Social networking sites help students cope - 1000-plus online groups created after VA Tech massacre
Issue date: 4/19/07 Section: News
By Alyssa S. Navares
Ka Leo Managing Editor
More than 1,000 Facebook groups and MySpace pages started in response to Monday's deadly shooting, some supporting victims and others blaming 23-year-old gunman Cho Seung-Hui.
Blogs and social network sites have changed ways of communicating and coping with tragedy, as younger generations use the Internet to discuss and to express feelings about the massacre. On many pages, people have removed their profile photos and replaced them with a black ribbon and Virginia Polytechnic University logo.
Thousands of miles from Blacksburg, VA, University of Hawai'i at M?noa students recognized the online mourning by adding the UH logo and the phrase, "All One Ohana. Today, we are all Hokies" to the profile photo. UHM alum Gary McRawr and sociology major Milena Kulig created separate Facebook groups, both of which have more than 200 members.
"I'm hoping to get UH alums and current students [and] faculty involved," McRawr said, "and possibly even the community colleges across the state to be aware of the situation." McRawr started the group "UH is praying for Virginia Tech" the day 32 people and the gunman were killed, becoming the deadliest shooting in U.S. history.
Thirty people joined Kulig's group, "UH Manoa Supports Virginia Tech," within the first five minutes of creating it Monday evening, and by Tuesday it had grown to more than 200 members. Kulig started the group after joining one from another school and realizing that UHM did not have one.
"The turnout is way better than I thought it would be," she said. "Honestly, I was just thinking that a few people who were as shocked and saddened by the situation like I was would join."
Other people have used these social networks to vent about the shooting and its killer. More than 200 online groups on both Facebook and MySpace started in response to the Virginia Tech senior and immigrant from South Korea. Virginia Tech students described him as a loner who said little.
"He should of just shot himself and not killed anyone, but no, he had to make everyone suffer," wrote Cory Hills, a student from Wellsville Senior High School in New York, in the "I Hope Cho Seung-Hui Burns in Hell" group.
Racist remarks about Cho appeared throughout online blogs and social sites in response to his South Korean ethnicity. Some bloggers called him "a Kim Chee eating mofo," while others referred to him as a "slanted eye freak."
But having a negative reaction after a tragedy is typical, according to the American Psychological Association. University psychologists nationwide created a Web site with advice on how to cope with the Virginia Tech shooting.
Negative viewpoints should be balanced to maintain a healthier perspective of one's self and the world, the APA Web site states.
In Facebook group "Cho Seung-Hui is pure evil," Tennessee Brentwood High School student Leigh Durham was the first out of the 85 members to comment in support of Cho, sparking crude remarks from others in the group.
"How about people stop focusing on this guy and think about all the people that were affected by this," she wrote on the posting wall. "Wasting your time bashing this guy isn't going to make things any better."
One student from Drexel University in Pennsylvania called Durham a moron and an idiot an hour after she posted her comment.
Asking for support, online or in-person, can be comforting and helps because speaking with others who share similar experiences prevents feelings of loneliness, according to the APA site.
Because cellphone networks, like Verizon Wireless, became stressed hours after the shooting, people shifted to the Internet. Virginia Tech students created an "I'm ok at VT" group in Facebook, which included a list of murdered and injured victims. The West Virginia Blogger compiled personal sites for those killed as an online memorial. Others traded photos and videos online as well.
Online networks related to Virginia shooting
Facebook - about 450 groups
"UH M?noa supports Virginia Tech"
"Cho Seung-Hui is pure evil"
MySpace - about 550 sites
www.myspace.com/thehokies
www.myspace.com/virginiatechshooting
Blogs - about 350 sites
The West Virginia Blogger: www.bloggingwv.com
Virginia Tech Blog: www.VTtragedy.com
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Original Source: The Voice - Ka Leo
<a href="http://media.www.kaleo.org/media/storage/paper872/news/2007/04/19/News/Social.Networking.Sites.Help.Students.Cope-2869752.shtml">http://media.www.kaleo.org/media/storage/paper872/news/2007/04/19/News/Social.Networking.Sites.Help.Students.Cope-2869752.shtml</a>
Alyssa S. Navares
2008-03-12
Kacey Beddoes
Kumari Sherreitt <editor@kaleo.org>
eng
Still waiting for our victory
Observer Viewpoint
Issue date: 4/19/07 Section: Viewpoint
Anyone old enough to speak coherently at the time still remembers the moment, over forty years ago, when they heard about JFK's assassination. Our grandparents can tell us how they listened to the radio accounts of Pearl Harbor on a December day, more than six decades gone. Every single one of us here at Notre Dame can recall where we were on the day of Sept. 11, 2001 - what we were doing, how the horribly tragic events of that morning unfolded for us and our personal feelings on the matter. Any time someone shares a personal story of That Day, I'm always amazed at the details people recall.
