Will Virginia Tech’s tragedy change the way a nation thinks?

I know that it is truly too soon to tell if the slaughter on the Virginia Tech campus in Blacksburg, Virginia will have enough influence to change the way America thinks about guns, the second amendment and gun control. Worse, I don’t know that any national tragedy has ever permanently change the way the US, as a nation, thinks.

What needs to change is the way we, as individuals, think. I noticed, and it may be the close proximity to the tragedy but I hope not, today that I was much more vigilant, for lack of a better word.

I was on the campus of a local university. It is not an oddity as my ex works there and I usually go over at least once a month to pick up a child support check. When we were married and our children were young, I was on campus all the time because our children went to the preschool on campus that is for students, faculty, staff and then community members in that order of preference. I was an officer on the board of directors. I know the campus, though there has been and continues to be a lot of building as it becomes a more popular choice for college students.

Anyway, as I pulled onto campus today through the main entrance, it struck me at how open and easy it is to get on campus. I am not saying this is good or bad. I am just making an observation. There is an information kiosk as you enter campus so that visitors can get parking passes and such but traffic is not required to go through this area to proceed to the rest of campus.

As is my norm now - due to construction, I parked in a metered spot in front of the administration building and walked across the quad to get to the building I was headed to. Additional construction on campus meant I had to walk around the building to get in. I noticed not just students but a lot of other people. I could distinguish some as students by their age, some as professors or lecturers by their accessories but there were more. There were a lot of construction workers. Construction is, fortunately for the campuses as it means they need more space but unfortunately for security as it adds to background noise and the people that are on campus, a commonplace thing for college campuses recently. I saw several men that I presume to be working on the construction projects ongoing at this particular campus. It is possible they were actually physical plant employees. The long and the short is they were wearing toolbelts or tool vests. There were no ID cards distinguishing them from other adults.

I don’t recall every looking around at what other people walking on campus were doing. Today, I did. I watched when someone would speak to someone else. I watched as people came in and out of buildings I went by. I watched the way people walked, carried themselves. I was more observant.

While being more vigilant and observant would probably not have prevented the happenings at Virginia Tech, no one knows. While the tragedy may not shape the direction of gun control and second amendment discussions, the tragedy should shape the things we, as individuals, take in and digest as we are out and about in our worlds.

Commentary on College Life

I was watching The Early Show this morning on CBS. It tends to normally be more fluff than news so I don’t feel that it is a bad way to start the morning as my 12 year old is getting ready for school. Recently, Lou Dobbs - who has a show on CNN - has become a contributor to The Early Show. There recently seems to be a big crossover of CNN personnel doing pieces on CBS but that is for another blog.

Lou Dobbs did a commentary this morning on violence on college campuses. He did not belittle the shootings yesterday at Virginia Tech. He did, though, point out some statistics that most parents and few college students will know.

The statistic involving rape on college campuses is in the tens of thousands. The statistic involving suicide on college campuses is between one and two thousand. The statistic involving death due to binge drinking rivaled that of suicide on college campuses.

These statistics and the violent acts that they represent are merely brushed over in the media. They have become common place on college campuses and are very seldom covered by more than the media in that particular college town. The acts of violence on college campuses have become so common place that almost every college tour I have been on in the past four years (I have four college-aged students and each visited well over five colleges so you do the math) actually points out the “blue” lights that are used for emergency communication throughout campus.

To put this in a more personal light, one of my daughter’s is an RA in an eight floor dorm. This is not a large dorm by any means. This year, her first as an RA and her second at university, there have been more than five incidents of students that the RAs and campus safety have had to call ambulances for due to alcohol abuse.

My other daughter spent her first semester at university on a Division 1 women’t soccer team. She called one day to tell me something she thought was “funny.” I found the revealed information to be sad. She said the older girls - juniors and seniors on the team - had told the seven freshmen to steer clear of the members of the men’s basketball team because they beat their girlfriends.

I have to say I agree with Lou Dobbs. This country needs to look at what we are raising our children and our students feel is normal. We need to be sure that there is no tolerance for violence on in our world and definitely not on our college campuses.

Tragedy in Blacksburg

Going to Virginia Tech for football is one of the great memories of my college days. Today, I am thinking of Virginia Tech in a different way.

I am sitting here trying to figure out a good way to get a hold of a friend from church to see if her daughter is okay. I cannot imagine the agony of being 500 plus miles from my daughter if something like this were to happen at her campus. How do you reassure the young that everything is okay? How do you hold your young when you cannot be near?

What has happened today in Blacksburg is unthinkable. It is not something we prepare our children/young adults for when we send them off to college. It is not unheard of but it is unthinkable.

It is, also, not something that we can prevent. To have a college campus be cordonned off from the rest of the city it is in or near is not an option. To have a college campus not have backpacks it not an option. To have a college campus have metal detectors in all buildings is not an option.

Colleges and universities are places of learning and education. The items learned should not be how to deal with grief nor how to avoid being shot. Colleges and universities are places where free exchange of ideas must take place. This exchange cannot take place in a “police state,” with metal detectors to get in every building.

Colleges and universities need to be a place of comfort and home away from home, not a place of slaughter and unthinkable death.

Let It Go!

