Surely Mallika you must remember what happened in Russia several years ago, from Wiki:

"The Beslan school hostage crisis (also referred to as the Beslan school siege or Beslan Massacre) began when the group of Muslim pro-Chechen armed rebels[1] took more than 1,200 school children and adults hostage on September 1, 2004, at School Number One (SNO) in the town of Beslan, North Ossetia (an autonomous republic in the Caucasus region of the Russian Federation).

On the third day of the standoff, gunfire broke out between the hostage-takers and Russian security forces. 344 civilians were killed,[2] including 186 children,[3] and hundreds more were wounded. Chechen warlord Shamil Basayev took responsibility for the hostage taking, which was led by his Ingush deputy Magomet Yevloyev.

Many questions remain a matter of dispute, including how many militants were involved, whether weapons and ammunition had been hidden in the school prior to the siege, and whether some of the militants had escaped. Questions about the government’s management of the crisis have also persisted, including the nature and content of negotiations with the militants, the responsibility for the bloody outcome, and the use of heavy weapons."

Do we need to psycho analyze so soon? How about expressing outrage that could happen in this day and age. Plenty of time to analyze, but I understand this is a common reaction here.

Very upsetting.

Steve

Poor administration in politics is in part to blame, Mallika. There are so many poor, desperate ppl in the US; and, in my view; this is what the Bush admin wants... so that they can apply further army-control methods of control in the US...

Everything is falling apart; like the scab from a wound... revealing a sore... going unhealed, and manifesting.

These mass-shooters; are telling "us" something; and we are not listening...

Peace, comfort; to the families and friends of the deceased. To the wounded...may your wounds heal quickly and completely. May all of you, touched by this tragic shooting spree---find peace.

with loving kindness,
North

All I know is; i have a tension headache from this.. knowing my son is at college; and that in Montreal, across our border; there were a school shooting with multiple deaths... I want my son HOME!! yet, do we keep them safe, by hiding them?

Praying for you and your family dear North.

Best,

Steve

Thanks Mallika, we are react differently and one isn't any more valid than another, especially for something as awful as what happened today. BTW, best wishes on your new book, sounds very exciting if not hectic.

Take care,

Steve

Dear Mallika,
My niece is at Va Tech. My heart breaks for all the families suffering and the students who are hurting.
~ Kate

It's the educational/social system!

Americans (in general) are morons!

What really stirred me, it really? happend on a campus!?!

Why don't these things happen, in poland?

Love, passion
marek

Everybody competing, everybody so self-absorbed, everybody trying to live that 'great' American Dream, so much me me me. Was it a bad grade that he could not afford to have, was it being denied admission, was it a lost love he could not bear to lose, was it his school loans debt? As long as this disunity continues, as long as so many people want to be rich, and cold-blooded, like Donald Trump, and waste millions to take a shuttle ride into space, instead of uplifting some of our poorer sisters and brothers -- this Virginia Tech horror shall only again take place somewhere else.

When the American government says pre-emptively killing people will bring peace, one wonders if this killer used some variation of the ‘just’ war theory to rationalize this terrible tragedy. Thank G-d the death penalty is such an efficacious form of crime deterrent. Alienation, roosting chickens, violence.

The 'United' States of America world leader in school massacres! Does this mean every American citizen is now an actual terrorist suspect? Every divorced person, every person in debt, every uninsured person, every single person who for some reason does not have a mate, every priest, every nun; is every single sinful person on the face of this planet a suspect . . .

With only suspects with the most money, and most powerful weaponry, ‘policing’ the other suspects.

Do we now have to fear the families of the fallen, b/c G-d only knows what their grief could do to their mental state! Like an Iraqi women who lost her husband and sons who then decides to kill the ‘occupying’ forces or her fellow country-man who cooperate with the invaders. Shall preachers now carry guns to church on Sunday to ‘protect’ themselves?

'An armed society is a safe society' huh, and this shall probably only spur law enforcement agencies to request more money to buy even more guns, and the federal government will only increase domestic surveillance . . .

Will we now have college professors and high school teachers packing guns along with their textbooks, or will we have private mercenaries protecting schools; our society Orwell could never have imagined. It figures ‘going postal’ is an original American phrase.

And now families have to pay for funeral costs.

