E/D Regret in shooting

Do you think ever in the shooting, that Eric and/or Dylan regretted doing this at all? It seems like that to me after they left the library and just kept returning to the cafeteria to try and blow up the bombs, not even attempting to kill students in the classrooms walking by. I also believe they killed themselves quick because mainly Eric realized this was a huge fail and after trading fire with cops and not inflicting any damage, they realized it was time to call it quits. Thoughts? Do you think Eric and/or Dylan regretted this in the slightest?

There is much speculation on this. It is true they had many more opportunities to kill other people but they didn't.

Now whether this was because they had finally came down from the rush and had realized what they had done, or if they were just done altogether is anyone's guess.

But it is clear that during the actual shootings they showed no remorse, nor feeling of guilt.

ChaotixBoy wrote:

Do you think ever in the shooting, that Eric and/or Dylan regretted doing this at all? It seems like that to me after they left the library and just kept returning to the cafeteria to try and blow up the bombs, not even attempting to kill students in the classrooms walking by. I also believe they killed themselves quick because mainly Eric realized this was a huge fail and after trading fire with cops and not inflicting any damage, they realized it was time to call it quits. Thoughts? Do you think Eric and/or Dylan regretted this in the slightest?

I think they regretted doing it since the massacre didn't go according to plan, but I'm not sure if they actually felt guilt for killing people.

I think they would have felt guilt for killing people if they killed a good friend and noticed. Like I maintain that if Dylan killed Robyn or Devon and saw that, he would snap out of it.

I think the high wore off and I think being up close to people, talking to them, hearing the noises, smells etc.. where nothing they were expecting or planned for. I think Eric thought it would be like a video game and he'd be on a mission and Dylan thought it would be more like a movie (the way he was acting, his wanting to look a certain way even down to the gunshot to the temple)

I don't think that they regretted doing it but I do think that they were disappointed by the fact that their original plan didn't work out and thus the kill count was pretty low to what they expected it to be. If one of them did regret it, I think it would rather be Eric. Dylan appearantly just wanted to die and I think he didn't really care about how many people they kill, but Eric seemed to care. Maybe if they would have (accidentally) hurt/killed one of their friends.
I don't know for sure though, nobody probably does.

It was a massive fail for Eric. I think Dylan was disappointed, but not as much as Eric. Dylan seemed to just be happy to take people out.

I think if they really, really, regretted it to begin with, they would have gotten the bombs from the cafeteria and try to figure out what was wrong. Then again, their bomb making skills sucked, so with that in mind I'm sure they knew they couldn't just take a bomb that could possibly explode anytime to their knowledge. Enter (poorly thought out) plan b, shoot people, then shoot the bombs, make them go off, destroy the school. I don't think there was a whole lot off disappointment/regret until Eric/Dylan realized shooting the bombs didn't work either.

More so Eric, than Dylan. This was Eric's big revenge, " people will die because of me, it will be a day that will be remembered forever.." and " This is what I'm motivated for, This is my goal, This is what I want to do with my life..." It's clear. This was Eric's fate. To only have it blow up (no pun intended) in his face must have been devastating. Being rejected in life and the last thing he ever did also being rejected? It's pathetic, which he didn't want to be remembered as. I think after that .. he kind of realized that to himself, and only himself, he will always be worthless and a f*** up, since he was such a perfectionist. Also, he had a freshly broken nose when he tried to explode the bombs. So.... broken nose = pain. Bombs didn't go off = rejection/frustration. Adrenaline has worn off by now... When Eric put his shot gun Arlene in his mouth, I'm sure the gun reeked of gun power and metal. Broken nose, blood in his mouth/nose and a shotgun reeking of gun powder.. must have been pleasant.. yeah .... I'm sure it was less than 2 seconds and he pulled the trigger. He regretted this. He didn't regret killing people, but I think he regretted " his big plan" in those last moments...

Like I said, Dylan.... Disappointed. But there was no way he was leaving the school with out killing himself in some way, shape or form. That was his goal, he wasn't leaving 'till he finished the job, committing suicide. I don't think it mattered to him whether the bombs went off or not. I think he wanted them to of course, but he was just as happy shooting people and terrorizing them when the bombs failed. If you look at the CCTV footage of Eric and Dylan in the Commons, as we all know, Eric points his carbine and shoots at the bombs, nothing happens. Is Dylan trying to do that? No. Dylan throws a bomb to cause damage to the school while in the commons, perhaps in hope it would set the propane bombs off. But I don't interpret his behavior as focused on exploding those bombs as Eric's. He was just causing chaos for the fun of it. It was time to die at that point, I think, for him.