I am sure, unless you seriously live under a rock, you have heard of the remarks made by Don Imus last week on his nationally televised (What’s with radio being on TV anyway?) and broadcast radio show. I will admit that I sometimes listen to the Imus in the Morning show. I never watch it on TV. But here is my take on the issue.

Number one, will the media quit playing the damn clip!?! Don Imus has insulted, on the air, almost every ethnic, religious and sex group in the US at some point in time. Many people, including the young ladies who were the unfortunate blunt of Imus’s comments, have said the remark was hurtful and uncalled for. So quit playing it! Let the Rutgers University Women’s Basketball team and Don Imus work it out. Should you think Imus deserves punishment, change your television or radio dial.

Number two, let the chips fall where they may. MSNBC and CBS radio have suspended Don Imus for two weeks. Bigelow Teas and someone else have pulled radio advertising. Procter & Gamble, being much smarter and feeling they can impose their opinions in an even bigger way, have pulled all daytime advertising from MSNBC. I don’t know, other than public officials, of any job/career related incident that is suppose to be played out in the public arena. Yes, Imus is on public airwaves. Yes, Imus said hateful things. Yes, advertisers have a right to pull their advertising.

What I am going to say next will not make people happy. I have not heard of a single local advertiser in my market that is pulling their advertising. The Imus in the Morning show has a strong, loyal following. I worked in radio sales for several years. While one of the stations aired Imus, it was not the flagship station. What I will say is that four hour period of air time is a huge revenue generator. Unless the local advertiser pulls advertising, the show will not suffer. It may, hopefully, go back to being just a radio show but it will not suffer for long.

Talk radio, which is what the Imus in the Morning show is, is filled with hate and comments that are not things most people want to hear. It is full of news that makes people unhappy. It is full of comments that may denegrate or may uplift people. It is just entertainment in the long run and we all have our own opinions of what entertainment is. If Don Imus is not your opinion of entertainment, don’t listen or watch the show.

One of My Favorite Things

I did one of my favorite things today. Actually, I am still in the process of doing it.

I love to make potato soup. It takes a good part of the afternoon to make a soup that is a meal like this. And from scratch is so much better than canned. So right now, there are warm brownies on the table and a pot of soup on the stove. This is not normal spring fare but it is a whopping 35F outside so temperature is still winter.

An Icon Dies

I live in Endicott, New York - famous for a pro golf tournament, the B. C. Open, and for a cartoon artist. Last year it was almost the golf tournament that was lost. This past weekend it was Johnny Hart.

Johnny Hart created and drew, with others, Wizard of Id and BC. I love these comic strips. In addition to drawing these strips, I am learning that he also did a lot to help the way cartoon artists work. Inspiring someone to create a syndication where the artist keeps ownership of the strip is unique.

This area, along with many people if the guest book in the local paper is any indication, will sorely miss Johnny Hart. I think the area in general will be less. Many local non-profit groups benefitted from Hart’s generousity. I can’t remember a WSKG auction that did not have Hart strips or drawings in it. One local soccer group has a logo that he designed. Then, there is that golf tournament. The most unique trophy in golf is what one winner said. The logo and trophy are designs of Hart’s.

Those who knew Johnny Hart will miss the man. Those in the entire community will miss the man and the man’s integrity and generousity.

Have a Blessed Easter

In what is arguably the most beautiful Mass of the church year, I attended the Easter Vigil last evening. Not only does this Mass celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ - the basis for Christianity - it also welcomes adult converts into the Church.

Twenty-four years ago, I was one of those adults. I love watching as others go through this public proclamation of faith. This year was particularly special as a good friend’s husband became a Catholic.

Have a blessed Easter. If you are a Jewish friend, I do hope your Passover celebration last week was as special.

Games on the Computer

Since I work all day on the computer, I seldom play games. Last year or the year before, though, one of my kids introduced me to a game site - Grab.com. At Christmastime, my daughter at college would send me challenges to see if I could be her at a game called “Night Before Christmas.”

This morning I got and realized life is again changing. None of my kids wanted to color Easter eggs this year. I may still do it myself but am not sure. Then, I remembered a game at Grab.com - “Easter Eggin’.” You don’t color eggs but collect them. It is sort of fun.

Anyway, I went and played a game this morning. I scored all right. I think I ended at level 9 and had 5789. Try it!

Random Thoughts

Probably not an apt title for this particular entry.

Today is Holy Thursday, called Maundy Thursday in some religions. I don’t recall this being as big when I was growing up as it is now. I truly enjoy tonight’s Mass. Though it is longer than the normal Sunday Mass, it celebrates the Last Supper.

This time of year my mind always turns to my youth. I stare wantingly at the vinyl - a huge collection which my 16 year old son has taken over and is slowly turning into digital format - wishing I had a turntable in the main area of the house. I want to listen to Jesus Christ Superstar. It is truly a blast from the past. Maybe I will nudge my son to transfer this album set for me.

A Spring Ritual

In my area of the world - or maybe it is in my own little world, one spring ritual is a good snow. That is coming, unfortunately. But this morning, I got to practice a different spring ritual.

I was woken up by thunder. I thought it was the middle of the night as the light show started. Then, my alarm went off. I got up, made coffee and sat in the living room with the lights off and watched the lightning show. I love a good thunderstorm.