Virginia Tech Shooting

**wrestledude363** · April 16th, 2007, 04:19 PM

Just trying to get some opinions...

Anyone think that this incident can lead to more gun control and security like Columbine did?

**evilmegaman** · April 16th, 2007, 06:21 PM

It seemed like a huge screw up on the school's behalf. there should have been a lockdown. I mean they gave the guy 2 freaking hours... how the hell this happened is just insane... I don't know what needs to happen. But I think people should start taking threats more seriously...

**Jorge** · April 16th, 2007, 07:09 PM

Even if there are changes to gun control, do you really think it won't happen again?

Sad to think that in the future, most schools will have metal detectors...

**hawkburn** · April 16th, 2007, 07:14 PM

There will never be true security. Everyone just has to live with the fact that things like this will inevitably happen. You just have to be alert all the time to be able to run, jump out a window etc (sad but true.) While things like card-access buildings are somewhat a deterrent, the shooter today was a student and would have had card-access anyway.

**wrestledude363** · April 16th, 2007, 08:03 PM

Yea, I can see more security in schools though. I have a friend that knows a girl at VT; she said that the cops killed the gunman and he didnt take his life. Either way, it just seems fishy that he would be able to roam around campus for 2 hours.

**mountain_rage** · April 16th, 2007, 09:46 PM

The sad thing about this shooting is that allot of politicians will use it to push their own agenda. Its already started with Jack Tompson, he appeared on fox news with supposed inside information and claimed that the whole shooting was due to violent video games. For those that are not in the know, Jack Tompson has been trying to pass anti-video game legislation for a long time now. Every one of the bills he tried to get passed have been overturned because they were unconstitutional. He has lost thousands of dollars in tax payers money fighting for these bills and does not seem to get the point. The best we can hope for is that he gets disbarred. Now changing pace.

Moments like these are ones for reflection. The most common discussions that will go on will be about the responsibility of society. Should society step in and beef up security or should we try and understand the events that allowed/caused this individual to kill 30 people. Personally I don't know if there really is an answer other then we are all simply human. Also those that are directly related to the incident will probably have a moment of looking deep within themselves. Reflection for those individuals will undoubtedly get them thinking about how fragile their lives are. Its a life altering moment and part of what living is all about. What is learnt from the event is as important as what was lost.

**MoonMan** · April 16th, 2007, 11:47 PM

I think it's pretty disgusting how some politicians and gun advocates are spinning the whole incident.

Example:
Advocates of gun ownership rights saw Monday's massacre as evidence of the need to relax gun laws rather than tighten them.

"All the school shootings that have ended abruptly in the last 10 years were stopped because a law-abiding citizen -- a potential victim -- had a gun," said Larry Pratt, executive director of Gun Owners of America.

source

Um, what?

I'm not going to get into the debate of gun control vs gun ownership rights, but how could ANY logical individual think that the remedy to this horrendous event would be to relax gun control laws?

**thepuzzler** · April 17th, 2007, 12:38 AM

Example:
Advocates of gun ownership rights saw Monday's massacre as evidence of the need to relax gun laws rather than tighten them.

That is truly grotesque.

Why do people even need guns, except to kill other people?

Sad day.

**Signa** · April 17th, 2007, 12:42 AM

actually, ill take that stance for you MM. its not that im a gun advocate or anything, but i find this whole situation... amusing. its like all the schools with all their "zero-tolerance" polices cant stop something like this from hapening. there will always be some one who fucks up in one way or another and shit like this hits the fan. im not saying that another student should have had a gun to stop this, its just that for all our trouble, hassleing and other annoyances, *this* is what we have to show for it. nothing. it still happened, and if restricting us isnt doing any good, can it be much worse if we didnt have all the headaches of gun control?

**northwest stew** · April 17th, 2007, 12:44 AM

The state of Virginia has some of the most lax gun laws in the U.S ,some would'nt hurt.

DOES THE STATE REQUIRE:
	rifles/ shotguns:	handguns:
Permit to purchase?	no	no
Registration of firearms?	no	no
Licensing of owners?	no	no
Permit to carry?	no	Yes*

*A permit is required if concealed.

**wrestledude363** · April 17th, 2007, 09:42 AM

That is pretty ridiculous on how lax Virginia is for gun control. I think gun control in some states should be heightened, Virginia for example. In other states it shouldnt be changed. No gun control could lead to a Wild West scenario, but complete gun control could also lead to a police state. Look at Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union...they had complete gun control.

**StormNinja** · April 17th, 2007, 11:21 AM

It may lead to more restrictions on the sale of certain kinds of guns and this would be simply a 'knee jerk' reaction to the incident as this always happens...some sort of incident occurs and there is a ton or new laws and restrictions pop up. In my opinion they rarely have any real impact other than to disrupt and annoy the vast majority of people who are not so predisposed. Case in point: Airline security and the TSA...in the USA.

As to security; I think the answer is no. A person or people who are intent on a certain course of action are going to pursue that goal regardless of whatever obstacles are placed in their path. Certainly, it may delay or even discourage certain entities( such as hot headed high school students or enraged lovers) but someone determined to create mass destruction and chaos will not be deterred.

On a personal note, I admit that I have become jaded to such violence. It hardly registers with me and somehow I don't think I am the only one who feels or thinks such although I doubt many with admit it.

**DwarfBaby** · April 17th, 2007, 02:40 PM

Originally Posted by northwest stew

The state of Virginia has some of the most lax gun laws in the U.S ,some would'nt hurt.

DOES THE STATE REQUIRE:
	rifles/ shotguns:	handguns:
Permit to purchase?	no	no
Registration of firearms?	no	no
Licensing of owners?	no	no
Permit to carry?	no	Yes*

*A permit is required if concealed.

Although Virginia gun laws seem lax. They ranked #18 and given "C-" by the Brady commission for fire arm regulations. Meaning 32 other states ranked even lower Virginia receiving a "D" or "F" in performance.

Kind of makes you wonder how weak the regulations of these other 32 states have.:icon_scra

**Jared Moya** · April 17th, 2007, 04:52 PM

Originally Posted by evilmegaman

It seemed like a huge screw up on the school's behalf. there should have been a lockdown. I mean they gave the guy 2 freaking hours... how the hell this happened is just insane... I don't know what needs to happen. But I think people should start taking threats more seriously...

I agree

Originally Posted by Jorge

Even if there are changes to gun control, do you really think it won't happen again?

Exactly, gun control only works for people who actually follow the law. It does nothing to prevent criminals from obtaining them.

**mountain_rage** · April 17th, 2007, 05:02 PM

People are going to be highly critical of the school, and I am not going to say that they did not screw up. But the fact of the matter is that they had no idea what they were dealing with initially, it was assumed to be a domestic disturbance, and rightly so it did fit the general description of one. The shooter shot a few choice people and then fled. The police were probably well on their way to trying to figure out who was the shooter and where he was currently located when the second rampage started. So it wasn't really the schools fault, it wasn't really the fault of police, it was just a freak incident that no one was prepared to deal with. Its easy to point fingers after the fact and say it was obvious, but put in the situation I am fairly confident very few would have the incite to know what was actually going on.

The reason I feel the school is to blame is that the individual showed signs of his intentions and they did not take those warning signs seriously enough. It should of also been announced after the first shooting that a murderer was on the loose and that his location is unknown just so people were aware of the situation. Not that people would have been likely to listen, but people still should of been aware.