What is your social opinion on serial killers?

No, there is never a valid, meaning socially acceptable, reason to become a serial killer. Though, the theories build why some do are quite interesting. One reason this modern lasseis-faire (forgive me, I can’t remember how it’s spelt) attitude toward cops killing serial killers and mass murderers is that they are of no scientific use when they’re dead. Once they’re dead, we can no longer study them and determine the why behind it all, and that reduces our chances of finding a way to prevent these atrocities from happening.

Valid reason for murder.. Yup, my mom did it.

Serial killers are a different beast. While I do think they can be reformed, they can be reformed behind bars until they die. Dice that I don’t want to roll.

But I don’t think the state should ever kill. Rotting in hole forever is fine. If they want to save the state some cash that is between them and their bed-sheet.

Sick fucks with a mother complex, there’s no denying some of their stories are fascinating though. They have this weird dark charisma about them too, hard to put a handle on it, but case files make for very interesting viewing.

I think that there is something missing from their brains. They are depraved. They rob people of life, which they have no right to do.

Sadly, they get better with experience.

Of course there’s a valid reason for homicide. It’s called justifiable homicide and includes killing during times of combat, police in the line of duty, the execution of a condemned inmate, and self defense.

Now, murder and homicide are not the same thing. Murder is a type of homicide and includes malice aforethought, or malicious intent. There’s no acceptable reason to commit a murder.

Some serial killers are psychopaths, and that’s the reason they kill. There’s no treatment for psychopathy that has been effective. In fact, treatment often makes it worse. If we could catch them as kids and treat them then, it would help, but we cannot diagnose a child with psychopathy.

Some kill because they think it’s fun. There’s no helping these people either. That’s what prison is for in these cases – incapacitation, not rehabilitation.

I’m generally in disfavor of them, unless they’re murdering politicians.

Yes, I do believe that often there are valid reasons for murder. But serial murder? There should be a limit to how many. I mean, really, if there was ever a reason for one to take an anger management course…

First and foremost, serial killers are crazy. They’re usually white males, about my age. They usually prey in areas controlled by democrats as there is less likely to be armed citizens in the area. I wish I remembered where I found this site, it had all sorts of fascinating facts like you’re more likely to be struck by lightening or stepped on by a cow than killed by a serial killer. There is a huge volume of information floating around with all sorts of fun facts… Or maybe not so fun facts! As for your question and my opinion on them, they’re crazy.

My social opinion is I do not like serial killers. I would not send a friend request to one on facebook.

I have had a morbid curiosity about serial killers and other murder cases since I was in middle school. In retrospect, I probably should not have been reading this stuff back then.. I do not have sympathy for serial killers, though. I do not think there is any way to justify serial murder. I do not think that a “reformed” serial killer should be released back into the public. I think they should spend their days in prison.

There are two sides of me that answer this question:

The first side says serial killers is horrible and totally unacceptable. I just wish every single one of them just disappeared

The second side says I find serial killers have something mysteriously interesting. I’d like to do a research about them throughout the history

Is it bad I have a “serial killer and mass murderer” shelf among my bookcases?

@Seek_Kolinahr Is it bad that your collection intrigues me?

@Seek_Kolinahr I have several of Ann Rule’s books.

Most of us will agree that their actions are utterly reprehensible and incomprehensible. We’re all left asking why? How could you?

@Gifted_With_Languages asks what I think of them socially. And therein lies the part that makes some of them so fascinating. Those that knew them but had no idea of the evil they were doing often report that they seemed like such nice people, and appeared to be fine, upright citizens of their community. So like many of you, I am interested in what is going on inside their heads. How can they be so much like both Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde at the same time?

I read a lot, and I love reading about serial killers. The more mentally disturbed and violent the better. It is so fascinating. I like read about the court room scenes afterwards as well.

It’s just another one of those things that I am clueless about.

I don’t have any books, but I watch the documentaries on serial killers. I like to hear their backstory from beginning to end, try & work out what makes them tick.
There’s normally a common theme binding their actions, usually some form of abuse as children.

~ As long as they don’t take my triple berry oat crisps cereal then I am fine.

Fact from fiction, truth from diction. Looking from it from a purely secular lean as the OP requested, when it comes to serial killers I don’t think there are reasons why they kill, not that any of those reasons excuse the killing but they maybe valid to why they kill.

A. The serial killer is very narcissistic; they want to hold power over people by terror they feel they cannot get any other way. In some fearful way people respect them because of what they can do and have done even if the people do not know who they are.
B. They devalue life, no one is important. Just about everyone else to them are no more important than cockroaches.
C. They had little or no checks or brakes to quash those malevolent feelings when they were children growing up. Be it they had hands-off parenting that left them pretty much to their own devices and cravings that once adult, or near so, they could see no harm in their actions.
D. Severe anger issues, they felt live have treated them so badly that they want to extract some form of vengeance to counter their hurt. Whether or not they believe a certain class of people, a certain race or people, women, society in general or the government is the reason for their failures, I can’t say.
E. They have a mental abnormally, some chemical missing in the brain causing their neurons to misfire, or hampered their reasoning. Then again, leave it to some arguments, that is how they were suppose to be that being off emotionally, or unable to control their cravings is normal for them; seeing normal is suppose to be subjective.

It could be any of those, or a complete mystery; maybe something mankind has yet to even grasp yet.

Personally I see serial killers no different from professional torturers, redacted, redacted, and redacted.

I’ve read a lot about serial killers and it seems to be a compulsion or mental aberration. A lack of empathy and the line between right and wrong is blurred. Basically what @Hypocrisy said.

Can they get better? I don’t believe so because they like giving in to the compusion because of the relief they feel, like feeling blood between their fingers or like Bundy, the taste of human flesh. Nature spawns aberrations sometimes, it’s not that unusual.

I’d rather not be seated next to one at a dinner party.

I’ve never understood how anyone could hate breakfast that much.

@Hypocrisy_Central Actually, HC, a lot of them had very abusive, authoritarian parents who didn’t give a shit about them or their feelings.

They’re deadly.

Completely and utterly fascinating, but not something I’d like to be myself.

You know, Ted Bundy was married, at least through part of his killing spree. Can you imagine learning that the guy you’ve been sleeping with all of these years was a freaking serial killer??

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