Columbine and Aggression

By Aaron Rudkin
Sociology-Anthropology 2260: War & Aggression
Submitted to Dr. Vincent Walsh
August 8th, 2006
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When the Columbine High School shootings took place in April 1999, mass media,
sociologists and anthropologists, and politicians alike immediately set about the difficult task of
discerning the motives of the killers and answering the question of whether or not problems
endemic in society allowed this to happen. As early as the day after the shootings, blame had
been pointed at gun availability (Etheridge 1999), “poisoned culture” (CNN 1999a), gothic
culture (Walton 1999), Nazism (Feldman 1999), the internet (ibid), violence in video games
(CNN 1999b), and countless other sources.

The subject remains controversial today. FBI psychologists concluded in 1999 that
shooters Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris were respectively “the depressive and the psychopath”
(Cullen 2004). Michael Moore’s 2002 film “Bowling for Columbine” (Moore 2002) examined
the role of the violent mass media as well as gun culture played in helping set the stage for these
shootings. Dozens of books have been published about the subject. Courts have heard lawsuits
against video game makers (Ward 2001), parents (CNN 1999c), county sheriffs and police
officers (Vaughan 1999), all unsuccessful.

In the end, though, conclusions are varied and often poorly supported or contradicted by
the facts. There is consensus that Klebold and Harris were deeply disturbed, but few can agree as
to who is to blame and what could be done different to prevent future Columbine shootings.

Whatever the controversy, there is certainly no shortage of evidence to analyze. The

official Jefferson County Columbine Report weighed in at 10,937 pages. (Sheriff’s Office 2004)
On July 7th, 2006, almost one thousand pages of documents seized from the Klebold and Harris
residences, vehicles, and computers were finally released by the Jefferson County Sheriff’s
office (Sheriff’s Office 2006), providing new insight into the personal lives of the killers. Several
videos filmed by the killers themselves are publicly available (Shepard 2006a). Five tapes,
collectively referred to as “The Basement Tapes” are referred to in the official report, but have
yet to be released as of this writing, although a partial transcript of their contents has been
assembled (Shepard 2006b). All critical analysis of the minds of the killers or others by
secondary sources can be attributed to one of these three sources of information, and this writing
will endeavor to cite primary sources as often as possible. Many of the references cited in this
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writing were originally broadcast and no longer readily available in their original form. Where
possible, internet URLs with transcripts of original broadcasts have been provided.

Given that the majority of the analysis of the motives and actions of the killers took place
immediately after the killings, it seems important to revisit the evidence with perspective and
objectivity and debunk some of the popular misconceptions surrounding the events. For the
purposes of this writing, the central claims surrounding the motivations of the killers will be
divided into biological/psychological (claims that center around the physical or mental states of
being of the killers) and sociological (claims that center around the external actions or influences
of society and culture on the killers). In specific, claims related to the role of anti-depressants,
the psychological state of mind of the killers, gun availability, the video game Doom and violent
media, parenting and family life, social relationships, ostracism, and bullying, and Nazism,
racism, and bigotry will be discussed. After discussing these claims, this writing will endeavor to
illustrate one possible viewpoint as to how the killers formed their appetite for murder.

Biological / Psychological Claims

Luvox
At the time of the shootings, Eric Harris was 18 years old. Dylan Klebold was 17 years
old. Autopsy results on both teens indicated that neither teen was under the influence of illegal
drugs or narcotics (Sheriff’s Office 1999a, Sheriff’s Office 1999b), and that both were physically
unremarkable. According to Harris’ writings, he was not a heavy drinker. (Sheriff’s Office 2006)
Harris had, however, been taking the prescription antidepressant fluvoxamine (under the
brandname Luvox) (Sheriff’s Office 1999a:9).

