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Father of Accused Texas Shooter Believes Bullying Was Behind Rampage
Wall Street Journal ^ | 22 May 2018 | Costas Paris

Posted on 05/23/2018 3:58:05 AM PDT by Magnatron

The father of the 17-year-old charged with killing 10 people at a high school in Santa Fe, Texas, said Monday that his son was a “good boy” and had been “mistreated at school.”

Antonios Pagourtzis said in a brief phone interview with The Wall Street Journal that his son Dimitrios was bullied and “I believe that’s what was behind” the shooting.

Dimitrios Pagourtzis is being held without bond at the Galveston County Jail after he allegedly burst into an art classroom Friday morning at Santa Fe High School armed with a shotgun and pistol and opened fire, before surrendering to police. In a probable cause statement, authorities said he admitted to the shooting.

The Santa Fe Independent School District didn’t respond to requests for comment on whether Dimitrios Pagourtzis was bullied. On Saturday, it denied reports that he was bullied by high-school coaches in this small rural Texas to

(Excerpt) Read more at wsj.com ...


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; News/Current Events; US: Texas
KEYWORDS: antoniospagourtzis; dimitriospagourtzis; pagourtzis; santafe
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To: Magnatron
Carrie was bullied too but only Hollywood can make sympathetic portrayals and heroes out of killers.


21 posted on 05/23/2018 5:05:20 AM PDT by a fool in paradise (Ads for Chappaquiddick warn of scenes of tobacco use. What about the hazards of drunk driving?)
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To: GnuThere

His facebook profile (the real one, not the fakes) said he was an atheist and had an upside down pentagram on his facebook background image/banner.


22 posted on 05/23/2018 5:06:56 AM PDT by a fool in paradise (Ads for Chappaquiddick warn of scenes of tobacco use. What about the hazards of drunk driving?)
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To: Magnatron

It’s a little late for dad to be Monday morning quarterbacking.

The fault lays with dad. How could he be so out of touch with his own son?


23 posted on 05/23/2018 5:07:05 AM PDT by T-Bone Texan
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To: Toespi

“...heinous abuse cycle...”

Public schools are often scary Lord-of-the-flies environments, especially the huge suburban ones where the cool kid cliques reign supreme.

Hordes of adolescents in one large cohort is a recipe for trouble.

This is not to excuse the shooter, even if he was bullied; however, the parents and teachers and coaches often do nothing when they see bullying and abuse occurring.


24 posted on 05/23/2018 5:08:19 AM PDT by stonehouse01
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To: T-Bone Texan

Because kids who are isolated and targets are usually ashamed to talk about it, they carry tremendous guilt. They don’t tell their parents because if the parents react and make it public then the kids are really in for it.
Kind of like the physically abused wife or child, they are terrified and ashamed. These are kids, they are not equipped emotionally to handle this day in and day out terrorism, because that is the sum of their lives, avoiding attacks, not wanting to step on a mine, and trying to blend into the wall. It is despicable and people who think these kids can fight back are bullies themselves.


25 posted on 05/23/2018 5:14:23 AM PDT by Toespi
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To: Magnatron

“Still, I think this father and the kid’s mother should be in adjacent jail cells with their son, charged as accessories.

Parents need to start being held more responsible for things their children do.”

In the 50’s & 60’s this could be a very true statement. Back then a whole host of things never existed, such as ADHD, drive by shootings, abortion on demand etc. Today with social media, leftist government programs, education, the MSM, Hollywood and the surrounding culture that kids grow up in have more influence than the parents. Add to this where in some states social services will intervene when parents actually try to do something.

Your statement is DATED!

The ones that should be in jail are democrats and those that vote democrat, RINO’s and voters that never stood up to the dems.


26 posted on 05/23/2018 5:18:56 AM PDT by redfreedom
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To: Magnatron

One thing’s for sure — the NRA didn’t bully him.


27 posted on 05/23/2018 5:23:02 AM PDT by Socon-Econ
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To: Magnatron

The girl sweet talked a jock into roughing him up

Not justification, just a reality script


28 posted on 05/23/2018 5:25:31 AM PDT by Thibodeaux (Long Live the Republic!)
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To: stonehouse01

Most of the kids who bully generally aren’t afraid of school discipline. That’s the real problem with bullying: it appears most of the actual bullies have become a law unto themselves.


29 posted on 05/23/2018 5:25:38 AM PDT by Morpheus2009
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To: redfreedom

“In the 50’s & 60’s this could be a very true statement. Back then a whole host of things never existed, such as ADHD, drive by shootings, abortion on demand etc. Today with social media, leftist government programs, education, the MSM, Hollywood and the surrounding culture that kids grow up in have more influence than the parents. Add to this where in some states social services will intervene when parents actually try to do something.”

