Hot Talks

Virginia Tech Shooting

By voice_cd ( bbs.chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2007-04-18 14:19

Editors collected comments from netizens about this time's gun shooting incident in Virginia Tech, US.

You can post comments onGunman kills 32 in US campus shooting

Gun culture

Look at the factors 2007-04-17 08:07

1. Easy access to guns by the gunman who WAS a totally law-abiding person PRIOR to his shooting rampage.

2. Tendency for some people to resort to violence and use guns to UNILATERALLY solve their problem or to eliminate their problem, real or unreal.

Americans' obsession with the rights to bear arms and their daily exposures to gun violence on TV and in Hollywood movies have desensitized their minds and confused their judgment. It is a two-way street between the human mind and the violence in the entertainment media, and don't ever let the head shrinkers tell you otherwise.

HawkEyes 2007-04-17 09:46

Imagine yourself coming into the classroom, the school cafeteria, the library, everyone is wearing a gun belt with guns and bullets. A drop of a book, a cup, a sneeze can get some nervous wreck or want-to-be-heroes draw their guns.

That today's citizen’s rights to bear arm has no resemblance to what Americans' forefathers had in mind when they drew up the constitution. The innocent victims of this carnage are the price Americans will continue to apparently willing to pay for this right.

Janet Liew 2007-04-17 11:47

Just don't understand why the American are so trigger-happy, especially on the campus.Imagine, the killing of 32 innocent victims on such a rampage.It is about time that the U.S. government should restrict the sale of firearms before more innocent lives are lost through random shooting. I condemn the American system!

Concerned 2007-04-17 14:05

This is obviously NOT easy as there are over 230 million guns and assault rifles in civilian hands in America .

But for a start pass legislations and declare a moratorium on gun ownership and close all gunsmiths and STRICTLY control the sale of BULLETS. Without bullets the guns and assault rifles are useless.

Next make it illegal to own guns and assault rifles and those who voluntarily hand them in get paid and the guns are melted down. Trace the registered owners of guns who have not handed in the guns in and conficate them.

Ban the imports of guns and assault rifles too.

It's true this may cause the criminals to be the only people with guns but let the police do their jobs like in other countries and bring them to book. Bring in Elliot Ness!!

BUT the priority is step up SECURITY in schools and colleges and universities to STOP all weapons at the gates!

more concerned 2007-04-17 22:56

If the sales of firearms were banned and the penalty for private possession high enough, it would be much more difficult to buy these illegally.

It is very simple-minded to think America would be safer if everyone were allowed to carry guns.

A person armed with a or several guns can shoot down many others before he can be stopped. An unarmed person will have difficulty to kill son many persons in a short time and from a long distance.He can also be stopped by others even without guns. Moreover, a person without gun will probably be too coward to start such an attempt at all.

Imagine that everyone in the Virginia TECH have a gun, as suggested by one of the posters. The murder would still be able to shoot down dozens by firing first and from a hidden place. What would happen if everyone suspect the other to be the murder and start opening fire at each other? The number of deads would be much higher.

Many Americans have attempted to stop the sales and the private possession of firearms, but they have no chance at all against the powerful lobbyists of the firearms producers and the numerous John Waynes and Rambos.

Former president J.F. Kennedy and his brother Robert have tried. Both were assassinated

 

School management

Camille 2007-04-17 08:15

Once again, image is everything. The decision of the school president to downplay the seriousness of the situation caused more lives, needlessly. He stated that they "did not know" at the time, the extent of the rampage. So, if one is killed let all continue as if nothing has happened - only when the bloodbath began in earnest, was a feeble attempt made to notify the population at large. This is reprehensible thinking, abhorrent, dollar driven and immoral.

Go China 2007-04-17 08:59

I agree with Camille. The school president did not correctly handle this incident.

The first time the two victims were killed, the school police should have had a manhunt and a lock down. Instead, they procrastinated for two hours.

Schools and universities are halls of learning not a battle field.