I remember listening to Paul Harvey's show on my AM radio while driving to school when he announced the first plane crash. I remember talking about it with my friend before the start of first-hour Biology, and I remember the girl who came in and told us the other tower had been hit. I remember conversations I had that day, things different teachers said and talking with my grandparents in the evening. That was my experience, half a country away, without a personal connection to anyone involved. The mass media of the past century gave rise to a new, shared cultural experience, a common reference point that breaches distance and background: the generation-defining event.
When we hear 9/11 described this way, it is absolutely on-target.
This week, we have another national tragedy. News of the massacre at Virginia Tech on Monday spread like wildfire throughout both national and international outlets, even reaching most of us studying abroad in Europe within the hour. We learned of the catastrophe over television stations, through quickly formed Facebook groups, on Internet news sites and during instant messaging conversations. Solid facts came slowly, but no report could sanitize away the fear, confusion, anger, torrential grief and host of other emotions that assault us all in such times.
This is the great curse of our generation's hyper-awareness and the awesome power of modern media. We cannot escape the sentiments swirling around the tragedies, and they cannot remain anonymous or distant to us. It is hard to ignore the images of grown men and women crying as dead college students are carried away, the surreal sounds of gunshots being fired on a peaceful college campus or the first-hand accounts of courage and action during the Virginia shootings. I hesitate to compare this with 9/11; the numbers, circumstances, impact, source, scope and means are worlds apart. Yet both incidents serve to painfully remind us that these events always seem to be associated with sorrow, tragedy and death.
The events of Monday, though still fresh in my mind, will probably not stick with me as do those of 9/11. Sadly, the thousands of students and faculty and staff connected with the university, the thousands of parents worrying at home and the thousands of residents in the surrounding community don't have that luxury of separation. For them, this will become a "where were you when..." event. Monday will haunt their minds and stay with them for the duration of their lives. Healing can take place, and God willing, can come soon, but memories of all the little details from Monday will stick. Meanwhile, the rest of us are stuck asking ourselves: How many more of these "defining" events can we plan on seeing in the coming years and decades? And when can we expect one judged not by the body count or human toll, but by the rewards and human joy brought about?
Some may say any event that becomes constantly discussed, like 9/11, does not develop its crystalline clarity in the moments of its occurrence, but rather slowly cements itself during the constant regurgitation of facts and satellite details in the months and years following. Even if this were the case, we are still left empty-handed trying to think of a ubiquitous positive event. I firmly believe that such events, incredibly wonderful instead of shockingly horrific, are entirely possible. Unfortun-ately, we are still waiting to see what such an event would look like.
The consistently negative nature of these events can be explained to some degree. "Good events," for one, rarely culminate in one triumphant moment. Tragedy, on the other hand, catches us unaware. In the shock, the horrific facts come slowly and there are a thousand unknowns. With triumphant accomplishments, the event is often merely symbolic and known well in advance. The closest models I can call to mind are the fall of the Berlin Wall - which I and most of my classmates were too young to remember - and the moon landing, decades before we were born.
Our generation, already exposed to so much death and murder and war and evil, still waits for its anti-9/11. We have yet to gather around our televisions and computers to share joy instead of sorrow, fulfillment instead of shock, pleasure instead of anger. We are the waiting. But for the moment, in respect for the Virginia Tech community, let us remember that we are also among the mourning.
James Dechant is a junior studying abroad in Rome this semester. Questions, complaints and rude remarks can be sent to jdechant@nd.edu
The views expressed in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
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Original Source:
<a href="http://media.www.ndsmcobserver.com/media/storage/paper660/news/2007/04/19/Viewpoint/Still.Waiting.For.Our.Victory-2852060.shtml">http://media.www.ndsmcobserver.com/media/storage/paper660/news/2007/04/19/Viewpoint/Still.Waiting.For.Our.Victory-2852060.shtml</a>
<a href="http://media.www.ndsmcobserver.com/media/storage/paper660/news/2007/04/19/Viewpoint/Still.Waiting.For.Our.Victory-2852060-page2.shtml">http://media.www.ndsmcobserver.com/media/storage/paper660/news/2007/04/19/Viewpoint/Still.Waiting.For.Our.Victory-2852060-page2.shtml</a>
James Dechant
2008-02-25
Kacey Beddoes
Christopher Hine <chine@nd.edu>
eng
Campus reacts to Virginia Tech massacre
ND students directly affected by shootings through ties to VT
Aaron Steiner
Issue date: 4/17/07 Section: News
Virginia Tech is more than 500 miles from Notre Dame, but the effects of what reports call the deadliest shooting rampage in U.S. history have been felt here on campus.
A lone gunman shot and killed more than 30 people and injured dozens more on the Blacksburg, Va., campus before committing suicide Monday, according to Associated Press reports. Officials told AP that the gunman killed two people in a dormitory approximately two hours before staging a separate attack on a classroom building.
