Media's response to VT tragedy warrants criticism

By:
Posted: 4/20/07
In the time between the two horrific shootings that took place at Virgina Polytechnic Institute April 16, the killer, Cho Seung-Hui managed to mail disturbing video clips and pictures of himself to NBC News in New York. While NBC News did contact the FBI about the materials, they unveiled the disturbing images to the American people on the nightly news Wednesday. This insensitive move is representative of the mainstream media's disappointing coverage of the tragedy, and The Miami Student editorial board finds the glorification of this mass murderer appalling and offensive.

NBC News is effectively giving Cho Seung-Hui exactly what he wanted - a pulpit from which he can speak his insanities. Cho's chilling and senseless photographs only adds to the pain of the victims' friends and families and are not worth playing over and over again. In another sign of sensationalist coverage, other networks, such as CNN, aired a running gunshot tally based off of a cell phone audio clip captured by a Virginia Tech student, almost oblivious to the fact that with each shot another innocent person was being murdered.

This theatrical media coverage suggests that the lessons from Columbine have not been taken to heart. In the aftermath of the 1999 Columbine shooting, the media covered the event with a similar circus-like attitude. Contemporary 24-hour coverage has led to poor journalism that thrives on ratings, melodrama and editorialized field reports, all of which takes away from the actual event.

Rather than these sad examples of media irresponsibility, The Miami Student editorial board feels the American public deserve staid reporting. Moreover, rather than glorifying Seung-Hui's acts, the press should focus more on the victims of his acts. For example, Liviu Librescu, a 76-year-old engineering professor and Holocaust survivor, saved his students by blocking his classroom's door with his body, sacrificing his life in the process. Stories such as this represent a sign of selfless humanity amidst the horror of the random violence.

In the end, the media coverage of the tragedy has been disrespectful toward the families and friends of the innocent victims. Just hours after their deaths, the media swarmed the college town of Blacksburg, Va. with little regard for the students and families who lived through the violent act. In many ways, the networks' theatrical coverage has helped to desensitize the American people to the horrors of the April 16 attack. The media should simply allow the tragedy to speak for itself - its horror is self-evident.

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Original Source:<a href=http://media.www.miamistudent.net/media/storage/paper776/news/2007/04/20/Editorials/Medias.Response.To.Vt.Tragedy.Warrants.Criticism-2870736.shtml>The Miami Student - April 10, 2007</a>

Anonymous

The Miami Student

2007-08-14

Sara Hood

"Skotzko, Stacey Nicole" <skotzksn@muohio.edu>

eng

EDITORIAL: Consoling Virginia Tech

By:Anonymous
Posted: 4/17/07

On one of the most celebratory Mondays on Boston&#39;s calendar -- a day when students forget about classes and hit the streets for a citywide party -- the Virginia Tech campus was in shock and mourning.

In the deadliest shooting in U.S. history, a gunman murdered 32 community members and wounded 15 others before taking his own life yesterday.

This page can barely begin to express its deepest sympathies to the Virginia Tech community. When Boston University loses any one of its members, the campus has a difficult time recovering. To lose 32 community members in fewer than three hours is unimaginable.

The most frightening element of this tragedy is that it was virtually unpreventible. No matter how much money a university pours into its security plan, no matter how often safety procedures are rehearsed, little can prevent a suicidal gunman from going on a rampage.

This mass murder is part of the violence this country has been forced to become accustomed to. Many may not consider Monday&#39;s shooting an act of terrorism, but that is exactly what it was. Ever since Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris killed 12 of their classmates and a teacher in Columbine High School on April 20, 1999, this sort of terrorism has been part of our reality.

But that doesn&#39;t remove the distress and pain felt after it happens. Blacksburg, Va. may be more than 700 miles from Boston, but the emotions still hit close to home. College students have a connection to universities across the country. Most students know someone, or have a friend of a friend, or have some other tie to Virginia Tech.