Walking by classrooms and looking in and to not pursue anyones death is very telling. You can just tell they don't care at that point. They want to damage the school still, though. I think, in some twisted way, they were tired of killing - or maybe they did realize it was not worth it at that point. I like to believe in the end, they both realized killing themselves was what they wanted the most.

I know most people overlook Eric's depression. He hated himself. I noted recently, in Hitmen for Hire, during Eric's rant at the camera, he says, " I'm gonna pull out a goddamn shotgun and blow your damn head off..".... He's being smart. He's foreshadowing his death, cause what he said there, is exactly how he killed himself. He knew how he wanted to kill himself. He'd had already thought about it, and blurted it out in that video. So, once the killing was over and the bombs were a fail, it was time...

ANYWAY....! I rant way to much don't I?

evelynssye wrote:

It was a massive fail for Eric. I think Dylan was disappointed, but not as much as Eric. Dylan seemed to just be happy to take people out.

I think if they really, really, regretted it to begin with, they would have gotten the bombs from the cafeteria and try to figure out what was wrong. Then again, their bomb making skills sucked, so with that in mind I'm sure they knew they couldn't just take a bomb that could possibly explode anytime to their knowledge. Enter (poorly thought out) plan b, shoot people, then shoot the bombs, make them go off, destroy the school. I don't think there was a whole lot off disappointment/regret until Eric/Dylan realized shooting the bombs didn't work either.

More so Eric, than Dylan. This was Eric's big revenge, " people will die because of me, it will be a day that will be remembered forever.." and " This is what I'm motivated for, This is my goal, This is what I want to do with my life..." It's clear. This was Eric's fate. To only have it blow up (no pun intended) in his face must have been devastating. Being rejected in life and the last thing he ever did also being rejected? It's pathetic, which he didn't want to be remembered as. I think after that .. he kind of realized that to himself, and only himself, he will always be worthless and a f*** up, since he was such a perfectionist. Also, he had a freshly broken nose when he tried to explode the bombs. So.... broken nose = pain. Bombs didn't go off = rejection/frustration. Adrenaline has worn off by now... When Eric put his shot gun Arlene in his mouth, I'm sure the gun reeked of gun power and metal. Broken nose, blood in his mouth/nose and a shotgun reeking of gun powder.. must have been pleasant.. yeah .... I'm sure it was less than 2 seconds and he pulled the trigger. He regretted this. He didn't regret killing people, but I think he regretted " his big plan" in those last moments...

Like I said, Dylan.... Disappointed. But there was no way he was leaving the school with out killing himself in some way, shape or form. That was his goal, he wasn't leaving 'till he finished the job, committing suicide. I don't think it mattered to him whether the bombs went off or not. I think he wanted them to of course, but he was just as happy shooting people and terrorizing them when the bombs failed. If you look at the CCTV footage of Eric and Dylan in the Commons, as we all know, Eric points his carbine and shoots at the bombs, nothing happens. Is Dylan trying to do that? No. Dylan throws a bomb to cause damage to the school while in the commons, perhaps in hope it would set the propane bombs off. But I don't interpret his behavior as focused on exploding those bombs as Eric's. He was just causing chaos for the fun of it. It was time to die at that point, I think, for him.

Walking by classrooms and looking in and to not pursue anyones death is very telling. You can just tell they don't care at that point. They want to damage the school still, though. I think, in some twisted way, they were tired of killing - or maybe they did realize it was not worth it at that point. I like to believe in the end, they both realized killing themselves was what they wanted the most.

I know most people overlook Eric's depression. He hated himself. I noted recently, in Hitmen for Hire, during Eric's rant at the camera, he says, " I'm gonna pull out a goddamn shotgun and blow your damn head off..".... He's being smart. He's foreshadowing his death, cause what he said there, is exactly how he killed himself. He knew how he wanted to kill himself. He'd had already thought about it, and blurted it out in that video. So, once the killing was over and the bombs were a fail, it was time...

