Virginia Tech massacre

My thoughts and prayers go out to the victims and their families, along with all of the terrified students. I wish I could help in some way.

Too bad concealed carry isnt allowed on college campuses....this tragedy could have possibly been cut short by a responsible gun owner. As was the case in the recent mall shootings when an off duty cop used his concealed carry weapon to occupy the shooter until backup arrived.

This tragic incident should be used to start a new, more meaningful dialogue concerning our prevailing culture of violence found in television, foreign policy, sports, etc...Gun control is not the answer unless it includes really going after the international arms trade which is the largest purveyor of arms for bloody conflicts in the middle east, Africa, the gang wars in America, and elsewhere.

Peace and love

 

I agree 100%
but the media will definently spin it the other way

*sends e-hug to all involved*

 

Evsride, yes, a sad time for all those involved. I can't imagine the pain all those kids parents are going through.
Peaceful thoughts sent to everyone this sad day..... Farmout

 

Peace and best wishes to the family and friends of all those directly impacted by this horrible incident.

 

rm

Virginia Tech spokesman Larry Hincker was happy to hear the bill was defeated. "I'm sure the university community is appreciative of the General Assembly's actions because this will help parents, students, faculty and visitors feel safe on our campus."
[/quote]Full story at:
http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/wb/xp-50658

I'm sorrowed by all the deaths, but even more so those who might have been saved had there been someone nearby with the will and ability to intervene.

 

The world is a pretty fucked up place sometimes. Its like the victims were just caught by random chance, being in the wrong place at the wrong time, almost as if a heart attack had crept up on them.

As far as trying to prevent this shit from happening, theres probably a lot of things that need to change. People who commit these crimes must have so much negative energy occupying their minds, whether it stem from something like child abuse, bullying, or even violent video games. Whatever the case, I hope this is a wake up call to people. I hope they lighten up a bit about life and how they treat others.

One thing I find very questionable though is the fact that its legal to own automatic weapons in your country. They certainly aren't needed, even though some people may want to own them. Personally I don't like the idea of owning any guns at all, but that brings up a different discussion.

P.S. I'm REALLY surprised that this is the only thread I've seen on this topic so far... am I missing something?

 

Dear Canadian friend, contrary to what you may have seen on Hollywood films or etc...etc... Automatic weapons are not legal in the least bit here in the USA. You must be police or military to even own one that has three round burst or automatic (which I think is military, federal gestapo, or SWAT only). Purchase and sale of said firearms requires a very expensive and very selective ATF Class III firearms license.

I own semi automatic (as fast as you can pull the trigger) assault rifles purely for the thrill of firing them at inert targets out in a field. As well as to preserve the right to bear arms through the exercise of said right. Why let the government be the best armed....fuck that.

Guns are a necesary evil in a world brimming with it. I wish we could all live as one with no need for them but until that day comes....lock and load.

BTW....I dont know why I hadnt heard of that bill Gaston, was that a nation wide bill or just for Virginia? My state just got CCW permit system.

 

same TIRED old bullshit about the right to bear arms etc, and still the massacre of people goes on in the usa. When are those people ever going to grow up and and become civilised????

 

That's interesting. I guess I just assumed that it was ok for a civilian to own an automatic weapon in the USA, because from what I've seen it's not very difficult to obtain one. Apparently the Virginia Tech gunman didn't have any trouble... so much for gun laws...

 

the v-tech gunman astonishly did not have an automatic rifle. He had handguns (.9mm glock and .22 mm walther.) This is what amazes me. He mowed down over 30 with a friggin handgun. I think i heard he must have fired over 130-150 bullets total.

Its extrmely unfortunate for those lost at V-tech. But please, spare me the video game bs. We all know that eventhough video games have lots of violence. This guy is an adult, 23 years old his emotions are spurring from reality not video games.

Our country needs to spend less money on stupid ass shit like warfare and the war on drugs and spend more money on putting people like this in mental institutions and give them the help they need so they dont take out all their anger on innocents

 

If ever there was a tragic example of the need for gun control, this would be it....

 

That's ludicrous, if you outlaw guns only criminals will have them! One could also make the argument that if every student at Vtech were armed, less loss of life would have occurred because the assailant would have been brought down immediately. The only thing keeping the US from becoming a complete and total tyranny is the fact that we have an armed population, I for one do not trust my government enough to think outlawing guns is even a remotely good idea.........i'm against murder (obviously) but I still feel that we need the right to bear arms........it's one of the last constitutional amendments being practiced.........and one of our last hopes at overcoming what our country has become.....one day (within my lifetime) I think the United States is going to collapse into complete and total oppression........bad things are happening, I for one don't want to be left without defense.