We have a very long way to go in repairing this world.

May the Lord forgive us, and my genuine prayers and compassion are extended to any that may personally suffer from this tragedy. My prayers to every family afflicted by this horror.

Peace

Yo, my head is spinning from reading all that is going on. The energy here is quite high.
Richard is even sounding desperate.
We can harness this wave of energy, it comes like a deep global breath. You can feel it. Just sit and focus on this hightened energy, breath it in and refocus it and breath out.
What we breath out is the creation of the next moment. How that moment plays out is up to us colletively.

May we breath in fear and release it as love.

The more intense the circumstances the more intense the oportunity for refocusing our global breath.

peace comes from peace

derek

Thanks Steve and Mallika--it weighs heavy on my mind... like a bubbly stew.

Kate, hope your neice, and her parents and you all; are finding peace and calm too...

The world is full of a cancer called: anger, grief, poverty, anxiety, lack of jobs, lack of social programs, lack of medical funding, high costs of education(ridiculously high costs)lack, lack, lack....

Because billions of dollars a month instead; are being spent to invade an innocent country; so, this "does" tie into current events and the administration; which has hijacked the rights and freedoms of it's people, post-9/11.

It has a lot to do with students; becauase they are being forced to borrow up to 42 thousand dollars for 3 years college---a total of 24-26 months, in-class time!!(my son's 3-yr-bill) and he won't even be 20, when he has to start paying it...HE is terrified, so am I... most ppl aren't in that much debt until mid-20's to mid 30's.. he'll be 20!! BUT< he also knows, that an education is the biggest chance of a decent living, so he took the risk(notice I chose the word, "risk")

this kind of stress; can make anyone crack...under the strain--so was this, the teen-killers motivation? Stress/financial related--pressure, to sustain the grades for the grants, the perks, the freebies that so few get?

geez, if the US can invest so many billions to war; why can they not use taxpayers money; to invest in their childrens futures, with free or low-cost educations?

Student loans system, is just another crooked bank; and it preys on teens, and poorer parents...as most systems do, btw.

Love, North

(keeping u in my thoughts K)

My heart and sympathy, goes out to all affected by this tragedy.

And, we will pray for their souls.

I am NOT, exploiting this issue.
And I might be a cold hearted SOB.

BUT I have a major problem, with the REPORTING done by the media.

I heard reporters and "experts", STATING the following:

That the ONLY way, this much carnage could happen.
Was with AUTOMATIC Assault weapons. (naming M-16's, AK-47's to blame)

And how DANGEROUS, they are in untrained hands.

As I write this, Television hosts are saying that the campus, failed to properly protect and alert students.

They are saying that the Campus should have contacted ALL students by an email alert.

And the campus, should have a automatic system, that could LOCK all the doors on campus.

Watch the law suits fly!

This sounds like a death trap to me..

Now for the icing on the cake:

"The latest school shooting demands an immediate end to the gun-free zone law which leaves the nation's schools at the mercy of madmen. It is irresponsibly dangerous to tell citizens that they may not have guns at schools. The Virginia Tech shooting shows that killers have no concern about a gun ban when murder is in their hearts.

"Not far from Virginia Tech, a killer was stopped at the Appalachian School of Law when two students were able to go off campus to their vehicles and get their guns which they used to subdue the killer. Sadly, not even that awkward defense was available at Virginia Tech.

Virginia Tech Shooting -- Gun Bans Are The Problem, Not The Solution

http://www.theconservativevoice.com/article/24362.html

Again, I am NOT trying to be disrespectful to the victims.

A man WITH a gun is a CITIZEN
A man WITHOUT gun is a SUBJECT

Take care, be safe.
God Bless.

David

Craig,

You are almost too correct in #9, so I have to remind
myself just how hopelessly optimistic I am.

But like Amba, I'll admit to being a bit Angry.

Now whither shall I direct this pressurized steam
infiltrated with hot, spicy directives?

At the perpetrator?

At the non-existent security practically deemed a necessity these days?

Shall I blame the ammunitions or those who use them?

Or dare I damn God and His mysterious ways?

Or...seventh level:

It was God killing God several times in one instance.

???

As W. Blake suggests, now it's time for Jesus to come with the band-aids.

