1. YOU WOULD THINK AFTER ALL THIS, THE GUN LAWS WOULD CHANGE AND PEOPLE WOULD THINK TWICE BEFORE IGNORING AN INDIVIDUAL WITH SUCH APPARENT ISSUES AS CHO SUENG. WE NEED A BETTER GOVERNMENT. PEOPLE THAT CARE AND CAN MAKE A DIFFRENCE SO TO HELP AVOID THESES TRAGEDYS.

KATHRYN at 3:11PM on Apr 20th 2007

2. you just dont get it,i dont understand such stupidity.he would have killed those kids no matter what you can buy guns illegally anywhere,gun laws wont change that...noone could tell the mans secrets because of privacy laws that started when clinton(dem)was in office.its crap.the school is not to blame for knowing that the legal unamerican was insane and not telling authorities,they could have been sued and the legal unamericans would have won that lawsuit.who should be held accountable?the school holds all accountability for not responding properly and maybe they could have saved some people but they could not have saved the first two victims.changing the gun laws will not stop crimes like this.changing all these stupid timewasting laws .that might help.if youve nothing to hide then who cares if authorities are watching you.if your neighbor was a suspected terrorist would you rather the government step in and spy or just wait for him to attack?cho sueng wasnt ignored he was protected by
our privacy laws ,,,,,our 1996 government

elenak at 6:31PM on Apr 20th 2007

3. In my view, killing of innocents is one of the definitions of mental illness.

Steve Bonomo at 9:04PM on Apr 20th 2007

4. If it weren't for the first amendment we wouldn't need a second amendment, anybody knows that. But this country doesn't need to keep on honoring the faux heroes of our wild west past. The early settlers and pioneers plowed land stolen from its previous occupants and committed horrible genocide on an indiginous population. That we continue to support laws that allow people to act like cowboys in the street is ridiculously dangerous in a population of 300 million. Most of these wild west heroes were nothing more than thugs who occasionally wore a badge from a testerone induced posse. Jesus man, in todays world we got to keep the guns away from all the crazies, not just the ones with an agenda. Explain to me why it is reasonable for anyone not in the U.S. military to own and operate a 50 Caliber Rifle with armor piercing ammunition? The NRA just explains that it's their right but what is right about the kind of guy who get's juiced on the kind of firepower used to take out armored vehicles. If you really want to be a cowboy and fire a 50 cal weapon go help out in Iraq, I hear we can't get enough volunteers for that gig.

Underdog at 11:41PM on Apr 20th 2007

5. I think it's interesting that you've framed the V-Tech incident as a gun control issue. I totally agree. It's also a privacy issue. We need to change our privacy laws so that gun background checks can include treatment for mental health issues. We also need to tighten our national gun control standards. Some are framing it as a college-campus security issue, but it's definitely a gun control issue.

Of course, the administration is stubborn as ever...

matt at 12:22AM on Apr 21st 2007

6. Rich,

I am dissapointed in your short sighted and reactionary attitude. That you would take a part of our culture and just throw the baby out with the bath water over one isolated incident of a single person who went off the deep end.

Your tounge in cheek call for gun law changes demonstrates a willingness to allow how we feel about a horrible tragedy to cloud our reason. Gun laws would change little in this case. The honest truth is that an inteligent and determined person can kill, and effectivly wreak havoc.

Not only is there no way to ever stop it, we don't need to. If you lined up all of the victems of incidents like this, EVER, you wouldn't even come close to one years worth of heart disease deaths.

Talk about penny wise and dollar foolish.

This incident was not indicitive of any systemic problem. It was indicitive of what one individual can do and should enhearten us. To know that ANY one of us could do that, any one of 300 million of us. Yet... it happens so infrequently.

This was a tragedy. This was not, however, a reason to throw out most fundamantal rights away. You should be ashamed for being so reactionary. This isn't high school anymore.

sjc at 1:59PM on Apr 21st 2007

7. certainly guns are always available illegally so gun control laws are not the answer. But I believe the distribution of guns and ammo can be better regulated. Do you realize that he bought the clips of ammo over E-bay.

Comment on that versus gun control laws.

rob rubin at 12:17AM on Apr 22nd 2007

8. It's interesting how liberal bias is framed. A linking between Iraq and Viginia tech is nothing but cheap political spin. You should be ashamed. Every day in our inner cities, kids are killing each other...gang inspired rap music plays (booms) the glory of it,and never a word from the politically correct liberals. Instead you decide to focus on a mental case and gun control. If a gun wasn't available there are a hundred OTHER ways to kill alot of people. If a person is crazy enough, determined enough and wants to kill, they can find a way. Can't you ever give the DEM talking points a rest?

joe m at 9:13AM on Apr 22nd 2007

9. I fully agree with sjc ... This was a tragedy. This was not, however, a reason to throw out any of our fundamantal rights. Could something have been done that might have prevented it? Yes, of course, but not gun control ... rather, quarterly in-depth mental-health screening and follow-up treatment for all school children. Are we ready for that?

sjc

Martin at 10:45AM on Apr 22nd 2007

10. I fully agree with sjc ... This was a tragedy. This was not, however, a reason to diminish any of our fundamantal rights. Could something have been done that might have prevented it? Yes, of course, but not gun control ... rather, quarterly in-depth mental-health screening and follow-up treatment for all school children. Are we ready for that?

Martin at 10:49AM on Apr 22nd 2007