It is easy to set up a magnetometer to screen for guns at the gate like they do at airports. Just like no passenger is allowed to carry guns into a passenger aircraft, no student should be allowed to bring guns to schools or colleges or universities.

The level of security checks at these institutions of higher learning should be reviewed before more students are needlessly killed.

It is madness in America to allow students to carry guns and other concealed weapons to classes.

 

Students' problem

My take on the shooting is simple. Cho did not receive an A+ for his course work. This grading thing means so much to Asians. When they come out of school upon graduation, grades mean nothing. What is important is innovation. And is what is lacking. Studying in a school environment is one thing, but putting it together without getting graded for it is another.

More than one employer has said to me, yes they get good grades, they study for test. But I want innovators, people that can think on their feet. Not some bureaucrat that can only function with rules before him.

The test and grades me so much that many Asian kids do not play, or even speak to others when they are in U.S.

They become loners, afraid to open their months, studying for testing night and day seven days per week.

That produces the lame brains at the bank offices, who cannot make a simple decision without seeking authority.

Kuan 2007-04-18 06:35

Virginia Tech and other US schools need to do research on why students go crazy like this.

I read that a lot of US school killers were using anti-depressant drugs. I think drugging our children to solve depression is a bad idea. Drugged up people are crazy.

People are depressed for many reasons: (1) poor social skills so the person is ostracized (people are social animals, ostracized people go crazy), (2) too much school pressure, (3) genetic disposition that causes chemical imbalance, (4) trauma to head, (5) traumatic experience, (6) etc.

Drugging depressed people just hides the problem, but does not HEAL the problem. Because the problem is not healed, depressed people just get worse and worse. Then they get more anti-depressant drugs. The person just gets more drugged up, until he or she "explodes" due to medication madness.

 

Opinions concerning other aspects

To Concerned 2007-04-17 13:21

Bringing guns into a school is obviously banned. I can't think of anywhere in the world where such a thing would be allowed.

BUT, If you plan on going on a suicidal rampage, you aren't going to pay any attention to the rules now are you?

Just like suicide is illegal, but what difference will that make to someone who wants to kill themselves.

There is actually very little you can do to prevent murder, if the perpetrator has no concern for the consequences. Short of a mind-reading device we can only assume most people will not break the social contract and take common sense precautions regarding our surroundings and behavior.

If someone wants to kill you, and you don't know it ahead of time then the chances are they will succeed, regardless of rules and laws.

Kuan 2007-04-17 13:45

According to internet sources I quickly looked up, China is a safer place than America, India, most of Southeast Asia, most of Latin America, most of the Middle East, most of Africa, Russia , and so forth.

China is transforming rapidly, and fast changes result in chaos. Still these internet sources say China is safe by any measure.

Look it up for yourself. I personally feel that crime is rare in China when compared to most nations. Then when you consider how China is poor and developing so rapidly, I am amazed that China is not more violent.

Still, I have read reports from other Chinese news that lots of Chinese students feel a lot of pressure and suffer many ailments at school. These problems come from many types of sources. The students feel that school and society is not doing enough to help them solve their problems.

The news report says that most Chinese students just "tough things out" or eventually solve their problems. However, the news reports says a better and faster solution is providing Chinese students and school administrators with more means to speak to each other, work with each other, and have access to psychological advice.

Maybe a "psychologically weak" person or a very impulsive person mixed with weapons turns a troubled student into a murderous student. Maybe this is what happened in Virginia Tech.

thetruth 2007-04-17 23:00

In this difficult time for the United States , it is perhaps well to ask what kind of a nation we are and what direction we want to move in. For those of you who are Americans like me (and I am an Asian American who love both my American and Asian heritage)- considering the evidence there evidently is that there was an Asian man who was responsible - you can be filled with bitterness, with hatred, and desire for revenge. We can move in that direction as a country, in great polarization - American people against Asian people, filled with hatred toward one another.