ANYWAY....! I rant way to much don't I?

Excellent points!!

I agree, when I read Eric's writings I see someone who hates himself more than anyone and anything else. He CLEARLY says this too and yet people overlook it because Dylan wrote a love poem...

Screamingophelia wrote:

evelynssye wrote:

It was a massive fail for Eric. I think Dylan was disappointed, but not as much as Eric. Dylan seemed to just be happy to take people out.

I think if they really, really, regretted it to begin with, they would have gotten the bombs from the cafeteria and try to figure out what was wrong. Then again, their bomb making skills sucked, so with that in mind I'm sure they knew they couldn't just take a bomb that could possibly explode anytime to their knowledge. Enter (poorly thought out) plan b, shoot people, then shoot the bombs, make them go off, destroy the school. I don't think there was a whole lot off disappointment/regret until Eric/Dylan realized shooting the bombs didn't work either.

More so Eric, than Dylan. This was Eric's big revenge, " people will die because of me, it will be a day that will be remembered forever.." and " This is what I'm motivated for, This is my goal, This is what I want to do with my life..." It's clear. This was Eric's fate. To only have it blow up (no pun intended) in his face must have been devastating. Being rejected in life and the last thing he ever did also being rejected? It's pathetic, which he didn't want to be remembered as. I think after that .. he kind of realized that to himself, and only himself, he will always be worthless and a f*** up, since he was such a perfectionist. Also, he had a freshly broken nose when he tried to explode the bombs. So.... broken nose = pain. Bombs didn't go off = rejection/frustration. Adrenaline has worn off by now... When Eric put his shot gun Arlene in his mouth, I'm sure the gun reeked of gun power and metal. Broken nose, blood in his mouth/nose and a shotgun reeking of gun powder.. must have been pleasant.. yeah .... I'm sure it was less than 2 seconds and he pulled the trigger. He regretted this. He didn't regret killing people, but I think he regretted " his big plan" in those last moments...

Like I said, Dylan.... Disappointed. But there was no way he was leaving the school with out killing himself in some way, shape or form. That was his goal, he wasn't leaving 'till he finished the job, committing suicide. I don't think it mattered to him whether the bombs went off or not. I think he wanted them to of course, but he was just as happy shooting people and terrorizing them when the bombs failed. If you look at the CCTV footage of Eric and Dylan in the Commons, as we all know, Eric points his carbine and shoots at the bombs, nothing happens. Is Dylan trying to do that? No. Dylan throws a bomb to cause damage to the school while in the commons, perhaps in hope it would set the propane bombs off. But I don't interpret his behavior as focused on exploding those bombs as Eric's. He was just causing chaos for the fun of it. It was time to die at that point, I think, for him.

Walking by classrooms and looking in and to not pursue anyones death is very telling. You can just tell they don't care at that point. They want to damage the school still, though. I think, in some twisted way, they were tired of killing - or maybe they did realize it was not worth it at that point. I like to believe in the end, they both realized killing themselves was what they wanted the most.

I know most people overlook Eric's depression. He hated himself. I noted recently, in Hitmen for Hire, during Eric's rant at the camera, he says, " I'm gonna pull out a goddamn shotgun and blow your damn head off..".... He's being smart. He's foreshadowing his death, cause what he said there, is exactly how he killed himself. He knew how he wanted to kill himself. He'd had already thought about it, and blurted it out in that video. So, once the killing was over and the bombs were a fail, it was time...

ANYWAY....! I rant way to much don't I?

Excellent points!!

I agree, when I read Eric's writings I see someone who hates himself more than anyone and anything else. He CLEARLY says this too and yet people overlook it because Dylan wrote a love poem...

Thanks :]. Yes. Eric hated himself... to the point of tears occasionally... and everyone just labels him as this crazy/psychopathic/mastermind. He was a severely damaged person. He may not point it out too much in his journals, but the little he does let on, you can tell he's just... he was depressed as hell. He didn't value himself at all.

I think Eric felt guiltily around the time he put his shotgun into his mouth. Not because of what he did, But because his bombs failed. I still for the life of me can't understand how he thought his bombs were gong to detonate. When I was In high school, I knew that propane tanks were specifically designed NOT to explode. But that might be because I worked at a Home Depot that sold gas tanks. As for Dylan, I don't think he really cared, weather he killed 1,000 people or 0 people , he planned on dying that day, regardless of the outcome.