In the aftermath of the shootings, some criticized Solvay Pharmaceuticals, the

manufacturer of Luvox, for the shootings. Evidence from the early trials of the drug had
indicated that the drug had shown a 2-4% likelihood to induce mania in youth taking it, lending
credibility to these assertions. (FDA 2006) There is very little evidence to suggest that the drug
played any significant role in the shootings. Several rebuttals to this assertion are obvious. First,
amongst antidepressants, fluvoxamine is comparably safe versus other medications, including
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fluoxetine (commonly Prozac). Former president of the APA, Dr. Rodrigo Munoz plainly denied
the idea that SSRIs might be the cause:

“Despite a decade of research, there is little valid evidence to prove a causal relationship between
the use of anti-depressant medications and destructive behavior. On the other hand, there is
ample evidence that undiagnosed and untreated mental illness exacts a heavy toll on those who
suffer from these disorders as well as those around them.” (CNN 1999d)

This theory seems further unlikely, noting that both Klebold and Harris took part in the
shootings, but only Harris was taking Luvox. Nowhere in Harris’ writings does he report a
difference in behaviour after beginning to take the drug (as did, for example, Charles Whitman
before his shooting spree at the University of Texas, which some attribute to a malignant brain
growth).

The Psychopath and the Depressive

Shortly after the shootings, FBI investigators convened a summit on school violence in
Virginia. Five years later, Slate Magazine published a column called “The Psychopath and the
Depressive” (Cullen 2004) which presented the conclusions of the summit citing experts such as
Dr. Frank Ochberg (ibid), and the FBI’s lead Columbine investigator, Dwayne Fuselier (ibid).

The conclusions first and foremost were that Harris and Klebold were not attempting
simply to shoot their classmates, but to “terrorize tbe entire nation by attacking a symbol of
American life.” (ibid).

The investigators determine that Klebold was “depressive and suicidal” (ibid). Klebold
was certainly shy and withdrawn, but he lacked many characteristics of individuals who are
suicidal. It is noted that most people who attempt suicide are overheard discussing their
mortality. (Haines 2005) Klebold, on the other hand, talked frequently about his future and plans
for university (ABC 1999)
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Some evidence, however, does support their conclusion. Just one half hour before the
shootings began, Harris and Klebold filmed a taped message (Shepard 2006b). One of the last
things Klebold says is “Just know I'm going to a better place. I didn't like life too much, and I
know I'll be happy wherever the fuck I go. So I'm gone. Good-bye.” (ibid)

The investigators continue by saying that Klebold was largely an accomplice in the
shootings and assigning the blame for the shootings to Harris:

“Klebold, they agree, would never have pulled off Columbine without Harris. He might have
gotten caught for some petty crime, gotten help in the process, and conceivably could have gone
on to live a normal life” (Cullen 2004)

Looking at the Basement Tapes (Shepard 2006b), it seems hard to support this
conclusion. Both boys talk as ostensively equal partners, both express a clear intent to do what
they are doing, and there is nothing to indicate that Harris is using or otherwise controlling
Klebold.

Investigators concluded that Harris was a psychopath. The column directly cites Dr.
Robert Hare, and his book about psychopathy, “Without Conscience”, to define psychopathy
“Psychopaths are not disoriented or out of touch with reality, nor do they experience the
delusions, hallucinations, or intense subjective distress that characterize most other mental
disorders,” (Cullen 2004)

Certainly, it seems tempting to be able to attribute the actions of the killers to the sort of
“universal criminality” associated with psychopathy (indeed, it is tempting in the face of any
atrocity to wax fatalistic). The column itself ends by saying Harris was “irretrievable” (ibid), and
that “his death at Columbine may have stopped him from doing something even worse.”

However, evidence does not suggest this diagnosis is correct. Harris had lengthy
friendships with many individuals without seeming to manipulate them. Harris frequently wrote
sincere expressions of affection for others. With reference to the 2006 Columbine Documents
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(Sheriff’s Office 2006), Harris wrote apparently sincere love letters on pages 493-499, page 502
(“Love is more valuable than anything I know… I hate those who choose to destroy a love, who
take it for granted”), pages 507-512, page 564, and many others. Instant messenger conversations
found on pages 657-661 as well as pages 716-718 see Harris apparently flirting with an online
friend. (ibid) As part of the fifth Basement Tape, Harris’ last sentence, after saying goodbye to
his parents, was “Susan, sorry. Under different circumstances it would've been a lot different. I
want you to have that fly CD." (Shepard 2006b) This is not the first hint towards romantic
interest found in the body of evidence. There is nothing to suggest that Harris was sexually
manipulative or sexual abusive, and so it can reasonably be assumed that his romantic interests
were at least partially sincere. As a whole the evidence does not reflect a mental state of being
that is incapable of forming sincere relationships with others.