Or we can make an effort to understand and to comprehend, and to replace that violence, that stain of bloodshed, with an effort to understand with compassion and love. We have to make an effort in the United States to understand, to go beyond these rather difficult times.

What what we need in the world is not hatred; what we need in the world is not violence or lawlessness, but love and wisdom and compassion toward one another, and a feeling of injustice towards those who still suffer within our world, whether they be Americans or they be Asians...

We've had difficult times in the past. We will have difficult times in the future. It is not the end of violence; it is not the end of lawlessness; it is not the end of disorder.

But the vast majority of American people and the vast majority of Asian people in this world want to live good, decent lives, and many respect each other, and want justice for all human beings who abide in our world. Let us dedicate ourselves to what the Greeks wrote so many years ago: to tame the savageness of man and to make gentle the life of this world.

Let us dedicate ourselves to that, and say a prayer for our country, our people, and our world. Let the words of Bobby Kennedy ring true and apply to this situation. Let us end the words of hatred in this board.

 

You can also comment onVa. gunman writings raised concerns

sam 2007-04-18 06:54

thank goodness sanity regained control of these comments. closer ties between the us and asian countries should be a us concern . the us has had a long and respected relationship with the countries of asia and its people. the asian realm has a rich and wonderful history and any nation can learn the value of society by studying its history. the countries have a history of not feeling the need for colonialism and conques but peace and wisdom. all countries learn with time and the us is no better but we harbor no hatred or anyone that does not threaten our security, which i might add is true of any country. if we are to decay from within so be it. but as a whole we do not see this as a reason to blame any country as a whole. please do not spout hatred from a country where wisdom and understanding are believed to be in control.

Don't blame all 2007-04-18 08:38

You can't hold a race of people responsible for one man's action, I think most US citizens understand this. As for gun control/ownership in the US , it's both a privilege and a responsibility, some people do not understand this concept. Some people will always abuse their responsibilities to act appropriately. For every 1 person that cannot show restraint there are a 1000 that do each and everyday. Guns don't kill people, people kill people.

abc 2007-04-18 10:05

Its pretty easy to blame, but if look at US history. This kind of incident happens alot and it involve no just 1 nationality its being deing done by whites, blacks, indians, oreintals. It happens every year in the US and it can be any nationalities.

Only racists and weak minded ppl will blame it on race.

This is also part of the disadvantages of allowing the citizens to carry guns. Ppl just need to deal with it.

WendyLiu 2007-04-18 10:46

The whold world is sorry about Virginia Tech compus gun shooting incident. The US government should properly manage the gun control/ownership. If the guns are banned for civil, what the shooter can use as a weapon?

And after the tragedy happened, there are some Americans didn't make clear about the whole thing, just blamed the Chinese, now really owe them a big apology.

One thing can't understand, why does the gun shooting incident happened again and again on American campus, what's wrong with them?

 

Here are some comments from the forum and you can post your opinions onOver 30 Virginia Tech students reported dead in university shooting

 

Should U.S. control its weapon's management?

cyberspook 2007-4-17 04:28
here we go again another knee jerk reaction for gun control coming up , in the UK and australia we have some of the strongest gun laws in the world , all brought about by a knee jerk reaction to the port arthur shootings, 10 years down the track and the figures are in , despite the strong gun controls and the gun buy back scheme gun crime has risen 46% , they have just realised that the majority of firearms used in unlawfull acts are not registered therefore are outside the strong gun control measures , so what's the answer to stop these kind's of crimes from happening , in a nutshell you will never be able to stop someone who has had a mental break from doing this kind of thing , I wish there was a solution but other than giving every one a gun to protect themselves there is nothing that can be done my heart felt condolances go out to the family's of those involved.

irishinuk 2007-4-17 04:41
SA has the same problem
When are governments going to realize that gun control just takes guns out of the hands of the law-abiding, since criminals will buy them on the black market?!
ANC decided to introduce gun control a few years back... idiots didn't realize that most guns used in house break-ins, hijackings, and farm murders are pilfered from the South African Defence Force's own supplies and sold on the black market..