 

explain gun control, because your country doesnt have its crime problems under control....and we can argue about statistical differences all day. But most people agree that in the UK violent crime increased with the implementation of stricter gun laws.

Please realize while I believe very strongle in the 2nd Amendment, I also believe that our government is not doing enough to make sure the wrong people dont get guns, and that the right people ARE ALLOWED TO CARRY. But it is a pitched battle in a nation with more guns than people. We need to change as a society...there needs to be a paradigm shift in the way we interact as a society and with other countries. If you raise people in a culture of violence and desensitization to it on TV, etc...its no wonder they lash out in extreme ways. Until that great new age of enlightenment comes and tyrrany is dethroned I will not give up my right to defend myself and my family.

Go lobby for more CCTV cameras peace phoenix, maybe that will help with the crime problem there.

I promise that I will cease to make anymore comments on this thread. I do not wish to minimize the loss and tragedy that happened in Virginia this week.

 

Jacobf, you got it right about needing more mental hospitals and treatment. the sorry-ass that did all the shooting was a classic Schizophrenic, delusional and crazy as a shit house rat. He should have been bagged and treated long ago.

 

How many school shootings has the UK had since it outlawed hand guns in 1997? None. Compare that to the record of America, even adjusting for population differences and I think the evidence is convincing enough. I'm not of the belief that Americans are fundamentally more violent or more evil or more stupid than British people. The ease of access to guns is the primary cause. I share your concerns about governments, but neither do I think an armed population will make a difference, nor do I think it is an answer. There are some very real social problems that need to be addressed here and now....

 

Actually violent crime has remained at a fairly consistent level. And it's quite obvious that banning guns will not stop violent crime, I wouldn't pretend for a moment that it would. If someone wants to commit an act of violence, they'll find some way to make it happen. But with guns readily available, the damage that can be caused by such violent desires increases exponentially....

 

I don't like the name calling of this boy. I understand the idiotic, moronic, vile, disgusting thing he did but I also understand what his situation was like. I think a lot of people need to read behind the lines and see that a lof of these school shootings aren't as black and white as saying " A stupid kid, made a stupid choice, for a stupid reason." On the news I heard a couple of things that broke my heart, His girl friend left him, he felt outcast by all around him,he had a long history of writing "twisted" things and English class etc. To me this sounds like a boy, leaning on the edge, feeling like no one cared about his life or his existance, barely holding on and then when he thought things couldn't get any worse, his gf left him. People don't just shoot 32 people for no reason, there is a deep emotional trama. A lot of times its anti-depression drugs (A.K.A. poisen of the mind) are wehat push people over the edge but something an simple as the students at your school can push you over the edge. When he walked across campus, he walk across probly at least 100 people and you're telling me no-one saw the demonic look he had on his face (later reported by a student shot)? That's another testement of the fact that his existance was seen as something so futile that he was pushed off of the deep end. Not everyone deals with problems that way but in a lof of cases when one terrible thing happens after another happens and you're crying out for help to no avail...anything could happen. I'm not condoning what he did and I'm not standing up for him I just want people to know that looking at the situation less black and white can help.

 

At the risk of sounding like an insensitive asshole, I hardly believe a handful of school shootings is a reason to subvert our constitution, put American citizens at risk to both safety and liberty, and cut off our last method of recourse to overt oppression. While the UK may not have school massacres, you do have debtors prison, and CCTV everywhere...if you had American politicians in control you people would be completely and totally subjected to serfdom........it is only cultural differences (mostly good on your part) that keep you from complete and total slavery........the American people are already becoming more and more oppressed.......slaves if you will, if you take away our right to bear arms....you've taken away our only hope.

 

Liberal democracy, the rule of law and a functional separation of powers are your only hope. And where encroaches are made into those basic rights by governments justifying repressive actions based on the threat of terrorism and to security, do you think the people will rise up in armed insurrection to defend their rights? No, rights are taken away while people cheer their freedoms. Whilst in certain cases revolutionary actions might well be justified to defend rights, the state retains power in its definition and action against it is simply unfeasible. As Weber defined it, perhaps better than any other, a state enjoys the "monopoly of the legitimate means of violence within a given territory." In short, if the state wished to strip you of all your rights, it could, and there's very little you could do about it short of having the army on your side and in that case, why would you need an armed population? I'm equally concerned about encroaches to freedoms. I'm certainly against the government's plan to introduce ID cards in the UK. But violent crime is a much more serious issue to deal with in the immediate future. To some extent you are right, there are cultural factors, and poverty plays a huge part in socialising people into a violent lifestyle. These long-term factors will have to be addressed too....

 

I don't believe the right to bear arms is helping protect us from any oppression. Surely times have changed since the right to bear arms was written into the constitution (back when firing 10 shots could take 5 minutes). Give me a few times when the right to bear arms has saved helped us.