By Sky's Chief Correspondent Stuart Ramsay, who has been reporting on the massacre at Virginia Tech University.

A snowy bitterly cold day in April. A campus locked down by police and SWAT teams. Multiple fatalities, students dead, dying or injured. Within hours America horrified once again by the senseless murder of pupils by a classmate armed to the teeth with weapons and ammunition – sounds familiar? It should do except it was Columbine, Colorado 1999, not Blacksburg, Virginia, 2007.

I have now reported on five campus or school shootings and they are never easy but professionally speaking they are always exactly the same – the details may change obviously, but what you see, the emotions you bare witness to and the grief that affects all who were near by at the time, or who lost a friend or a loved one doesn’t really change. I remember attending the funeral of one of my friend’s children a few years ago.

After the ceremony where I suspect all of us, the hundreds that attended, cried buckets, another acquaintance pulled me aside. “Stuart, the reason why it’s so horrible, the reason we were all bawling our eyes out is simple – we are thinking about ourselves, not the mother or father, we are imagining the grief we would feel.” That’s what covering student murders is like – every time.

So exactly eight years on from Columbine I drove into another middle class neighbourhood past neat houses into a sprawling smart campus and watched children hugging each other in grief, holding vigils or remembrance for their friends. Exactly eight years on, I watched the parents of the dead children stand in front of television cameras and pour their hearts out.

Exactly eight years on I saw teachers and school leaders addressing hundreds or thousands of students reminding them that their place of academic study is a good place and a place that will always look after them; and exactly eight years on I watched a president of the United States express sadness, grief and a call to never forget American values of tolerance. And guess what - it still feels pretty depressing.

So why am I depressed, you may ask, it is my job after all. Firstly, Cho Seung Hui is a cold blooded murderer and is responsible for what happened – no ifs or buts. He pulled the trigger and he executed 32 students and adult teachers before killing himself. Is that it? Well no. He had a history of mental illness, he was an anti social uncommunicative member of the University, known to the police for stalking female students, wrote short stories that were deemed violent and unacceptable in class and perhaps most importantly the teaching staff had identified him as having problems.

The concerns were made clear by senior members of the University staff but nothing was done or couldn’t be done. Could he have been stopped? Were there enough warning signs to have prevented him from carrying out the attacks? I suspect in the subsequent inquiries we will find that there will be a resounding YES and that’s depressing.

But two other points trouble me most. Firstly the issue of guns in society here. After Columbine there was a real sense that something would be done to stop the sale of weapons to the wrong people – but it hasn’t happened.

Gun control hasn’t been a major policy issue here since the Democrats got scared that they would never win an election again if they tried to take on the Republicans on some key issues – gun control was one of them. What is truly indicative of the nonsense talked about by the gun lobby who say that the laws in place are enough to protect everyone is their ability to bend the situation to support their cause.

After Columbine they said that gun control laws wouldn’t stop the crime as the boys who carried out the attacks bought them illegally. Now they say that the crime couldn’t be stopped because Cho bought the gun legally. Nuts. More nuts though, their current argument that everyone on the campus would have been safe if they had ALL been carrying weapons to protect themselves! If you don’t believe me read the web sites.

There are too many guns and they are too easy to get – it’s a fact and the laws should be changed. Britain is not perfect but banning hand guns after Dunblane was a good and sensible step to take. Secondly, and this is a more difficult one as I don’t want to sound like I am supporting Cho. But it seems that he felt marginalised and ostracised by the Campus students. He wrote about debauchery and rich kids he felt angry with.

The two boys who attacked Columbine felt the same. The school structures there benefited the fittest, most beautiful, most clever and most rich. Did a 23 year old immigrant get different treatment to others, was he prejudiced against was he in effect bullied like the Columbine killers – I bet the answer will be YES once again.

Now that really is depressing.

Comments

[Marcia, Cape Town, South Africa 25 Apr 2007 10:05:45]

As angry as we all feel with the killer, it is the phenomenon we need to look at and not him specifically. There have been others, and there possibly will be in the future, who commit these atrocities.

