Community College bars veteran for essay on killing being addictive.

Charles Whittington Jr. is a veteran of both Afghanistan and Iraq. Whittingdon suffered injury and nerve damage to one arm and also has been diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder.

His instructor gave his essay an A- The essay was also published in the school paper which probably brought it to the attention of administrators. Administrators were so concerned that they barred Whittingdon from classes until the results of a psychological evaluation are received.

In his essay Whittingon said:'I had a really hard time with this problem when I returned to the United States, because turning this addiction off was impossible. 'I still feel the addictions running through my blood and throughout my body.'When I stick my blade through his stomach or his ribs or slice his throat it's a feeling that I cannot explain, but feels so good to me.'

Deborah O'Doherty, president of the Maryland chapter of American War Mothers and a friend of Whittington's family said:'[Troops] have this problem on jobs and at colleges everywhere,' 'The minute people feel a little shaky around a veteran, they just kick him out because they're uncomfortable.'
A college spokesman said: 'The violent and inflammatory content of Mr Whittington's article raised some red flags we felt we needed to address in this post-Virginia Tech era.
'We have an obligation to maintain a safe and comfortable learning environment for the diverse population of nearly 74,000 students we serve.'
A number of complaints about the article were received from students particularly about the picture it gave of the military.

Whittington said:'I'm not a threat,''I'm just like any other student there trying to get an education and trying to make something out of my life.' Dr Jon Shaw a professor psychiatry said that the essay shows that Whittington is addicted to hyperarousal and the adrenalin rush. No doubt this is the sort of thing that leads people to engage in extreme sports. Studying at college is no doubt does not generally produce the same sort of adrenalin rush.

Another professor of psychiatry Joan Anzia said: 'For a combat soldier who's engaged in combat on the ground, to be trained to kill and to feel the adrenaline rush in killing is not unusual at all,' Several psychiatrists agreed that the action of the college was not unreasonable in the circumstances given that there have been several incidents in the U.S. that have resulted in killings.

Myself I am really not sure whether the move was justified. There is no indication that Whittington had actually acted on his feelings. He actually found the writing to be purgative and help him with his struggles with what he felt. Probably he should be evaluated. But then the alleged perpetrator of the Fort Hood massacre was a psychiatrist. Should we suspect them too! People are unpredictable and this is a danger . But if someone has not done anything even if they say things that bother us and provide evidence they might do something it seems wrong to punish them in a free society. For more see this article.