Pray for the people of Blacksburg Virginia

[WTL]

This is the sort of tragedy that hurts us all so much. 30 something young individuals have been taken from us this day for no apparent reason. Who knows what they would have accomplished? Who knows why this happened? Just pray that things get better.

[brushhog]

AMEN - I have connections to VA TECH - and all the people I've ever met from there where tremendous human beings...

[everettvet]

Thoughts and prayers for all those involved and their families.

[crankybait]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070416/..._tech_shooting
Prayers sent

[bassthumb32]

I Couldnt Imagine Going Through Something Like That, Its So Terrible. My Prayers Go Out To Them.

[WIUbassin]

thats just so messed up. I go to a college of similar size in illinois and i think what is so rediculous is that the second shooting was 2 hours after the first one. how a university could keep classes going on and not just immediately shut everything down kind of bewilders me. I know now is just a time pray for those who have lossed loved ones, but i can't help but wonder how they could let the 2nd shooting happen so long afterwards

[ROBZILLA]

God bless our children and keep them safe.This is very tragic indeed things like this make me very upset. This person was such a coward!

[FlyRod]

The brainless Libs (See: Dumbocrat) want us, the law-abiding, to give up our firearms. The result will be an even more vulnerable populace, with only criminals having firepower.
So, who ya' gonna call when a couple of thugs arrive at your door, Hell-bent on taking your money, your other valuables, AND your wife and daughter? Well, WHO? Hillary? Jame Brady? Nancy P.? Or that disgusting fat-*** lesbian (See: Rosie O'Donnell.)
Had one, just ONE...Student, Faculty member, or even a janitor, at Virginia Tech, been armed this morning a lot of innocent kids, staff, etc, would be alive to read this post.
From this moment on...whither go I, I go armed...and eager to intervene.
If the cretin who perpetrated this atrocity proves to be of the raghead persuasion, vengeance in kind will seem most attractive.
Kill our innocents, you camel-effing excuse for a human being? OK, and ten times that number of your relatives will perish.
But who will man the Petro Express? Who will drive the taxi?....as if I give a damn!
Ditto, BTW, if you are an "oppressed member of a minority". So, some other dudes, long dead, tore you from the paradise of Africa (where you'd have been lucky to live past the age of three days, only to be killed and eaten by rival tribes.) OK, I'll cheerfully chip in send yer whiny *** back. Please take Jesse and Al with ya'!
If you, the killer (or wannabe) are of the "latino" stripe, the same goes for you. I'd happily reinstate the Aztecs so that your heart could be cut out in a ritual honoring the great God Huudafokkapopocaptl.
If yew are jes' a good 'ol white boy gone a bit off yer feed, then I will cheerfully assist in securing yer useless nuts to the manure spreader and hiring a leftover Kamikaze jockey to fly the cropduster into it.

In a cold rage; the most dangerous kind.

FlyRod

[lizardsrule]

All of those taken, along with their families have my prayers.

Lizards

[Bo Dale James Jr.]

My prayers go out to the victims families..I thought i would add this side bar from Down Under
Hi Yanks, I thought you all would like to see the real figures from
>Down Under.
>
>
>It has now been 12 months since gun owners in Australia were forced by
>a new law to surrender
>
>640,381 personal firearms to be destroyed by our
>
>own government, a program costing Australia taxpayers more than $500 million dollars.
>
>The first year results are now in:
>
>Australia-wide, homicides are up 6.2 percent,
>
>Australia-wide, assaults are up 9.6 percent;
>
>Australia-wide, armed robberies are up 44 percent (yes, 44 percent)!
>
>In the state of Victoria alone, homicides with firearms are now up 300
>percent.
>
>(Note that while the law-abiding citizens turned them in, the criminals
>did not and criminals still
>
>possess their guns!)
>
>While figures over the previous 25 years showed a steady decrease in
>armed robbery with firearms,
>
>this has changed drastically upward in the past
>
>12 months, since the criminals now are guaranteed that their prey is unarmed.
>
>There has also been a dramatic increase in break-ins and assaults of the elderly, while the resident is at home.
>
>Australian politicians are at a loss to explain how public safety has
>decreased, after such monumental
>
>effort and expense was expended in "successfully
>
>ridding Australian society of guns."
>
>
>You won't see this on the American evening news or hear your governor or members of the State Assembly disseminating this information.
>
>The Australian experience speaks for itself. Guns
>
>in the hands of honest citizens save lives and property And, yes, gun-control laws affect only the law-abiding citizens.
>
>Take note Americans, before it's too late!