I always find the end of the Columbine Massacre sad compared the the end of other shootings, probably because E&D realised that they had failed with the bombs. I still think they would have been happy with all the copycat shootings they inspired.

Ziamber II wrote:

I always find the end of the Columbine Massacre sad compared the the end of other shootings, probably because E&D realised that they had failed with the bombs. I still think they would have been happy with all the copycat shootings they inspired.

I agree that they would have been happy that they got the "followers" they had hoped for, But I still think Eric died thinking he was going to be etched in the history books with the same "average" H.S. shooters that he openly mocked during the basement tapes (I.E. Michael Carneal, Kip Kinkel)

I still find it hard to belive that they spared many people in the libary and other classrooms, you would have thought they would be even more bezurk knowing the bombs had failed.

I am with those saying "not for the victims, maybe that things didn't go according to plan" Some have speculated the way Eric shot himself was because of the video game Portal, which has the line "I regret nothing". Not to mention the lines he quotes from KMFDM's Anarchy.

Unfortunately, it seems they killed enough in the library to get bored. Nobody even stood up like they wanted. So they moved on to the bombs and killing cops.

They'd have to have been anxious about the cops entering, right? They certainly should have been. I wonder if the reason for the "roaming the halls" time wasn't for regret or just to shoot ceiling tiles and lockers, but to check the exits to see if the cops had them surrounded, or to check the halls for cops.

I don't know anything about guns, but I find it interesting that in the infamous cafeteria shot they seem to have their guns ready. Since they were not gunning for students at the time, I wonder if they figured once the bombs go off that they will have their shootout with the cops.  

But it's all confusing.

Ziamber II wrote:

I still find it hard to belive that they spared many people in the libary and other classrooms, you would have thought they would be even more bezurk knowing the bombs had failed.

I think after the bombs failed to go off. Eric felt he failed , regardless of how many people he shot in the Library and/or classrooms. He would still have come up short of his expected body count Not to mention that the physical building of Columbine was still standing at that point He probably felt like a total failure and that probably took a mental toll on him on 4/20 whether he wanted to to or not.

cakeman wrote:

I am with those saying "not for the victims, maybe that things didn't go according to plan" Some have speculated the way Eric shot himself was because of the video game Portal, which has the line "I regret nothing".

I assume you meant Postal.

SavageGlocker wrote:

cakeman wrote:

I am with those saying "not for the victims, maybe that things didn't go according to plan" Some have speculated the way Eric shot himself was because of the video game Portal, which has the line "I regret nothing".

I assume you meant Postal.

Of course I did. Oops!

I don't think they had time to feel guilty for killing people. Maybe they would have felt that if they had been caught alive, and then rationalization would have make them hate people even more. But until they truly put an end to the massacre by killing themselves, they were still into the action, they probably didn't have much distance to really think about it.

Anything with gas can explode. That’s why we shouldn’t smoke at gas stations or even smoke near anything filled with gas.

There might be a case labeling Eric a psychopath is just an easy way out but his beliefs wouldn’t have changed as he got older. Well most likely not. Give or take, he was already formed. Guns, hate, revenge on everything. If it wasn’t Columbine, it would have been somewhere else and something else.

cakeman wrote:

I don't know anything about guns, but I find it interesting that in the infamous cafeteria shot they seem to have their guns ready. Since they were not gunning for students at the time, I wonder if they figured once the bombs go off that they will have their shootout with the cops.  

Does anyone know if they could see the police from the cafeteria windows.

ChaotixBoy wrote:

Do you think ever in the shooting, that Eric and/or Dylan regretted doing this at all? It seems like that to me after they left the library and just kept returning to the cafeteria to try and blow up the bombs, not even attempting to kill students in the classrooms walking by.

I don't think there's evidence to suggest that they regretted the attack, other than regretting that the bombs did not go off and that CHS would remain relatively intact as a building.

Why did they leave so many people in the library alive? Why didn't they fire the remaining ammunition at the cops or try to seek out other students hiding here-and-there around CHS? I don't know, these things are a major mystery an dI think E&D took the answers to their graves.