Psychopaths are noted for the pleasure they receive from duping and deceiving others.
It’s undeniable that Harris took pleasure from this, but it’s also true that Harris shows what are
apparently sincere expressions of regret. On pages 864-865 of the 2006 Columbine Documents
(Sheriff’s Office 2006) he writes an essay explaining that he regrets a 1998 arrest related to
breaking into a truck. There is no prompting to suggest that Harris is insincerely writing this, so
it seems more likely that this writing is sincere.

The investigation claims that Harris has a “messianic-level superiority complex” (Cullen
2004), but on page 501 of the 2006 Columbine Documents (Sheriff’s Office 2006), Harris writes
“The framework of society stands above and below me. The hardest thing to destroy, yet the
weakest thing that exists. I know that I am different, yet I am afraid to tell the society. The
possible abandonment, persecution is not something I want to face, yet it is so primitive to me.
(sic)”

Certainly, both Harris and Klebold were not normal teenagers. The FBI conclusion,
however, is lacking in references to any evidence supporting the conclusions, and as previously
illustrated is directly contradicted by much of the available evidence. It is important to question
whether or not this conclusion is based on the available evidence or other, political concerns.
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Sociological Claims

Gun Availability

In the wake of Columbine, lawsuits and allegations against pro-gun groups and gun
manufacturers and claims that gun availability contributed significantly to the events were
commonplace. It should be noted that regardless of whether or not gun availability affected the
total death toll or the ability of the killers to enact their plan, the main question should not be
“What enabled the killers to act?” but in fact “Why did the killers want to kill to begin with?”

Harris clearly believed that lax school security would allow an event like Columbine to
happen. Contained within the 2006 evidence release (Sheriff’s Office 2006), Harris wrote on
pages 861-863 and also 697-698 about the problem of guns in schools and how to stop the issue.

Harris was also a lover of guns. He wrote a criticism of the US anti-gun “Brady Bill” on
page 624 of the 2006 evidence release (ibid), and several documents found within the release
suggested Harris was a member of a gun owner’s rights group in Colorado (ibid).

In Bowling for Columbine (Moore 2002), Michael Moore examines American violent
and gun culture largely in reference to the shootings. The film contains a fairly eloquent rebuttal
of the idea that gun availability or gun ownership led to Columbine by noting gun ownership in
Switzerland, a country with far fewer murders per capita than the United States, is mandatory
due to mandatory militia conscription. (ibid) While this does not discount the factor of gun
ownership, it suggests that the “common-sense” correlation between gun ownership and gun
violence may not be valid.

Further, Klebold and Harris illegally obtained one rifle and two shotguns used for the
attack thanks to a straw purchase by friend Robyn Anderson. (Bartels 1999) Several other
weapons were illegally purchased, including a Tec-9 handgun from co-worker Mark Manes.
(Lindsay 1999) This suggests that the pair were willing to both break the law and go to fairly
long lengths to obtain the armament they felt they needed.
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Based on all available evidence, it seems likely that gun availability merely expedited the
attacks and enabled them, rather than actually motivating or causing them. Most of the criticism
leveled against gun availability in the wake of the tragedy came from sources that had long been
opposed to gun availability in the first place, so it seems likely that the motivations behind this
criticism were political rather than in genuine reaction to Columbine

Doom and Violent Media

Doom is a seminal computer game released in 1993 by iD Software. Players assume the
role of a “Space Marine”, fighting an invasion of demonic creatures from Hell. Doom was
intensely violent for its time. Players can use a variety of weapons, including a chainsaw, to
graphically kill and dismember enemy creatures. Technologically, the game has severe
limitations when compared to recent entries in the genre, and so violence in modern games is
significantly more realistic looking.

Both killers were fans of the game. Harris, in particular, was obsessed with the game. He
frequently made custom modifications and his own scenarios for the game, and wrote iD
software asking whether or not his scenarios could be included in future versions of the game
(Sheriff’s Office 2006: 712).