Even if students don&#39;t have these personal connections, they have the bond of being college students -- going to class, sleeping in late, going out on weekends and being close to friends. And sadly the thought about the possibility of a gunman coming into their classrooms and opening fire is a concern that crosses many students&#39; minds. But no one can possibly fathom what this horrific experience would actually feel, sound or look like. Hopefully, most never will.

Virginia Tech will likely never fully recover from what happened yesterday. Coping with the most destructive shooting this country has ever seen will be a slow and seemingly impossible task. Though it may sound insincere or contrived because it will be so difficult, this message isn&#39;t meant to be such: We wish the speediest recovery to the Virginia Tech community.

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Original Source:<a href=http://media.www.dailyfreepress.com/media/storage/paper87/news/2007/04/17/Opinion/Editorial.Consoling.Virginia.Tech-2846306.shtml>The Daily Free Press - April 17, 2007</a>

Anonymous

The Daily Free Press

2007-08-14

Sara Hood

Matt Negrin <editor@dailyfreepress.com>

eng

LETTER: Massacre is &#39;senseless loss&#39;

By: Clarissa Nemeth
Posted: 4/18/07

To me, a college campus is one of the best places to be on earth. A university represents a lot of great things: youth and promise, for starters. A sense of community. A devotion to a life of the mind. Personal improvement. Ambition, dedication, discipline. All kinds of respect -- respect from students who want to learn, respect from professors who are honored to be able to share their knowledge, respect of colleagues and self-respect for a job well done. And above all, a love of knowledge, learning and teaching, with the idea that these things can improve the quality of life for everyone in the world.

This is why what happened at Virginia Tech horrifies me so much. Any senseless loss of life, especially in such high numbers, is numbing and saddening. But the idea that this took place on a college campus -- especially with the shooter being a student -- is particularly difficult for me to wrap my mind around. Such a thing is in direct reproach to all the wonderful things that a university, one of the civilized world&#39;s oldest and most respected institutions, stands for.

This was the worst mass shooting in U.S. history, and it happened in a community devoted to higher learning. How does a university community -- teachers, students and staff alike -- begin to recover from such a horrific turn of events, especially because the betrayal came from within?

There is already much criticism of the way the university handled itself during the crucial hours. But how much better could it have done it? How prepared could it have been for something like this? I&#39;m certain that, had it happened here, Boston University would have not have fared much better.

University administrators do think about student safety, but they are generally not thinking about their own students going on shooting rampages. And what a horrible precedent this has set. Clearly, now they will have to start thinking about it.

I have a friend at Virginia Tech, and thankfully, she and her friends are safe. But I grieve for her, nonetheless, because of what her community will be going through in the days and months to come, particularly when the media coverage subsides and they are left to pick up the pieces on their own.

Somebody on CNN said yesterday that because of these circumstances no matter what college we are affiliated with, "Today, we are all Hokies."

My heart goes out to the friends and families of those who died, but my prayers belong to everyone affiliated with Virginia Tech. I believe that every university in the country should have its flag at half-mast tomorrow. This tragedy did not just happen to Virginia Tech. It happened to all of us, in this larger community devoted to everything that colleges and universities stand for.

Clarissa Nemeth
CFA &#39;08

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Original Source:<a href=http://media.www.dailyfreepress.com/media/storage/paper87/news/2007/04/18/Opinion/Letter.Massacre.Is.senseless.Loss-2849549.shtml>The Daily Free Press - April 18, 2007</a>

Clarissa Nemeth

2007-08-14

Sara Hood

Matt Negrin <editor@dailyfreepress.com>

eng

BERKOWITZ: A campus in grief distracted by media attack

By:Adan Berkowitz
Posted: 4/18/07

In the wake of the tragedy at Virginia Tech, there&#39;s going to be a lot of people asking why this happened, or what could have been done to prevent this or keep it from happening in the future. I think pundits in the media and people on both sides of the gun debate would be wise to refrain from using the shooting to further their agendas. There&#39;s going to be a lot of people on both sides frothing at the mouth, saying this could have been prevented if only some of the students had been armed or if guns were made illegal or other such nonsense. Any group who tries to spin this into a crusade against violent media or for gun advocacy or for its own goals should be ripped apart by the press. Unfortunately, the press usually latches onto this kind of sensationalism and frames it as a crusade for some issue, instead of treating it as it really is: a monumental tragedy.