Nearly 30 people were estimated to have been injured, according to area hospital officials, CNN reported.
The Notre Dame community is saddened by the tragedy, Assistant Vice President of News and Information Dennis Brown said Monday.
"Our prayers go out to any people affected," Brown said.
Notre Dame will hold a memorial Mass for the victims tonight at 10 at the Basilica of the Sacred Heart.
Brown noted that members of the administration know people at Virginia Tech and said the University sends its support and prayers.
Students reported hearing the news through various sources throughout the day Monday, with some hearing from friends and family directly tied to Virginia Tech.
Graduate student Patrick LaFratta, a 2005 Virginia Tech alumnus who said one of his friends had died in the shootings, said he had been in contact with friends from the school throughout the day by phone and online.
LaFratta said he first heard the news of the shootings from his girlfriend, a Virginia Tech alumna, around 10 a.m. LaFratta confirmed that his girlfriend's sister, a current Virginia Tech student, was safe, as well as the safety of several close friends.
"When I first heard, they were reporting there was only one death," LaFratta said. "I thought, 'It's a really sad event and I want to know what is going on.'"
Soon, the news coverage took a personal tone.
LaFratta said he eventually heard that one acquaintance had been killed in the first incident in the dorm. By Monday night, LaFratta said he had seen pictures on television of his slain friend.
He said he knew the friend from Virginia Tech's marching band, where LaFratta played trumpet.
Other students with friends at the school expressed their concern Monday afternoon.
Sophomore Amelia Gillespie heard the news from her roommate before going to class Monday morning.
"I was in shock. I have a couple of friends that go there, and I'm still waiting to hear back from them," Gillespie said. "I tried to call them, but they haven't called back. I think they're okay, because I've heard from other friends."
Freshman Tracy Jennings also has friends at Virginia Tech.
"One of my friends called me around 2 p.m.," said Jennings, who is from Richmond, Va.
The friend who initially called Jennings was not a student there, but the freshman received calls from Virginia Tech students shortly thereafter.
"As soon as one friend called, another did, and more," Jennings said.
The students couldn't give many details about the incident, she said.
"All [they] said was that there was a shooting ... and at least 20 kids had been killed and at least 20 injured," she said. "As far as I've heard, everyone I know is OK."
Jennings said she couldn't contact some of her friends there Monday afternoon because phone lines were busy.
Monica Tarnawski, a sophomore, said she heard here from a friend who attends Virginia Tech Monday afternoon through the social networking Web site Facebook.
"She actually composed a note that said 'I'm fine,' and we all saw it," Tarnawski said.
Like Tarnawski, Jennings and Gillespie, LaFratta said that initially, all reports about his friends had been positive - until later Monday evening, when he first heard his friend had been killed.
LaFratta was watching television news coverage of the shooting when he learned there were more deaths that initially reported.
"At around 12:15 p.m. or so ... all of a sudden, one of the three [channels] reported that there were at least 20 dead," LaFratta said. "I just really hoped it was a mistake."
LaFratta said he soon realized the situation was much more complex than the initial single death, and he said he then felt a "tremendous amount of sorrow."
LaFratta took classes in the academic building where the majority of the deaths occurred.
"A few years ago, I was there," LaFratta said. "It hits home - these things really do happen."
LaFratta said it was hard to imagine a scare on Virginia Tech's campus last year while a convict was loose in the area. This tragedy, he said, is even harder to picture.
"The magnitude of the event is just so overwhelming," LaFratta said.
LaFratta said he would have never predicted anything like this at a campus he described as "exceptionally peaceful."
Students at Notre Dame said they feel safe on campus but recognize that an event like Monday's could happen at anywhere, Notre Dame included.
"Things like that, especially on television - it seems so far away ... [but] I think it could happen anywhere," said Chris Heckett, a visiting graduate student. "To think otherwise would probably be thoughtless."
Erin Smith, a senior, echoed Heckett's thoughts.
"It makes you realize that it could happen anywhere, on any college campus," she said. "It kind of makes you think about the security here at Notre Dame, or at any college campus."
Brown declined to comment on Notre Dame's policies or crisis management plans for any type of violent tragedy like the one Monday morning.
But Smith said she has never felt anxious about security at Notre Dame.
"I've never felt unsafe at Notre Dame," Smith said.
Senior Paul Mitchell agreed.
"I still feel as safe here as anywhere," Mitchell said, stating, however, that his notions of safety do not make Notre Dame exempt from violence like Monday's tragedy.
Virginia Tech, with an enrollment of more than 25,000, is located in the Blue Ridge Mountains, 160 miles west of Richmond, Va. Jennings said Virginia Tech's location as a college town - not part of a large urban area - makes her think about Notre Dame's similar setting.
"Honestly, Tech ... is in the middle of nowhere - and it seems kind of like South Bend, which is a scary thought, being here. It's a pretty enclosed campus, like here," she said.