Harris frequently drew characters from and inspired by the game in his journals (Sheriff’s
Office 2006:679-680, 588, 582, 567-568, 942). In the Basement Tape (Shepard 2006b) dated
March 15th, 1999, Harris says “We need a fucking kick start. If we have a fucking religious war -
or oil - or anything. We need to get a chain reaction going here. It's gonna be like fucking Doom
man - after the bombs explode. Tick, tick, tick, tick... Haa! That fucking shotgun (he kisses his
gun) straight out of Doom. Go ahead and change gun laws - how do you think we got ours?" in
reference to the planned attacks. During the April 11th, 1999 Basement Tape (ibid), Harris again
mentions the game in reference to the shootings; the only known transcript of the tapes says “The
next page Eric discusses is one that appears to be inventories of bombs. He points to the top of
the page and says that these are how many bullets they're going to have. He then points to some
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of the drawings in the back of the book, saying they are "Doom drawings" (ibid). He also points
out other pages that have different drawings, including different types of weapons, and says they
are "plans for rocket launchers and stuff. Most will not see the new world." He points out more
drawings close to the back, calling them "Doom drawings with a KMFDM twist to them" (ibid).

According to the transcript (ibid), Harris also talks about “Tier” (one of his Doom
scenarios) on the March 18th, 1999 Basement tape. “We then talks about "Tier" and calls it "My
life's work", saying he wanted to get it published. (Investigating officer Zimmerman recognized
the term as "some of the direction type booklets for the video game Doom*" which the officer
took from Eric's room during the search warrant.)“ According to a report by the Rocky Mountain
News (Bartels 1999), Eric showed one-time girlfriend Brenda Parker how to download Doom.

It is clear that Doom was a huge part of Harris’ life, and that Doom is certainly violent.
The question remains whether or not it contributed to Harris’ actions. The primary assertion in
this case is that Doom desensitizes players to violence and blurs the lines between reality and
fiction. This would suggest that Harris and Klebold were at least partially motivated by an
inability to understand their actions. This does not fit with the evidence that clearly shows that
the killings were planned over a long period and in a very calculated manner. Reviewing the
Basement Tape transcript (Shepard 2006b), it is obvious that both Harris and Klebold understand
the ramifications of their actions, including that they would eventually die during the attacks. On
the other hand, there is no evidence in the prolific writings and recordings of either killer that
they possessed any lack of awareness of what they were doing.

Besides Doom, many other pop culture fixations were blamed for the attacks. Marilyn
Manson, a contemporary rock artist, was accused of inspiring the shooters. This is likely to be
false; neither shooter listened to Marilyn Manson. The shooters did listen to gothic-industrial
music groups KMFDM and Rammstein, but neither have notably violent or obscene lyrics and
both groups have condemned the shootings.

The film Natural Born Killers was also accused as having inspired the attacks. The film,
an Oliver Stone motion picture, was primarily intended as a sociological examination and
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critique of the glamorization of violence by the media. The film was frequently criticized on the
grounds that it itself was a glamorization of violence (according to movie review aggregation site
RottenTomatoes.com (IGN 2006), the film was split near 50-50 between praise and disgusted
criticism), so it is entirely within reason to extrapolate that Harris and Klebold also interpreted
the movie this way.

The sole piece of evidence that would actually support this theory is that the killers
referred to their plan to attack Columbine High School as “NBK” (Sheriff’s Office 2006). This is
far from conclusive, however, as the film depicts the two main characters, who are mass
murderers, being captured alive whereas both Columbine killers acknowledged that they would
be killed during their attack. It seems more likely that the use of NBK as an acronym to refer to
their attack plan is Harris and Klebold foreseeing the media spectacle and fascination with their
actions they believed would result from their actions. This is also in line with the transcript of the
Basement Tapes (Shepard 2006b), which reports that during the March 15th, 1999 tape, Harris
and Klebold discuss which director should make the film based on their actions.

It is inconclusive whether or not violent media made Harris and Klebold violent. It seems
more likely based on available evidence that Harris and Klebold were initially violent and were
more attracted to violent media as a result. Few, if any pieces of evidence support the idea that
Harris or Klebold were unaware of the ramifications of their actions.

These criticisms have mainly been leveled by individuals who have established records of
crusading against violent media and culture, such as Tipper Gore (CNN 1999a) who reportedly
viewed Columbine as “a wake-up call to adults responsible for the violent images in children’s
entertainment”. It seems more likely that these critics are using Columbine as a continued
justification for their political approaches to the subject.