As a journalism student and a person who believes in general good taste, I have to say I was nauseated while watching events unfold on the news, not only because of what happened, but because of the way the media seemed to be wringing every drop they could from the story. With 24-hour news coverage, this comes as no surprise. For hours, networks would loop a 10-second clip of blurry cell phone footage, followed by mostly baseless speculation, followed by a parade of talking heads ready to blame the shooting on everything from video games to rap music. Jerks like Geraldo Rivera talk their mouth off even without any new information about the story. The media is relentless when it comes to stirring up a frenzy. We can&#39;t even wait until the dead are buried before all sorts of scaremongering like Fox News&#39;s brilliant article: "Experts: Colleges Ripe for Attacks." CNN ran some pretty tasteless stuff, too, like "Students Slaughtered." I know that "if it bleeds it leads," but you can almost smell the media sniffing blood like sharks do in the water. At least wait before all the facts are in before people like Anderson Cooper bring on some idiot who says this was caused by Grand Theft Auto. I can only imagine how the kids at Virginia Tech must feel, being swarmed by reporters with cameras and microphones trying to capture a sound byte of their grief.

All the facts haven&#39;t been released yet, but no matter what anyone says in hindsight, the sad truth is that nothing really could have prevented this. Virginia Tech officials are most likely going to catch enormous amounts of flak and lawsuits and probably lose their jobs, but who knows if there was anything they could have done differently. I have a feeling there&#39;s going to be a lot of sensationalist articles about college safety forthcoming in the media, and I sincerely hope that colleges don&#39;t turn into locked-down fortresses because of one incident. Safety is important, but realistically there&#39;s only so much that can be done to prevent something like this, and we shouldn&#39;t believe that by insulating students further we can avert every incident of violence. All the metal detectors and random searches in the world aren&#39;t going to stop a determined nutcase.

I don&#39;t want to turn this into a debate about civil liberties, because this isn&#39;t about that. But people and officials are going to be scrambling to try and prepare for every contingency and start locking things up because everyone feels helpless and wants to think there was something they could have done. We want to be able to find reason in this, to view the shooting as part of an overarching trend, a result of our violent culture or our attitudes about gun control or whatever, because the truth -- that there isn&#39;t a reason, that there&#39;s no definite thing that would have stopped this -- is hard to accept.

My condolences go out to everyone at Virginia Tech, and I can&#39;t imagine how they are dealing with this. Hopefully the media will cut them some slack and will give them some time to grieve before they swoop in and start throwing blame on everyone except the guy who did it. Those kids whose lives and dreams were cut short are what&#39;s important, not your agenda.

Adan Berkowitz, a junior in the College of Arts and Sciences, is a weekly columnist for The Daily Free Press.

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Original Source:<a href=http://media.www.dailyfreepress.com/media/storage/paper87/news/2007/04/18/Opinion/Berkowitz.A.Campus.In.Grief.Distracted.By.Media.Attack-2849544.shtml>The Daily Free Press - April 18, 2007</a>

Adan Berkowitz

2007-08-14

Sara Hood

Matt Negrin <editor@dailyfreepress.com>

eng

EDITORIAL: Addressing safety after VT

By:
Posted: 4/18/07
As expected, even before tears were able to dry, and before the reality of the Virginia Tech tragedy could really set in, officials began discovering details about what happened Monday morning.

Yesterday, Americans saw the face of the shooter -- the first step in putting the pieces together in this country&#39;s deadliest shooting. And with that name came information about Cho Seung-Hui&#39;s troubled past. He was taking medications to treat psychological illnesses, according to an April 18 New York Times article. Pieces that Cho had composed for a creative writing class contained violent material, concerning one professor so much that she had passed the work onto police and other officials.

Reports about Cho&#39;s criminal tendencies spurred much speculation about why it wasn&#39;t addressed before he caused nightmarish destruction. It also inspired security leaders and university administrators across the country to meet and discuss how to improve campus safety.