changabula 2007-4-17 08:37
Was nothing learned from the 19 shootings in the last 10 years? Why was the security non-existent?
The weapons used and the issue of gun law and control seems of little relevance at this moment. Ultimately its people that are the problem. It is sad that there are people with severe psychological issues that need help. Maybe the real problem that needs to be fixed is noticing suicidal or homicidal tendencies in people.

myfriend 2007-4-17 10:58
In America, they are UNwilling to outlaw the sale of guns because the gun lobby bribe congressmen (and congresswomen).
Easy possession of guns, and a bad role model of Washington waging wars around the world, these two combined have made Americans young and old very prone to shoot.

holidays 2007-4-17 11:16
My patience has been running thin on your compliments and questions. I admit I don't have enough years on me as yours about America and that matter on the world. That's why I don't comment on your point of view. But that doesn't mean I don't entitle a voice! I never bought a gun, some of my friends bought a few.
I have to admit I like target shootings. I did my part of shooting water gun on people.
But I will never never ever own a gun. Because I know once I put my hand on a gun in a hostile situation, I'd better prepare to shoot and kill. Owning a gun makes killing as easy as that.
We encounter stressful, hostile situation often in life. By not owning a gun, killing becomes a more difficult option. By not owning a weapon, reconsiliation comes easier than enpowing over others.
When you aware of your power to kill, you will kill!
I live in USA and I like where I live. But that doesn't mean I like everything about USA. Maybe I am putting my opinion in a wrong place since it is a Chinese forum. Maybe the Chinese can learn something from the mistakes of America has made.

mengzhi 2007-4-17 09:30
Tragedies waiting to happen, and again.
Thank you emu for your support in the aftermath of this tragedy. We are still vague on details and no blame should be slotted to anyone until then. Two things are certain :
#1. The freely availability of guns and firearms in the States. I know, I know the old hoary chestnut argument that " guns don't kill, only people kill ". People with knives would have killed many less lives. The responsible hobby shooters are not the problem, it is the crooks and mentally deranged or just depressed. It is your country and it is your call. From afar, the cause and effect is so stark one shudders to see that Americans are missing the wood for the trees. Mush less gun deaths in Australia and UK even on per head population.
#2. That American gung-ho culture which is worsening : everything has the same solution , bang bang. There is irrefutable medical evidence that when children grow up being bombarded with an avalanche of violent, sexual , anti-social attitudes and actions on TV, in books and in movies, they grow up being immunized against pain and suffering ( especially that of others ). Video games of " kill kill kill " translate into imagery deaths with no consequence. ( Sometimes the dead come back alive ). This unfortunate attitude leads to violence and depression. Mental health network is rotting or rotten and this is where early depression and self harm ( plus psychopathic ) ideations are missed and go untreated. This sort of tragedy is the natural outcome of that volcanic eruption at the end. Suicide or homicide , or both.

emucentral 2007-4-17 15:02
I grew up on a farm. My brother and I used to shoot with a "slug gun" and my father had a .22 rifle.
The only shooting I do now is with a cannon, sorry Canon.
Guns are nice pieces of metalwork and engineering and I can understand people wanting to collect them, just like I collect cameras.
However there is a wider responsibility to the community (not armament manufacturers) and I think the US gun laws are simply too lax.
Mind you, that's not guaranteed to prevent every similar event.
Here in Australia, if you want to go hunting with a shotgun or a rifle, you can. If you want to do target shooting with a handgun/pistol well you can still do it (in a licensed sporting club with target facilities) What you cannot do is buy automatic weapons more suited to a war zone. You aren't allowed to stroll around the place wearing a pistol (unless you're a cop or licensed security guard).
The student who killed two classmates at Monash University a couple of years ago, was a registered pistol shooter at a local club, and somehow managed to bring those weapons to the classroom.
The people who say "guns don't kill, people kill people" are right, but those people don't like to admit that guns make the whole killing thing a lot more "efficient".
The guy who committed this mass murder was reported to have been under some stress. Whether he is a US citizen, a foreign student or a man from mars is largely irrelevant.
His ability to fit in, understand the teachers, or relate to his girlfriend may be issues, but I agree that his actual ethnicity is not.

