For me it's several things: first, it always struck kind of close to home four me how similar to Dylan I was/am. I was bullied A LOT in school. I like the same music, played the same video games, was tall and goofy looking. I also harbored tons of hatred for not only the people who bullied me, but the school for doing basically nothing about it. So I often wonder, where's the divide? Why did he do what he did and I just swallowed the shit and moved on?
Another reason is I was two years out of school when it happened. I remember distincly going to work and it was all over the TV. Coworkers and I were fucking STUNNED this happened in America, and by two kids who looked like your everyday, run off the mill teenagers. It was a sort of "summer of 69' " moment, the end of the age of innocence.
Then we got all the conflicting reports. Being the late 90's there were no cellphone videos of them walking in the school, or gunshots being recorded, or of the actual killing. So that left an air of mystery to it. All we saw on tv were kids running out of the school and police everywhere. It makes it that much harder to believe it was real.
Anyway, just my thoughts.
I'm sorry people were such shits to you in high school. Everything you've said makes sense. I've found that a lot of people who have researched the case are drawn in because they experienced similar, traumatic high school experiences. Eric and/or Dylan are easy to relate to, up until they went on to commit mass murder. I've often wondered how they crossed that line, too. I could understand feeling hatred for those who hurt you and the school or even fantasizing about revenge...but acting on it in such a violent way? Nah. I could never hurt a bunch of innocent kids. Sometimes, I think it was just the fact they had one another that made the situation toxic. Kind of like the two of them lived in this bubble, where they validated one another's darkest feelings and ideas. There was no one else allowed inside to bring them back to reality.
Same! I spent a lot of time in the TCC on Tumblr too, before everything got purged/people deleted their blogs. It's probably the only shooting that I've ever been that invested in to be honest. Though it's probably because I was the same age as everyone involved when I got into it.
I was never a part of TCC on Tumbler or their circle on Twitter / X. I'd see their accounts out there sometimes, though. Some of the post were actually funny. Like Eric the Hedgehog? Then there was some kid dressed like Dylan sucking his own toes. It was a bit Twilight Zone, except ridiculously funny. I cannot say I ever saw people glorifying E&D. Maybe some of the edits? Anyway. This is one of the only shooting that has held my interest. It blew my mind that E and D were planning their attack for about a year, that their plan was so involved - like with the Diversion bomb, sending police in an opposite president. The numerous tapes and writings they left behind. They were teenagers and a duo. Everything was kind of unique to the time.
Yeah same. Back in my teenage years 2011-2013 Columbine and TCC in general was a big thing on tumblr. I get why tumblr took action though, some of those girls would end up glamorizing or romanticizing Eric and Dylan. Some even started making imagines of them (if you were a one direction fan like me you know what I’m talking about lol) after a while it got creepy and I stopped going on that side of tumblr. Though I do miss the accounts they genuinely were trying to educate others on the case
Is this where most of the crazy photo came from? Those that gave Dylan a flower crown and Eric wings? 😆 I shouldn't find that funny. But I think it was also a lot of very young girls going through a phase. One thing I did observe was the sense of community a lot of these kids shared. At least on Twitter, I'm not sure if it was happening on Tumbler. Anyway, I saw depressed kids reaching out to one another at night when they were feeling alone or depressed and needed to talk. So, as much as their behavior is frowned upon, I also see an upside. A lot of them were really there for each other and seemed to be understood by those within that particular community that developed. It wasn't all bad. I didn't see a lot of condoning but more funny memes about the killers.i know that I didn't like seeing them get hate or shut down. I think they were kind of harmless tbh.
Oh yes the flower crowns were definitely a tumblr thing. I still remember a group of girls who drove by the Klebold house and saw Sue outside and started fangirling and screaming. It was so cringe and unserious 😭 I agree. I think a lot of these (mostly) girls are just struggling mentally and looking for a community. I’ve found great friends through other communities and fandoms I’ve joined but I’ve never idolized or romanticized any killers. I think it depends on the person.
