"THERE'S SOMETHING WRONG WITH AUNT DIANE"

[Marley's Ghost]

HBO has aired a documentary about Diane Schuler , who drove a minivan southbound in the northbound lane of the New York’s Taconic State Parkway two years ago. With her two young children and her three nieces (all under the age of ten) as passengers, Schuler drove her borrowed minivan at a high rate of speed until it collided head-on with another vehicle. The crash caused the deaths of eight people, including all three occupants of the other car, four of Schuler’s five passengers, and Schuler herself. Police investigators retrieved an empty vodka bottle from Schuler’s vehicle and the official toxicology report subsequently revealed both that Schuler’s blood alcohol level was more than twice the legal limit and also that Schuler had recently ingested marijuana.

The theories and comments aired about her motives all miss the mark, but here is very important bit of information revealed early in the film which provides a significant clue: Diane's mother left the family when she was nine years old. One could theorize that this traumatizing event forever damaged her psychologically. It is possible that something that occurred that weekend triggered a major abandonment fear, which resulted in her experiencing what psychologists call a "transient psychotic episode", which is a severe reaction to an extremely stressful situation .

Her husband likely knows the answer to this, but will probably never provide the missing piece of the puzzle, as he would be pilloried unjustly for it. Perhaps he asked for a divorce, or told her he was planning to move out. But there was no way he could have anticipated this or done anything to stop it, as Diane was quite adept at hiding her feelings and gave no indication as to what she was going through inside. And if was having an affair, she may have been driven to revenge as well as suicide. The secret drunken stoner theory just cannot explain the bizarre murderous suicidal behavior. She was driving skillfully and with a purpose. The substances were merely chemical courage to help her exorcise her demons.

[sandmangeck]

She was a murderer. I could give two shingles less about her mommy issues.

[Relic]

That was such a bizarre thing.. I don't buy the secret stoner angle either. But if she did this deliberately, WHY do it with her nieces in the car?? I guess if she's psychotic at the moment there's no explaining it in a way that would make sense

[Relic]

Originally Posted by sandmangeck

She was a murderer. I could give two shingles less about her mommy issues.

I hear ya dude. I hold no sympathy for her memory.
Nothing's going to change what happened of course, but for me personally, I'd love to find out why it happened.

[Marley's Ghost]

Everything in the story is spot on as to the reaction of a family with a secret - Diane's dysfunctional behavior is consistent with BPD - Borderline Personality Disorder. The drama that likely went on behind closed doors would be kept from the outside world. Her husband probably had conflicting emotions about their relationship, as it very likely careened from loving to chaotic and violent. Danny probably did not really understand the dynamics of BPD, and therefore was totally unprepared for what appears to be a psychotic reaction with devastating consequences. . As is often the case, the children are the biggest victims.

[jerry]

Good documentary, but I came away thinking she had issues and she wanted other people to pay for those issues.

[fhm555]

Seems pretty simple to me. She got plastered and drove like it.

Several years ago we had a big truck get on the interstate going the wrong way. Thankfully no one got hurt before the driver ran into a ditch. He did it because he was drunker than a skunk.

As for driving with a purpose, bulls**t. Before I sobered up I've driven home blacked out so bad I couldn't even remember doing it, and did it so many times it's pathetic. I never crashed or hurt anyone, but that was just simple good luck.

It was nothing more than blind chance her drunk ass made it as far as it did before her (and everyone else's), luck ran out and she ran head on into another vehicle.

[Relic]

Originally Posted by fhm555

Seems pretty simple to me. She got plastered and drove like it.

Several years ago we had a big truck get on the interstate going the wrong way. Thankfully no one got hurt before the driver ran into a ditch. He did it because he was drunker than a skunk.

As for driving with a purpose, bulls**t. Before I sobered up I've driven home blacked out so bad I couldn't even remember doing it, and did it so many times it's pathetic. I never crashed or hurt anyone, but that was just simple good luck.

It was nothing more than blind chance her drunk ass made it as far as it did before her (and everyone else's), luck ran out and she ran head on into another vehicle.

Sure she died and killed the others because she was drunk. That part's easy. But WHY the hell was she stoned and drunk while driving the kids home? Supposedly (if I'm recalling this right) she was not a stoner and not really a drinker. Isn't it just a little suspicious that she would smoke a j or two, then down vodka on a day out with the kids??
If she was a repeat offender, it would make more sense but apparently she was not.

[Marley's Ghost]

Diane likley harbored intense anger and unresolved conflict against her mother, whose reasons for leaving the family were unclear. She was forced to take over as mother to her siblings, and prbably felt her childhood was robbed from her. Whatever happened that weekend triggered these memories she tried to hard to suppres to rise up from her subconscious. In her twisted mind, killing the kids would be the best way to exact revenge against her mother, the endgame.