Against the control

bruhklyn 2007-4-17 14:09
guns don't kill people. people kill people.
I can buy hairspray tomorrow and make a flame thrower... should we stop selling hairspray?
i can buy a kitchen knife tomorrow and stab people... should we stop selling kitchen knives?
i can buy bleach tomorrow and poison people... so we should stop cleaning our clothes with bleach?
come on think people.

fyrstar 2007-4-17 19:20
Gun control? Guns were BANNED on school campus. Did that stop him?
Gun control only ensures that the defenseless are unarmed. If the students would have been armed, that would NOT have happened

cyberspook 2007-4-17 11:31
the focus should rightly be placed on his state of mind and the fact that his deteriating mental capacity was not picked up earlier , and by the way I think you will find that the gun crimes in england have actualy increased since there gun law crackdown , law abiding people do not go on the rampage killing inocent people , twisted sicko's that have had some kind of mental break do those thing's , he could easily of drove his car through a pre school and killed a whole lot of little kids , the fact that he chose to use a firearm is regretable for every law abiding gun owner the world over , his actions are not representative of the majority of gun owners nor would it ever be condoned by them , myself included .

yydavid 2007-4-17 11:47
it is too hard for the government to control the guns,as it is said that owning guns means democracy,and let the people have the ability to overthrow the government when it goes too far.

nosferatu 2007-4-17 21:34
Regarding the American right to own guns. The call for more gun control is always raised when something like this occurs. There have also been occasions when a driver has aimed their car at innocent bystanders on a sidewalk, and killed several. I never hear calls for 'car control' when this occurs. Or with the use of fertilizer (Amonia Nitrate) to blow up a government building in Oklahoma City. The fact is, the fault and responsibility for killing others lies with the individual. And that deranged person will find a way to kill regardless of the laws and restrictions put on him, even if he has only a knife.

Racial stereotyping?
mengzhi 2007-4-17 06:22
That reflex racial stereotyping .
This is an unmitigated tragedy involving the loss of tens of innocent young lives. The ease with which the ugly head of racial stereotyping as reared here and in the real world outside is scary. What if the shooter is Asian ? Would you like to find out if he is born in the States first ? Would you not wish to know something about the background to his obvious depression leading to this psychopathic actions ? Would you care to find out if he has had recent family grief ( eg lost a brother in Iraq ) ? No,no ,no ?? It is a sick society which breeds such sick behaviour.
So glad to see ( so far ) that the whole Muslim world has not be fingered to take responsibilty. Pretty reflexive sickos. Like to hear from the same if the shooter turns out to be christian Anglo-Saxon. " Just a bad apple " is what you should be prepared to hear then. Right

emucentral 2007-4-17 07:43
Australia's largest shooting rampage was by a blond anglo saxon with a mental disorder.
The Hoddle St, Massacre shooter another anglo saxon, and a loner.
The guy who shot seven people at Monash university (killing two) an Asian student with a psychological disorder.
What these sorts of shootings have in common is not race or ethnicity, but psychological or mental problems and far too easy access to weapons which can kill rapidly

rfhu22 2007-4-17 19:33
Racial stereotyping rampant
Furthermore, if the guy in Virginia had been an African-American, I am sure he would be described as being 'a young student' as political correctness would have it. Instead, it seems 100% of Americans are unknowingly, unashamedly and ignorantly, referring to the gunman as Asian; they are guilty of racial profiling with you self-righteously saying that race has nothing to do with it and expressing affrontery at peoples' apparent callousness on this site. Funny, and maybe telling, you think?