The Boston Police Department met with administrators from surrounding universities to review their own security procedures. One of the biggest things that came out of Tuesday&#39;s conversation was the need to find potentially dangerous students and pluck them out before they follow in Cho&#39;s footsteps.

While officials are correct in holding these meetings because safety is so important and relevant to consider, this sort of psychoanalytical prevention must just be the very start of security discussions.

Leaders were merely addressing the most important evidence that had come from the Virginia Tech case at the time. But when more specifics come about what enabled the gunman to strike twice, leaders must try to never repeat whatever mistakes police made Monday.

It is unrealistic to think school counselors can identify potential mass murderers within enormous student bodies like those at Virginia Tech, Boston University, Northeastern University and many other colleges. Afterall, not everyone who writes disturbing material about death in an English class is a possible criminal.

The reality is that the two murders at West Ambler Johnston Hall were not preventable. However, it is possible that if students had known of the first shooting almost immediately after it happened, fewer might have been shot two hours later at Norris Hall. But until all the details of the shootings surface, it will remain unclear what could have been done.

After the first shooting, police began tracking the boyfriend of the female victim, but during their pursuit, the second series of shots were reported at Norris Hall, according to the Times.

University officials cannot completely improve security based on unknown errors. Monday&#39;s massacre must be put under a microscope. Police need the closest possible look at everything that transpired on the Virginia Tech campus to learn what went wrong, what could have been prevented and what was unfortunately inevitable. Only when all of this is revealed will officials know how to improve university security.

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Original Source: <a href=http://media.www.dailyfreepress.com/media/storage/paper87/news/2007/04/18/Opinion/Editorial.Addressing.Safety.After.Vt-2849541.shtml>The Daily Free Press - April 18, 2007</a>

Anonymous

The Daily Free Press

2007-08-14

Sara Hood

Matt Negrin <editor@dailyfreepress.com>

eng

Grieving nation copes with tragedy

<b>University reps. meet with BPD to discuss prevention</b>

By: Andrew FitzGerald
Posted: 4/18/07

The day after a Virginia Tech senior shot and killed 32 people on campus and himself, representatives from 19 Boston-area colleges who met at Boston Police Department headquarters said they must improve communication in the future to prevent similar campus attacks.

University administrators joined state and local police forces to discuss "protocol, procedure and planning" that goes into preventing campus attacks during a meeting requested by Boston Police Commissioner Edward Davis, said BPD spokeswoman Elaine Driscoll.

Representatives at the meeting said they wanted to ensure the BPD and campus security forces are able to communicate through radio, according to Driscoll, who cited the existing Boston Area Emergency Radio Network -- a link between local campus and police departments -- that received boosted support after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

Virginia Tech and college campuses around the country have reacted to Monday&#39;s shootings, in which 32 people were killed by Virginia Tech senior Cho Seung-Hui. The 23-year-old English major from South Korea killed two people in a residence hall shortly after 7 a.m., and he killed 30 in a classroom building two hours later a half-mile across campus.

Local university administrators also compared methods they use to communicate with students in pressing situations, Driscoll said.

Virginia Tech officials have received widespread criticism for not immediately contacting university members after the first shooting. Officials first sent an email to the university about the residence hall shooting at 9:26 a.m., while the gunman was carrying out his second attack.

Driscoll said another topic discussed was the importance of "recognizing the tendency of someone who may act in violence." Classmates and professors have described the shooter as someone who was not very sociable, and some professors had referred him for counseling, according to The New York Times.

Representatives at yesterday&#39;s meeting will form subcommittees to develop campus-specific security plans, which will vary based on school size and relative security, Driscoll said.

"The distinction would be that some universities have patrol forces and some do not," she said. "If the security force is unarmed, then what are the steps they should take in an unarmed situation? If the force is armed, then the response should be different."

Attending university administrators said they could not provide details on the tools security personnel use to protect their campuses because the information could aid potential attackers.

Boston University Dean of Students Kenneth Elmore, who attended the meeting, declined to elaborate on specifics, only repeating Driscoll&#39;s summary that they discussed "protocols, training amongst different agencies [and] how students can access information."

