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To the Editor:
David Brooks makes an insightful distinction between the circumstances outside the control of individuals and the choices they make to adopt stories (formed by cultures also outside of their control) that help them understand their world.
But he blasts the public discussion of the motivations behind the Fort Hood massacre for being dominated by political correctness that “absolved Hasan ... of his responsibility.”
On the contrary, the careful approach taken by the administration, military commanders and the media has allowed the space for a conversation that examined potential causes of this tragedy.
What should be clear to everyone is that attempts to explain Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan’s path to violence against his comrades do not seek to justify it or absolve him of his crime. We need more public discourse that searches for explanations that don’t begin and end with evil.
Paul Snodgrass Arlington, Va., Nov. 11, 2009
The writer is a conflict analyst at the Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution, George Mason University.
Response to The Rush to Therapy, a column by David Brooks (11/9/09)
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