Don't Give The Aurora Killer What He Wants

"sometimes these kinds of guys get very interested in topping the other guy...one of the problems with media reporting on these issues is...this kind of person wants publicity...they want to be famous." -Robin Zagurski, clinical social worker

I would have to agree with the chorus of voices coming from Aurora, Colorado and around the world. The attention should not be on the killer, but on the victims. I feel that when this kind of event happens again (they are all too common in today's world) we should all agree not to publicize the killer's name. The police does not need to name him or her at the press conference. The media when they inevitably discover the name does not need to release it to the public. Admittedly, it would not serve as a deterrent, these men and women would likely commit their horrible deeds anyway because their problems are far too complex. I feel that not publicizing the killer's name would serve as an act of respect for the victims. If one of the things these people want is notoriety, wouldn't it only make sense to deny it to them? Yes, we need to remember the actions, so we can learn from them and try to prevent them, but we don't need to remember the person behind them.

And I'm not alone in this view (in no particular order):

-James Allen Fox and a number of other criminologists

 -Jon Keller, a news commentator in Boston

-Mike Huckabee (this is a comment on his website about it)

 -Helen Lewis, an editor at New Statesman

-various academic types, including Clayton Cramer


-USA Today columnist David Kopel

-blogger Michelle Konstantinovsky

-well-known Catholic blogger, Mark Shea

-a blogger at St. Catherine of Siena Institute

-President Barack Obama


-the Governor of Colorado

-the community of Aurora, Colorado