Here in America it seems like a month doesn't go by without a mass killing. For a lot of these guys the joy of being on the front page of the New York Times is worth a life in prison or a seat on the electric chair. To stop this I propose replacing killer's names with names of tax forms. So for example Form 706-GS(D-1) opened fire on a crowd of innocent bystanders at a county fair. Or Publ 596 blew a hole in a school full of students.
Obviously the real names would leak out but it would take something away from the sick joy these people feel if their name wasn't in official media reports.-- lepton, Jun 18 2015 Better yet, use his real name but make some passing reference to incontinence or haemorrhoids.-- MaxwellBuchanan, Jun 18 2015 I fully agree. Their names should be obliterated perhaps with something like "M (for murderer) 7-06_17_15- 5. The first digit is the number of mass murder taking place that year, the next three are the date and the last one is the number of victims. Thus the name would kind of tell a story. Then, also, you could have a law whereby the murderer's face is completely hidden with a black cloth bag. Only one photo, the perp photo at the PD is issued and it is illegal for anyone to publish or otherwise show their real name or their casual photos. No fame for these monsters at all.
I bunned this idea. Excellent idea, really. Not workable, but, lovely concept.-- Altoidian, Jun 18 2015 Actually, if I were called Dylann Roof (his parents had spelling issues?), I think having my name known to millions would be a disincentive.-- MaxwellBuchanan, Jun 18 2015 I just want to know how [lepton] got from point A to point B. I understand the blocking out of names, but tax forms??? Are you insane? The media can't get people's names right. They'd make a holy mess out of tax form names. But I really like that sort of leap, so I bunned ya a good one.-- blissmiss, Jun 18 2015 ...but part of the fun would be them getting the names wrong, that wouldn't be a bug it would be a feature-- lepton, Jun 19 2015 Hey, you got a bun...no whining allowed. I said I found it fascinating how you came up with the replacement for their names. At least I think I did.-- blissmiss, Jun 19 2015 Hey, and btw find a category. Nothing belongs here. Well almost nothing.-- blissmiss, Jun 19 2015 Oops I thought I had one when I added it but I guess I didn't. Added it.-- lepton, Jun 19 2015 What, do people think that these trolls read the New York Times, or do so when in prison?-- RayfordSteele, Jun 19 2015 New York Times is just an example.-- nineteenthly, Jun 20 2015 They watch TV in prison at some prisons, don't they? The TV people could exchange real name for a tax code. They are capable.
And I think they get newspapers to read too. But even if they didn't I believe they still get a bit of a gleaner of satisfaction, just knowing the country is reading their name.-- blissmiss, Jun 20 2015 Some would, others wouldn't, and if they knew their notoriety would be diluted it might deter some, plus it seems harmless, so it should be done.-- nineteenthly, Jun 20 2015 There aren't enough different tax form titles to cover even the last ten years.
Can we have IRS and H&R Block have to start using mass murderer names?-- tatterdemalion, Jun 20 2015 The authorities could simply give the mass murderer a really stupid sounding name, like they did for Jiverly Wong, Dylann Roof and Woo Bum-Kon.-- MaxwellBuchanan, Jun 20 2015 I doubt this would achieve much because (a) I suspect people's desire for attention is correlated with their personal allocation of mirror neurons and (b) I suspect people's capacity for killing in cold blood is *inversely* correlated with the same variable.
(These hypotheses are safe from disproof until someone has worked out an agreed metric for personal mirror-neuron-allocation).
Anyway, if you don't care whether other people live or die, then you don't care whether they've heard of you or not, I think.-- pertinax, Jun 21 2015 [Altoidian], I like your career arc.-- normzone, Jun 21 2015 Also probably good for the families of the mass murder. more than not, I think they would probably be normal people undeserving of the notoriety that could follow them.-- bob, Jun 22 2015 It's about time we start holding the family accountable. In these extreme cases, where someone kills strangers, the signs are likely known by the family.
And, if the killer-to-be considers, "Well, my family might suffer from my actions...", they just might also consider how the families of their victims would suffer too.
And, the family is likely the most influential to have steered the killer towards this path, or could have steered them away. Racists are almost always taught racism in the home.-- sophocles, Jun 22 2015 //In these extreme cases, where someone kills strangers, the signs are likely known by the family.//
I suspect, [sophocles], that you are following in the best traditions of Plato, Aristotle and Plutarch by talking complete bollocks.-- MaxwellBuchanan, Jun 24 2015 random, halfbakery