Family Life

Most of the accusations centered around the family life or parents of the killers are
accusations of negligence, rather than blame. Few sources have blamed either the Klebold family
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or the Harris family for the actions of their sons. Most of the blame focused on the families is in
the form of wondering how it would be possible to miss the construction of pipe bombs and the
firings of automatics weapons at the houses. This is certainly a valid point insofar as determining
whether or not the parents of the killers should be held legally liable, but a weak point as it
relates to the motivations behind the crimes.

There is no evidence to suggest that Harris and Klebold were neglected by their parents.
In discussing their motivations on the Basement Tapes (Shepard 2006b), Harris rightfully
predicts that those trying to analyze their actions will wonder about their parenting, and that their
parents will wonder whether or not they could have prevented the actions:

Dylan: (Imagining his parents' feelings of regret) "If only we could have
reached them sooner, or found this tape."

Eric "If only we would have searched their room. If only we would have
asked the right questions." (talks about his mother being thoughtful, bringing
him candy and Slim Jims) "I really am sorry about all this."

Dylan: "They gave me my fucking life. It's up to me what I do with it."

Eric: (shrugs) "My parents might have made some mistakes that they weren't
really aware of. Good wombs hath borne bad sons."

Dylan: (talks about how his parents taught him to be independent and self-
reliant) "I appreciate that."

The only reference to parenting or home life in a negative way is found in the March 15,
1999 Basement Tape (ibid), when Harris complains about his military family upbringing. There
is a sense that he is bitter about having to relocate many times during his childhood and that this
has made it impossible for him to network and form social connections, but the resentment
appears to be focused more at the situation itself than Wayne Harris.

Klebold has nothing negative to say about his parents based on available evidence (ibid),
although he briefly complains about feeling inferior to his brother Byron. There is no specific
evidence to indicate that this feeling is grounded in any sort of notable or persistent harassment
rather than normal sibling rivalries.
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Neither family owned guns, and no one in either family had any history of violence or
criminality. There is nothing to suggest either killer was abused as a child. Both were middle
class families.

Criticism of the families is mainly indirect and does not focus around any particular
evidence that neglect on the part of the parents contributed to the actions. On April 21st, 1999,
then-Texas Governor George W. Bush weighed in on the situation by saying “I wish we could
legislate love ... I think it's important for mothers and dads to understand that the most important
job they'll ever have is raising a child to respect others. Love happens at home” (CNN 1999a) On
the evening of the shooting, former Vice President Dan Quayle said "It has to go back to the
culture, to the family," Quayle said."I hope we don't try to use this as an excuse to go and take
away guns. Let's focus on the behavior." (ibid)

This sort of criticism of the parents seems to mainly originate from individuals who have
established records of criticizing the state of the American family and American family values.
In the absence of evidence to suggest that either the Harris family or the Klebold family did a
poor job of raising their children, it seems likely that these criticisms are political opportunism.

Bullying and Social Ostracism

By far the most common explanation for the Columbine killings is that the killers were
attempting to retaliate against bullies that had tormented them throughout their school years.
Indeed, in the wake of the events, media coverage focused almost exclusively on the image of
“Goths” striking back against “popular jocks”.

This sort of assumption is exactly the sort of “folk knowledge” anthropology seeks to
investigate. While it is certainly true that bullying is a very real problem in US and international
schools, and likely in Columbine, the evidence must be examined to determine whether or not
there is any clear indication that the killers were motivated by revenge. It is difficult to analyze
the evidence, since so many conversations are easily taken out of context. It is almost impossible
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to tell the sincerity or seriousness of any given statement made by either of the two killers, and it
is certain that even well adjusted teenagers are prone to rash thoughts and words.

It is clear that early reports that the pair were members of the “Trenchcoat Mafia” were
incorrect. (Cullen 2004) The group was a loosely knit clique of friends who had previously
graduated from Columbine. Eric and Dylan were friends with one of the former members. There
is no evidence to suggest that Eric and Dylan were part of any gang, or that any other student
was involved in the killings.

Other early reports had stated that both boys were part of the neo-Nazi movement. The
cumulative total of evidence to support this appears to be that Eric had written papers on Nazism
(Sheriff’s Department 2006), and that the boys had drawn swastikas. It seems unlikely that
Nazism was an issue, since Eric wrote in his journal that he hated, amongst many other things,
racists (ibid).