Gillespie said the incident "kind of just puts things into perspective."
"It makes me look outside the [Notre Dame] bubble a little bit," she said. "It's a small world."
Sophomore Katie Bergerow said the tragedy caused her and her roommates to consider their safety in the residence halls.
"We were talking about how we leave our door unlocked," Bergerow said. They probably wouldn't change that behavior, she said, but the tragedy "really shows that something like this could happen."
Students are also lucky to have a variety of support resources available, said Gaotam Shewakramani, a Notre Dame alumnus visiting campus. He said such resources could help avert a violent crisis, especially those available to students who are struggling emotionally.
"I think there are a lot of resources for those who are having difficulties," Shewakramani said. "I would be surprised if someone [who is struggling] wouldn't be reached out to."
Still, Tarnawski said, it's important to remember that you can't know what people are feeling.
"You never know what people are going through inside," Tarnawski said. "Someone after my English class was like, 'You know, I just wonder what was going on in that person's life that caused them to snap.'"
That same thought crossed Mitchell's mind as well.
"My first question was why - why would someone do that, just asking questions to the psychology of that and what enables that sort of violence," Mitchell said.
Monday's massacre will go down as the deadliest campus shooting in national history. Previously, the largest was a rampage that took place in 1966 at the University of Texas at Austin, where 16 people were killed before police shot the gunman to death.
As the facts of yesterday's tragedy are investigated, some students say while there is little they can do, they can send their prayers and support.
"Right now, I'm here to offer any type of support I can, get involved, bring any type of awareness," Gillespie said.
LaFratta said he has done "a lot of praying" and will continue to do so.
"My first reaction is to pray a lot - my thoughts go out to all those families," LaFratta said.
LaFratta said he plans to attend tonight's memorial Mass.
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Original Source:
<a href="http://media.www.ndsmcobserver.com/media/storage/paper660/news/2007/04/17/News/Campus.Reacts.To.Virginia.Tech.Massacre-2845947.shtml">http://media.www.ndsmcobserver.com/media/storage/paper660/news/2007/04/17/News/Campus.Reacts.To.Virginia.Tech.Massacre-2845947.shtml</a>
<a href="http://media.www.ndsmcobserver.com/media/storage/paper660/news/2007/04/17/News/Campus.Reacts.To.Virginia.Tech.Massacre-2845947-page2.shtml">http://media.www.ndsmcobserver.com/media/storage/paper660/news/2007/04/17/News/Campus.Reacts.To.Virginia.Tech.Massacre-2845947-page2.shtml</a>
<a href="http://media.www.ndsmcobserver.com/media/storage/paper660/news/2007/04/17/News/Campus.Reacts.To.Virginia.Tech.Massacre-2845947-page3.shtml">http://media.www.ndsmcobserver.com/media/storage/paper660/news/2007/04/17/News/Campus.Reacts.To.Virginia.Tech.Massacre-2845947-page3.shtml</a>
<a href="http://media.www.ndsmcobserver.com/media/storage/paper660/news/2007/04/17/News/Campus.Reacts.To.Virginia.Tech.Massacre-2845947-page4.shtml">http://media.www.ndsmcobserver.com/media/storage/paper660/news/2007/04/17/News/Campus.Reacts.To.Virginia.Tech.Massacre-2845947-page4.shtml</a>
Aaron Steiner
2008-02-25
Kacey Beddoes
Christopher Hine <chine@nd.edu>
eng
Vigil pays respect to Virginia Tech victims and families
By: Laura Fong | Freelance reporter |
Issue date: 4/25/07 Section: News
In honor of the 33 lives lost during the Virginia Tech shooting on April 16, University students and community members held a candlelight vigil in the Erb Memorial Union Amphitheater on Monday night.
Tea lights dotted the photographs of the 33 victims that lined the bottom step of the amphitheater. Attendees quietly lit candles and wrote their thoughts to the victims' friends and families on white pieces of paper that would later be sent to Virginia Tech.
University junior and family and human services major Jory Card organized the event through a Facebook group commemorating the victims of last week's shooting.
"These people are just like us - they could be your friends, your family," Card said to the crowd of about 60 attendees. "This is a time to be quiet with your friends and honor those who were lost."
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<a href="http://media.www.dailyemerald.com/media/storage/paper859/news/2007/04/24/Video/Video.Campus.Mourns.Virginia.Tech-2876566.shtml">Watch video from the vigil</a>
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University senior and journalism major Meghan Hilliard heard out about the event from Card, who is her roommate. Hilliard said she had a "reality check" when Card brought home the stack of 33 photographs of the victims later used for the vigil.
"The fact that the pictures take up the whole first row of our EMU amphitheater, I think is astounding," Hilliard said. "It's a real eye-opening visual because we hear of the 33 victims, but to see them is really impacting."
