Virginia Tech

As I'm sure you're all aware, Cho Seung-Hui, a student at Virginia Tech, opened fire on his classmates on Monday, April 16th. He killed 33, including himself and injured several others. According to CNN's report, Cho's roommates and English professors knew how disturbed he was and often tried to get him to seek help. His roommates described him as a loner and his professors often found his writing graphically violent and disturbing.

Did you know one of Cho's victims was a 76-year-old engineering professor and Holocaust survivor? Liviu Librescu was barricading his door so his students could escape through the window when he was killed. It pains me to think about this man who had his life taken from him by someone so consumed by hate, when he escaped from a blazing inferno of hatred decades ago. But, he has been immortalized as a hero for his selflessness and bravery.

What's so painful about this situation is that Columbine, as we approach the eighth anniversary, can no longer be labeled as the "worst school shooting in history." Sadly, it's been out-done. Sadly, someone took more lives. Sadly, even more damage has been done.

And now, the discussion begins. "Who's to blame?" and "What can we do to prevent other shootings?"

We could blame violent TV, movies and videogames if we wanted. They don't really encourage violent behavior in those who aren't already inclined to be violent, but they certainly bring violent tendencies out in violent and troubled people. Maybe a little of it has to do with Cho's general loneliness. But, how lonely and how depressed would someone have to be to shoot over 30 people? How is someone driven to that? We might never know.

And we might never know how to prevent these tragedies. They say if Harris and Klebold's parents paid a little closer attention, the whole Columbine massacre could have been avoided. Apparently, they had blueprints and instructions for explosives and firearms lying openly around their rooms along with journals full of disturbing levels of hatred towards everything. But, in Cho's case, professors and roommates did take notice and still it couldn't have been prevented. And banning guns won't help because there are obviously other methods of mass murder. The answer isn't at all a simple one, but one day I'm confident we'll find it.

Until then, however, all I can do is pray that nobody is filled with such an anger that they take the lives of others -- Until then, all I can do is pray for Virginia Tech.