At this moment, my prayers go to the students, parents and friends of the students who were killed. I still haven't gotten a clear picture of what happened and cannot comment furthur.
Yes derek, let's send love to all concerned.

Love
Bonnie

Okay - I'm going to get up on my soapbox and say this. Can we not discuss politics and peripherals of this for at least today?

There are some folks who are in serious mourning. Tomorrow - let's talk about gun control, let's talk about how we can seek appropriate measures.

But for goodness sake, can't we find some semblance of sensitivity and compassion and simply have some silence today to mourn the lives lost in this tragedy?

Jeff, that is a commendable sentiment to be sure. I don't think anyone at Intentblog will denigrate anything about the tragedy. The leftists might do this and more, as evidenced (predictably) by promoting their agenda under the purview of "news" using crass speculation and tying unrelated topics-like "lax" State gun control laws...even though it was illegal to have them on campus in the first place.

Tragedy or no, it seems that the authorities have provided scant information, and this is fueling the guesswork in the media, and it is hard to believe they have just now identified "who" the culprit was, but, haven't yet released the name. People are naturally going to try to sort out the how and why this happened.

I think it likely that we will see inept police and emergency procedures, based on what I am hearing from the University authorities right now.

-Matt

I agree Jeff.

Dear North,
It has been a heartbreaking day.
My niece is struggling to understand why this has happened. I am too. For many hours, her mom and dad could not reach her, because the phone lines were jammed. How wrenching those moments were.
Nothing compares to the killing of children. My tears fall with many others tonight,
~ Kate

Dear Kate, I cannot fathome, or begin to; on what your neices parents were thinking while this all unfolded; and how for so long; they had no word from her.. trying not to think the worst.... time must have froze....

So glad she survived Kate... much love, hugs to you and your neice and families))))HUGS)))))

with loving kindness,
North

It is unfathomable. To kill another out of rage is unfortunately all too common. But to stand and look into the faces of the innocent and pull the trigger again and again and again is beyond my comprehension. I mourn not on for the family and friends of the victims, but also for our collective souls.

Dear Shanna,
The pain of this event
is unfathomable.
It is a time of mourning for many families,
mine included.
with love
~ Kate

dear North,
I feel your warmth and care
Thank you

Media has a lot to do with the frenzy. What kind of movies and TV shows--sell? Violent ones, soft-porn, twisted adult cartoons, that get away with hate messages; about other countries, religions, etc?? then, there are the over-bearing marketing of products, with less quality movie time...

My point to the ramble is:

for once, the news is on top of the game; and they are going to twist, to fit themselves into the billionaires club...even if it causes a frenzy--even if it causes anxiety, etc.

Betcha bottom dollah... but, "who" is giving them this power?

"we" are... through our poor choices of quality living; and purity of output.

Dear Kate.. a prayer for you and yours, which I put on my blog, in memory of the 32 young, teen lives lost today....

"Care-Compassion

"May the Wellspring of Compassion be opened in us as we reach out in care.

May soothing words find a home in us.

May Tenderness bless us as we reach out to comfort body, mind, and spirit.

In the midst of fear and frustration May Courage be given us.

When difficult decisions confront us, may Wisdom inspire us.

May Patience keep vigil with us and Peace of Mind calm us.

May our heart find a song to sing even when we are weary.

May abundant Love lift us and gratitude bless us as we live the mission of care entrusted to us.

Amen" Author: Sister-Pat Bergen CSJ

---------

Keeping you and your fam in my thoughts K!

I take exception with how these stories are covered in the news.

What if it was found that a lot of these crimes have a root cause in the culture, that the way these things are covered is part of a churning circle, a self propelling mechanism, that gets more and more intense, while the public gets more and more complacent, desensitized.

The first victim in this case seems to have been a young woman, a ex-girlfriend.

Turn on NBC on a weeknight, and after you figure out whether it is a real crime show, like Dateline, or a fake crime show, like Law and Order, wait and see if you spot a crime against a young woman.

Perhaps you'll see the Amish Schoolgirl reenactment on Law and Order, where the lead actor stands amongst dead school girls.

There are 16 year olds who have always lived in a world that had the sun and the moon and Law and Order. They show repeats in the afternoon, pretty much all day long. Edited of course, barely, but ask Hitchcock or Tarantino about how powerful 'not seeing' can be. Could your kids figure out what happened?

