Naveed Haq - What Went Wrong?
News
For those not watching the news, Naveed Haq is the name of the man who shot 6 people, killing one of them, at the Jewish Center in Seattle on Friday. I graduated with him from Richland High School in 1994. I wouldn't say we were close at all, but I know at one time I called him a friend. I got to know him a little bit my senior year, and at graduation, the two of us hung out together at our class graduation party pretty much the whole time. It's funny, you think that might mean we were really great friends, but I was actually pretty socially hopeless throughout high school, most of my friends being one year younger. Naveed might have been the one friendly person I could hang out with in my own grade.
Thinking back to that guy, and the guy who is on the news claiming to be a representative of angry Islam, I cannot fathom even trying to make that connection. But we never talked after high school, and 12 years is a long time to change, I guess. But in high school, Naveed was not any kind of Islamic fundamentalist. He was not even angry about anything. He was pretty much a normal, Americanized kid, who had friends, who was a decent student, who people generally liked and was not picked on, as far as I knew. He was only a little bit conservative, in comparison to most at Richland High School (other than their conservatism was Christianity or Mormonism-based). I don't mean that in any political sense, because we never talked about Republicans or Democrats, or certainly never Isreal. I just mean in his dress and mannerisms, and that he wouldn't ever talk about women in any sexual-salty kind of way as high school boys usually do. When I had 'achieved' getting a girlfriend, he was really happy and approving for me, and a little bit curious but pulling back any question that might result in some kind of explicit answer.
I think I remember the first real time we talked he had found out I was half-Turkish and thought that was cool in some way. Although I mentioned he did have friends, I am not sure the connections were that deep, and he may have possibly felt some kind or outsider status, and that maybe we could relate. We got along okay, but I think we only hung out from time to time within the confines of school hours. I do remember talking to him about religion once or twice. I, not being religious, said something about the illogic of some religion vs. science thing. He thought I was talking about Christianity, and agreed heartily, and said Islam was better in some regard. I had replied for him not to get the wrong idea, I thought Islam wasn't a 'good' religion either, poiniting out that it's very bad in it's treatment of women as mere chattel, with the veils, isolation, etc. He replied, no, this is not Islam, this is some cultural issue in which people are claiming Islam, which says to value 'modesty', to a ridiculous twisted interpretation.
Does that sound like a fundamentalist to you? It doesn't to me, either. Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't believe case he ever even went to a mosque, did he? The Times does not mention that. I think the story pieces together what really did happen. In high school he's a normal, study oriented kid who maybe didn't have a ever have a girlfriend. Maybe a little bit of an outsider, but not an outcast. But he was accepted to Rensellaer Polytechnic Institue on some kind of 'accelerated medical program' (I remember his words) and seemed to have a bright future. But I guess he didn't make it. The paper story makes it sound like he didn't ever have a relationship. And 12 years goes by never having a relationship or career success, perhaps not even having many friends (being Americanized foriegner can mean you don't fit in anywhere). And his life didn't turn out like he wanted. And he started blaming his failure on others, like 'the Jews'. It seems he 'snapped' at one point, exposing himself in the tri-cities mall to a bunch of girls. And things never got better for him. Thinking about this, and this being a blog, I have to say I have some sympathy for the guy, probably just because I knew him when everything was normal. But when it comes down to it, its murder. It's hard to even write this because I'm thinking about the high school times. And its a hate crime, even if the real culprit was him not having any of his expectations fulfilled, for his perceived shitty life, because he blamed another group of people for it.
Now is 'snapping' the same thing as insanity? I don't know. When I think about this, hate crime = death penalty. For fucking Naveed Haq. Out of all the fuckups at RHS. I don't want that to happen. Because I knew the guy when he was normal? I don't know, but it makes me sick, in the 'if it happened to that guy, who couldn't it happen to?' way. I just hope that his parents have peace, his victims have peace, and that he has peace...after whatever happens...its just horrible to know that it isn't going to happen anytime soon for these people.
