Thoughts regarding Virginia Tech shooting

[latefordinner]

[ QUOTE ]
Those deaths aren't really avoidable since automobile transporation is absolutely required for society to exist as we know it. Being shot by a guy on a rampage is not.

[/ QUOTE ]

In order for us to maintain our way of living, we must, in a broad sense, tell lies to each other, and especially to ourselves. It is not necessary that the lies be particularly believable, The lies act as barriers to truth. These barriers to truth are necessary because without them many deplorable acts would become impossibilities. Truth must at all costs be avoided. When we do allow self-evident truths to percolate past our defenses and into our consciousness, they are treated like so many hand grenades rolling across the dance floor of an improbably macabre party. We try to stay out of harm's way, afraid they will go off, shatter our delusions, and leave us exposed to what we have done to the world and to ourselves, exposed as the hollow people we have become. And so we avoid these truths, these self-evident truths, and continue the dance of world destruction. (derrick jensen)

[Borodog]

[ QUOTE ]
photo from the tsunami disaster:
(me fighting islamic terrorist)



*this actually is a picture of tsunami clean up

[/ QUOTE ]

WATCH IT MAN--HE'S GOT A STICK.

[bobman0330]

At least 3.5 million civilians were killed in the Second Congo War, and no Americans care or have even heard of the conflict. For the people who were involved in this tragedy, it will obviously loom large, not because it is objectively a big deal, but because it happened to them. I have nothing but sympathy for them, but it seems pointless and absurd to expect everyone to have the same subjective viewpoint.

[wacki]

The State Government of Virginia had a bill before it which would have allowed college students to exercise their Second Amendment rights on campus earlier this year.

When the bill died, the spokesman for Virginia Tech -- where some college kids really needed to be able to shoot back this morning -- Virgina Tech spokescritter Larry Hincker stated:

"I'm sure the university community is appreciative of the General Assembly's actions because this will help parents, students, faculty and visitors <font color="red">feel safe on our campus."</font>

http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/wb/xp-50658

ohhhhhhhhhh the irony.

I have very mixed emotions right now. 1/3 of me is very sad for the families. 1/3 of me is laughing at the above politician. The other 1/3 of me is wondering how many other soft targets are going to get be created via gun control after this massacre becomes a central headline of the anti-selfdefense crowd. I'm not saying a concealed carry would have stopped this. (it's possible but not probable) But I'm sure a lot of people are going to lose their freedoms after this event.

[latefordinner]

thanks for the bolded quote that's been posted about 19 other times in this thread already

[wacki]

[ QUOTE ]
thanks for the bolded quote that's been posted about 19 other times in this thread already

[/ QUOTE ]

I just did a cntrl-f on "safe". So far only one post in this thread contains that word. Where are the other 19 times?

[latefordinner]

sorry. in other much longer VT thread this quote and the predictable "wonder how safe he feels now" schadenfruede has been brought up multiple times already.

[multious]

[ QUOTE ]
At least 3.5 million civilians were killed in the Second Congo War, and no Americans care or have even heard of the conflict. For the people who were involved in this tragedy, it will obviously loom large, not because it is objectively a big deal, but because it happened to them. I have nothing but sympathy for them, but it seems pointless and absurd to expect everyone to have the same subjective viewpoint.

[/ QUOTE ]
the 2nd Congo War was a terrible travesty cause largely by poor European decolonization (africa has never had a peaceful history so it is hard to determine exact causes). It isn't absurd to hope everyone could some objectivity, it would indeed prevent many conflicts. Also this corrolates to a view i was trying to express. It is terrible that your average American who knows no-one involved in this event and is not within a moderate vicinity of Virginia Tech is so much more aware and outraged about this even than the 2nd Congo War. It frightens me that people hold human life in such a higher regard when that life reflects your own. Thats what i was getting at by saying inherent racism/nationalism.
American foreign policy (somewhat offtopic) has never been about the betterment of humanity but rather of America and it's citizens. One could say its absurd to expect anything else but this is still a travesty. Especially as it has ended up destabilizing the world further and creating a somewhat deserved hatred of America among the rest of the world.

[bobman0330]

multious, I mostly agree with you. I absolutely agree with you that the world would be an infinitely better place if we really valued others equally (maybe we wouldn't have so many tragedies and atrocities to mourn...) I wasn't trying to say that it was pointless for people to try to view situations objectively, but for people in certain subjective situations (e.g., friends and relatives of VT students) to expect differently situated people to see them the same way. If you're going to have your own deeply biased viewpoint, you should at least have the decency to let others have their own.

I don't want to get off onto a sidetrack about whether people in general have the capacity to really start valuing others equally. Suffice it to say, I'm pessimistic, and I think it would shortchange the issue to describe it as an American problem. It's got to do with the way our brains our wired, and I think the best way to deal with it is to work on recognizing and compensating for it than changing it.

[bkholdem]

[ QUOTE ]
But I'm sure a lot of people are going to lose their freedoms after this event.

[/ QUOTE ]

And that's the whole issue IMO. The victims are dead. The family members are suffering and not rational at the moment (an assertion I can not demonstrate but when people are emotional their judgement is clouded). Steps to 'fix' situations like this always lead us down the path to having less freedoms and more restrictions. Then another situation happens and more freedoms are taken away and even more restictions are added. Rince, repeat....

You can not change human nature by passing a law. You can not prevent people from doing bad things by passing a law. It is immature to think that way.