Shooting at Virginia Tech

[Coach Bryant]

Re: Shooting at Virgina Tech

This kind of event has never occurred ever in the history of the US. You cannot prepare for an event like this.

Yes it has. Sept 11. This is a terrorist act any way you slice it. This is a evil and sick society we live in.

[Skerik]

Re: Shooting at Virgina Tech

This kind of event has never occurred ever in the history of the US. You cannot prepare for an event like this.

Similar events have occurred, though not with as high a body count. And after recent events (like coordinated terror attacks), one would have thought before this incident that it would be difficult for one guy (a non-military english major at that) to take down 30+ people by himself using handguns.

It's very scary to me that one guy was able to produce a body count like this in a place as public and "secure" as a college campus. Lord only knows what a group of people who actually train to do this sort of thing could accomplish.

[SidVish]

Re: Shooting at Virgina Tech

Might want to add that he had guns with the serial numbers filed off.

Either he filed them off himself; or he bought some black market guns. Either way he had this planned out.

I didn't hear about that. You're right, nobody goes through all of this trouble over a domestic dispute.

[Skerik]

Re: Shooting at Virgina Tech

Might want to add that he had guns with the serial numbers filed off.

Either he filed them off himself; or he bought some black market guns. Either way he had this planned out.

The serial numbers were filed, but they found a receipt for at least one of the guns. WTF? Why file the serial numbers if you're going to carry a receipt around?

[The C]

Re: Shooting at Virgina Tech

The serial numbers were filed, but they found a receipt for at least one of the guns. WTF? Why file the serial numbers if you're going to carry a receipt around?

Oh, I didn't know about the receipt part.

Maybe he just forgot about the receipt? It would seem easy to overlook when your gearing up for your sick, twisted destiny.

[ehh]

Re: Shooting at Virgina Tech

Now here's the part where I think the ugly round two shootings could have been prevented: Gunshots create a very loud noise. These alleged shootings of Hilscher and Clark occurred at approximately 7-something AM. Most college people are sleeping at this point.Wouldn't a lot of nearby residents hear the gunshots? Furthermore, wouldn't these people try to take a peep out their front door peephole to see who might be walking by?

From what I've seen/heard is that witnesses thought the noise was construction. In a quite, peaceful place like VT appears to be on a typical day, I don't think students would wake up and immediately think of gunshots when they hear a loud bang.

[GBrushTWood]

Re: Shooting at Virgina Tech

I disagree with the theory that this is just a "domestic issue" gone wild. I think it's the opposite - that the true intent of the day was the classroom rampage and he decided he might as well kill his (ex?)girlfriend that morning while he was at it. Nobody becomes so unhinged by a domestic issue that they return to their room, gather up all kinds of weapons and ammo that they just had lying around, including chains to fasten the doors of classrooms shut, and then go on a mass murdering rampage.

That's just far fetched. If anything, it looks like the girlfriend was the afterthought, not vice versa.

I have to disagree. I think he was mentally unequipped to handle the thoughts that are part in parcel with being infatuated with a woman, and that this was the breaking point for going postal.

- I have a suspicion that the black RA dude was involved somehow. Why did Seung-Hui not kill anybody else in the dorm after killing Hilscher and the black RA? Why did he not kill anybody else on his path from the first murder scene on his way back to his room? It seems reasonable that he walked past some human beings in his path.

- Why were there 2 hours in between the first and second killings? If his initial plan was to shoot up class rooms, why did he wait so long? It probably doesn't take more than a few minutes to pick up the other gun, and then strap on the ammo. I don't think he sat down his dorm room, made a turkey sandwich, then decided to go at a planned time.

No, rather I think he was losing his mind after killing the first two people and emo'ing out hardcore. He knew he was ****ed because popo would find out he just killed two people. His life was over. Parents would disown him. He had nobody. So he went insane and knew that if his life was over, he was bringing others down with him. Hence, the suicide note, which I believe was written in the time in between the first and second set of murders.

That's my theory. I'm not saying it's the gospel or anything, I'm just trying to ask questions that need to be answered. If somebody has a better answer for the questions I posed above, I'm interested in hearing it.

[ehh]

Re: Shooting at Virgina Tech

Yes it has. Sept 11. This is a terrorist act any way you slice it. This is a evil and sick society we live in.

Definitely. What happened yesterday is a great tragedy, but at this point in time it still pales in comparison to 9/11.

[jdros13]

Re: Shooting at Virgina Tech

This kind of event has never occurred ever in the history of the US. You cannot prepare for an event like this.

Actually, I'd say it happens far too often.

Most of the time I'd google a whole bunch of supporting articles, but now isn't the time.

I was at Penn State (1996) when a student decided lay down on a tarp under a tree and start firing a rifle at students in the middle of campus...fortunately there was only one casualty there (the shooter was subdued by another student after she got off 5 shots I believe), but it was still an absolutely frightening day to be a student there.

This could happen anywhere, at anytime. If the wrong person decides this is going to be the day they are going on a shooting spree, and they are sufficiently motivated, they can make it happen. Unfortunately incidents like this are a reminder of this reality.

[MizzouBravesFan]

Re: Shooting at Virgina Tech

- I have a suspicion that the black RA dude was involved somehow. Why did Seung-Hui not kill anybody else in the dorm after killing Hilscher and the black RA? Why did he not kill anybody else on his path from the first murder scene on his way back to his room? It seems reasonable that he walked past some human beings in his path.

I read somewhere that allegedly Seung-Hui thought that Hilscher was cheating on him with Ryan Clark and when Clark came to intervene between those two, he shot them both.

[TJdaSportsGuy]

Re: Shooting at Virgina Tech

This could happen anywhere, at anytime. If the wrong person decides this is going to be the day they are going on a shooting spree, and they are sufficiently motivated, they can make it happen. Unfortunately incidents like this are a reminder of this reality.

The scariest part of it is the psychopaths who aren't afraid to die. I was just listening on the radio, and someone yesterday said hey, if someone wanted to kill the president and didn't care about dying himself, it wouldn't be that difficult. The people who aren't afraid to die themselves are the ones who scare the **** out of me.

[Coach Bryant]

Re: Shooting at Virgina Tech

And he still is!

[Flyboy]

Re: Shooting at Virgina Tech

I read somewhere that allegedly Seung-Hui thought that Hilscher was cheating on him with Ryan Clark and when Clark came to intervene between those two, he shot them both.

That's where the story gets confusing. If that's ALL the killer wanted to do then the death count yesterday would have been two.. three at the most including the killer. Things still don't add up.

[Skerik]

Re: Shooting at Virgina Tech

The scariest part of it is the psychopaths who aren't afraid to die. I was just listening on the radio, and someone yesterday said hey, if someone wanted to kill the president and didn't care about dying himself, it wouldn't be that difficult. The people who aren't afraid to die themselves are the ones who scare the **** out of me.

Agreed. Look at what kept everyone's fingers off the button during the Cold War - the concept of mutually assured destruction. Neither side wanted to risk the obliteration of its own country and people. But when you're dealing with people who don't value their own lives, well, all bets are off.

[rubisco43]

Re: Shooting at Virgina Tech

http://gamepolitics.com/2007/04/17/dr-phil-blames-video-games-for-virginia-tech-massacre/

Dr. Phil jumps on the "blame video games" bandwagon.