News
For those not watching the news, Naveed Haq is the name of the man who shot 6 people, killing one of them, at the Jewish Center in Seattle on Friday. I graduated with him from Richland High School in 1994. I wouldn't say we were close at all, but I know at one time I called him a friend. I got to know him a little bit my senior year, and at graduation, the two of us hung out together at our class graduation party pretty much the whole time. It's funny, you think that might mean we were really great friends, but I was actually pretty socially hopeless throughout high school, most of my friends being one year younger. Naveed might have been the one friendly person I could hang out with in my own grade.
Thinking back to that guy, and the guy who is on the news claiming to be a representative of angry Islam, I cannot fathom even trying to make that connection. But we never talked after high school, and 12 years is a long time to change, I guess. But in high school, Naveed was not any kind of Islamic fundamentalist. He was not even angry about anything. He was pretty much a normal, Americanized kid, who had friends, who was a decent student, who people generally liked and was not picked on, as far as I knew. He was only a little bit conservative, in comparison to most at Richland High School (other than their conservatism was Christianity or Mormonism-based). I don't mean that in any political sense, because we never talked about Republicans or Democrats, or certainly never Isreal. I just mean in his dress and mannerisms, and that he wouldn't ever talk about women in any sexual-salty kind of way as high school boys usually do. When I had 'achieved' getting a girlfriend, he was really happy and approving for me, and a little bit curious but pulling back any question that might result in some kind of explicit answer.
I think I remember the first real time we talked he had found out I was half-Turkish and thought that was cool in some way. Although I mentioned he did have friends, I am not sure the connections were that deep, and he may have possibly felt some kind or outsider status, and that maybe we could relate. We got along okay, but I think we only hung out from time to time within the confines of school hours. I do remember talking to him about religion once or twice. I, not being religious, said something about the illogic of some religion vs. science thing. He thought I was talking about Christianity, and agreed heartily, and said Islam was better in some regard. I had replied for him not to get the wrong idea, I thought Islam wasn't a 'good' religion either, poiniting out that it's very bad in it's treatment of women as mere chattel, with the veils, isolation, etc. He replied, no, this is not Islam, this is some cultural issue in which people are claiming Islam, which says to value 'modesty', to a ridiculous twisted interpretation.
Does that sound like a fundamentalist to you? It doesn't to me, either. Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't believe case he ever even went to a mosque, did he? The Times does not mention that. I think the story pieces together what really did happen. In high school he's a normal, study oriented kid who maybe didn't have a ever have a girlfriend. Maybe a little bit of an outsider, but not an outcast. But he was accepted to Rensellaer Polytechnic Institue on some kind of 'accelerated medical program' (I remember his words) and seemed to have a bright future. But I guess he didn't make it. The paper story makes it sound like he didn't ever have a relationship. And 12 years goes by never having a relationship or career success, perhaps not even having many friends (being Americanized foriegner can mean you don't fit in anywhere). And his life didn't turn out like he wanted. And he started blaming his failure on others, like 'the Jews'. It seems he 'snapped' at one point, exposing himself in the tri-cities mall to a bunch of girls. And things never got better for him. Thinking about this, and this being a blog, I have to say I have some sympathy for the guy, probably just because I knew him when everything was normal. But when it comes down to it, its murder. It's hard to even write this because I'm thinking about the high school times. And its a hate crime, even if the real culprit was him not having any of his expectations fulfilled, for his perceived shitty life, because he blamed another group of people for it.
Now is 'snapping' the same thing as insanity? I don't know. When I think about this, hate crime = death penalty. For fucking Naveed Haq. Out of all the fuckups at RHS. I don't want that to happen. Because I knew the guy when he was normal? I don't know, but it makes me sick, in the 'if it happened to that guy, who couldn't it happen to?' way. I just hope that his parents have peace, his victims have peace, and that he has peace...after whatever happens...its just horrible to know that it isn't going to happen anytime soon for these people.
posted by Toddypoo at 10:52 PM
2 comments