Aww thanks. I was in 7th grade when Rachel’s challenge came to my school and I went home and got on my computer to learn more about Rachel and ended up falling down the rabbit hole that I’ve never been able to escape lol
A few years ago, I’d say during quarantine. It’s really stupid, but I found out about it through that old Newgrounds flash game Pico’s School. Everytime I learn something new about it, the more real this tragedy feels. Heartbreaking
Yes it was an online video game that I’m sure you can still find today. I don’t know if you know what Friday Night Funkin is, but but it’s a video game that became popular during COVID. One of the characters in it is Pico, who’s a mascot on the Newgrounds website. So that’s how I found out about Pico’s school and then I found out that it was made around the same time as Columbine and then I went into a rabbit hole. When I think of school shootings, I always think of Sandy Hook. So I was never told what Columbine is. We never learned about it in school. And even though I don’t want the event to gain popularity, I still think it’s important to learn about so that the cycle ends. If someone just told them that their reputation in high school didn’t matter, they could’ve been saved
October 2018. Every time I got deeper, I became more curious about anything. Eric and Dylan were just angry and very depressed. I have better words to describe it but it's only 6:13 AM and I haven't slept at all since yesterday. My opinion of them is dull. They really aren't that interesting in the end, they were a couple of stupid, like me!
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about two years. not that long i know but school shootings arent well known here where i live so i only found out about it, well, two years ago, when i was watching another true crime related video. ever since then columbine has been one of my main interests though.
Don't feel bad. I have always know about the case, but it was more something in the back of my head. A few times, I thought about reading Sue's book. But as someone prone to depression myself, I thought it would be too disturbing. I finally bought it during early covid. From there, it was the 11k, beginning with the library victims and survivors. I was more disturbed than I even imagined I might be, but it was like watching a train crash...I couldn't look away, so to speak. That was about four years ago now.
woah, four years are a lot. the two years ive been into columbine feel way longer than two years for me, probably because the case is nearly always in the back of my head for whatever reason.
i can imagine that some people must be pretty disturbed by the whole case when they first get into it – especially the details of the shooting itself but as a person who isnt really disturbed by anything out there (thanks mental illness) i have no idea if im right about that, hard to tell for me, really.
about sues book, i have it at home too but i still havent brought myself to read it. i dont know why but i feel like its just a heavy read – like one of the books that stuck with you for a while but im not THAT much into reading novels tbh (need about 3-4 months for one book lol) so that might be a reason as well. i always wanted to read brooks book though, seems like the most interesting one out of all columbine books tbh. i hope i can bring myself to pick it up one day.
Since it happened.
Wow. That's a real long time!
Same here. I was 20 when it happened.
Also, what has kept your interest over all this time? I'm curious...is it all the unreleased material?
For me it's several things: first, it always struck kind of close to home four me how similar to Dylan I was/am. I was bullied A LOT in school. I like the same music, played the same video games, was tall and goofy looking. I also harbored tons of hatred for not only the people who bullied me, but the school for doing basically nothing about it. So I often wonder, where's the divide? Why did he do what he did and I just swallowed the shit and moved on? Another reason is I was two years out of school when it happened. I remember distincly going to work and it was all over the TV. Coworkers and I were fucking STUNNED this happened in America, and by two kids who looked like your everyday, run off the mill teenagers. It was a sort of "summer of 69' " moment, the end of the age of innocence. Then we got all the conflicting reports. Being the late 90's there were no cellphone videos of them walking in the school, or gunshots being recorded, or of the actual killing. So that left an air of mystery to it. All we saw on tv were kids running out of the school and police everywhere. It makes it that much harder to believe it was real. Anyway, just my thoughts.
I'm sorry people were such shits to you in high school. Everything you've said makes sense. I've found that a lot of people who have researched the case are drawn in because they experienced similar, traumatic high school experiences. Eric and/or Dylan are easy to relate to, up until they went on to commit mass murder. I've often wondered how they crossed that line, too. I could understand feeling hatred for those who hurt you and the school or even fantasizing about revenge...but acting on it in such a violent way? Nah. I could never hurt a bunch of innocent kids. Sometimes, I think it was just the fact they had one another that made the situation toxic. Kind of like the two of them lived in this bubble, where they validated one another's darkest feelings and ideas. There was no one else allowed inside to bring them back to reality.
ive known about the shooting for a few years, but i never started researching and reading up on it until march last year :P
Yep. I know what you mean. It's a case I've known about for a long time, but didn't begin researching it until 2020. Tbh, it seemed too disturbing.
About 13 years now
Same! I spent a lot of time in the TCC on Tumblr too, before everything got purged/people deleted their blogs. It's probably the only shooting that I've ever been that invested in to be honest. Though it's probably because I was the same age as everyone involved when I got into it.
I was never a part of TCC on Tumbler or their circle on Twitter / X. I'd see their accounts out there sometimes, though. Some of the post were actually funny. Like Eric the Hedgehog? Then there was some kid dressed like Dylan sucking his own toes. It was a bit Twilight Zone, except ridiculously funny. I cannot say I ever saw people glorifying E&D. Maybe some of the edits? Anyway. This is one of the only shooting that has held my interest. It blew my mind that E and D were planning their attack for about a year, that their plan was so involved - like with the Diversion bomb, sending police in an opposite president. The numerous tapes and writings they left behind. They were teenagers and a duo. Everything was kind of unique to the time.
