I am soo sad. How does this happen? VT Tragedy

Not a shooting. A F^(#ing massacre. It sucks so bad.

You said it right Heather.

I know, Mark and I were just saying the same thing. It hurts. Damn.

it does hurt. such a lack of love in this world. this may sound crazy. but i always think that it is reasons like this that love must be the answer. if you love and care.....could you have prevented this? i don't know. i guess that is crazy. how could this craziness go unnoticed. is it just laying under the surface. could we not see thru it. do we not care to see thru it.....i dont' know....i want to scream right now. 22 people. 22 lives. 22 families. omigod. omigod. it hurts.

I wonder if it has something to do with the way our society doesn't handle mental illness well. It takes a full fledged blowout before people take action on someone who needed help long ago. That's just my guess, at least. Or, some people are just plain evil. What a very sad story. My heart goes out to all the family and friends of the dead kids.

that is exactly what i was thinking Jennifer. it is so easy to blame a shooter and bury it....but what the hell brought a person to such a horrendous act.

and i don't even want to imagine that someone could be so evil to just do this on their own. but i suppose that possiblity exists.

I was just thinking of how easily it could have been missed. College is stressful....maybe it was a student and it seemed like the usual student strain... i don't know. maybe it wasn't a student at all. i don't know. something feels very terrible here.

that is horrible!

This is a tragedy. It makes me sick to hear or even think that something like this happened. Pray for the families of those who were affected by this terrible event.

How completely heartbreaking!

Yes, it is heartbreaking... my beloved one is from Virginia, and even though the chances that he could be in this campus are scarce, still I would give everything if only to be sure about his safety. And those killed... they had their beloved ones, too. It's painful even to think about this.

My thoughts and prayers with all the victims - Sveta

Definite prayers going in their driections, and for your beloved one, Sveta.

There are so many contributors, it is hard to know where to start. The Amish school shootings occurred about an hour from where I live. Surely, mental issues contributed to that incident. What about the wholesale lack of respect for human life? You don't have to look far for examples. Mass media, video games, etc. have been saturated with every form of violence as the solution to problems or at the very least glamourized as 'stylized'. Just look at movies like '300' and 'Grindhouse' and how they're promoted as artsy, stylized violence... an acceptable norm. Sad, really.

I know. I know. I had to take a minute and breathe. I feel so helpless when things like this occur. The only thing I can think of in times like these is to start with yourself. We can barely control ourselves. When I say start with yourself I don't mean wall yourself off from the world....because it is almost a quiet violence that. I guess I mean.....like Nkosi Johnson says....."Do all you can with what you have in the time you have in the place where you are" I am not sure I remember his quote to the letter. I am open to correction. I think that can mean do big things when you can....but also do the action which means big things. Extend a hand, a smile, or a touch. Because you cannot know if you or they will be there tommorrow. And you cannot know how important it may be. We know the deadly result of complacency but we may never "see" the result of a kindness offered. Probably I am just getting to blubbery here....but blubbery or not...it is something I believe in.

I heard on NPR just this morning about how robberies are less like to happen when a person in a hat and covered up is greeted at the door of a bank. How they are more likely to happen when the people look to the ground and avoid. I know I did it when I was robbed at gunpoint. But yet there is a lesson in that somewhere. How exactly powerful is the acknowledgement of another. Sure it may be stopped because that person is recognized. But at the same time it is a recognition. and in someone's crazy world.....maybe it could be enough to stop something....or maybe not. we may never know.

This attack is an act of terrorism. The gunman killed for killings sake, and he wanted to cause as much pain and suffering as he possibly could. That is the essence of terrorism. It is disgusting to see this happen, and at a school no less.

it is. it is.

tragedy strikes too close to home these days. my heart aches.......

Such a tragedy. My boss and I have been reading about it online. It's so horrible.

Things like this sure change how one looks at things. I'm now sitting in the library at the college where I work and go to school.... and for the first time ever, I noticed where the emergency exits are.

As I drove up to the college, the fact that our flag is still flying at full mast made me angry. It needs to be at half mast. Now. At every college and university. I do not care that today's events happened in the US. I care that they happened in a place where we go - and send our children - to learn.

The whole thing sickens me.

This is so stupid. From what I am see ing now, sounds like this is over some kid loosing his girlfriend and she took up with some other guy. Even if she did him wrong, or he deserved it (no idea which is the case here) there is no grounds for this type of reaction.
I think this is going to be some punk that was given his own way his whole life, and now has to deal in the real world and could not handle it.
Such a waste of life for this punk. Glad he is dead.
I can only hope for the best for all the families and friends involved with this.

Mitch this is not the time for Fearmongering BS. Guns don't kill, people do. I have yet to see a gun get up and walk around shooting anything.

How cold and full of it.