Lane Community College freshman Elizabeth Ashworth said she came to the vigil to pay respect to the Virginia Tech students and faculty.
"I realize how short life is and that it can be taken away, just like these people here," Ashworth said.
Ashworth heard about the vigil from her friend Megan Funke, a University freshman and psychology major, who also emphasized the importance of paying her respects to those affected by the shooting.
"If my friends were gone like this tomorrow, I don't know what I would do; it's such a huge tragedy." Funke said. "There are a lot of people whose lives (the victims) did affect, and I don't think that should be forgotten just because we're far away. "
Hilliard agreed that the far distance from Virginia Tech is unimportant, and that unfortunate events like the Virginia Tech shooting unite students across the country.
"In situations like this, campuses unite as one; campus lines are blurred since we're all going to school," Hilliard said. "This happened about 3,000 miles away, but it's still pertinent here and everywhere else."
Card said he wanted to bring students together one week after the shooting to remind them that they have "the ultimate say in our campus' safety."
"I want to honor the victims and spark a change on campus to bring us together," Card said. "I'd like to re-evaluate the true meaning of having a safe campus."
Card said that "safety" should extend further than "physical safety." People should also be respectful of those who have different opinions and backgrounds.
He asked the attendees: "How many times have you seen someone on 13th Avenue that you recognize and just ignore? I'm guilty of it too. My challenge to you is to find a way to bring us together as a campus."
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Photo by:Amber Mees
Original Source: Daily Emerald
<a href="http://media.www.dailyemerald.com/media/storage/paper859/news/2007/04/25/News/Vigil.Pays.Respect.To.Virginia.Tech.Victims.And.Families-2879322.shtml">http://media.www.dailyemerald.com/media/storage/paper859/news/2007/04/25/News/Vigil.Pays.Respect.To.Virginia.Tech.Victims.And.Families-2879322.shtml</a>
<a href="http://media.www.dailyemerald.com/media/storage/paper859/news/2007/04/25/News/Vigil.Pays.Respect.To.Virginia.Tech.Victims.And.Families-2879322-page2.shtml">http://media.www.dailyemerald.com/media/storage/paper859/news/2007/04/25/News/Vigil.Pays.Respect.To.Virginia.Tech.Victims.And.Families-2879322-page2.shtml</a>
Laura Fong (Author)/Amber Mees (Photo)
2008-02-19
Kacey Beddoes
Judy Riedl <jriedl@uoregon.edu>
eng
Students rally against religious protestors at Tech funerals
<b>Online groups decrying anti-gay protestors grow rapidly</b>
Max Hall, Cavalier Daily Associate Editor
Students across the nation are taking to Facebook in response to planned anti-gay protests at the funerals of Virginia Tech shooting victims.
Shirley Phelps-Roper, attorney for the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan., confirmed that the organization is planning to protest at the funerals of Tech students killed in Monday's shootings.
Virginia Tech junior Victor Kasoff expressed his anger at WBC leader Fred Phelps' decision to protest.
Virginia Tech "should do anything in their power to stop this guy from coming," Kasoff said.
At press time, one open Facebook group, "Stop Fred Phelps & WBC from protesting at fallen VT students funerals!!," created to stop the WBC funeral protests had 32,923 members and had at one point gained more than 1,000 new members in an hour.
Phelps-Roper placed the blame for the Tech killings on tolerance for homosexuality, saying the attack was a result of "those young people sitting in their classrooms being taught rebellion against God [and] being taught that God is a liar ... He says 'Thou shalt not lie with mankind as with womankind,' and you're teaching it. That's a lie: It's OK to be gay."
Kasoff said he found these claims to be absurd and offensive.
"The fact that [Phelps] thinks my friends, my Hokies, died because of America's decision to let people make their own decisions completely sickens me, and I hope they do everything in their power to stop him."
J.T. Segal, University Queer Student Union President-elect, echoed a similar sentiment, saying no one was to blame for Monday's tragedy other than the gunman.
Northwestern University senior Zak Kirchner, a member of the Facebook group, described the outpouring of support for Virginia Tech at Northwestern and his outrage toward Phelps and the WBC.
"As a Christian, it infuriated me," Kirchner said. "He's an overzealous hate-mongerer. He gives all the Christians out there who are praying and being as supportive as we can a bad name."
Kirchner suggested busing students from surrounding universities to the funerals of Tech students, saying a large showing by students might discourage the protesters and convince them to leave.
"I wish I were closer so that I could join the efforts in person," Kirchner said.
Rachel Skytt, a junior at the University of California, Davis who is also member of the group, said she was familiar with Fred Phelps and the WBC from their protests at funerals of soldiers killed in Iraq.
"The families and friends of the victims are going through so much right now and it just makes me sick that Fred Phelps wants to cause these people even more pain," Skytt said. "I just hope that the students can counter-protest in a peaceful way, because you can't fight hate with more hate."