Harvard University spokesman Joe Wrinn said universities and law enforcement agencies meet regularly to share information. For example, university representatives and police held a similar meeting in October 2004 to plan for potential riots after World Series games, prompted by the accidental shooting death of an Emerson College student celebrating in the streets after the Boston Red Sox won the American League Championship Series.

"We occasionally get together with other campuses and campus police," Wrinn said. "We run tabletop exercises and drills."

Driscoll said the police forces and university representatives will meet again to further develop prevention techniques, but she did not provide a date.

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Original Source:<a href=http://media.www.dailyfreepress.com/media/storage/paper87/news/2007/04/18/News/Grieving.Nation.Copes.With.Tragedy-2849523.shtml> The Daily Free Press - April 18, 2007</a>

Andrew FitzGerald

The Daily Free Press

2007-08-14

Sara Hood

Matt Negrin <editor@dailyfreepress.com>

eng

Grieving nation copes with tragedy

<b>BU assessing safety, mental health concerns</b>

By: Barbara Rodriguez
Posted: 4/18/07

Boston University officials are still assessing how Monday&#39;s deadly shootings at Virginia Tech will prompt any changes in BU&#39;s security and mental health services.

Officials will be monitoring the campus "climate" during the next few days, speaking with the Office of Residence Life and other departments that work with students, said Dean of Students Kenneth Elmore.

More than 100 BU community members gathered on Marsh Plaza yesterday afternoon at a candlelight vigil to remember the victims, many of whom were Virginia Tech students and a few professors.

Cho Seung-Hui, a 23-year-old Virginia Tech senior from South Korea, shot and killed 30 people in an academic building around 9:15 a.m., two hours after he killed two students in a residence hall Monday morning on the Blacksburg, Va. campus. Cho injured more than 15 others and shot and killed himself following the second shooting, police say.

Marsh Chapel officials have been talking with students in person and through email, said Marsh Chapel dean Robert Hill. Representatives from the Florence & Chafetz Hillel House and the Newman House, which houses the university&#39;s Catholic Center, were also available at the vigil.

"I was surprised by the number [of people at the vigil]," Hill said.

Elmore and BU Police Department Chief Thomas Robbins attended a city safety meeting at the Boston Police Department headquarters yesterday afternoon where representatives from 19 area schools discussed ways to improve safety protocols and communication among city and local agencies, Elmore said.

"We will be in a continual assessment," addressing BU&#39;s training response, how departments communicate with each other and the various city and state agencies they work with, he said.

"We know we&#39;ve got a network of public safety," Elmore said. "It is still important to assess [BU&#39;s] crisis response."

BU officials are continuing to offer chaplain and counseling services. Marsh Chapel officials are inviting students to gather at 11 a.m. today at the chapel for another moment of prayer, Hill said.

"Our hearts really go out to the people in Virginia," he said. "We know what it means to grieve."

Many faculty members, parents, students and staff contacted the Dean of Students Office yesterday with suggestions and concerns about how BU could handle a campus shooting, Elmore said.

Elmore, who hosts weekly conversations with students in the Howard Thurman Center, will focus the first portion of Friday&#39;s discussion on the shooting, while a behavioral medicine representative will be present for counseling.

"There&#39;s lots of issues about violence and people&#39;s personal safety," Elmore said.

The Albert and Jesse Danielson Institute, one of BU&#39;s psychological facilities, is also offering students counseling services despite an extensive waiting list to be treated, said Clinical Director Dr. Jorge Stavros.

Stavros said if students contact the Institute with an "acute reaction" to the shootings, the office will make an appointment for them immediately. As of last night, no students had contacted the Institute in regard to the shootings.

Elmore is encouraging BU community members of the BU community to reach out to others and alert officials if they suspect someone behaving suspiciously.

"If it doesn&#39;t feel right to us, we have to report it," he said. "I&#39;m always encouraging students to be mindful about their own personal safety."

