The events that took place on Monday Virginia Tech is a poignant reminder of what took place at Brampton Centennial. The memory of friends killed and wounded become fresh again for a few moments. The out of bounds hounding of the press in 1975 of families of victims and the family of the perpetrator has increased only ten fold.
Families and friends who seek to bury their dead in peace and out of the spotlight find instead a string of cameras recording their private lives under the unjust and disrespectful claim that the public has a right to know when all they are doing is satisfying their own voyeuristic desires and those who have similar neurotic tendencies. Most of those pointing the cameras those same people would never want to be on the receiving end of being the subject of the voyeuristic desires of the public.
This is voyeuristic shameful behavior that disregards the right to privacy pails when compared to a much more grievous conduct by the press. This dreadful conduct is the media’s decision to publish the letters and recordings of the shooter. I have not read them or listened to them, and I will not do so. The press under the guise of the public has a right to know is only laying the foundation for the next psychotic killer. The press needs to ask, “Why has he left these messages? And why did he send some of them to NBC?” The answer is simple. In his psychotic delirium he wanted to justify his actions, to gain notoriety and to have is work published. And it worked!!! The press gave him what he sought from them! The press has played into this game and he has the victory.
Those who argue that if they do not publish it some other media outlet will are misguided. NBC and others should have taken the high ground by stating that they refused to publish it because by doing so that are rewarding the killer by giving out his message and they would only be encouraging others to follow similarly. Further, they could claim that in this situation that they are setting aside the freedom to publish and profit for the greater good of the community. The press that cries about ethics and call for political and business leaders to courageously seek the common good for the public above personal gain have demonstrated in the publication of the killer’s material that they too are no better than those they attack with vengeance.
Reflective Wanderings - Reflections on various topics that arise out of my personal, life and professional experiences. There are also are some family related news, travels and pictures.
7 comments:
Hi David:
It's just past one in the morning and I was about to go to bed after a night of studying when I felt it was time to do something I have been putting off for the past couple of days. I have been putting off reading your blog for I knew that you and Evie would be writing about the terrible tragedy that took place on the Virginia Tech campus.
Everytime I hear of something like this, my first thoughts always goes back to what occurred at Brampton Centenial and what you, Joanne and Cathy experienced on that day back in 1975.
We are all horrified by what has occured there at V Tech. The scale of the tragedy defies all human comprehension. All those beautiful young people - dedicated profs - caught up in the tragedy of a young man whose own life was sheer hell. His mental anguish, we cannot even begin to understand.
I think of Michael Slabodian - another young man whose mental illness caused him to do such an extreme act - a young man whose mental state led him to a life of living hell.
I agree that NBC should not have aired the comments and tiraids of this young man. It's not about giving credence to his act, but rather the insensitivity of it all as families try to come to grip of losing their most precious possession in their child and as investigators and mental health professionals try to find out what drove this young man to this point of destruction. NBC should have forwarded these recording to the officials and allow them to do their job and the families to recover.
When I think of the shooter, I cannot help but think that it could have been you or me pulling the trigger. We are all suseptable to mental illness - to irrational and potentially destructive behaviour. I shudder at the living hell he experienced. Yes it is evil, yes people deserve to express their outrage towards him. I hope that through this experience, that the community will be able to turn to look at the response of the Amish community last fall when their daughters were lined up in the school house and executed by another deranged man. It's a response of forgiveness that reached into the life of the family of the man who took their daughters from them.
True healing when unconditional forgiveness is granted that heals a community and those who are victimize by acts as witnessed this week at V Tech.
Tell Josh that we prayed for him tonight. Boy does this hit close to home!
I totally agree about your thoughts on the media coverage. As with every event like this, they come out in hoards, looking for any little tidbit that they can sink their chops into. I was proud of the Canadian station who took a stand and refused to air the video clips and pictures of the gunman.
As STephen has said, my heart is breaking for everyone involved, but also for the man who was crying for help that never came. The heros were the young men who recognized his need and spoke up ... unfortunately the help wasn't there, or wasn't enough. My heart breaks for his family, who are the forgoten victims in all of this. How does someone ever recover from this, especially with the media coverage the way it is.
I've paid very little attention to the media coverage for the past several days since I am not interested in media voyeurism.
VA Tech cancelled classes for the week and many of the students went home to be with their families. Some of them visited Joshua's school the other day. He said their pain was visible on their faces.
Healing will occur and has already begun. Unfortunately, the process will take a long time and it will leave indelible scars on the souls of all who have been affected by this tragedy.
I was away at a conference at Jackson's Point this past week where there was no TV, and no newspaper. I found fount on Tuesday when I spoke to Bruce on the phone. I have avoided all news reports on this event for two key reasons........one, as I also want to avoid the media voyerism. It seems to be getting worse as our world is becoming more global. Two, as I wanted to avoid the nightmares I know would return with the images and sounds of news reports.
I have an affinity for those students at Virginia Tech, for all they have gone through this past week, for all they will go through in the coming weeks as they come to grips with this and try to heal, and for those times through out their lives where circumstances that present themselves will remind them of this tragedy.
My thoughts and prayers are with the faculty, staff and students of Virginia Tech. As Stephen & Barb so eloquently have stated, my thoughts too are with the shooter's family. They are the forgotten victims in this.
Joanne
I read this afternoon that the Student Government at Va Tech has asked the press to leave campus by tomorrow morning so that they can get on with their lives. Good for them for speaking up for themselves!
Let's hope the press honour the request of the students. Let's pray too that they will leave the families alone to say good bye to their children and loved ones.
Joanne
I have also had toughts of VA Tech dominating my thoughts this past week.
The CBC special on Brampton Centennial aired on Sunday. It sure was hard to watch.
No one should have to go through that and forever feel their security and peace of mind threatened. Each time you hear of a shooting like this you go through it all over again.
I read Barbara's blog and about crying for all those involved, even those that the media would not have sympathy for. I cry too.
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