mengzhi 2007-4-17 19:05
I do not know if some of those callous remarks are in fact from Chinese! The fact that this killer was Chinese from the Mainland on a student's visa has nothing to do with the mental illness he suffered from, the incompetent and negligent administration shown by the campus security systems or the larger " crime " of no gun control in the USA. Many a non-Chinese have shot up Americans in American schools before. To somehow emphsise and enlarge this one irrelevant aspect of the tragedy is to show immaturity, ignorance and a rapid fire mouth just like one of those machine-pistols used. Spend a quiet moment in memory of the unfortunate

mengzhi 2007-4-18 05:02
Loose mouths cost lives.
There should be a discussion about the way a perpetrator of a crime , especially where lives are lost , need be described. There used to be a code of professional conduct for journalists . It required the highest standard of care and checks , and double check , of details before submitting them as facts to print. In this modern times of " scoops and exclusives " ( read avarice ), that self dignity has gone by the way side. Headlines need to be " different, bold and shocking " . Never mind accuracy, sensitivity and "
need to know ".
This present tragedy brought along the same ( not unusual ) tide of the scumbags and flotsam masquerading as " journalists ". The media is a free fire zone to these ferals: anything goes. Describing the shooter as " Asian " is correct simply because he is Asian looking and was described as such by a witness who was there. What came next isl ike the vultures descending from the strathosphere . They brought along with them a trail of gossips, racial stereotyping, presumptions and just plain lies. Eg: Where the devil did " A Chinese national from Shanghai " got into the picture ? Did someone thought that up while on the loo suffering from constipation ? Both of the physical and the mental kinds ? Pooh-bah and all. Scum does not describe them adequately.
These " banter " can have consequences. It would have been bad enough for all Chinese if this is true. Innocent people could have been spat at, cursed and harassed and even harmed or killed because of this lie. We all know that there is an army of cretinous vigilante bigots out there who do not need more than a gossip like this to " justify " their righteous rampage and carnage.
I do not take pleasure in finding out that it is a South Korean migrant ( PR ) in the US Cho Seung-hui, 23, who turned out to be the killer. It is sad for his family to bear the guilt for ever but all Koreans ( and Asians ) in the USA will have to look over their shoulders for the next umpteen months. Although most Americans are not racists, it requires only a handful to make life hell for the Koreans ( in this instance ) and Asians as they " all look alike ".
The standard of journalism is rotten to the core in the western media. Simple self checks of facts even seem to be too difficult for some. An all round sad , bad and mad day for the Americans. Take care

nosferatu 2007-4-17 21:34
Difference in reactions
Even the posts on this thread reflect the personal/cultural differences between Americans/Westerners and the forumites of Chinese ethnicity.
One of the first posts here tries to point out that the fact the shooter was Asian did not mean the massacre was motivated by racism. I wish that such cool-headed, logical thinking would have also been followed when discussing any slight against Asian/Chinese citizens, such as the Milan incident discussed in a 'Changing China' thread.
Apparently, whenever an Asian/Chinese person is caught up in violence/police action, they are victims of institutionalized racism commonly directed against them, and are obviously innocent of any wrong-doing. Even when additional information has been provided to clear up details and explain these incidents, those crying racism have disappeared, and will not offer an apology or admit they were wrong.
But when an Asian/Chinese is the perpetrator of violence/police action that injures others, it is an isolated incident, and everyone should be careful not to jump to conclusions until the whole story is known. (Just heeard he was South Korean).
I am not calling for blame to be put on an entire group for one man/woman's actions. What I am pointing out is the glaring differences in responses.
Regarding the American right to own guns. The call for more gun control is always raised when something like this occurs. There have also been occasions when a driver has aimed their car at innocent bystanders on a sidewalk, and killed several. I never hear calls for 'car control' when this occurs. Or with the use of fertilizer (Amonia Nitrate) to blow up a government building in Oklahoma City. The fact is, the fault and responsibility for killing others lies with the individual. And that deranged person will find a way to kill regardless of the laws and restrictions put on him, even if he has only a knife.