And that's just one show. And that’s not video games or movies.

Should we screw with the liberties of the press and media? If we are talking gun control, why not controlling them? Maybe no advertising revenue when covering crimes. Not that anything would really matter anyway. We have Utube. Things are going to spin even faster now that 10000 channels are going to be available on your cell phone soon.

And I'm saying this: Will 200 years from now will people look back at this time and clearly see a time when a disrespect for human life in the west started in the early 70's and continued like a cancer until everybody knew somebody close who was effected by it.

That is going to be the price we pay for enjoying this culture.
The slippery slope looks like a straight drop in a different context.

There have been school shootings in Britain, a pre or grade school, and at Mcgill University in Montreal (all women victims).

It seems to me that the frequency of this is much more in the US than anywhere else. I unfortunately live in a country that is sadly in a mess too in terms of crime and violence. And it really bothers me why just 1.3 million people on a little island cant get along. I mean we should be all friends and in community with each other etc. Yet there is so much crime and such road rage too! Geez such and angry society is mine!

I think in the case of Trinidad we are heavily influenced by the US which is expected with such a small island etc we are also to some extent influenced by India in terms of the religious stuff and Bollywood stuff. Also some Islamic influences (indian and arab things as a result) and the old colonial stuff (from the Brits) and perhaps to a much lesser extent some chinese and syrian/lebanese stuff. And to a very small extent some african's here are into their roots but mostly they are part of what is called the creole cutlure here. So interesting to figure exactly why is our society here so violent and hateful! And to carefully analyse why one might risk being painted with the brush of racist or some sort of profiler etc.

But interestingly so far in Trini we have Thank God not seen this kind of crime like this- a mass shooting by an individual and then turning and killing himself. Noticing as I write himself that mostly this is a him isnt it? Dont mostly males carry out these kind of crimes? I think it is cause men feel more pressured by society to achieve and failure crashes more on them ...that and men in general then to find it harder I find to strip their egos bare and deal with what they find there!

I think in the US you see this kind of thing often cause yep as others have pointed out it is the culture there with the violence on TV and movies and all the pressures and competition and lack of community (a lonely individualistic kind of society if one were to generalize)It must also have to do with the guns being so easily available too. Guess like with most things it is a combination of things though.

But for sure you rarely see these kinds of things happening in the UK say ...I mean what makes the UK so much more violent crime free. For sure a big difference is the lack of guns. And I mean even the bobbies(the average police who does the traffic control etc...the ones with the batons) dont have guns like only the Scotland Yard get to carry guns.

It's amazing how people flip out though...you can either see it as a lack of community and love and support systems etc or as a mad rage that is just inherently out of control in some people as oppose to others...true devils? Dunno? Just glad that at least in Trinidad this isnt happening yet ...here you have the domestic violence though or a lot of where you hear two or three people killed in love triangles!

I agree with some other posters too though that media can propogate stuff though...there was a time here in TT when there were a spate of suicides and the local media was really following up on story after story until the news anchor himself committed suicide...there is still much speculation as to the detials of why he did it ...but since then the media toned down and on the whole suicides dropped off. Well people dont have time to kill themselves here now cause someelse gets to them before they can try now instead! As I said before sad how nasty and violent society can get here!

Ive been trying my bit or daily think of what I can do to help but...feel very out numbered and also daily realise that the island suffers terribly from brain drain so there just arent enough of the right kind of people trying to make change! Guess the story of the third world though! But then on the other hand all the brains in the US isnt solving their problem either so...!

Make God help us all!

Just remembered something does anybody remember the horrific evil British crime where the young boys took the beautiful baby-James Bugler was it? and eventually killed him. Were they truly disturbed or just naturally diff from the avg human being and so compassionately challenged?