Kasoff said he hoped such Facebook groups would successfully mobilize students against Phelps' organization.
"I don't want anyone who thinks like that to step anywhere near my campus," Kasoff said. "After what's happened we don't need to have to deal with morons like him."
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Original Source:<a href=http://www.cavalierdaily.com/CVArticle.asp?ID=30268&pid=1585>The Cavalier Daily - April 20, 2007</a>
Max Hall
The Cavalier Daily
2007-07-31
Sara Hood
Meggie Bonner <meggiebonner@gmail.com>
eng
El Movimiento Naranja en la Red
Publicado por Alex
4/19/2007 10:13:00 AM
Veintitres años. Treinta y dos cadáveres. Una Universidad y un resentimiento compartido que vuelve a reabrir el debate sobre las armas de fuego en los Estados Unidos de América y su uso tan poco controlado como aseguran las propias vÃctimas y familiares de la matanza del Virginia Tech. Cho Seung-Hui es un estudiante surcoreano que estuvo ingresado en un psiquiátrico en 2005, un hecho que hace preguntarse a los afectados un "porqué" al tan poco control de esta situación, un "porqué" al tan facil acceso a las armas de fuego (simplemente con un cuestionario a la ARF y las huellas dactilares es suficiente en la mayorÃa de los Estados, 18 años necesarios para armas largas como rifle de uso habitual para caza y 21 para armas de mano (EFE)
El homicida, ahora vilipendiado y criticado ahà donde se oye su nombre, tenÃa desde hace tiempo una conducta violenta y que sus compañeros llegaron a temer; y que ahora se preguntan si todo esto no se podrÃa haber evitado. A lo largo de Internet, este apoyo masivo no se llegaba a conocer desde los atentados del 11-S o del 11-M, y ahora la simple mención de Virginia en logs de todo tipo o anuncios en principios informativos se ha convertido inevitablemente en un primer resultado en todos los buscadores de la net. Es más, a lo largo de los blogs como en el que estamos ahora mismo se han dejado caer una serie de comentarios de lo más variados, como podemos ver aquÃ, o aquÃ. (No es de más ver que en technorati, una herramienta que une a gran parte de los blogs que existen en el mundo la matanza de Virginia Tech es lo más buscado)
Desde aquà y desde casi toda la net, se han repetido una continuada serie de avisos, comentarios y apoyo a los afectados. Entre ellos, por ejemplo podemos ver los comentarios dejados por los lectores de El PaÃs, o de cualquier otro log o lugar improvisado a lo largo de la red que se ha vuelto en un apoyo masivo en una lanza de crespones negros, palomas al viento y que cada vez recuerda más al movimiento popular y humano que se ha generado tanto dentro como fuera de las fronteras estadounidenses, mas dentro de estas cabe destacar el ya popularmente conocido como "movimiento naranja", por el uniforme universitario del equipo de rugby, un movimiento que tocó su hito más importante en la concentración de familiares, alumnos y profesores en los pasados dÃas en los que se encendieron cientos de velas como recuerdo a los fallecidos.
Ahora bien, con tal de que comprendais hasta dónde ha llegado este hecho, quisiera vincularos una serie de páginas en las que se referencia este trágico hecho, como periódicos en los que se habla de esto a lo largo del globo como es el caso de El ClarÃn de Argentina, El Comercio de Ecuador, o El Universal de México en cuanto al habla hispana que compartimos, pero de igual manera quisiera relacionar una serie de páginas que me han llamado la atención por la repercusión no ya mediática sino humana que conlleva, desde el apoyo incondicional de estudiantes de todo el mundo como sucede en facebook, un lugar de encuentro; casi rozando el morbo con la publicación de unas obras de teatro de caracter macabro del homicida; hasta un artÃculo en la wikipedia que sin duda ayude a recordar este trágico suceso, más allá de cualquier controversia.
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Fuente Original: Vade Retro
<a href="http://norvae.blogspot.com/">http://norvae.blogspot.com/</a>
Licencia de uso:
<a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.5/es/"> Creative Commons Reconocimiento-NoComercial-SinObraDerivada 2.5 España.
Alex
2007-07-31
Elva Orozco
Creative Commons
Reconocimiento-NoComercial-SinObraDerivada 2.5 España
spa
Internet plays powerful role in wake of Va. Tech
Forum | Tartan Board
Amid the chaos of what is already being called the Virginia Tech massacre, the Internet was a steady flow of fairly accurate information. Blogs — typically the anti-news source — were what helped piece together the events of early last Monday. Facebook — the social networking site of the century — was what helped friends and family know loved ones were okay. AIM idle times — usually an annoyance to anyone who wants to talk to someone — were identifiers to possible whereabouts for specific times. Wikipedia — what you shouldn't quote in your class paper — garnered a timetable of events from the aforementioned online "sources." News sites — reliable sources — assembled information about victims from their online profiles.