[zooker]

collages are like schools -minus the pimples- basicly they are weapon free enviroments.. just ripe for some one with a big ax to grind to bring a weapon on campus and let fly..

i have been in a ton of differant collages across the country. schools being self contained are safer. as most collages have many large buildings which either are dorm rooms or class rooms-halls- scattered across a town. some miles apart..

of all the "higher education" campus's i have been on either as a student or a visitor. i never once been stopped and or questioned buy ANYONE!! collages are by design an open school. students come and go all the time 24 hours a day in most cases. a visitor is welcome to "sit in" on any of the clases being taught.in most of them.

does it suprise me? no!! figured it would happen sooner or later..


bo dale
that post is correct.seen it a year ago.


zooker

[WIUbassin]

i agree zooker, i am actually a resident assistant in my dormatory of about 550 students and it happens all the time that people who have no business or purpose get in and get on floors they should have no access to. All it takes is for someone to claim to a student that he "lossed his keys" and they'll open a locked door or key an elevator floor for the person and its instant access to anyone who wants to get in...

[zooker]

wiu
belive it or not my syracus uni key card will open about 1/2 of the locked "key" doors in most of the dorms i have visited..i know this for a fact..

and as you know campus sercuity is a joke any way..

zooker

[WTL]

Campus security is a joke, but I don't mind that. Somethings you just cant do anything about. A kid having problems with a girl and then going crazy and deciding to shoot 50 people is one of those things. How do you prevent that? You can't. If he wants to kill people, there will be people on the street or outside just the same that cant be gaurded.

PS, my ACT card worked for a while in the dorm key readers as well. Doesn't any more, but then again they swipe them for football games and they cant have alums getting in with the student tickets.

[keithdog]

My prayers go out to all those who have had their lives tragically shattered. My first born is finishing his first year at Ball State. I know it could have just as easily been his school, and our family. I called him tonight to tell him I loved him, and just to hear his voice. Tragic events like today once again cause us to learn not to take tomorrow for granted. The authorities at VT today handled things as best as they thought they could. Were mistakes made? Maybe. But we live in a free society, and in our society, a pathological killer can strike anywhere. We do what we can to prevent it, but the truth is, all we can do is our best, and pray for guidence. And when something like this happens, turn to one another and offer our hearts and prayers. As for gun control, it's just too bad the professors in the building were not armed. We will all learn more about how this happened and what better steps could have been taken. We learn from our mistakes and move on. Lets not point fingers and condemn good people who were faced with something few of us will ever have thrusted upon us. Rather, lets offer our sympathy, and our support. And together maybe we can keep this from happening again. But for now, hug your sons and daughters. Tell them you love them.

[bassintxlady]

We can all sit back and ask the obvious question....."why?"...but it's not for us to ask....things are going to happen such as this as long as we exist on this earth....it has and always will....I can only hope and pray for the families left behind by this tragedy....god will fill them with strength and peace....it just goes to confirm that none of us know when our time is up rather it be natural or of this nature stolen from us in a blink.....but as i am trying to convince myself here...we should all live like there will be no tomorrow....and be greatful for what we have.....just my humble opinion......

[BassinBandit]

It is a sad day around these parts. I live just a few miles from tech. I cant beleive it. I have a cousin going to tech. I was so worried about her but she is okay. I want to send all my prayers to the people who were affected by this aweful tragedy.

[Recon8541]

Man I dont know...what the hell is the world coming to? When will we ever learn?

First off my heart goes out to those families effected by all this.....it is senseless, what a waste of life, what a waste of potential, and what a waste of OUR FUTURE!!!

I cannot express how much this angers me.
Everytime I hear someone say "How could this have happened" I want to puke.

The anti gun nuts will say see see thats why we need to ban guns. Never realizing that odds are if one of those faculty members had been armed legally, and ALLOWED to have a weapon this may have ended with alot less tragedy. What do you wanna bet there is someone there that had they been armed would have intervened?

Im gonna stop now....and I apologize for my ranting....but damn when are we gonna learn??

[HOG Ranger]

I too feel awful and my thoughts and prayers go out to everyone involved.

The anti-gun crowd has already started before they even know the facts. Dr. Phil blamed the video games and CNN reports that there needs to be gun laws. As with most of these senseless crimes you will probably not hear about how it was an ILLEGAL gun if indeed that was the case.

When something like this happens it is hard to understand. So many young lives just getting started and one person who ends them because he is bitter at something or someone. Not only did this guy take innocent lives but he destroyed families for generations to come. And to top it off the coward shoots himself to end it.

[HOG Ranger]

I stand corrected on my earlier post, it seems the guns were purchased legally and the gunman removed the serial numbers himself.