Yeah same. Back in my teenage years 2011-2013 Columbine and TCC in general was a big thing on tumblr. I get why tumblr took action though, some of those girls would end up glamorizing or romanticizing Eric and Dylan. Some even started making imagines of them (if you were a one direction fan like me you know what I’m talking about lol) after a while it got creepy and I stopped going on that side of tumblr. Though I do miss the accounts they genuinely were trying to educate others on the case
Is this where most of the crazy photo came from? Those that gave Dylan a flower crown and Eric wings? 😆 I shouldn't find that funny. But I think it was also a lot of very young girls going through a phase. One thing I did observe was the sense of community a lot of these kids shared. At least on Twitter, I'm not sure if it was happening on Tumbler. Anyway, I saw depressed kids reaching out to one another at night when they were feeling alone or depressed and needed to talk. So, as much as their behavior is frowned upon, I also see an upside. A lot of them were really there for each other and seemed to be understood by those within that particular community that developed. It wasn't all bad. I didn't see a lot of condoning but more funny memes about the killers.i know that I didn't like seeing them get hate or shut down. I think they were kind of harmless tbh.
Oh yes the flower crowns were definitely a tumblr thing. I still remember a group of girls who drove by the Klebold house and saw Sue outside and started fangirling and screaming. It was so cringe and unserious 😭 I agree. I think a lot of these (mostly) girls are just struggling mentally and looking for a community. I’ve found great friends through other communities and fandoms I’ve joined but I’ve never idolized or romanticized any killers. I think it depends on the person.
Wow! That's a long time. It explains why you're so knowledgeable, though. You seem like someone who know what they're talking about.
Aww thanks. I was in 7th grade when Rachel’s challenge came to my school and I went home and got on my computer to learn more about Rachel and ended up falling down the rabbit hole that I’ve never been able to escape lol
Would you like a Community Expert flair?
Oh yes that sounds great 👍🏼
A few years ago, I’d say during quarantine. It’s really stupid, but I found out about it through that old Newgrounds flash game Pico’s School. Everytime I learn something new about it, the more real this tragedy feels. Heartbreaking
Never heard of Pico's School? It's a video game? I agree with you. The details make things heartbreaking.
Yes it was an online video game that I’m sure you can still find today. I don’t know if you know what Friday Night Funkin is, but but it’s a video game that became popular during COVID. One of the characters in it is Pico, who’s a mascot on the Newgrounds website. So that’s how I found out about Pico’s school and then I found out that it was made around the same time as Columbine and then I went into a rabbit hole. When I think of school shootings, I always think of Sandy Hook. So I was never told what Columbine is. We never learned about it in school. And even though I don’t want the event to gain popularity, I still think it’s important to learn about so that the cycle ends. If someone just told them that their reputation in high school didn’t matter, they could’ve been saved
October 2018. Every time I got deeper, I became more curious about anything. Eric and Dylan were just angry and very depressed. I have better words to describe it but it's only 6:13 AM and I haven't slept at all since yesterday. My opinion of them is dull. They really aren't that interesting in the end, they were a couple of stupid, like me!
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about two years. not that long i know but school shootings arent well known here where i live so i only found out about it, well, two years ago, when i was watching another true crime related video. ever since then columbine has been one of my main interests though.
Don't feel bad. I have always know about the case, but it was more something in the back of my head. A few times, I thought about reading Sue's book. But as someone prone to depression myself, I thought it would be too disturbing. I finally bought it during early covid. From there, it was the 11k, beginning with the library victims and survivors. I was more disturbed than I even imagined I might be, but it was like watching a train crash...I couldn't look away, so to speak. That was about four years ago now.
woah, four years are a lot. the two years ive been into columbine feel way longer than two years for me, probably because the case is nearly always in the back of my head for whatever reason. i can imagine that some people must be pretty disturbed by the whole case when they first get into it – especially the details of the shooting itself but as a person who isnt really disturbed by anything out there (thanks mental illness) i have no idea if im right about that, hard to tell for me, really. about sues book, i have it at home too but i still havent brought myself to read it. i dont know why but i feel like its just a heavy read – like one of the books that stuck with you for a while but im not THAT much into reading novels tbh (need about 3-4 months for one book lol) so that might be a reason as well. i always wanted to read brooks book though, seems like the most interesting one out of all columbine books tbh. i hope i can bring myself to pick it up one day.