Cali's

I just read about the shooting at Northern Illinois University. I am saddened, disgusted, and angry. I just can't believe this has happened again. And to think this is the fourth one that's happened this week. (Also at a Jr. High, a High School, and a community college). It's like if some kid feels the need to act out in some way, it's all the rage to shoot some people at a school then kill yourself. If I were a perfect person, I would feel sorrow for the shooters and hope that one day they might find themselves and find forgiveness in heaven. But, it is so hard for me to feel that way when I think of the innocent people who were murdered, and the people that grieve for their deaths. Who the hell do these people think they are, I'd like to know? Could there possibly be a more selfish thing to do?

I am not anti-iraq-war, but it seems to me that in the past couple of years there is a need to turn some focus on fighting the different kind of terror going on in our schools (our SCHOOLS) and something needs to be done about it NOW. We have to be nuts to just do nothing, cross our fingers and hope it doesn't happen again, because it will. And it will happen here. And the people who take some kind of sick glory in the fact that they have gotten (or hope to get) attention by committing a "terrorist" act, then I hope only that they will burn in hell forever and ever. Killing themselves after murdering others will only hasten their intense, everlasting misery.

Just last semester, there was a scary incident in one of Geoff's classes. They were discussing the topic of love and committment that day (it was a health class), and there was a kid sitting next to Geoff that was acting really restless. He kept getting out of his seat and moving to the seat behind Geoff, then he'd get up and move back to the seat next to Geoff, back and forth. He kept slamming his books around, making scoffing noises at the teacher's lecture, and at one point said, "does anybody else have a problem with committment?!" Eventually he got out of his chair, took his book bag with him, and left the room. A few minutes later, the campus police came into the classroom and asked to speak privately with the teacher. When she came back into the room her face was pale, and she said she didn't feel like teaching the rest of class that day, and excused the students. As Geoff walked out of the classroom, he saw the kid sitting, handcuffed, against the wall, as the policemen were searching his bags. The kid never came back to class, and we hoped he'd been banned from campus (not that that would stop someone who wanted to do some damage). But a couple of months ago, Geoff saw that same kid back on campus, walking down the walkway, staring up at the sky. So, what's going to happen when him, or any other nut job, wants to come to school and shoot some people? There is nothing that would stop them.

I once heard someone say that ALL higher education would someday be done remotely, from your own home, because they thought it would eventually be too dangerous to hold class on a campus. That may seem a little extreme, but think about it. I took a student survey last week that asked if I had any problems if they were to conduct mental health tests on students that may be risks, and refused to accept them into school if they were found to be of significant risk. I have absolutely no problem with that. (Boy think of the special rights groups that would have a hay day with that one). But really, someone has to do SOMEthing. I'm not saying the schools are to blame for these tragedies, but they are the only ones who could do something to protect their students from those who have no thought for human life.

I love my family so much. I couldn't bear it if anything ever happened to them.