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Original Source:<a href=http://media.www.dailyfreepress.com/media/storage/paper87/news/2007/04/18/News/Grieving.Nation.Copes.With.Tragedy-2849522.shtml> The Daily Free Press - April 18, 2007</a>

Barbara Rodriguez

The Daily Free Press

2007-08-14

Sara Hood

Matt Negrin <editor@dailyfreepress.com>

eng

PERSPECTIVE: Personal instinct only defense against tragic news

By:Ryan MacDonald
Posted: 4/18/07

In the days following a great tragedy, we as human beings collectively exhibit a variety of distinct reactions. Some will experience fear. This response is inevitably redoubled by a media which profits on false dependency -- cable news network owners want Americans to believe that without a constant and unfettered flow of semi-useful detail they will lack the needed information to survive the evening. Others sink deeply into depression. A few bleak hours permanently darken the thousands that they have spent on this planet. A state of war looms on all horizons. A third group will clamor for explanations and solutions. Quick fixes will be enticing and will abound. Pundits and politicians will congest the airwaves and television screens calling for every reform from censorship of music to religious revival. Erroneous causal connections will be purported, and the vulnerable masses will be lost in the sea of competing ideologies.

On Monday, tragedy struck. As news poured in from various outlets we learned the shooting at Virginia Tech was the worst in American history. Reporters interrogated school officials about the identity of the shooter and why he was able to carry out two rounds of mass murder without being caught. People will struggle with causes and effects for weeks; they will pour over preventative solutions; news outlets will inject dramatic twists of plot to increase viewership and revenue. Confusion and disillusionment will not be in short supply.

Amid all of this, though, I urge you to reflect deeply on the events of April 16 and the aftermath. What is your immediate response? How will this affect your perception of the world? What would you do to change things? Preempt the onslaught of ideology before it reaches your ears.

Although I run the risk of being labeled a hypocrite by putting forth a moral position, I&#39;d like to share some of my personal reflections. First of all, the most essential fact of the matter is that an individual was able to acquire fire arms and commit a horrendous act. Immediately I was reminded of my time as an intern in a London law firm where I learned that possession of a firearm carries a five-year sentence there. The rest of Europe views guns as an even darker evil. Mass shootings do not occur in Europe. Although violence certainly exists there, the weapon of choice is a knife. A man with a knife will never kill 32 people by himself.

In the United States, politicians court potential voters by leaking a video of their hunting trips. As John Stewart recently pointed out, Americans do not see the apparent contradiction in being a hunter and standing on a pro-life platform. The possession and ownership of firearms is protected by Constitutional amendment. Guns are entrenched in American politics and culture.

However, many fail to realize that the Constitution is not an infallible document. it had once barred blacks and women from voting, allowed for slavery and banned liquor. When the Constitution is wrong, it can and should be amended. Gun enthusiasts will present the opposite information. In fear of losing their gruesome, death-oriented pastime they will lobby politicians to blame this tragedy on gangsta rap or video games. They want to hide the fact that the domestic arms proliferation for which they are responsible is inextricably linked to the massacre of innocents. Guns kill people. Period. Where no guns exist, violence isn&#39;t as rampant.

As I remarked earlier, you may brand these remarks as ideology and apply the above criticism of political opportunism to my own words. I accept this and consider it fair. However, I challenge you to reflect deeply and with self honesty. Consider the sanctity which we afford guns in America. Don&#39;t allow yourself to fear entering the classroom or walking the streets. If it is possible, let&#39;s grasp this occasion to engender change and put forth well thought out, constructive critiques of our lives and our nation.


Ryan MacDonald is a senior in the College of Arts and Sciences.

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Original Source:<a href=http://media.www.dailyfreepress.com/media/storage/paper87/news/2007/04/18/Opinion/Perspective.Personal.Instinct.Only.Defense.Against.Tragic.News-2849548.shtml>The Daily Free Press - April 18, 2007</a>

Ryan MacDonald

The Daily Free Press

2007-08-14

Sara Hood

Matt Negrin <editor@dailyfreepress.com>

eng

PERSPECTIVE: Bush&#39;s speech at Virginia Tech clouded by own agenda

By:Matt Holt
Posted: 4/19/07

I had time to listen to President Bush&#39;s speech Tuesday morning at Virginia Tech. The president did the right thing by going to the campus in an attempt to console the victims of the unspeakable tragedy that claimed so many young lives Monday.

