Why is it Always the Quiet Ones?
I’m sitting here reading and watching the fallout from the Virginia Tech shooting and I can’t help but be awed by the fact that we’ve been here before. It’s Day 2 and what do we know?
According to all the news agencies, we know the shooter was 23-year-old Cho Seung-Hui. His family emigrated to the U.S. from South Korea in the early 90’s. Cho was a senior English major with emphasis in creative writing. Already, VA Tech officials are stating that Cho had recently been referred to the counseling service as being troubled.
And we know we have a standard list of questions: What could have driven him to this act of rage and violence? Did he hate his classmates? If he was so pissed off, why couldn’t he just off himself? How could he be capable of this? Why was his writing so disturbed? Was this the culmination of a life of disappointment?
But we always ask these questions. Every time someone goes into a school and decides to open fire – we try to make sense of the tragedy with the same recycled questions. As the news rolls on and on about the lives lost and the reasons behind the shootings, I’ve developed a question of my own.
Why is quiet so dangerous?
Everything I’ve heard about Cho says all the same thing: He was a quiet guy who pretty much kept to himself. What forces someone to withdraw like that – to become an observer, not a participant in life around him. And worse off – why didn’t anyone around him pick up on it? Like BrownSuga pointed out last night, what if just ONE person had become concerned for his quietness? Makes you wonder how different yesterday would have been.
Another thought that keeps nagging at me is why do these things happen in supposedly quiet places. Virginia may be the bastion of hunting and outdoor life, but it’s not exactly the crime capital of the nation. If we look back at the history of school shootings – most of these places were ideal locations for top-notch learning.
Littleton, CO was a mid to upper class town when the Columbine happened. Santee was just starting to grow quickly in San Diego County when a student put Santana High School on lockdown. Virginia Tech is a rowdy college like all colleges is rowdy – but the education and location are ideal. What in these environments drive people to commit acts of gross violence?
As with all the questions we ask in times like this – the answers are never easy. I’d be surprised if we ever get an answer.
But one thing I know for sure is that I don’t think I’ll look at quiet the same way again.
posted by Lillian T. White @ 9:25 PM
1 Comments:
depression is serious and what was ironic was the person who gave me the blog I posted on Monday made the comment that depression was the "common cold" of mental health. And the way he said it came across as if he was belittling the disease, like it happens to everyone so just get used to it. But it is serious and until we deal with it like we dealt with Measles Mumps or Rubella it will always cause some huge issues. Unfortunately depression probably won't be cured with a vaccination.
My first suggestion is communication. Getting people to talk and talk to ANYONE I believe can only help.
One of students killed lives here in my tiny town and everyone is shocked. Being someone who hated college, I was tremendously impressed with his resume; 3 majors 4.0 gpa 8 year couselor for a camp for austic children....his life could have been spared had someone talked to this young man.
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