Eric frequently made “hit lists”. The Basement Tapes clearly show Dylan and Eric
threatening peers (Shepard 2006b). They show obvious contempt for many of their fellow
students. Eric’s writing and instant message transcripts echo this (Sheriff’s Department 2006).
All accounts by friends of the pair indicate that they were generally introverted and not
particularly popular. Eric had dated several girls, although none long-term. Dylan had dated
Robyn Anderson briefly before the shootings. (Bartels 1999)

While entering Columbine, Eric passed by Brooks Brown. He told Brooks “I like you
Brooks… so just get out of here”. (Sheriff’s Office 2004) None of the victims of the attacks
(other than the shooters themselves) were socially close to the pair.

On the other hand, the killings and shootings themselves were incredibly unfocused. It is
unknown if any of the students mentioned on the Basement Tapes were amongst those who were
hurt, but those who were shot and killed are not easily categorized as the social elite of the
school.
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Testimony by several friends of the pair seems to indicate that both were generally
unknown rather than disliked. In his writings, Eric briefly mentions that he finds “the fabric of
society unobtainable” (Sheriff’s Office 2006). It is possible that Eric and Dylan felt enraged by
the fact that they were ignored, and in some senses this sort of motive links well to the alleged
superiority complex the FBI concluded Eric had (Cullen 2004).

A strong body of documentation supports the claim that both boys had an intense hatred
for pop culture and what they viewed as mainstream society. Whether or not the boys were
attempting to reshape or attack pop culture is a far more difficult question, however, and is likely
one that cannot be answered now that the two are dead.

Conclusion

Every explanation related to Columbine that has been offered has at least one key flaw.
Many people have access to guns, many people are socially ostracized, many people are on anti-
depressant medication, many people enjoy violent media. Few ever act out in the way that Eric
Harris and Dylan Klebold did.

It seems likely that the two were motivated by a fatal combination of all of the suggested
factors arranged in the exact way necessary to create two killers. Based on the strengths and
weaknesses of each individual theory, the following is a hypothesis about how the two became
motivated to kill:

Eric Harris was not properly encultured from a young age. Being the son of a military
family, he frequently moved around and felt estranged from his peers. He resented having to
climb the social ladder in each new location here went. Dylan Klebold had a healthy family life,
but was cripplingly shy and never adjusted well.

Once reaching junior high school, the two established a friendship based on the common
bond of dislike of their classmates and peers. Harris began to embrace violent media likely in
order to vent his frustrations. Harris, a bright child, became involved in gun ownership activism
 14

and accumulated gun knowledge using the Internet and books available to him.

During the year leading up to the killings, the two initially learned to construct explosive
devices to satisfy their curiosity. The two was involved in many activities typical of rebellious
teenagers, including petty theft, vandalism, truancy, and underage smoking. Both boys attempted
to escape punishment for their bad deeds, and by a mixture of sincere regret and lying, managed
to convince their families that the situation was normal. The continued construction of explosives
occurred largely due to the fact that neither family had enforced discipline on either child nor
investigated odd coincidences that may have lead to the discovery of the operation.

At some point, Harris and Klebold decided that it was unlikely that they would ever fit
into society at large. Clearly, both had friends, but they still felt socially abandoned. While both
had potentially bright futures, neither was excited or happy about life.

The final decision to exact vengeance on the culture they held contempt for came six to
nine months before the killings. What started as a fantasy became possible through the pair’s
access to weaponry and tactical planning abilities. The final go-ahead for the plan came at the
beginning of 1999, when Eric was rejected from joining the United States Military, the one place
where he believed he could serve a good cause and make use of his talents.

As a result of maladaptive personalities, combined with non-ideal (although common)

family conditions, bright minds capable of researching and planning, and saturation in violent
media, the two tentatively committed to a shooting rampage in their school. Until the very end,
seeds of doubt were present in both minds. The pair began their killings fully aware that they
would never have the chance to turn back.

Hypotheses like this one may be the most accurate picture of Columbine possible. It is
difficult if impossible to discern from the killer’s writings which statements are sincere, which
are lies, and which are fantasies. Without the ability to interview Klebold or Harris,
interpretations of source material may never be confirmed. This process is complicated by the
tremendous moral impact Columbine had on America. Every activist and activism group
 15

imaginable turned Columbine into justification for their cause celebre, using spurious scraps of
evidence and interviews and anecdotes provided by children and others seeking fame from
trauma.