Maybe "unspeakable" is the wrong word to use. Perhaps such tragedies are born from discontent that is never spoken but stoked, unknowingly, by people who are unaware of the realities that lead up to such a desperate and violent act. No matter the reasons now, the end result will not change. The bullet has left the gun, so to speak.

It is ironic this particular tragedy is not of the president&#39;s making yet he was able to address the event so well. Communication is the key to awareness when relating to other people or groups of people. Who knows what we might have learned from talking with the perpetrator of this horrific episode. Why would he want to die and see others suffer and die? What is it that instilled such anger and hatred that it completely eclipsed the light, a soul so damaged that it had reached the point of no return?

Desperation on such a scale is reminiscent of the suicide bombers we hear so much about today. Why can&#39;t they see the use in their own existence? They have been trained to hate and destroy themselves and everyone around them. To someone who doesn&#39;t harbor hate, this type of action is completely unfathomable. None of the victims deserved to meet such an end. The only way to arrive at an answer is to investigate the causes. Is it possible that the gunman was just deranged, and it didn&#39;t take any special event to spawn the actions yesterday?

As I listened to Bush, it occurred to me that much of what he said about the tragedy could also be said about his presidency. His legacy will be a lack of communication and alienation of whole nations and religions. When he said "it&#39;s impossible to make sense of such violence and suffering" or "they were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time," the same could be said by any Iraqi civilian. His rush to war told the nation that it&#39;s not so important who we punish for Sept. 11 2001 terrorist attacks, but that we punish someone quickly.

Understaffing in Afghanistan and unnecessary staffing in Iraq have been the catalysts for many tragedies that have affected the entire world. Thousands of dead Iraqi families could probably identify with the families from Virginia Tech and, if they heard the speech, would have thought Bush was the perpetrator in question.

Unfortunately, the president is of the belief that the U.S. could kill all of its enemies. Just ask anyone who has ever suffered such a loss and it becomes apparent that with each enemy you do kill, a whole family of new enemies springs up to take on the cause. And, heaven forbid, we actually talk with our enemies. We might actually reach an agreement to find a way to live free of conflict.

This mindset of "you&#39;re either with us or against us" tells others that if they are not willing to bend to our whims, then violence will be the end result. If two people can live together and have disagreements, two countries can as well. Despite all of the communication from his employers (us, the people) the president has ignored the Baker Commission, the democratically elected Senate and House, the Supreme Court and every ally who has tried to point out the administration&#39;s.

From Kyoto to Katrina to Kabul, nothing has gone right in seven years. We have more enemies than ever, and we&#39;re creating new ones every day. We spy on our own citizens yet allow countries like Pakistan harbor our real enemies with no repercussions.

The time has come to get rid of this man. Are we not tired of the bad news yet? It&#39;s not getting any better.

Bush&#39;s reaction to Sept. 11 was misdirected and personally motivated. He has been completely ineffective in response yet very effective in playing politics as a result. Bush&#39;s strength is in instilling fear, then sending enforcers to back up his will. He is nothing more than a common thug and Chicken Hawk with misbegotten degrees from Yale. A good leader is one who leads by example, yet we have come to accept "do as I say, not as I do" from the leader of the most powerful country in the world.

How do other world leaders view our president&#39;s power and what license does this administration give other governments to follow their own self-serving anti-social policies?

Matt Holt is a resident of Easthan, Massachusetts.

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Original Source:<a href=ttp://media.www.dailyfreepress.com/media/storage/paper87/news/2007/04/19/Opinion/Perspective.Bushs.Speech.At.Virginia.Tech.Clouded.By.Own.Agenda-2853050.shtml>The Daily Free Press - April 19, 2007</a>

Matt Holt

The Daily Free Press

2007-08-14

Sara Hood

Matt Negrin <editor@dailyfreepress.com>

eng

LYONS: The impact of sports during tragedy

By:Chris Lyons
Posted: 4/19/07

Originally, I was planning on writing a column about the debauchery that is Marathon Monday. As one of the biggest days here at our school, it only seemed right to dedicate an entire column taking a look at the day many students compare to Christmas.

