Here's What I Think......Virginia Tech Massacre: Part II

I would normally just pass on talking about something more than once, but I couldn't help but want to say a few things on people's responses to this tragedy. Here's What I Think....

I will go ahead and warn you that this is a rant. I've been looking and listening to see what people have to say about all of this that has been going on with the Virginia Tech Massacre. And I have to say that I am disappointed in a lot of the American public. Here's why. A lot of people are trying to connect this incident, or at least compare it, to the war in Iraq. This is just plain ludicrous. There is a difference in War and a maniac killing students. I recently saw a political cartoon that showed newspapers with a message on how many people were killed in Iraq, and the papers had a day of the week underneath it. At the end the cartoonist wrote something to the nature that a Virgina Tech Massacre happens every day. Obviously this person is not a fan of the Iraq War. That's fine. If you don't like the war then that's your business, but don't try to compare war to one nut job. Virginia Tech is not Iraq. Virginia Tech is not a war zone. So if you think that this massacre isn't as bad as what is going on in Iraq, then you need to get off your high horse. This type of attitude not only is offensive, but it demeans our troops and those who lost loved ones in Virginia. Sure war is rough, but guess what? That's how war is. If Churchill were alive today, he'd have a fit.

Another high horse that people are riding till the horse falls over dead is gun control. Now don't get me wrong, I think there needs to be gun control in America, but how can you make it any harder to get a gun than it already is? And believe me that a nut job who wants to shoot people away is going to get a gun one way or another. I've seen a lot of people blaming Congress and the NRA and it's irritating to see. Do people honestly think that the NRA wants people to buy guns for the purpose of killing other human beings for no reason? That's ridiculous! Of course the NRA doesn't support murder. Should we ban or regulate who owns a knife? Of course not, that's silly. If anything the NRA is standing up for the Constitution. We have a right to bear arms. Imagine this: The United States gets invaded. Most of our army is overseas and can't react as quickly to get here to help. Opposing troops make their way to your town for the purpose of killing or torturing you so that you will be submissive to their will. What will you do? Will you cower under their feet, or will you grab your guns and start defending America? I don't think such a scenario will happen, but that is one reason why we are guaranteed the right to own guns. Heaven forbid that happen, but I would be happy to know that myself and a group of others will grab our guns and defend our country if the army isn't there to do it themselves. Do you see what I mean? I'm sure some people will throw their insults and say I'm a nut job, but believe me, if an Islamic militant comes banging on your door to kill you and your family, you'll be glad you have a 12-gauge or 22 near by.

This leads me to my final thought. The guy who shot up Virginia Tech was obviously disturbed and would have killed people, with or without a gun. You're not going to stop a madman on a mission. It is in man to be evil, to be opposed to God. Our sin has made us this way. Some people act on this evil to do harm to others, and no matter how much counseling, talking, and drugs will stop it. (Especially if that person is demon possessed. Don't mock me, because it still happens, whether we like it or not.) We as American citizens need to be alert and vigilant to stop this evil. It can happen anywhere and at anytime. As I said the other day, the only way to help stop these incidents from happening again is to turn to Christ. The Gospel is the only thing that can lead people from the sinful lives they live. And though we will still sin, we have a redeemer who is at the right hand of the Father making intercessions for us. No gun laws and no banter and ravings can have the same power as the work of God in Christ alone.

Here's What I Think......Virginia Tech Massacre

I thought I would give my spill on this whole ordeal. I really don't have a 'Here's What I Think' page on here yet, but I will talk about what I do think about it all. Here's What I Think....

This is a terrible tragedy that no one should go through. When news of this massacre came up I'm sure visions of Columbine immediately jumped out in people's minds. You can't help but think of what madness was going on for such a student to enter buildings and slaughter other students that surrounded him. I had been keeping up with this story on the web and by my co-worker's TV most of the day picking up pieces of information here and there. The thought of something like that didn't really register in my mind that it could have easily happened here at UT until I was leaving campus yesterday afternoon. I began driving from campus and saw news vans parked near the Torchbearer. There were cops standing around among students keeping a vigilant watch. I saw one cop keeping guard over a teacher parking lot. That's when it hit me that UT was no different that VT. Maybe one letter away. One nut job away. What would I do? Where would I go? Would I go to the area that it had happened and try to help students? There are so many things that go on in a person's mind when they see such a horrible thing as this happen on a campus full of students. That could have been UT.

So do I still feel safe where I am here on campus? Of course. I don't think I am in any huge danger unless an athlete or crazed fan comes to my office mad about a video or photo on the web, but that doesn't necessarily mean I am safe. I've heard people complain about the response of the school administration to what had happened and to be honest I don't think that they deserve the ridicule that they are getting. Small shooting incidents have happened on campuses before. A guy got shot in some dorm room and the school sends out an email warning students. The problem is, half of the students are already on campus and headed to class. How many of those students have a laptop and Internet accessible to them to check to see if classes were canceled or not. The administrators did what they thought best. They didn't know some nut case was going to shoot up classrooms full of people. For all they knew, the first shooting was an isolated incident. See if you would have acted differently. Sure you say now that you would call off classes, but you're looking through the eyes of hindsight. There is no way of knowing.

Now I'm going to close out with a few concerns that come to my mind. Some people are calling for teachers to have guns. Bad Idea. I don't think it will ever get to that and it's just not going to work. Because one day you will have a nut job teacher who will shoot up his classroom because they are being jerks to him. The biggest concern I do have is the idea of having people calling for stricter gun control laws. Another bad idea. People will get guns and do stupid things whether you have strict gun control laws or not. Even if you have stricter gun control than you do now, you won't stop a mental case from doing what he or she is going to do. When you're on a mission, you won't stop to register a gun. You will find a gun one way or another. Whether it's yours or someone else's. This is just one of many incidents that happen because a guy off his rocker didn't see life the way it should be in his eyes. It happens and no amount of gun control will stop it.

The only thing that can stop people killing each other is the gospel. I see all of this unfolding and only one conclusion can be drawn. A world directly opposed to the God of this universe can only be brought to peace and order through the cross of Jesus Christ. Without the gospel, the world will continue on in this manner of death and destruction. I'm not saying that sin would stop if everyone came to know Christ as their Lord and Savior, because that isn't true, but at least the Spirit guides a person's heart to know what to do and what not to do. The only hope for the world is the gospel, the saving grace of God through His only Son Jesus Christ. Christ alone is the only hope that can be found in such a tragedy as the Virginia Tech Massacre.