Sunday, April 22, 2007

Virginia Tech: The Aftermath of the Massacre

You've heard the news of the massacre in Virginia. Cho Seung-Hui, a 23-year-old student of Korean descent killed 32 people and then took his own life in the bloodiest shooting spree in modern U.S. history.

Sometimes we learn of heroism in the face of such madness. A seventy-five year old Holocaust survivor, Professor Liviu Librescu, for instance, sacrificed his life by barring the door of his classroom while at the same time exhorting his students to jump through the windows to safety below.

After the shock and the grief, there are many questions that won't go away. The following articles deal with some of the most worrying aspects of this tragedy.


What motivates such shootings? [Video] Michael Welner, M.D., a Forensic Psychiatrist for New York University discusses the psychology of a mass shooter, and what may have prompted a person to go on a rampage.

The kid who never spoke Cho's high school classmates recall 'kid who never spoke'

Internet key in probe of Va. Tech gunman Computer forensics are playing a key role in the probe of the Virginia Tech gunman, with investigators revealing he bought ammunition clips on eBay designed for one of two handguns used to kill 32 people and himself.

The Silence of Politicians There are myriad questions from the evolving tragedy at Virginia Tech. One is how such a gravely disturbed student as this killer could raise heightened concern among the authorities over a year ago, yet manage to proceed unhindered to take 32 lives. But no less pertinent is the question of how, after detailed tracking of the guns purchased for the ghastly spree, the lethal empowerment of such a troubled individual can somehow be pronounced entirely legal under the laws of a civilized nation.

4 comments:

anna said...

Hi Ferran,
after reading this horrifying survey about the masacre in Virginia, I'm feeling terrified just thinking about how humans can drive mad...
ciao
anna

Ferran said...

Hi Anna, I share your feeling. Human beings are capable of the worst. How can someone take so many lives no matter how angry or humiliated one feels? This capacity for evil puzzles and worries me. Fortunately we still have cases like the professor who sacrificed himself to save his students. Crazy world.

MarĂ­a M. said...

Hi!
For my surprise, I watched on TV a report where students said that they could have avoided this massacre if guns were allowed on the campus. That´s the USA, a gunmen country??
See you!

Ferran said...

Hi Maria! Yes, quite shocking to hear such arguments. Maybe only understandable - yet unacceptable - in the immediate context of shock, panic and hatred caused by this massacre.
On the other hand, advocates of gun control have called for much tighter restrictions on gun ownership to prevent such a tragedy ever happening again. The issue seems to be back on the agenda, but politicians are still avoiding it, as the NYTimes editorial says.
What you say is not far from the truth if we consider that gun violence causes more than 30,000 deaths every year in the US.
See you on Wednesday!