Reading a dutch book on Columbine
(author: Tim Krabbé; very unfortunately, not translated into English or any other language
)
It focuses almost entirely on Eric & Dylan and gives a nice overview of the years leading to the massacre with diary fragments and eye witness accounts.
Starting with Eric's obsession for Doom, weapons and massmurder scenario's and Dylan's whiny depressed tone about platonic love and alienation, the decisive point in their friendship comes when they get arrested for stealing some equipment out of a van. That's when they get to know each other better and find out that they share phantasies of going on a killing spree.
The sad thing is that even though their friendship was deep and they had complete trust in each other, they kept silent about some of their true feelings that could have prevented the thing from happening. For Eric the Columbine killings started as just another 'Doom-scenario', as a phantasy of going on a killing spree vs human zombies. While on the other hand Dylan had been dealing with suicidal thoughts in which the killing of other people was kind of a morbid ritual that he and his love would perform to free themselves of this earth.
It was in this fantasy that they found each other. Eric wanted massmurder and accepted that it would end with his own death, while Dylan wanted suicide foremost and accepted massmurder as a way of getting there. What Eric didn't know though was that Dylan saw the 'project' as a personal endeavour in which he and some other girl (his love) would participate and not Eric. It's only later, after their arrest, that he gets drawn into Eric's version and even at that point he doesn't care too much for it. Out in the open he shouts what Eric wants to hear, how bad he wants to kill people and all that, but in reality he cares little for it and just wants Eric's undivided attention.
Eric on the other hand worships Dylan like a God and mentions him as his best friend. He looks up to him and borrows much that Dylan thinks and writes about.
The thing is, just before the shootings, Eric starts to have doubts and sends out signals to the world that he's up to no good and kinda wants out on the whole deal. You get the feeling that his Doom-fantasy was just that: a fantasy, and that now that the date is coming near for their project it gets too real for him and he starts to have doubts, and remorse.
Dylan on the other hand is more enthusiastic than ever before. He's counting the days till it can finally begin, while Eric complains that the time goes so fast. For Dylan his suicide is most important, while his massmurder obsession is in many ways a show he performs when Eric is there. Without Dylan's performed enthusiasm it isn't likely Eric would have pulled through with it. While on the other hand, without Eric's masterplan, it isn't likely Dylan would have pulled through with his suicide, certainly not in the way of massmurder.
It's because of their friendship, their responsibilities to each other that in the end they feel that there is no turning back. Dylan is keen to die, but only kills people in Columbine when Eric is near, and when he does he does so in the most cruel fashion. Eric on the other hand isn't keen to die, but shows up to a project he planned for a long time. He kills the most, but in a pretty methodical fashion, like he's just doing his job (as a Marine, which he intended to become).
It's kinda likely the two of them could have made many more victims if they wanted to, but it seems that near the end neither of them felt a real urge anymore.
This vision on the events is kinda unique because Eric has always been portrayed as a psychopath and Dylan as his depressed follower. In reality it may just be that Eric was the most caring of them and actually intended to cancel the shooting, while it was Dylan's presumed enthusiasm that pushed it through in the end. In any case, it was a project long planned for and maybe the very foundation of their mutual friendship. It was not easy to cancel it once it had been conceived. The only way out was getting caught and Eric almost made that happen on some occassions. Dylan on the other hand never wanted out, even though he had a different vision of what his ending should be like.
Very interesting case anyhow and one of which not many sources are in any way reliable.
One of the best books I've ever read
Forums