If Danny had the knowledge to understand Diane's disorder, he could have been prepared to act/react appropriately and the tragedy could have been averted. But like millions of others in relationships with people with BPD, he was probably in the dark. That is what we should take away from this and could possibly avert future tragedies.

[DwaynieAD]

oh how i love the make excuses for the murderers angle

[Marley's Ghost]

Originally Posted by DwaynieAD

oh how i love the make excuses for the murderers angle

I'm not trying to make excuses. I am trying to share information that might enable a loved one to stop the next Diane Schuler from massacring her family, or simply from killing only themselves (a vastly more common event for people with BPD).

This stuff is not rocket science. It's pretty obvious to thousands of psychologists out there. The fact that they can't/won't speak out is imo a crime itself against humanity.

[Munjibunga]

Originally Posted by Marley's Ghost

Diane likley harbored intense anger and unresolved conflict against her mother, whose reasons for leaving the family were unclear. She was forced to take over as mother to her siblings, and prbably felt her childhood was robbed from her. Whatever happened that weekend triggered these memories she tried to hard to suppres to rise up from her subconscious. In her twisted mind, killing the kids would be the best way to exact revenge against her mother, the endgame.

If Danny had the knowledge to understand Diane's disorder, he could have been prepared to act/react appropriately and the tragedy could have been averted. But like millions of others in relationships with people with BPD, he was probably in the dark. That is what we should take away from this and could possibly avert future tragedies.

We all compensate for bad mothering in different ways. For me, I buy very expensive basses to prove to my mother (now dead over 40 years) that I'm not a worthless person. It hasn't worked so far, so I must need more basses.

[bassybill]

Originally Posted by Relic

... I'd love to find out why it happened.

Please, don't assume everything has a cause or a reason.

[bassteban]

Originally Posted by bassybill

Please, don't assume everything has a cause or a reason*.

*That a rational/sane person will easily understand.

[bassybill]

Originally Posted by bassteban

*That a rational/sane person will easily understand.

No, I really meant NO cause or reason at all. People assume there is ALWAYS a reason even if it's not one we understand - your comment and Relic's show this perfectly. But the very concept of "reasons" makes us assume they exist in every case, and sometimes they don't.

We intuitively think every event has a cause or reason because our experience indicates that is generally the case (which it is). This results in our desire to explain every event, which leads us to look for causality even when none exists.

Sometimes, things happen for no reason whatsoever, without being caused by anything else. Human decisions are, on occasion, the best example of this.

[Relic]

Originally Posted by bassybill

No, I really meant NO cause or reason at all. People assume there is ALWAYS a reason even if it's not one we understand - your comment and Relic's show this perfectly. But the very concept of "reasons" makes us assume they exist in every case, and sometimes they don't.

We intuitively think every event has a cause or reason because our experience indicates that is generally the case (which it is). This results in our desire to explain every event, which leads us to look for causality even when none exists.

Sometimes, things happen for no reason whatsoever, without being caused by anything else. Human decisions are, on occasion, the best example of this.

Well, let me rephrase my statement then - why would a mom, one who was supposedly stable and with no drug or alcohol issues, on an afternoon out with her daughters and nieces, smoke maryjane and down enough vodka to get plastered, then go and kill herself and the kids?
Just a little out of character it would seem to me. I dont think there's harm in asking "why?", No?

But in regards to things in general - yeah I do agree that sometimes there just are no reasons.

[Joe Nerve]

Originally Posted by Munjibunga

We all compensate for bad mothering in different ways. For me, I buy very expensive basses to prove to my mother (now dead over 40 years) that I'm not a worthless person. It hasn't worked so far, so I must need more basses.

Wow. We have more than just our being bass players in common. My mom's still alive though.

I don't believe in the devil, demons, or anything like that... but when people do stuff like this, or the chopping up of that little boy not too far from me last month (did that make national news?), it gets me wondering. Some things are just totally inconvievable to me.

[C.Linton]

Originally Posted by Marley's Ghost

I'm not trying to make excuses. I am trying to share information that might enable a loved one to stop the next Diane Schuler from massacring her family, or simply from killing only themselves (a vastly more common event for people with BPD).

This stuff is not rocket science. It's pretty obvious to thousands of psychologists out there. The fact that they can't/won't speak out is imo a crime itself against humanity.

Agreed. This attitude that I constantly see in these cases of "I don't care why they did it, all that is just excusing the crime." is idiotic. If we are to prevent this kind of thing in the future, we NEED to try to understand why these things happen. Nobody is excusing anyhting here.

[Eric Perry]

Countless people who have a substantial abuse hx live their lives as fully functioning and productive members of society. This *murderer* did not. I don't give a damn what her childhood was like. No one or no thing is responsible for her actions but her.

[Gard]

Originally Posted by Eric Perry

Countless people who have a substantial abuse hx live their lives as fully functioning and productive members of society. This *murderer* did not. I don't give a damn what her childhood was like. No one or no thing is responsible for her actions but her.

^this.