The last pieces of evidence yet to be released, the Basement Tapes, may never be
released. Based on the known content transcribed from the videos (Shepard 2006b), they may
ask more questions than they answer.

After seven years of thinking, interviews, books, movies, and countless hours of analysis,
no clear answer as to what caused the mindless aggression and senseless carnage of Columbine
may ever be found.
 16

References Cited

ABC News
1999 More insight on Dylan Klebold. Good Morning
America. New York City, New York.
http://www.acolumbinesite.com/dylan/aboutdylan.html

American Psychiatric Association

2000 Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders,
Fourth Edition, Text Revision. Washington, DC.

Bartels, Linda and Crowder, Carla.

1999 Fatal Friendship. Rocky Mountain News. Denver,
Colorado.
http://denver.rockymountainnews.com/shooting/0822fata1.shtml

CNN News
1999a Presidential hopefuls react to school shooting. CNN.
http://edition.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/stories/1999/04/21/president.2000/
candidate.shoot/index.html

1999b Are guns or society to blame? Lawmakers search for

answers. CNN.
http://edition.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/stories/1999/04/23/politics.guns/
index.html

1999c Parents of Harris, Klebold to be sued in Columbine

shootings. CNN.
http://edition.cnn.com/US/9905/26/columbine.lawsuit.02/

1999d Columbine shooter was prescribed anti-depressant.

CNN.
http://edition.cnn.com/HEALTH/9904/29/luvox.explainer/

Cullen, Dave
2004 “The Depressive and the Psychopath” In Slate
Magazine, Washington, D.C.
 17

http://www.slate.com/id/2099203/
http://www.slate.com/id/2099203/sidebar/2099208/

Etheridge, Pat
1999 Violence steals youth, children’s advocate says. CNN.
http://edition.cnn.com/HEALTH/9904/21/kids.mental.health/index.html

Feldman, Charles
1999 Littleton slayings raise questions that escape easy
answer. CNN.
http://edition.cnn.com/US/9904/22/shooting.reasons/index.html

Food and Drug Administration, U.S. Department of Health

2006 Fluvoxamine Maleate Information
http://www.fda.gov/cder/drug/infopage/fluvoxamine/default.htm

Haines, Cynthia
2005 Recognizing the Signs of Suicide. WebMD.
http://www.webmd.com/content/article/62/71500

IGN Entertainment, Inc.

2006 Natural Born Killers
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/natural_born_killers/

Jefferson Country Sheriff’s Office

1999a Eric Harris Autopsy
http://www.acolumbinesite.com/autopsies/eric9.gif
http://www.acolumbinesite.com/autopsies.html

1999b Dylan Klebold Autopsy

http://www.acolumbinesite.com/autopsies.html

2004 The Columbine Report

http://www.boulderdailycamera.com/shooting/report.html

2006 Columbine Documents

http://66.45.24.242/columbine_documents.pdf

Lindsay, Sue and Abbott, Karen

 18

1999 Gun seller gets 6 years in prison. Rocky Mountain

News. Denver, Colorado.
http://www.denver-rmn.com/shooting/1113mane1.shtml

Moore, Michael
2002 Bowling for Columbine. MGM Distribution Co., Los
Angeles, California

Shepard, Cyn
2006a Surveillance Tapes and Shooters’ Home Videos
http://www.acolumbinesite.com/tape.html

2006b Basement Tapes

http://www.acolumbinesite.com/quotes.html

Solvay Pharmaceuticals
2005 Product Monograph: Luvox
http://www.solvaypharma.ca/en/products/HCP/pdf/Luvox_HCP_
Mono.pdf

Vaughan, Kevin
1999 Klebold family plans to sue Jeffco. Rocky Mountain
News. Denver, Colorado.
http://www.acolumbinesite.com/dylan/kleboldfamilytosue.htm

Walton, Marsha
1999 Police look at computer links to school slayings. CNN.
http://edition.cnn.com/TECH/computing/9904/21/school.computers/
index.html

Ward, Mark
2001 Columbine families sue computer game makers. BBC.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/1295920.stm