If Americans were as violent and barbaric as some forumites claim, then there should be many more massacres occurring on a weekly basis. After all, guns are easy to obtain, right? The fact is that these types of incidents is relatively rare for a nation with a large population like the United States.

No discrimination

rfhu22 2007-4-17 21:44
My point exactly...the use of the word Asian is in itself racial stereotyping. Think about it.

eightyeight 2007-4-17 21:48
The student that was an eye-witness described him as Asian, she was describing the shooter.
Asian is a description used everywhere by everyone -- it not a sterotype per se it is a physical description of characteristics everyone throughout the world recognized and uses, including Asians.

gratewall 2007-4-17 23:45
It's no racial issue. It's cold-blooded shooting by a psychopath. It's a tragedy of the human race. Condolences to the innocent victoms. I feel so sad. Let's not politicise it or turn it to a racial issue.

The tragedy is linked with the U.S. culture

eightyeight 2007-4-17 08:53
The problem dear one is due to too much Holliganwood propaganda and an uncaring tyrannical government that is not interested in creating values, nor opportunities for the youth of a nation duped by the government's unwillingness to remove the drugs from America, take care of its people and foster a life of promise and happiness -- a government hell-bent on domination and control, God-sent and God-given, no doubt! The American looks forward to a life full of drugs, alcohol and entertainment like CSI, The West Wing deceit, the gross vice-filled perversion of Grey's Anatomy and the lunacy of such films as the 300, Mission Impossible, Batman and Spiderman, to name but just a few. A deliberately dumbed-down nation of tomorrow's mercenaries -- Go tell the Spartans!

myfriend 2007-4-17 08:54
Shooting is an American cowboy culture.
Bang bang bang, that's cowboy culture. What else?
Bush was born in Texas, land of the cow boys. What surprise?
Americans are warmongering in the world, thousands of miles away from their own homes. Why? It's the damned American culture.

holidays 2007-4-17 10:14
Let's just look at this case. The killer has no previous criminal record. He could be as normal as you and me. Obviously he snapped. And he went to the gun shop, bought two guns and bunch of bullets. And then the rest is history. Mass killing is just as easy as that. Anybody can do it.
About having gun for protection. Are you kidding me? Then tell me why there ain't some good gun owners had stopped him? So are you telling me in order to protect ourselves, everybody shall carry a gun?
In UK, I rarely heard people were gun down, mostly knifed. And the death rate is far less than in the US.
When boys are young, they love to play with toy guns, tanks, bombs. Even many of the American heroes-- the soldiers from Iraq, admit that war is addictive, carrying gun and powerful weapon make them feel like god.Human nature is violent, period.
Don't merely blame the culture. It just plays out human's demons inside.
Better campus security? Don't the American schools nowadays already look and feel like jails? Even we secure all the schools, what next? Malls, thearters, restaurants, amusement parks...? Does it worth so much to keep the freedom of having loaded guns?
The number of death toll in each case is increasing faster and faster. I am sure it won't be the last case if no major changes made in gun-possession-law.
It is sad day for America, the land of the free (to kill).

myfriend 2007-4-17 11:29
Cultural differences
The political leader of Americans, Bush, is pretty cocky about killing and wars. He would jump up and down, pound on the podium, do anything just to win a foreign war. Americans are conditioned since, perhaps, 4 years old to fight, shoot, lie, cheat and occupy. So when they grow up to "holiday's" age, the cultural rift is huge and irreversible. Naturally, "88"'s mindset is so twisted now that there is no way he can understand my perspective. I understand.

honestj 2007-4-18 01:43
Don't be so quick to blame America. This is a free country. There is nobody following us around, or controling us. Every couintry and race has had sick people, that have done crazy things. In a free society, that can happen, because there is no one controling you. There is good and bad points with everything. I wouldn't trade this country for any other one, in the world. If this country is so bad then why is it, that people from all over the world are trying to get here to live.