There is much food for thought within these comments in light of what has happened at Va. Tech. It is such a violent, senseless "crime" - it's effect upon families, friends, and our society also, is beyond comprehension. The media attention is complicated by who gets the 'story' first, who gets the 'latest' detail first, etc etc, and is repeated every five seconds which somehow diminishes the initial response to such a tragic act, however, this in no way diminishes the reality of it. Just like so many other "things" we will be desensitized to the actual 'facts' and sooner or later it will not be 'today's news' and it will more or less fade away, and we will go about our lives - until another tragedy happens. The grief, disgust and sadness I feel will unfortunately be in vain I fear, as life will force us to repeat these types of acts, since we do not seem to learn anything from them. I feel an immense loss, as I sympathize with all the victims families, friends and so on, knowing that my prayers and thoughts go out to them all. The loss is magnified by the fact that what am I, we, society doing to try, at least try, to counter-act the war of desperate souls and desperate minds in our country. We need to love our children, our people, our brothers. We need to love more than ever before. We need to 'nurture' a nation of love, not hate and violence. I pray and hope this Va. Tech tragedy does not just become a statistic, a new 'record', because unless we grow in love and strengthen OUR spiritual, morale, and personal lives and families FIRST, we are sure to see this part of 'history' repeating itself -

With love and respect to all - for we are all victims - "Whatever you do unto my brother you do unto me"

mallika....you grew up in india right? how many guns have you seen? i grew up in kuwait...if you don't have guns you can't do anything...of course you could take knives..but still...and the beslan issue is totally totally different...i don't understand why most americans don't go to other countries where only cops have guns...and then realise that you don't need guns...irrespective of your history and sentiments...other countries work without allowing guns...america needn't be any different....once in a while people snap, and somehow americans are allowed to snap more by categorizing almost everything as a mental disease which only needs help...now the person snaps, has the gun...and decides to kill...no respect for life...its in fact pretty damn normal...i bet he got a major rush...but please...take the guns away...stop saying this is because of gun control...and open your eyes

I just wanted to add, if we could replace weapons used in violence in this country with one of Deepak's books, audios, etc, we would 'arm' ourselves with power and peace! Where else could either of these co-exist except in a more spiritual 'state'

I agree, we need to feel the grief and shock, but after that we DO need to analyze. As Paulipe writes, some of us may have forgotten that we don't need guns in everyone's hands.

But we also need to remember that EVERY THREE SECONDS a child dies somewhere on this planet, because of lack of water, food and medical care. Every three seconds, night and day, every night and day.

We have to grieve, to analyze, to understand that we are all to blame and that we are all innocent, because we didn't know better. And then we have to do what Derek says- find the vision of a new world in our hearts and get up and do what has to be done.

Hey all,

I may rightfully assume that it's quite normal
for many fathers to be the ones who feel the most...
threatened?

We are the supreme protectors, or we used to be.
We used to be able to DO something with this negative
but powerful emotion and we used to do it immediately.

I've never owned a gun, never hunted mammals.

So what did I do? I asked my 12 year old daughter if she had heard
of this tragic news today.
I had just read about Kate's niece and the close proximity of real danger.

I imagine that I haven't had a discussion like this
with my daughter since 9/11...good thing or not.

My ex is extremely protective while I always play down the odds.
"We're safe here...it doesn't happen around HERE...
so go on to the mall."
"It's okay. I'm not going to be a worry wart."

Lumps in the throat arrive in short order when I
have to talk about this sort of subject.
Watery eyes are a given.

So, needless to say, dad felt devastated, and
without a trace of anger in his voice
he attempted to relay the news.

I cannot be, look or seem frightened...it wouldn't do.
I will stay strong and she will be safe,
and I'll pray a lot more than before.

This sadness will probably follow me around all day.
Still, gotta earn bread. Luvs and hugs to those in need, Keith~

My condolences to all those victims and families that have suffered in this tragic event.

Many questions will be asked as this event is being investigated. My biggest question is, - was anyone aware that Cho was suffering in this kind of way? Were there warning signes that should have been noted by someone? I wonder, since he only was in this country for one year, did he not have anyone at home he could have called?

It is a great tragedy when so many young, precious lives are lost due to the action of one demented individual. May their souls rest in peace.

Totally agree with Paulipe. The usual conservative refrain, "It is people who kill, not guns" doesn't work. My friend had a very nice retort to that: "Then don't give guns to people damn it!". Less guns, less murders using guns. This simple logic seems to escape many folks on the conservative side.

