Va Tech Massacre - How Did It Happen?

As news coverage continues of yesterday's shooting at Virginia Tech-"The Greatest School Massacre in US History"-I hear more and more people asking how this shooting could have happened. I hear people share their shock and awe in the tragic turn of events. As saddened as I am about the inexcusable loss of life, I am not shocked. I am not shocked because I see the anger that young people possess. I am not shocked because I see the harmful effects of pursuing profits over the needs of people. I am not shocked because America has become so cold in the past 30 years.

In my line of work, I connect with middle, high school, and college students. Young people who for all intents and purposes have their entire lives ahead of them. And yet, so many of the young people that I come across are so angry-so very angry. When I ask of the source of their anger, many teens have buried the pain for so long, the words literally get caught in their throats. From what I have gathered in my research, however, many young people feel neglected by the very family that is supposed to love, guide and protect them. They are angry for being sent to school with an empty stomach. They are angry for being asked to do homework and no one in the household will try to help their efforts. They are angry at the crowdiness in their homes. They are angry at the drug abuse that goes on in their homes. And yet with all of the anger, hardly ever does a young person feel that they have someone with whom to confide. What happens to a young person who feels angry and doesn't believe that they can release the anger? Do they explode? Was the Va Tech shooter an angry person?

Capitalism. I studied it for years as a college student, I embraced it as an entrepreneur but now as a practitioner who works in the field with young people, I see how the pursuit of profits is diminishing the quality of life for all Americans - regardless of age. What happens in America when a child needs psychological help but the parents don't have insurance? Are his needs met? No. Does the child's suffering stop because the money isn't available to pay for the counseling? No. What happens in America when the anti-gun lobby asks for stricter laws in selling firearms? The pro-gun lobby PAYS more MONEY, the anti-gun lobby is silenced and the laws never get enacted. The gun manufacturers want to be rich, rich, rich. They don't concern themselves with the people who may die, die, die when a firearm easily gets into the hands of the wrong person. What happens to the young person who is angry, needs psychological help and has access to purchase a firearm? Bang! Was the VA Tech shooter in need of psychological help?

America: Land of the Beautiful, home of the COLD. Americans hardly say please or thank you to one another. When they're about to bump into you in a mall, they don't even want to say , "Excuse Me." They stay in their homes like groundhogs afraid of interaction with another human. Americans have become isolated. They hide behind locked doors and pretend electronic interaction is on the level of real human interaction. Americans see other Americans in trouble, but they don't speak up because it's against their slogan of "It's Not My Problem." Americans no longer know their own neighbors. The people who moved across the street from them could be pedophiles, you could see them bringing young boys into their home at all hours of the night and you wouldn't even raise a brow. The most the average American would say is, "Wow. That new neighbor is one heck of a boy scout. He must have lots of activities for his boys." Again, we're committed to the slogan, "It's Not My Problem." The problem with the slogan is: Somebody else's problem will eventually become your problem if it goes unchecked. The alcoholic who hits his wife and no one reported because no one thought it was their problem. Well, that same alcoholic got behind the wheel and ran over one of the neighborhood kids. It's your problem now. Did the VA Tech shooter have a problem that someone saw but decided against acknowledging, reporting or even attempting to help?

I don't pretend to have the answers, I just know that young people are some of the angriest people I've ever met, the pursuit of the mighty dollar is leaving a lot of people short, and turning our backs on other people's problems is getting us stabbed straight in it. I don't know how many massacres it's gonna take for America and Americans to step up to the plate. As one of my colleagues has said, "Who's gonna take the weight?" Somebody, somebodies, a whole lotta bodies ought to.

Straight In The Head

A fifteen year old male in San Bernadino, California was shot in the head in front of 100 people while coming out of a chicken joint. And yet not one witness has come forward to share information with the police.

At fifteen I was worried about the cute guy who I wanted to call me, but I wasn't worried about being shot straight in the head.

At fifteen, I got into he say/she say arguments with girls that were more than likely motivated by pettiness and jealousy, but none of those arguments lead to a bullet straight in the head.

At fifteen, I tried to hang with my brother's friends who were two years older than me, I was often in more mature situations than I could process, but I never thought about being shot straight in the head.

I would tell you the race of this fifteen year old. But what difference does it make? Any fifteen year old-white, black or brown- with good sense will tell you he's not ready die. Anybody person older than fifteen-white, black or brown- with good sense will tell you that they are not ready to die either. In fact, a 50 year old American will tell you that at 50, they're just getting started.

When we hear that a senseless act of violence involved a black teen, some of us unconsciously say to ourselves, "He probably deserved it." When we hear of a brown child involved in a senseless act of violence, some of us say to ourselves, "They're just like that." But when we hear of a white child involved in a senseless act of violence, we are most likely to say, "Oh, poor thing." We will even get outraged because whatever the case, we believe because he was white that he didn't deserve to become a victim of violence.

But at 15, no matter the color, bullets should not end your life. It doesn't matter if you live in the projects or in a Manhattan hi-rise, 15 years of age, is too young to die. When are we going to start getting outraged for all teens who are dying too young because of senseless violence. Are we truly so unevolved that we can't see the importance of life through race and economics?