Jeffco’s reasoning is that unlike Dylan and Eric’s journals, the Basement Tapes are considered an inspiring, rousing ‘Call to Arms’ to troubled youth that feel the same way as them. Dylan and Eric are recruiting them by looking directly in the camera and talking to their intended audience sort of like Uncle Sam recruiting an impassioned ‘We want YOU to join us and follow in our footsteps!’

[June 15, 2006 FBI and Jeffco Assessment of ‘The Tapes’]

Short answer is that Jeffco is, as you say, is essentially, well, stupid.  Other shooters ‘mini’ Basement Tapes have been released and even published on youtube or shown on tv. The shooter, Alvaro Castillo was fascinated by Columbine and Eric Harris and wanted (and did attempt) to follow in the boys’ footsteps regardless of the Basement Tapes being released.  Quite a few of his tapes which were broadcast in his trial were all released on youtube.  We also have bits of Cho Seung-Hui’s tapes and Elliot Rodger’s last ‘Retribution’ video.  All released, all stating their cause and could also be considered a ‘Call to Arms’ to any troubled youth surfing Youtube.   If you consider them so-called ‘copycats’ of E & D, then they were inspired and took action, again, regardless of whether Eric and Dylan’s Basement Tapes were released.  And who is to say that Elliot Rodger wasn’t inspired by Cho Seung-Hui or all the other tapes freely released before?  James Holmes barely researched Columbine and did his thing not one iota inspired by any other previous shooters. If you’re watching the trials than you know James Holmes shot up a theater for entirely his own reasons with his own motivations and agenda. The shootings continue regardless of tapes being released or not.   The root of the matter has nothing to do with any shooters Basement Tapes. (Why does Jeffco give E & D celebrity by making their BTs so deniably attractive?)  As long as source of the problem is brushed under the carpet and not addressed, the shootings will continue.

The fact that Jeffco chose not to release the Basement Tapes and denied them (supposedly permanently as of this year) from the public has shrouded them deeper in intrigue and mystery. It begs the question: what is so important that they would rather keep the public ignorantly in the dark?  They’ve acted like a parent denying it’s citizens the right to view the tapes, to evaluate and judge them for themselves. It’s censorship and it demonstrates that they ultimately do not trust the populace to handle the evidence.   Jeffco has built up a fascination about the tapes and they have become a holy grail or forbidden fruit of sorts for youth simply because it’s human nature to want what we’re told we cannot have. Jeffco has made the tapes vastly more potent and attractive than if they had just casually released the tapes along with the journals and all the other Columbine evidence. Release all and let the public decide. And yet, somehow, it’s ok for the violent ISIS terrorist acts or the Boston pressure cooker bombing footage to end up on Youtube. The shootings will continue, and have continued as evidence with Dylann Storm Roof just this past week , regardless of the Basement Tapes release.