This is a VERY strange coincidence.  They both were extremely mentally disturbed.  Read up below for a refresher on Kennedy...

http://www.timesdisp...

But that's how it is with the right wing, isn't it? Grievance is something they do, no matter how much power they have. They are shocked, shocked, that they don't have all the power, shocked and victimized and angry.

There's no will towards justice among the reactionaries who control the Republican party, only vengence, and we will see a rash of hate speech against Koreans starting now, and of course, resident aliens.

But since the killer took his own life reactionary republicans will be looking for a person, or persons, to blame - they're sure as hell not going to blame guns.  From there, it's a short step to blaming all Koreans. 

In a democracy, people ask questions of authority rather than mindlessly saluting.  It is essential to ask these questions in order to be better prepared next time. 

I agree that we don't yet know all the answers, but we would be damn fools not to inquire whether this situation was handled correctly -- and I hope the media and others keep on asking those questions.  We owe it to the victims.

As I went into the restaurant, my Afghan friend who works there--who also went to HS in Centreville--was talking to a young Asian woman.  Unable to hear what they were talking about, I waited for them to finish talking and he handed me my plate and asked "How are you today?"  I answered OK but a little sad given what happened.  He answered with a "Who was the shooter?"  I said he was a student from Centreville.  Then he asked, "But where was he from?"  I said he was from Korea.  He replied that he was relieved that--thank God--the shooter was not Muslim.  I thought to myself, what kind of sick culture do we have that anyone should feel this way!?  Someone feels the need to be relieved because they feel under threat or pressure from our society because of who they are or their religion?  This is sickening, I thought.

Then, as I sat down to eat, I noticed the young Asian girl with a young female friend--she was crying despondently.  I was really concerned as she really appeared shaken.  They were sitting very close to me so when she looked my way I just asked her if she was OK.  She replied that coming into the store, a man had used several slurs used in reference to Asians in a tirade against her and mentioned the shooting in Blacksburg.  She was so upset that anyone could conceivably lash out at her for what happened down there.  My heart was heavy.

I assured her that she is not alone and that I was very angry with this mans' ignorance.  She appreciated the expression but didn't seem to alter her mood too much.  They left shortly after.

So, unfortunately, it seems as though what you have warned against has happened at least once in a Falls Church eatery.

This whole thing is so sad and tragic.  I certainly hope people don't take a terrible tragedy and make it worse by responding with ignorance and more hurt.

For all the good in our culture, there is still so much sickness.

"Oh, well good.  Because those damn Iraqis are all goin' down, and we are KICKIN' THEIR ASS!"

We ended up filing a formal complaint, yet nothing was done.  Again-despicable.

My point here was simply for everyone to keep their heads on over this situation.  Looking for blame isn't the answer, seeking sweeping statements of blame is completely inappropriate - worthy of broad derision.

We need to care for eachother, not score points.  This is a time for mourning and healing.

Another reason Korean officials worried is the prolonged history of vicious baiting and stereotyping of Asians. This type of casual typecasting is especially sensitive issue among Korean Americans. Memories are still fresh of the 1992 L.A. riots. Koreans were the easy and visible target of rioters who blamed them for gouging and rude behavior toward inner city residents. Hundreds of their businesses were torched, and looted during the nightmarish violence. Fifteen years later, the scars of the attacks have still not totally healed.

Then there is the sheer monstrous magnitude of the Virginia Tech rampage. It was by far the worst mass attack by one individual in American history, and nearly every single news report and broadcast has prefaced the story on the killings with that tagline. This insures that Cho's name, and though seldom stated publicly, whispered by many privately, that he was a Korean non-citizen, and an immigrant. This fact will be indelibly imprinted in the public record and perhaps the public mind for years to come.

The maniacal act of one man is a terrible, and unfair burden to dump on any group. And Korean officials repeatedly made the point that it was the monstrous act of one man. There is and should not be collective responsibility or collective guilt for that. Koreans will grieve for the dead and the injured at Virginia Tech and continue to offer their condolences and prayers to their families, just as other Americans have done in the hours and days after the killings.
In the end Cho Seung Hui was not "an Asian man." He was a man who committed a grotesque act. And in the long and bloody annals of American mass killings, the perpetrators of those acts have come in all colors and genders.