Most of us were affected by the shootings at Columbine in April 1999; as middle schoolers and junior high students, a high school shooting wasn't something to which we could easily turn a blind eye. Yet the shootings at Virginia Tech seem different, as we are all more closely linked by our similarities — we are all college students — and by our constant connection to the Internet. As we have seen with the deaths of students on our own campus, a Facebook wall can become a memorial; and as students who don't know the deceased read the walls, it's often an additional cause for legitimate sorrow. Facebook, and the Internet as a whole, lets us get a little bit closer to knowing the people who have died, and lets us understand what victims' friends are going through, too. The walls of the Virginia Tech massacre victims are experiencing the same flood of visitors, and a lot of it stands to show that as a generation, we are capable of coming together to support each other.
ABCNews.com 's April 16 article about online developments included bits from some students' online postings; one included a request for a Facebook group that calls to keep the facts of the incident straight. Another posting from ABCNews.com's article said that people from all over the world were soliciting videos of personal reactions from students via the Internet. The way the Internet has been utilized by our generation for the Virginia Tech Massacre is telling. While great in some ways, the Internet cannot be a substitute for action or an acceptable replacement for tasteful behavior.
The sheer volume of people expressing condolences is amazing and, perhaps, comforting. At the same time, the deluge of Internet gestures makes each one progressively more meaningless. A group search for "Virginia Tech" and "pray" on Facebook returns over 500 results. Except for two groups, at least the first five pages of search returns for just "Virginia Tech" are some kind of remembrance groups. The sentiment is spectacular if it's based in fact or action, but it is important to remember that starting a Facebook group does not necessarily solve problems or incite real action. Ultimately, human contact is what will help us all move on from this tragedy, not staring at a computer screen.
The varied uses for the Internet in the case of the massacre backs arguments from both sides about the Internet: It globalizes, but also singularizes; brings people together, but also prevents actual involvement. We encourage students to use the Internet to help grieve and show support for the Virginia Tech community. When grappling with such terrible loss, the Internet is an excellent tool — it just shouldn't be the only tool. Good things come from the Internet being used to its fullest capacity, and so do weaker things. We are the Internet generation. We just need to learn to harness the power of the Internet, to use it to unite, but to not expect impossible things from it.
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Original Source:<a href=http://www.thetartan.org/2007/4/23/forum/boarded2> The Tartan - April 23, 2007</a>
Tartan Board
2007-07-31
Sara Hood
Shawn Wertz <swertz@andrew.cmu.edu>
eng
Fun Facebook in Juxtaposition with Virginia Tech Tragedy
Friday, April 27, 2007
Early Monday morning Toronto, April 16; very nice day, it's spring at last - you can feel it in the air - maybe the oxygen levels are up a little - there's a craziness in the air, a frenetic kind of feeling...
I punched the computer; threw on the radio; and began to create coffee.
I prime my story-writing brain with <a href="http://www.npr.org/">National Public Radio</a>; but soon the voices will be in the back of my head, and I'll be blogging down a pathway in search of a twig.
The twig appeared on NPR, news at 10:00; a shooting at Virginia Tech, a lock-down, nothing more...
I have been interested in the phenomena of the serial and mass murderers since the 1970's - when a peer of mine took a hunting rifle to school in a nearby town.
In the early eighties <a href="http://www.googlesyndicatedsearch.com/u/memorial2?q=Elliott%20Leyton&domains=mun.ca&sitesearch=mun.ca">Elliott</a> <a href="http://www.googlesyndicatedsearch.com/u/memorial2?q=Elliott+Leyton&domains=mun.ca&sitesearch=mun.ca">Leytons </a>excellent work, 'Hunting Humans' came out; and I gave it a read. I have followed the science of profiling with interest ever since. The most strange and distorted individuals, sometimes offer the most interesting reflections of a culture.
The X-files, the 1990's TV series, starred David Duchovny as Fox Mulder, FBI profiler. The shows writers used up-to-date theory and research to punch up the script. One of my favorites.
I knew right away this was my twig - I also knew this was going to be a lousy day. As a writer though, it would be a rewarding one.
I knew a fast breaking story like this one could change the way news is consumed. In the San Francisco earthquake of 1989, CNN went live for at least 12 hours (I feel asleep), until the next morning. It was the first time a network had done this kind of news coverage. CNN's next big gig was the 1991 war with Iraq. Brought to you live; with the CNN correspondent sending video as American Bombs rained down around him; and anti-aircraft tracer fire lit the sky at mid-night.These two events took CNN from small player to a major in the news business.
Now perhaps the Internet was about to experience a similar metamorphosis.
My plan was to watch a national story unfold in real time on the Internet, and write about the experience.
So I click on my FireFox icon, and Boolean search: Virginia + Tech + Blogs.