I am not totally against gun ownership per se. But there should be strict guidelines for gun ownership, and it should be treated as a privilege, not a right. For people who want to legitimately own a gun for their family's protection, I don't see why they will have an objection against strict regulation. It is true that criminals will find some way to circumvent the law and own guns anyway. If we were to do a survey of guns that have actually saved lives, as opposed to taken lives, I am sure there will much less reason for gun ownership. A layperson like, would stand little or no chance even with a gun against a professional criminal.

Government should collect all the guns in the general circulation and make illegal gun ownership a serious felony with tough jail terms. It may not totally eliminate guns, but at least people will think twice before they flaunt their guns, much less use them.

Regards,

Ravi Kulkarni

Aloha

Violence begets violence. I am sure the availability of guns is a problem. Just like in the film Babel the tourist wouldn’t have been shot, if the tourist didn’t give his guide a rife. And his wife shot and killed herself. I am sure with the young man of the Virginia Tech shootings had a gun given to him at sometime.

The guns don’t shoot people it is people who believe the are disconnected to the part of them that is their brother or sister. It is only the ego that thinks it can help someone or harm someone. It is to pray to remember to be conscious of all our parts to be Self Realized I am. Love is for giving and forgiving and Love is the greatest weapon there is. Love patty

My heart goes out to the family and friends.

Had there been atleast 1 person with a weapon, and welling to use it, standing between the gunman and his victums...i wonder how many mothers and fathers would have woken up today and still been able to call their children to say i love you.

Mallika asked: Why can people like this get guns?

The answer is: almost anyone in the US has access to a gun. Gun control laws are weak.

I used to live in Washington, DC when it was known as "the murder capital" of the US due to the high rate of homicides. The police headquarters had a sign outside that posted the number of deaths over the year.

At that time I considered buying a gun, but the research indicates that gun owners have a higher likelyhood of gun injuries/death because the weapon is most often used against them.

Now I live in New York city and feel much safer. However, it is in Amsterdam, London, Paris, or Rome that I feel the safest. If you compare the violent crime statistics for those cities to US cities of equal size, the message is clear.

The US needs to tighten gun control laws uniformly, and invest more in welfare, health and education. People who feel desperate do desperate things. It should be easier for them to get coping skills from a mental health practioner than to buy a gun. Guns are cheap and healthcare is expensive in the US. See "Bowling for Columbine."

It also saddens me that people in the US are reacting so strongly to these deaths, yet 5-50 college age US soldiers die each day in Iraq.
Where is the outrage about that slaughter? Why should poor teenagers in the US have to risk their lives in Iraq or Afganistan to earn the college degrees necessary to make a living wage in "the land of opportunity?"

Although I personally was not affected by the shootings that occurred at Virginia Tech that day, my heart and prayers go out to all the families.
I know two people a teacher and a student who lost their cousins. And they’re doing their best to be strong.
But I think that the media is focusing too much on what happen and who’s to blame rather trying to help these family cope.
Let a few months go by and then we can as a nation together get the strength to "get up and do what needs to be done."
But right now the families don’t need to turn on the T.V and have that is the first thing they see. They need to know the nation is supporting and helping them get through this difficult time.
What sadness me the most is that we still am allowing the soldiers to go over to Iraq and fight in this war. Whether we leave now or in 10 years there's still going to be a civil war over there. They need to find peace within themselves and fight for their own government.
Like heddy mentioned why should innocent lives be taken everyday just like these 32 teenagers lives were taken so abruptly. Yes we should have better gun control in schools especially.
I am still in high school and after Columbine and now Virginia tech, I think it's time we put our foot down.

Yet on the other hand violence comes from the home, and then that violence is brought onto the streets and then into schools.
This violence can only be coming from parents or siblings but from T.V.
Which beings up the topic of sensor ship of the media, should the government control what their allowing on T.V and video game? Little children are thinking it's okay to shoot at things even people, from guess what the media and video games. I am not saying that the shootings that have occurred happened because of the media but I'm not saying the media isn’t to blame either.
Heddy? Yes gun control laws are weak and anyone can buy a gun but it's not the gun that killed those 32 students or the soldiers it’s the person standing behind the gun, pulling the trigger. That's the killer not the gun.
Guns also can protect us; law enforcement has them for our protection.
What’s to say a policeman couldn’t have done the same thing as the killers responsible for these shootings?
Again I want to say to the families I'm so sorry for your lost and that I am praying for you.