- Earl Ofari Hutchinson

Here's the salon article.

While Dana Perino (on behalf of Bush) and Senator McCain gracelessly used yesterday's tragedy at Virginia Tech to reaffirm everyone's "Second Amendment" rights, most reasonable people will probably agree with "Captain Frogbert." Here is the link:

http://www.dailykos....

South Korea's Foreign Ministry said Tuesday the government hoped the Virginia Tech shootings, allegedly carried out by a 23-year-old South Korean native, would not "stir up racial prejudice or confrontation."

I would certainly hope not, and would find it astounding if anything like that happened.  Obviously, this was not the act of a "Korean" per se but of a disturbed, violent young man.  It doesn't matter what race, religion, or nationality he was. Period.

Sad.

There is so much more to this story.

It can be added to as well.

Anyone knows what are the current laws on this?

Now I understand -- it seems like the police were in full profiling mode.  Unfortunately, while they were busy slapping handcuffs on Asian kids and throwing them down on the ground (you can see the photos on the web), they failed to stop the real killer from perpetrating his massacre in Norris Hall.

To many, the killer himself must have looked like a "harmless little" English major, which he may have been for most of his life but, quite obviously, he wasn't harmless for those final few, fateful moments of his life yesterday morning.

I understand perfectly the problem with "profiling" and have many German, Japanese, South Korean, Spanish and Taiwanese friends, a number of whom have visited our home, and several of whom have lived with us here for extended periods of time.

On more than one occasion, these "foreigners" and I have discussed problems such as profiling, and these types of situations are certainly - and probably at best - unpleasant and unsettling.  In turn I, myself, have felt as though I were being "profiled" by some of their countrymen when I have visited and stayed in their countries.

However, trying to second-guess the actions of the police - of whom I also have many friends - is wrong, too. 

It's much too easy to judge the performance of others, at a distance, and a day later...

Steve

Precisely how were the police to know a "computer dude" was "harmless?"  Because he said so?

Please hold off on irresponsible phrases like "failed to stop" until we know more.  Our police and security forces did a great job with imperfect and incomplete information.  Unless you know where they can get a crystal ball, they deserve your support before you automatically condemn their actions.

How long until Bill O'Reilly chastises UVA President John Casteen for providing sanctuary to legal immigrants?

This was such a premeditated crime; I don't know how much more planning he could have done.  Sick, twisted, effed up individual is a nice way of describing this wwaste of skin and bones...

Where I'm having trouble connecting the dots in this case is back to handguns used in this incident, especially street guns, which are the predominant prefferred weapon in cases like this simply because of their ease of acquisition and untraceability.  Precisely how does one "legislate" against what is already illegal?

I pretty much agree with everything else you wrote as long as that's where it stops.  Whether or it actually "prevents" more crime is a bit problematic since most of that is already in place (varies from state to state) and further reductions in gun-related crimes are more likley to focus on the reasons for crime and the guy with his finger on the trigger rather than the inanimate object itself.

Can you STOP with the political divisions just for one God damn day!!???

What piece of CRAP is the Mike Lester who penned this shit?  I'm finished staying quiet on these gun-pushing maniac assholes.

Try not to watch cable news the next couple days (or at least stay away from the scumbag ones) so their ratings aren't boosted.

It looks like I'll be off line for a couple of days but want to remind those who are grieving know that many hearts are with you in this tragedy. I wish the news people would stop making this even uglier than it is.

As many of you know, I support immigration reforms and am against exploitation of immigrants via the H-1b visa.  That said, these issues are NOT related.

The killer moved here at age 8, was a legal resident, and is for all practical purposes an American.  As broken as I believe our immigration system is, I can find no blame on the system when it comes to this case.  Simply put, these issues are apples and oranges. 

My stepmother is Korean as are my step brothers.  They immigrated here in much the same way as the killer - one brother has gone on to his PhD and is an active duty Army doctor.  I am proud of my extended family - and I can guarantee you that the Korean community is hurting right now - and ashamed of what this killer did.  I pray that people don't take their anger out on Korean people.

I think we should take the advice of the student body president and focus our attention on helping students and faculty recover.