Well, I guess Nihilist would probably be a more accurate definition of the philosophical position of this young man. Seeing the world as meaningless and essentially nothing is really the logical end of all unbelieving thought.
It's almost as if some who are lost see the world in all its cursed fallen-ness but not seeing Christ, they despair.
Common Grace is God's administration of restraint. His hand of Providence holds back sinful man from following through on the implications of his lost thoughts. Sometimes God removes the hand of restraint. I think we will see a lot more of this type of thing. Our society is under Judgment, but it might not always be for the reasons Evangelicals think.
Based on the latest article from the Christian Science Monitor there are indications the shooter may have been influenced by some strains of White Supremacist ideology...which would explain in part his anger and hostility over the immigrant situation in Arizona.....
But there are also indications that he was flirting with Anarchist concepts. Usually when we think of Anarchism we think of Punk Rockers like Johnny Rotten or Sid Vicious, or perhaps we think of assassins like the one's who killed McKinley or the Empress of Austria. But that's an oversimplification.
There are some strains of Libertarianism that veer toward Anarchism. Strange as it may sound, there are strains of Socialism that are also considered Anarchistic.
Anarchism doesn't really mean the promotion of social chaos. Rather it means they promote a view of the world in which the autonomy of the individual man is promoted over against an kind of social or corporate authority in some or all spheres. The most rabid unrestrained versions of Free Market Capitalism explain societal economics and concepts of liberty within this framework. The social ethic of the ACLU can also be looked at in this way. They want the anarchy in different spheres. A Full Anarchist if I can coin the term wants it in every facet.
These are obviously issues that fascinate this young man. He was reading everything from Marx to Ayn Rand, and the divergent dystopian visions of Orwell and Huxley. All worth the read, but as Christians we can filter these things and see Marx as brilliant in commentary and analysis but ignorant of human nature. Much of the same can be said for Rand. Marx seemed to view the individual seeking his own ends, falling prey to avarice (he was right) and needed the remedy of a Collective. In this he shows his foolishness in thinking the collective would not be subject to the same corruptions, or that individuals would not seek and succeed in dominating the voice and power of the collective.
Rand believed strongly in the autonomy and superiority of the individual (hardly Christian either) and believed this was sufficient to make a society work...which shows both great naiveté and a patently un-Biblical view of sin and man's fallen state.
No one was more brilliant than Orwell in showing the nature of power and how it can be wielded by those who view it as the ultimate end. Huxley was masterful in showing how seduction and pleasure can be used perhaps even more effectively to the same end by those who wish for power.
All very interesting, but again as Christians I can sit back and look at the world as it is. Since I'm a sojourner I'm not looking for Babylon to become Zion. While in Babylon I can participate in its life, in fact it's unavoidable. Along the way I can even learn from the insights of lost people. Some of these authors really saw a lot.
But for the unbeliever who has no hope...what can he turn to?
Some turn to the State....the Babel Project. The State becomes Messianic fulfilling man's desires and building his dreams.
Some turn to the individual...I am god. I am the standard of all things. My desires and dreams are what please me. I am a law unto myself.
Christians have throughout history at different times and places have embraced both of these ideas. They have tried but utterly failed to modify and integrate them with Biblical Christianity.
Though they would vociferously deny it, the latter example is really the American spirit and has been since the early days. American Christianity has tried and continues to try to integrate these general values with the Biblical message. Some thinking Evangelicals when confronted with Can-do, Pull yourself up by your bootstraps theology have seen it for what it is....pagan. So they keep it out of the Church, but then happily embrace and promote it on a social level.
The core is so anti-Christian that when an unbeliever follows it through in a deranged hyper-literalism he sets himself up as the standard, as god. His actions become Messianic, and for some who are particularly handed over, they see themselves as saviours and pick up a gun....and as Judge, Jury, and Executioner, they're going to set things right.
While I would never accuse Conservatives of being inherently violent and certainly Conservatism is far removed from Anarchism....one being a preserver, the other a destroyer, they both drink from the well of Individualism.
Sometimes by necessity we need to assert individual conscience contrary to authority, we must reject individualism.
And while we as Christians love individual freedom on a civil level, we must be careful not to deify the concept and thus make an idol.
Individualism is incompatible with the Christian ethic, but on a social level an Individualistic society is more likely to be a tolerant one that allows us to work quietly with our own hands and minding our own business, work toward the building of God's Kingdom.