The biggest shock was the table in USA Today, outlining the numbers of people killed in educational institutions over the last few years (from about 4 to something like 24 each year, to now).

In Australia we have minimal gun violence. I know of absolutely no deaths at the hands of guns at educational institutions.

America has many wonderful, wonderful things. But that doesn’t mean you lead the world in everything. The best people – and countries – will look to those more successful than themselves in areas they fall short and try to learn. Time for the US to stand up and discover that tightening gun control is the only effective way to ensure the people who ‘lose it’ can’t easily act on their emotions. In Australia, we’ve seen tighter control since the Port Arthur Massacre in the 1990s, and the direct results are obvious, with a reduction in gun-related crime.

Arming more people doesn’t make you defenders of yourselves. It makes you likely to kill more people. I have no idea if Liviu Librescu would have preferred to have a gun rather than not. I know if I were him, I wouldn’t have wanted to live knowing I killed someone else, no matter what the situation. He is heroic. A true hero.

I pray that Australia never adopts looser control that will see this sort of thing become something we deal with.

However, might want to check out my blog. I have shared a couple letters that help teachers understand how to help students deal with violent acts such as this, one from a mentor of mine, Greg Anderson.

Laura, you are quite welcome. I’m still gathering my thoughts on this too, and am not entirely sure what appropriate responses are and will be, but the exhortation to not live in fear is one that goes back to the 9-11 attacks. It also reminds me of the We’re Not Afraid website and campaign that resulted from the July 2005 London bombings. We face an uncertain future (and always have) but if we face it together, in solidarity to not be afraid or intimidated, and to continue to act based on our shared cultural values: respect for each other, respect for law and the justice it seeks to promote, and an earnest desire to work for a better future, then I think we can channel at least some of our energies and emotions that are activated by tragedies into constructive work which builds bridges and mends fences.

I am having a hard time wrapping my brain around this statement. Virtual environments are great, but please don’t become so disconnected to believe that you actually leave the real world.