction to violent video games was at odds with what appeared to be his devout commitment to Buddhism. They told the Telegraph that he would spend of half of every Sunday meditating at the Wat Busayadhammvanaram temple in Fort Worth, Texas over a period of several years.
Alexis’ best friend, Nutpisit Suthamtewakul, with whom Alexis lived for some time, said he would sometimes play violent video games in his room until after 4:00 a.m.
“He could be in the game all day and all night,” Mr. Suthamtewakul said. “I think games might be what pushed him that way.”
Authorities are still investigating yesterday’s tragedy and say they believe Alexis, a 34 year-old discharged Navy engineer, entered the Navy Yard at around 8:20 a.m. armed with a shotgun and began shooting at employees in the cafeteria from an atrium overhead. He killed 12 people between the ages of 46 and 73 before being killed by police.
A motive for the killings is not yet known although additional information about the shooter describes him as being a mentally troubled man who had “anger issues.” Some believe he was suffering from post traumatic stress disorder after witnessing the terrorist attack of 9/11. He also had other serious mental issues such as paranoia, a sleep disorder, and hearing voices in his head.
Most Reverend Timothy P. Broglio, J.C.D., Archbishop for the Military Services, expressed his shock over the shootings and blamed the tragedy on a lack of respect for human life.
“With all people of good will, I am shocked and deeply saddened by the terrible loss of life this morning at the Navy Yard,” he said in a statement issued after the attacks. “I have often visited and celebrated the Eucharist there. It is a familiar place. I also prayed for the victims, the wounded, and their families at the noon Mass at the Archdiocesan Pastoral Center.”
He added: “Somehow we must restore the notion of respect for life into the fabric of the Nation. When the uniqueness of the human person created in the image and likeness of God is universally recognized, the possibility of a mass shooting is more remote.”
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