[HuckFinn]

We have all heard of the massacre on the campus of ****** Tech. Prayers and empathy goes out to the family and friends of those hurt and killed. My family has friends on campus as well as friends who have graduated from that fine school.
Violence has touched my family and friends quite a bit in the past. Shootings, explosions, war etc. Every time I hear of a violent incident in a school my thoughts turn to my high school senior son.
I know my son can handle himself, black belt 3 degree elected into the black belt hall of fame. I as a firearms instructor have been teaching him to shoot hand guns and rifles since the age of about 8 or 9.
How many other students, high school or college can also protect themselves? How many of the students on the VA. Tech campus have the ability to protect themselves?
Suppose students Tracy Bridges or Mikael Gross, or students like them were students at VA Tech? Do you think the outcome of the shootings would have been different? I do! Oh! Here is an idea; lets restrict firearms on school campuses! That will stop the violence! Oh wait! Firearms were restricted on the campus of VA Tech as well as on the campus of the Appalachian School of Law. This is the school that Tracy and Mikael attended. This is the school that former student Peter Odighizuwa, on January 16, 2002 killed 2 professors and a student as well as shooting 3 other students. So what did Tracy and Mikael do? When they first heard the shoots, they both ran, independent of each other, to their cars, retrieved legal hand guns and ran back to confront the shooter, Mr. Odighizuwa. What happened? Mr. Odighizuwa dropped his still loaded hand gun and gave up. Mr. Bridges and another student held Mr. Odighizuwa down on the ground while Mr. Gross an off duty police officer went back to his car and got a pair of handcuffs.
Suppose the students at VT that were legally allowed to carry concealed handguns in the state of Virginia, actually had those guns on their person when the shootings started on the campus of VA Tech? Perhaps the death toll would have been less! I don’t know which students or how many of them have legal permits to carry a concealed handgun but I’m sure someone on campus did. Once again I forget my self; the school is a no gun zone. So the good guys don’t carry guns in that zone. So the answer to stopping school shootings is to make sure the bad guys, the ones who want to kill people obey the no gun zone law. Perhaps if someone is upset with his girlfriend or that fact that he is getting a poor grade in college or called names in high school; he should be bused into a NRA convention or a gun show to do his shooting!
I do not think that “EVERYONE” should carry a concealed handgun, but if the gun is legally bought or obtained, (handed down from parent or grandparent, for example) and the person wanting the permit completes a 40 hour gun safety/shooting class; and goes through a comprehensive back ground check as well as a psychological review; that person should be allowed to carry a concealed gun.
Lets suppose that you are a bad guy, you need money and are looking for some one to rob. Two people walking down the darkened street. You are hiding in the shadows ready to pounce on one victim. Who do you chose the guy with the gun or the guy without the gun? Remember you are a bad guy not stupid.

[mack]

Originally Posted by Recon8541

Man I dont know...what the hell is the world coming to? When will we ever learn?

First off my heart goes out to those families effected by all this.....it is senseless, what a waste of life, what a waste of potential, and what a waste of OUR FUTURE!!!

I cannot express how much this angers me.
Everytime I hear someone say "How could this have happened" I want to puke.

The anti gun nuts will say see see thats why we need to ban guns. Never realizing that odds are if one of those faculty members had been armed legally, and ALLOWED to have a weapon this may have ended with alot less tragedy. What do you wanna bet there is someone there that had they been armed would have intervened?

Im gonna stop now....and I apologize for my ranting....but damn when are we gonna learn??

my prayers also go out to the families and i agree with you recon. a few years ago there was a school shooting and a few were killed but thats only because a faculty member that had a legal firearm in his car stopped the gunman.

[HuckFinn]

Sorry for the long post, I'd tried to edit it a couple of times but it did not work.
Prayers go out to all

[Vabass22]

The kid, had written stories of graphic murders and had been reported to police. He had obviously been planning this out for a while, as he bought the first gun a while back. I know families who lost kids, and who have injured children. Not only gunshot wounds, but broken legs, and arms. The fact that one kid instilled enough fear in these kids, that they jumped out of windows many stories high is ridiculous. And furthermore, how sick an individual he must have been, to WANT to kill 32 other kids. The families, I cant even imagine what it is like. This incident brought out a very important issue. Like I have said a million times, If guns kill people, then spoons made Rosie O'Donnell fat.

[Rider]

My Prayers go out to all those effected by this tradgic event, It is so sad that these kids could have accomplished so much but one sick kid had to ruin there lives and so many others.

And there are kids at school that are making jokes about this. This is not the time for jokes,These kids at school dont realize it could of happend at any school, any city, any state.I sit at lunch and you can always hear people at other tables and there making jokes and laffing about this as if was a comedy act.

So dont forget to wear your Hokie colors on Friday.