Who is to Blame for What Happened in Blacksburg

If you know what happened this week at Virginia Tech everybody could be quick to put the blame on Seuing-Hui Cho. The 23 year old is responsible for the slaughter in Blacksburg, or is he? Yes, he was the one the pulled the trigger and the one that ended the lives of 32 other human beings before killing himself. I want to talk about the things that Cho was not responsible for. Now before I say my piece, let me make clear that I do not condone what he did and I think everybody is responsible for their own actions.

Who was responsible for selling 2 hand guns to Cho? I know what you are thinking, he was not a legal American citizen so he could not have purchased a gun legally. You would assume that to be a fact, but you can purchase a handgun if you are a permanent resident in the United States and you have a permanent address. I'm scratching my head on this one. Can someone explain to me how you can be a permanent resident and never get American Citizenship? I think to abide by the laws of the United States you should have too be an American citizen. I always hear that the test to become a U.S. citizen is very hard, but guess what this guy was a senior at Virgina Tech. V-Tech is a very hard college to graduate from and he was in his senior year, I think he could have taken his test for U.S. citizenship. I don't think it is right for a non U.S. citizen to get accepted to a college before an American citizen does. America seems to reach out and help its foreign allies before providing for it's own citizens. Can somebody tell me why we even give the time of day to illegal aliens. It is kind of off subject but why do we even put these people in jail? If we find an illegal alien is living in the states, don't send them to jail, send them back to their legal country of residence. Now, let me clarify that Cho was not an illegal alien so I am not talking about him. I do want to talk a little more about how America failed and provided the weapons for his methodical act. Cho was recommended to get psychiatric help numerous times while he was at V-Tech. Even though they found Cho was having mental issues he was never committed. Why does this mean anything? Well in America you can be labeled legally mentally insane, but if you are never committed, guess what you can legally still purchase a gun. There is a twist in this though, the Justice that handled Cho's case wrote an order that was sufficient to get Cho placed on the National Instant Criminal Background Check System. Well if he would have been placed on that list he would have been banned from purchasing hand guns. This is one way in which all of this could have been avoided or at least made it harder for Cho to carry out his plan. Let's face it if he wanted guns hard enough he could have gotten them whether legally or illegally, but the fact is steps could have been made to at least make it harder on Cho to get his hands on these guns.

Why in America does it seem right for people to still put those around us down if they are not up to the norm that American society expects. There are numerous reports that Cho was not only made fun of in High School, but in College also. Idiots, he was from a foreign country, yes he would speak and read the English language a little different then those speaking it all of their life. You know how much courage it must take for someone to join another culture and throw their own behind. Cho learned the English language but since he did not speak it perfectly he was criticized and put down. People at V-Tech want to talk about how shy and withdrawn from everybody else Cho was. No wonder, it must have seemed like he got put down every time he opened his mouth. That is what happens when people put you down, you stop doing whatever people persecute you for. If you talk funny, you stop talking, if you cant play sports right, you stop playing, for me I cant play an instrument so guess what I don't even try. What happened to the American society that reached out to Cho's family when they came over to America? When did kids become perfect enough to point out and criticize the imperfections of others? I thought America would have learned with the tragedy in Columbine, but it seems to forget very fast. America is very arrogant and it has been for a while, I think that is why the attacks of Sept 11 happened. We need to start accepting each other without criticizing those imperfections one cannot control.

Ok here is something that will remain a mystery for years to come. Why did V-Tech officials not lock down the college until they found the killer or weapon responsible for the first 2 killings that happened a couple hours before the massacre? In every room they have fire alarms, how hard is it to put another alarm to lock down the rooms and the campus, and why did the officials not lock down the campus. If V-Tech would have locked down the campus, maybe while Cho went to the post office to mail off the package to NBC, the 30 other people could have gotten out of harms way and be on the lookout for a killer. Some people have said well they thought the first two killings were a suicide, well at least lock down the campus until the weapon is found! So many mistakes were made by so many different people but...

With all of that said do I think Cho is too blame. Yes, he did kill those 32 other people, but their were so many others that could have contributed to making the process harder. Here are a few of my thoughts that I think could prevent this from happening again.

1.) For an international student to attend an American school, they should have American citizenship. If a family is living as a permanent resident then they should become an American citizen. Be stricter on illegal aliens, not the people guarding the border preventing it.(We will talk about illegal aliens another time)

2. Stricter gun laws. Democrats are pushing for it and have been for a while. Yes I do think every American has the right to own a weapon if they have not done anything to compromise those rights. Like for instance if a person has committed of a felony, is on probation, or if they are going to a psychiatrist and have homicidal/suicidal thoughts. The last one about homicidal/suicidal thoughts is a close one to me because one of my friends killed himself and his wife after purchasing a handgun. My friend was going to a psychiatrist and did have those thoughts of hurting himself or others. Once a mental health professional gets this information they should enter the individuals information into a system so they cannot purchase a firearm.

3. Harsher punishment for those kids that bully and put down others. Children go to school to learn, not to be made aware of their differences or short-comings. This social norm that America has built up in our high schools makes it difficult for anyone not an athlete or beautiful to succeed without criticism. It makes me scared to wonder how things will be when my children get into High School.

These are just my thought and ideas; my prayers and thoughts go out to all the families affected by the events of Cho. Until next time "Have a Nice Day".

GO HOKIES