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Virginia Tech: The Aftermath

Following yesterday’s (April 16) horrific shootings on Virginia Tech’s Blacksburg campus, details have come to light regarding the shooter, his motives, and the terror that ensued after the first shots were fired. Cho Seung-Hui, a 23-year-old English major raised in Centreville, VA, who was described by Virginia Tech Associate Vice President Harry Hincker as a “loner,” has been named as sole triggerman behind the death of 32 people. His motives, as reported by numerous major news sources, range from seeking revenge on an ex-girlfriend, reportedly his first victim, to “rich kids,” “debauchery,” and “deceitful charlatans” on campus.

In the aftermath, students’ real time accounts of the shootings have appeared in every form across nearly every outlet current technology has to offer. Transcribed text messages, instant messages, emails, blogs, and the by now infamous cell phone video imagery of a firefight between Seung-Hui and local police have become ubiquitous news references. Meanwhile, VT students and U.S. and world citizens take to the web to post ad-hoc obituaries for fallen students, friends, and professors, debate the motives and scapegoats for the deadliest shooting in American history, and offer condolences to the families of those killed.

Here’s what bloggers are saying about the latest in the Virginia Tech shootings:

“Soon the media will find a way to say America or the administration or the gun control laws are to blame for this. I fucking hate the media.” — drderange.livejournal.com

“R.I.P. Professor Liviu Librescu. Ironic how he died on Israel’s Holocaust Remembrance Day. I was trying not to feed into the media frenzy about this incident, but it touched me when I learned of Professor Librescu being a Holocaust Survivor and dying on Holocaust Remembrance Day, saving students from gunfire. I can’t stress enough how I detest guns and how I wish weapons of any kind were eliminated completely.” — Angie, blog.myspace.com

“I am shocked at what had happened at VT and my prayers are with the families and friends that lost someone. I am also hoping that people don’t get anymore prejudiced towards Koreans or anyone of Asian decent. My mother called me this morning just to give me a heads up in case anything was said to me. It makes me sad to know how intolerant people can be.” — Chelsea, facebook.com

“I am shocked and horrified as I turn on the news every day, at the things humans are capable of doing to one another in the name of such things as pride, ego, retribution, JUSTICE, and even payback. When I turned on the news yesterday and saw the violence unfolding at a college campus three hours from me, I was again horrified at the level of hate, violence, anger, disrespect, disregard, and selfishness that still exists in our world today.” — Jamy, blog.myspace.com

“Should we be pointing fingers of blame at school officials, fellow classmates, and the video game industry the next day? Or shall we, instead, do what we can to remember the victims of this tragedy, to honor the professor who blocked the classroom doorway for as long as he could, for the rest of his life, so that some of the students inside could escape out a window? Shouldn’t we support the many families that lost a child who had just begun to step into adulthood? I believe we should lay all of the blame where it belongs, on the shoulders of Cho Seung-Hui. Because whether he was depressed, disturbed, violent, or otherwise, he is the evil in this situation.” — Annette, blog.myspace.com

“There could have been another outlet for his pain, it’s called suicide.” — Adam Maddox, facebook.com

Talk: What do you think is as a major contributing factor to Cho Seung-Hui’s massacre?