We are forgetting something here. I call it “reverse bullying.” Back then a bully would harass a student, they both wind up in the principals office for a talk. Eventually it hits the schoolyard, there is a fight and it’s pretty much done with. Especially if the bully gets beaten up.

Now the bullies are being bullied by the Social Justice Warrior system. So it isn’t just a student. The victims turned out to be the bullies and the have students of various victim groups, the teachers, the administration and the district behind them. Someone being bullied in this environment has no where to turn for relief.

With little to no help from anyone, the student either leaves school, commits suicide or reasserts his status by going on a rampage, which is what we are seeing now.


30 posted on 05/23/2018 5:25:43 AM PDT by EQAndyBuzz (What is a Blue City? First world cities run by third world politicians.)
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To: miss marmelstein

Interestingly enough the parents of the Columbine killers didn’t seem to notice their own kids using chemicals to cook up and assemble bombs in the house.


31 posted on 05/23/2018 5:26:47 AM PDT by Morpheus2009
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To: redfreedom

Then let’s also talk about the dynamics of parents who have a child who is a social outcast. Maybe they know it, maybe they don’t becsue the kids hide it from them. Many parents like that because let’s be real, every parent wants a popular, sociallly successful child. Accepting the fact their child is not accepted is hard.

As we know evil exists and I remember a little girl I grew up with. She was a nasty, vicious little witch from first grade to the last day of school. I look back and she was so mean to other kids, I can still see her evil looks to this day. She was a popular kid, mostly because All were terrified of her and one definitely did t want to be in her crosshairs. I was one day, ironically at summer bible school when I was about ten. I won’t go into the details but I remember l literally was seeing red. I was terrified, but what I remember the most was my intense hatred and anger.


32 posted on 05/23/2018 5:29:25 AM PDT by Toespi
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To: Magnatron

Ahh, here come the liberal excuses... He was bullied. The guns did it.

There is such a thing as defending family, there is showing love for your children, but anything other than total condemnation for walking into a school (or anywhere) and randomly killing people is just enabling the next rampage.

The father would not be mentioning bullying had his son gotten drunk and rammed a car into a school bus.


33 posted on 05/23/2018 5:29:44 AM PDT by kingu (Everything starts with slashing the size and scope of the federal government.)
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To: Magnatron

I wouldn’t be too hard in this guy. His life suddenly became a living hell and will probably remain so for a very long time.


34 posted on 05/23/2018 5:30:47 AM PDT by Skooz (Gabba Gabba we accept you we accept you one of us Gabba Gabba we accept you we accept you one of us)
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To: Magnatron

And who made “bullying” such a big deal that it is now an excuse for murdering people? You’re friendly commie lib “Democrats”.


35 posted on 05/23/2018 5:31:25 AM PDT by FlingWingFlyer (#NotARussianBot)
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To: Magnatron

And what crime did the parents commit?

Your idea smacks of group punishment and is a relic of primitive, non Western cultures.

The father is likely correct in part about the causes. Doesn’t mitigate the judgment of the law. People are going to have to quit abusing others and then taking away all recourse from them. Otherwise this will continue to happen.


36 posted on 05/23/2018 5:32:32 AM PDT by JamesP81 (Traitors are more dangerous than enemies. Vote and act accordingly.)
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To: Morpheus2009

Yes, that’s true. Which is why I would like the parents of these killers to do time. Perhaps you’d see more parents paying attention to their kids if that was to happen.


37 posted on 05/23/2018 5:35:15 AM PDT by miss marmelstein
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To: Magnatron

Amen to that. Bullying is one thing but bad parenting and blinders on when it comes to your child’s behavior is the main problem. This kid obviously has some issues the parents were in denial about or just plain didn’t care.


38 posted on 05/23/2018 5:36:11 AM PDT by TermLimits4All (POTUS says he's draining the swamp. How about draining the special prosecutor, FBI and DOJ!!!)
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To: Toespi

Interesting story!

You know, I followed the playwright Moss Hart’s technique. When I met evil Little Chuckie recently I said to him after his effusive “Hello!”: “Get out of my way. You were a bore then and you’re a bore now.”


39 posted on 05/23/2018 5:38:34 AM PDT by miss marmelstein
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To: Magnatron

Parents need to start being held more responsible for things their children do.

***************

JMO...........

Parents being separated don’t offer the feeling of a normal family, imo.
I understand separation/divorce is often a part of family life for many.


40 posted on 05/23/2018 5:38:58 AM PDT by deport
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