Everything started out according to plan. As the day began and the race went off with minimal rain. It seemed as though all would turn out OK.

It&#39;s amazing how things can change in a blink of an eye.

Since coming to school here at BU, I&#39;ve stressed over numerous "problems" that all college students go through when they arrive in a new environment. Making friends, meeting girls (or boys) and rooting for athletic teams that give everyone stress at some point or another. Education, of course, can be thrown into this category as well.

None of those seemed to matter when I went to check my computer Monday morning while taking a break in the Marathon action.

As I went to ESPN.com as I always do, the breaking news at Virginia Tech put everything into perspective. All the things I constantly worry about as a sports fan were irrelevant once again. Suddenly, the marathon didn&#39;t matter. The Red Sox game being played down the street didn&#39;t matter. The wins and losses of Boston University athletics that I&#39;ve worried about for the past three years didn&#39;t matter.

Feelings reminiscent of those I had when I first heard of the Columbine High School shootings and the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks rushed into my head. It seemed as though the death toll continued to rise each time I refreshed the page until the number reached 32 killed by a crazed gunman.

Trying to talk about athletics at the time of a tragedy of this magnitude almost seems senseless. No matter how much passion we put into supporting or playing sports, they are just games at the end of the day.

But somehow, sports always help play a huge role in the recovery process in situations like these.

Columbine&#39;s football team&#39;s success the season after the 1999 shootings was a feel-good story about a community coming together after tragedy. I still get goose bumps every time I watch New England Patriots lineman Joe Andruzzi - brother of two New York firefighters - run on to the field at Gillette Stadium holding American flags in each hand when the NFL came back after Sept. 11.

Sports seem to offer our country an escape from tragedy and a way of coming together as a group with a common bond. They give us something to rally around.

At no level is this more evident than in collegiate athletics. A team can bring a school together. Here at BU, hockey is a borderline religion for many. Our campus is stuffed with students from all over the country -- world, even -- who are as diverse as can be. But every Friday or Saturday night in the fall and winter, Agganis Arena fills to root on the common bond that we all share.

While watching the images of Virginia Tech students in mourning the past few days, one thing stood out to me.

First, the "Let&#39;s go Hokies!" chant at the memorial service on Tuesday. Cheers that Virginia Tech students use at sporting events are now being used to bring their campus together during these trying times.

And it&#39;s spreading beyond their campus, too. Similar to "U.S.A." chants following Sept. 11, "Everyone is a Hokie" is being heard on campuses throughout the nation. Athletic pride is turning into a nation&#39;s pride for a campus in Blacksburg, Va. that experienced the worst shooting in U.S. history.

So while we always say sports are just games and have little meaning, they clearly offer us comfort in times of tragedy, at least in some sense. On a small scale or large, they have helped our country survive some of our saddest moments. And they will now be part of an effort to move on at Virginia Tech.

On Friday, Virginia Tech&#39;s baseball team will be the first Hokies squad to step onto the playing field since Monday&#39;s shootings, and several other teams will continue their seasons this weekend.

I don&#39;t think I&#39;ll be alone in rooting for all of their athletes in their effort to help the campus move forward. America&#39;s Team has found a new home in my mind. Let&#39;s Go Hokies.

Chris Lyons, a junior in the College of Communication, is a weekly columnist for The Daily Free Press. He can be reached at cjl@bu.edu.

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Original Source:<a href=http://media.www.dailyfreepress.com/media/storage/paper87/news/2007/04/19/Sports/Lyons.The.Impact.Of.Sports.During.Tragedy-2853081.shtml>The Daily Free Press - April 19, 2007</a>

Chris Lyons

The Daily Free Press

2007-08-14

Sara Hood

Matt Negrin <editor@dailyfreepress.com>

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