Well a shooting is what it was. The reason will never make sense except perhaps to the shooter and he is dead so speculation is all we have.

it is horrible I know,

It is heart breaking. My heart goes out to all of the parents, but especially the parents of the shooter. They are in their own private hell tonight.

Heather, I am so sad too...they have set up grief counselor's at the school for the kids. It hurts being that it hits home. I noticed that there was a quietness in the air tonight. Everyone is in pain. I am shocked though really having had bomb threats, they should have beefed up security.
First it was a shooting at Virginia Wesleyn where that guard was killed then last week someone was killed in a fight at Norfolk State. Now this...and so much worse. I just got my notice on the tuition hike for the next semester...that in itself has thrown alot of students into feeling pressured, they now need to spend that extra money on security.
All I know is my kids will not go to college here in our wonderful Commonwealth.

Horrific. Just horrific. It is too horrible for words. It is so horrible you want to believe it isn't real. It is hard to believe it is real.

Everything happens for a reason, I believe that. But more and more I've begun to think that certain things happen simply because we Allow them to happen. When humanity stops bickering over the small stuff and starts taking positive action within society because the collective citizens Insist on positive changes...then things will change. Hopefully, for the better.

Wishing You Laughter, Dearheart
..
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I thought that exactly after I slept on it. I think the asking why was a visceral response. Here there were parents and friend very distraught and it is so hard to see that. I put what I felt over in Jared's article. But to summarize it. I think when things like this happen it is natural to want to run and hide. But that is giving in to the evil of the world. If you close your eyes to it....you just give it free reign to walk among you. If you open your eyes and open your heart to those who surround you....the grand majority of which are very, very, very good people...and you look with love. Then there is a light. And the burden is on the evil to hide in that light. It is more easily identified. Go in with your eyes and heart open. Fear is the mindkiller. I believe that . We can quantify evil. but can you quanitfy the lives that you have touched? Probably not....because there are more than you can possibly count. It is what I believe.

Our flag was at half mast when I got to the college today. *sigh* I so wish it didn't need to be - but I am glad that, in the circumstances, they did do it.

It's a sad commentary that this kid was ignored right up until he went on a shooting spree.

"...look with love. Then there is a light. And the burden is on the evil to hide in that light." God, so true and very well put. We touch each others' lives in ways we never even notice. I wish more people would look with love, like you do. But I'm forever grateful for those few shining beacons like yourself. You give me hope and inspire me.

With Love...

Love you back Quinn.

Sadly, new information has come to light, Ron. This kid and his actions....they were not ignored. One example that stands out in my mind..... His creative writing teacher was interviewed on NPR. Apparently she did go to the proper authorities....not one but many ...about her concerns. Because he had not yet harmed anyone, she was told they could do nothing.

I think that means something is terrible askew. It is not the first time we have been told that nothing can be done before harm is caused.

It actually brings me to another thought...not the same but related. We have heard of stalkings and murders and online bullying.

Something terrible like this happens and we look back and think only if....

And until a large change comes about this will keep happening on small levels and larger levels like this.

I am particularly thinking of a girl who leaving Gather because she is being harrassed on line. There is one who hugs trees who stalks and causes upsetment to others in our community.

Damage is done. I know there are not enough moderators in the world. But when presented with the proof and the higher ups wash their hands of it claiming that their hands are bound. It is bureaucratic complacency.

The result is....people leave gather or on the extreme side....over 30 people are killed on the VT campus.

Ron,
I see it everyday. I am currently in my own battles concerning my son and his psychological problems. I tell them that his medicine doesnt work so the up the dosage and send me home. When I ask for additional testing, they cringe. When the school calls telling me that my son has misbehaved (frequent occurance btw) i respond by asking them to have a officer (already at the school) speak with my child so that he will know that I am not lying to him about his actions being criminal. Instead, upon asking again the other day, I was told they forgot. It happens all the way from when the children are young when they chalk their bad behavior up to being "normal boy behavior" until they set a bedroom on fire then it is time for medication...which by the way they build immunities too. I could go on and on but what I am trying to say is that unfortunatly it happens and happens alot. The whole scenerio reminds me of the too many chiefs and not enough indians idea. Too many doctors (my son has 4), school psychologist, teachers, parents all involved. However, the long list makes it very difficult to communicate with eachother but there is no doctor out there who does everything that my childs needs require. So what can one do.
Something needs to be changed. I discussed this with my family over dinner and wrote my own article about it.
La B- Great article btw sorry the bratty sis came in a mucked up the conversation lol

I am not concerned Bonnie. Because in a way it is related.

I would like to call attention to an essay written by Cathy Lewis who does wonderful program called Hearsay. She is an ethical, wonderful journalist who is a gem to our community. Her essay is an excellent commentary on how it feels here. Her program is wonderful and I encourge you to tune in on internet radio when you have the opportunity.

Here is the essay:
http://www.whro.com/home/publicradio/whrv/localprogramming/hearsay/VT-tragedy.htm