The Red Velvet Lawyer

Virginia Mediation Network (VMN) President’s Message January 2013 The VMN Board of Directors met on January 12, 2013 to begin an intensive strategic planning process.    On the long drive back into the Central Appalachian Mountains, I stopped to visit my former research assistant.  Shortly after the shootings at the Sandy Hook Elementary School, I sent an email asking how she was doing.  You see, she is one of the people who survived the shootings at my own little school on January 16, 2002.  She has suffered for ten years with severe PTSD.   She immediately blocked media reports of the shooting, found comfort in friends and family, and coped as best she can with her persistent symptoms.  Many of you may remember that tragedy in which a student, who had learned he would be academically dismissed, murdered our Dean (a new father), a much beloved professor, and a student.  The shooter, later diagnosed as suffering from ...

Today, the New York Times posted a story called: From Sandy Hook Killer's Home, A Chilling Inventory . http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/29/nyregion/search-warrants-reveal-items-seized-at-adam-lanzas-home.html?ref=us Reading it mostly made me sad.  The shooter, Adam Lanza, had guns, gun manuals, and a large stock of ammunition.  But, he also had a book called, Blue Day - Inside the Mind of an Autistic Savant .  And, another: Train your Brain to Get Happy .   The article says: " Experts say people with autism spectrum disorders are often bullied in school and the workplace, and frequently suffer from depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts." So, was this shooting an example of the bully-d becoming the bully-er?   It made me flash back to the times when I am sure I interacted with someone who would now be diagnosed on the spectrum as exhibiting Asperger's syndrome.  I remember a woman in high school, crazy smart, but just "off."  She worked har...