Becka...at my school, the campus police were not "real" police...they weren't even allowed to carry guns.

I can't imagine the pain and anguish the parents, friends and relataive are going through. Having said that, it is premature to demand anyones resignation. They need time to sort this out. Some are so quick to point fingers and assign blame. As others have said, how can they "lock down" the entire campus?

I don't know the answer. It's another one of those confusing points in the reports so far.

aml, i know that at many large campuses, like PSU for example, the campus police ARE actual police.

I am not saying that you are wrong. But is it necessary in the wake of a tragedy to jump on the "they could have done it better" bandwagon? Or could your energy be better spent doing something else? Like I don't know, praying for those involved?

Not trying to attack of condemn you, but in all things, you can take the small-negative-critical approach. Or not.

At my college they thought they were, but they were really just parking enforcement...

And at some, University of Penn, for example, they are not. I don't know how it works at VA Tech.

Sorry I'm coming late to the discussion, but what I heard from the media on this yesterday was repulsive (and I didn't stay to listen very long). It was just a lot of grossly exaggerated, sensationalized hype.

I think it is incredibly sad that instead of reporting on what a devastating tragedy this whole thing is that most are more focused on trying to blame others for their actions relating to an unprecedented event. It is extremely easy to come up with a better course of action after an event has occurred. Looking back you can say "A complete lock-down have saved lives" or "Metal detectors and armed guards at every building have prevented this" but who could have imagined that something like this would happen on a campus that had not seen an on campus shooting in over 50 years? It's a piece of cake to put together a plan that would have prevented something that has already happened.

I went to a large school, and there was a shooting during homecoming weekend my freshman year. A shooter randomly starting shooting into a fraternity house where a party was taking place, and killed one person who happen to be hit inside the house. No lockdown occured. No way could that have happened. Most students didn't know about it until the Monday after it happened (it was Saturday night).

In 1966 when Charles Whitman started shooting people from the Tower in Austin, students were notified but some didn't believe it, and still went about their day. Whitman was up there for over an hour (I believe), and was shooting people the whole time.

The fact that the shooter was a South Korean, not a product of US culture, change your opinion?

i know why you said that and i agree with the purpose behind it, but make no mistake that the gun culture he was a part of since 1992 surely played a role.

Per the timeline that VT put out, the Blacksburg police were working with the campus police from the very beginning (somewhere between 7:15 and 7:30).

Thanks for that info CF!

In the city, generally campus police give parking tickets and that's about it. I guess in areas such as this where the campus population is probably larger than the town's, the campus police are "real" police, but about as "real" as any other small town or suburban police force (i.e., doesn't take much before they're over their heads).

No problem....They're wrong too.

It is understandable that in their moment of pain and anguish, they would want to assign blame, but doing so will not bring their children back, nor prevent someone else intent on hurting someone from inflicting the pain they plan to pursue.

With time comes clarity, and that clarity will show that the university goes out of its way to provide for the safety of their students. You can plan and prepare for catasrophy(sp), but you cannot prevent someone so sick and depressed from inflicting pain on others if that is their true intent.

I hadn't seen he was here since 1992.

Financially, having the kind of security in place to prevent this from happening would most likely have reduced the number of students on campus just because they wouldn't be able to afford the tuition necessary to pay for metal detectors and guards, etc.

Hindsight is 20/20. Being human, there will always be not only a difference of opinon on how a situation should have been handled, but equally as many opinions on what should happen going forward.

I find fault with the media going victim to victim interviewing their family, friends and relatives making them 'share' their feelings and rememberances with millions of people via nonstop tv. "Sorry for your loss. Tell me about...." Respect the dead and the living they leave behind. Stop sensationalizing it.

Lastly, why is it that people want whoever they believe to be at fault to pay with their livelihood? When did that become the best retribution for every sin from shock jocking to not locking down?

I think that Neo has a point that things definitely could have been done better. I remember when I was in school and anytime classes were canceled, even at a late hour, we knew in no time.

Hopefully, there will be some new type of warning system that will be developed and this will never happen again.

i vote for micro chip implants that will emit a small shock in case of emergency. these can multi-task as heart rate monitors, blood sugar indicators, and tracers in the event you go missing...

I tend to think that there are systems that exist today, some might already be in place, that can be used effectively.

One thing that I've advocated for some time is running school drills (from elementary school through high school and college) on how to react to gunmen/intruders. Not unlike running fire drills.

[quote=straw
The fact that the shooter was a South Korean, not a product of US culture, change your opinion?
[/quote]

He should be called a murderer, not a shooter!

This is a situation that the media is going to milk forever. First they will blame the university and police. Next, they will blame guns and so on and so forth. The only person who is to blame is the killer. He made the choice.

If he didn't use a gun, chemicals and directions are out there for to making explosives. Unfortunately, where there is a will there is a way. The focus should be on helping the victims and the victim's family recover.

How is the media helping with this? They aren't. The only thing they are thinking is ratings. I could be wrong and I hope I am wrong, but I doubt I am.

That is an excellent point. What happened after 9-11? I thought that most institutions were supposed to be prepared for extreme emergency situations.

Well...they did in NJ remember?
But they were "Christians" so it was unjustified persecution and unrealistic that it would happen...