I've been reading the mass media and paying attention to the coverage this incident has had.
Most of the time while doing this I've been yelling at inanimate objects (television, newspaper) about how stupid and unaware the authors and newswriters are being.
I have read this article and I have sent emails to every person I know, geek or not, suggesting they read it.
What is going on here is important... It needs to make it to the mass media. The type of persecution that is currently happenning to kids all over the country because of the coverage of this tragedy is horrible and stupid... and until someone in the mass-media starts spewing sanity, it's gonna keep happenning.
Someone needs to bring to light what is really the problem here, not Doom, not the Internet, not the NRA... but tolerance. And the alienation and abuse that these two kids took, and thousands of others take every day.
These kids are getting media attention because when they self destructed they took 15 people with them. If they quietly blew themselves away at home, how much attention would they have gotten. The answer: none. How many suicides happenned at your school while you were there?
That's something to get angry about.
So... write your newspaper... write CNN... write (gulp) msnbc... Get someone in the mass media to notice this. Perhaps it's not too late to inject some sanity and reality into this media frenzy.
This article and all it's followups are important.
The shooting in Littleton, CO has left a lot of people "out there" wondering "what happened?" It has also left a lot of people saying "I'll tell you why!" Many people are pointing fingers at many things. Video-Games, The Internet, Gothic music/style, the NRA... you name it... but to date, I have not seen the popular media address the core of the issue... what happened to these kids? What happened in their lives that left them thinking this massacre was the solution?
I am a big believer in personal responsibility. Allow me to say now that I do not condone or excuse these kids for doing what they did. What I do wonder is where is the personal responsibility on the part of people other than these two kids? Why have I not seen reports on what these kids home-lives were like? How about the school lives?
This whole thing is very disturbing to me. I have heard about young people being 'disconnected' from their computers... from their friends... because of the actions of these two kids, and what the media has to say about it. Blame this or blame that, this story is about being disconnected in the first place. These kids were alienated, from their peers, probably from their parents. They self destructed, and in this case, took a bunch of people with them. I don't recall mention of the hundreds/thousands of kids per year who simply take themselves out.
Anyway, I find myself thinking about my own school experiences... About the torture that I received, sometimes on a daily basis. I recall myself and some of my friends being near suicide on some occasions. I find myself thanking the powers that be for having the parents that I did, who helped me understand what was going on, and for the friends I had who helped each other through it.
People don't seem to be aware that at least some of the things that pushed these kids happen every day to thousands of kids. They've been happening to people for years. How many of you were called names? tripped in the halls? shoved into lockers? beat up? Did the administration at your school do anything about it?
I saw a brief spot on one of the local news stations here in VA about a local school that has a mandatory class on tolerance. I was nearly applauding at the television. The schools I attended didn't have anything like that. I think that is the best thing I've seen in a school in my entire life. Does your local school have something like that? If not, why not?
I have a mass of emotion balled up around this incident, as I'm sure most of you do. I'm so sad for all the people who died there, including the two kids who did the killing. I'm sad for all of the kids who quietly self destruct for the same reasons. I'm feeling all of the anger and pain from those days in my own life. AND I'm angry as hell at every bastard who is taking this opportunity to grandstand on whatever issue they are pushing. Take your "NRA sucks" signs and your "Internet is evil" signs and put them away! People died. People killed each other.
This is gonna happen again, and again. There is more here than CNN is reporting... Somehow this message needs to get out.
Please pass this article on to the people you know. Give people this URL... or whatever... but please pass this info on.
Slashdot Mirror
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strategic_Defense_Initiative#Brilliant_Pebbles
I've been reading the mass media and paying attention to the coverage this incident has had.
Most of the time while doing this I've been yelling at inanimate objects (television, newspaper) about how stupid and unaware the authors and newswriters are being.
I have read this article and I have sent emails to every person I know, geek or not, suggesting they read it.
What is going on here is important... It needs to make it to the mass media. The type of persecution that is currently happenning to kids all over the country because of the coverage of this tragedy is horrible and stupid... and until someone in the mass-media starts spewing sanity, it's gonna keep happenning.
Someone needs to bring to light what is really the problem here, not Doom, not the Internet, not the NRA... but tolerance. And the alienation and abuse that these two kids took, and thousands of others take every day.
These kids are getting media attention because when they self destructed they took 15 people with
them. If they quietly blew themselves away at home, how much attention would they have gotten. The answer: none. How many suicides happenned at your school while you were there?
That's something to get angry about.
So... write your newspaper... write CNN... write (gulp) msnbc... Get someone in the mass media to notice this. Perhaps it's not too late to inject some sanity and reality into this media frenzy.
This article and all it's followups are important.
The shooting in Littleton, CO has left a lot of people "out there" wondering "what happened?"
It has also left a lot of people saying "I'll tell you why!" Many people are pointing fingers at
many things. Video-Games, The Internet, Gothic music/style, the NRA... you name it... but to
date, I have not seen the popular media address the core of the issue... what happened to
these kids? What happened in their lives that left them thinking this massacre was the
solution?
I am a big believer in personal responsibility. Allow me to say now that I do not condone or
excuse these kids for doing what they did. What I do wonder is where is the personal
responsibility on the part of people other than these two kids? Why have I not seen reports on
what these kids home-lives were like? How about the school lives?
This whole thing is very disturbing to me. I have heard about young people being
'disconnected' from their computers... from their friends... because of the actions of these two
kids, and what the media has to say about it. Blame this or blame that, this story is about
being disconnected in the first place. These kids were alienated, from their peers, probably
from their parents. They self destructed, and in this case, took a bunch of people with them. I
don't recall mention of the hundreds/thousands of kids per year who simply take themselves
out.
Anyway, I find myself thinking about my own school experiences... About the torture that I
received, sometimes on a daily basis. I recall myself and some of my friends being near
suicide on some occasions. I find myself thanking the powers that be for having the parents
that I did, who helped me understand what was going on, and for the friends I had who helped
each other through it.
People don't seem to be aware that at least some of the things that pushed these kids happen
every day to thousands of kids. They've been happening to people for years. How many of you
were called names? tripped in the halls? shoved into lockers? beat up? Did the administration
at your school do anything about it?
I saw a brief spot on one of the local news stations here in VA about a local school that has a
mandatory class on tolerance. I was nearly applauding at the television. The schools I
attended didn't have anything like that. I think that is the best thing I've seen in a school in
my entire life. Does your local school have something like that? If not, why not?
I have a mass of emotion balled up around this incident, as I'm sure most of you do. I'm so sad
for all the people who died there, including the two kids who did the killing. I'm sad for all of
the kids who quietly self destruct for the same reasons. I'm feeling all of the anger and pain
from those days in my own life. AND I'm angry as hell at every bastard who is taking this
opportunity to grandstand on whatever issue they are pushing. Take your "NRA sucks" signs
and your "Internet is evil" signs and put them away! People died. People killed each other.
This is gonna happen again, and again. There is more here than CNN is reporting... Somehow
this message needs to get out.
Please pass this article on to the people you know. Give people this URL... or
whatever... but please pass this info on.