I've found the 'Blog 'O' Sphere' is a good place to find citizen journalists close to the scene as a story is breaking - like Baghdad Blogger in 2003 and the Blogs out of Beirut, under Israeli siege in the summer of 2006.
Interesting, No Bloggers, No MySpace...
List, List, List. Common thread, come on. What's common other than VTech?
Facebook! Everyone at Virginia Tech is on Facebook!
So I joined.
Apparently, so did a '<a href="http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?q=&url=facebook.com/">million</a>' other people.
I'm exploring its Web 2.0 possibilities now.
Yin & Yang, Dam Yin & Yang.
mh
Posted by Michael Holloway at 4/27/2007 06:55:00 PM
Original Source: <a href="http://filter--blog.blogspot.com/2007/04/fun-facebook-rises-out-of-tragedy-at.html">http://filter--blog.blogspot.com/2007/04/fun-facebook-rises-out-of-tragedy-at.html</a>
Licensed under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5/">Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 2.5 License</a>.
Michael Holloway
2007-05-19
Brent Jesiek
eng
UD: Today We are All Hokies
This was a logo I created for Facebook and my Facebook profile the week of the tragedy.
Mike Fox
2007-05-08
Mike Fox
eng
Mourning Tech on Facebook
If you don't know what Facebook is, you've probably heard of it, especially if you have children in high school or college. It's one of those social networking sites that parents, lawmakers and educators discuss when they're concerned about cyber bullying or child predators. But after the Virginia Tech tragedy on April 16, the site truly brought the world closer together in the most remarkable scene of solidarity and compassion I have ever seen online.
Within a day of the shootings, the most common symbol on Facebook was a combination black hope ribbon and maroon "VT" logo. Most Facebook users have default profile photos of themselves posing with friends, at parties, on vacation or with their significant others; almost overnight, most were replaced with the Hokie hope ribbon. It was heartwarming to see students from across the world join together in mourning - e-mourning, you could say.
Many Facebook users posted on their profiles or in common-interest group bulletin boards the Hokie hope ribbon accompanied with their school's mascot or coat of arms with the phrase "Today we are all Hokies."
And we all certainly were.
Facebook usually is used to keep in touch with friends, post and share photos, organize and publicize events and find other people with common interests, and all of those features were used in the days after the tragedy to report breaking news and new information, organize vigils and charities, post photo illustrations and sketches commemorating the shootings and even share poems Facebook users composed. Only a handful of users have discussed politics; it seems most e-mourners are first and foremost focused on their grief and sympathy, and how they can help.
In the first frantic and confusing hours and days after the tragedy, one group was dedicated to posting updated information on the event and its aftermath, and others sprang up declaring "Nationwide Orange and Maroon Day," "April 16, 2007 - A Moment of Silence" and "Prayer Group for Va. Tech," for example.
When the media reported that the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan. - a cult of hatemongers who have picketed military funerals with inflammatory banners - would show up at Tech victims' funerals, a protest Facebook group emerged to organize and voice opposition. The congregation eventually did rescind their plan to protest the Tech funerals, but not before the Facebook group's membership swelled to more than 59,000.
Perhaps the most touching Facebook group I've discovered was "All Schools Unite for Virginia Tech," created by a University of Tennessee student. The goal is to tally one volunteer representative from 1,000 different schools and then engrave those names on a plaque that will be presented to Tech; I'm representing my alma mater, the University of Delaware. Students from schools I've never heard of, even schools in Canada and high schools from across America, have joined and shown their support. More than 725 colleges and high schools are represented on the list thus far.
Facebook groups also have been dedicated to the victims as a place for users to share funeral and vigil information and messages about - and to - their lost friends. I didn't know any of the victims, but I did join a group dedicated to Mary Read, since she attended my high school in Annandale, Va. Mary was remembered most by friends for her friendly, heartwarming smile, and many of her friends have replaced their Facebook profile photos with photos of Mary. "Look Mary, there are so many people that love you," one person wrote on the message board, referring to Mary's profile on The New York Times Web site. "I love you and can't wait to see you again in Heaven."
As Blacksburg tries to return to a sense of normalcy, so is Facebook. Many users have reverted to their former profile photos, and Tech commemoration groups are being updated less and less.
But like the gravestones at Arlington or memorials in the nation's capitol, the posted messages of compassion and heartache on Facebook will always be there; the photos of America's college students at vigils and donning orange and maroon in a show of solemn solidarity and hope will always be there; the photos of empathetic banners signed by countless students in a time of mourning will always be there; and the photos of memorials, flowers and notes on Tech's Drillfield will always be there.
Facebook helped to document history that week, and none of us will forget when we were all Hokies.
Mike Fox is a copy editor with the Bristol (Va.) Herald Courier.
Originally published on Sunday, April 29 in the Bristol Herald Courier, of Bristol, Virginia.
Mike Fox
2007-05-02
Mike Fox
eng