VT

Ok...So, I haven't written in a while, as I have been so busy that I have been unable to remain "in the loop". However, I was of course unable to ignore the biggest headline in the news right now, the Virginia Tech shooting. My fellow blogger, Adam, author of the blog entitled "Time Teaches...if You Let it" has already made some outstanding points on the issue, so I only have a few things to say:
First off, I refer all to the msn page at http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18143312/?GT1=9246. There you will find a list of some of the people who were killed during the shooting, including some pictures and descriptions. Particularly heartwrenching is the blurb about the holocaust survivor who was killed...It just seems terrible that one who survived such an ordeal was killed in a place he was supposed to feel safe, an apparently common occurence. Apparently, he died trying to protect his students.
Second of all, I would like to comment on the fact that everything that is being said about the shooter is old news. I could practically say the words before reading or hearing them: "Loner...few friends...depressed...notes in locker...refusal to see counselor...and on...and on..."
Plus, there were also the same old people saying the same old things: "Now, that I think about it...he had all the warning signs...he loved violence...I wondered if he would ever become a school shooter...and on...and on...and on..."
Why, people? Why? Why do you wait until it's too late to say something? There are unstable people out there; don't think this couldn't happen in your area or to someone you know.
Last year, there was a play put on at my school called "Bang, Bang, You're Dead." This play took place in the memory of a student who was in prison for shooting his parents and some kids at school. He was led through these memories by the dead classmates, whose memories nag at him until the guilt becomes unbearable and his callous attitude is broken and he is sorry. Unlike most plays at my school, they performed this one during school, as well as after. There were many tears, even an unexpected few from Miss Never Cries during Movies or Anything, herself. The point is, though, that it got people thinking about the warning signs...of how this could happen to anyone. Students were a lot more careful about how they treated eachother...for a while, anyway.
So, please remember that your words and actions, or lack thereof, can have drastic consequences. Just...be careful. Treat others as you would like to be treated...