We can see clearly that he was incredibly mentally unstable, and the key to preventing this type of situation in the future lies in examining his state of mind, not the weapons he chose to use. If we take guns out of the equation, we are only addressing part of the problem, and not what lies at the core of it.

Society richly rewards people who are good looking, popular, social, clever and seemingly wealthy. How much of a safety net is provided for those who aren't? This man was sent for counselling, counselling isn't even the answer, it's way too late by then.

There needs to be a shift in our culture and educational system. What is the point of spending years at school learning history and geography if you have no "Emotional Intelligence"? Imagine a class which only takes up half an hour a week of students time, and is focussed on setting personal life goals, exploring your own psyche, learning the basic skills required to counsel other people? It should be a class that people get marked on and have to do homework for. It should count for something and be taken note of by universities.

[Rose 23 Apr 2007 00:02:06]

From what I read and hear about this guy, I believe that his anger and "isolation" goes back further than VT. Those looking at the "why" might find better clues in his teen years than in his college years. According to "suite" mates, he was already a loner who made no attempts to fit in.

[Dave Buffalo NY 20 Apr 2007 14:16:52]

Its time to wake up. Gun control is the reason why so many people died. Had at least the teachers been allowed to be armed, how far would this kid have gotten. Its also a good reminder that gun control has led to alot of tyranny. Just look at The rise of Stalin, Hitler, and Mao. If you make guns illegal whats going to happen to the 200 million guns? You really think they're all going to be handed over or just by people who obey the law leaving the rest of us at their mercy. Or will our fine police save us as they cower outside as our innocent are slain. Wake up and smell the fascism!

[Gary, Arizona 20 Apr 2007 02:54:27]

Such horror and tragedy as we saw in Virginia is not simply the result of Americans' access to guns. Virtually identical crimes occur repeatedly in societies that regulate firearms almost into oblivion: Dunblane, Scotland (17 victims, 1996); Erfurt, Germany (16 killed, 2002); Montreal, Canada (1 killed, 12+ wounded, 2006)are examples. Even societies that have healthy traditions of gun ownership are not exempt from such evil lunacy--e.g., 14 killed in Zug, Switzerland (2001). Nor are such horrors limited to firearms: America's worst school mass murder was EIGHTY years ago, when an angry board member drove a dynamite-laden truck into a school in Bath, Michigan, killing 45 and injuring 58. And the bottom line is that if every gun was vaporized tomorrow, one could wreak murderous havoc in any high rise dorm with a few gallons of gas and a match.
And where were the cops when these things happened? Well, not there--and usually through no fault of their own; its just the way policing works. In fact, under American law, the police do not even have a legal duty to protect any individual. In short, the answer is not the easy left-wing socialist goofball "ban the gun" answer--its the much more challenging job of building a moral, stable society in which individual rights, including the right to bear arms and assume the obligation for one's one safety-are the norm. Its not an easy task, particularly in postmodern, hedonistic America.
I speak from the perspective of having used a Glock in self-defense, confronting two drug-ravaged felons ransacking my father's home--and having to wait a full ten minutes for police to even show up in a middle class urban community. Anyone who wants to take my gun away should have the opportunity to face the same situation, unarmed.

[Natalie, Japan 20 Apr 2007 02:02:26]

What does orange marmalade (which IMO is delcious BTW), undercooked bacon and sunburnt people have to do with anything?
Possibly Cho was bullied, but fellow students and roomates said he never spoke to them. So if we take that as truth then was he not asking to be ostracised? I think its anger. This world is taught to hate each other, through racism, greed, religion, we must all hate. Why cant we just put the guns down and look at eachother as equals and accept the small things that make us different, like our taste in Maramalade ;-p
What is the point of guns in the first place?

[Zach, Provo, Utah 19 Apr 2007 23:00:52]

I think it would have been better if this kid did have friends, But i dont think that would have made a difference. there is something wrong with you when you start to write morbid things in school writing assignments. There is also something wrong with copying a movie and comparing your situation with that of our lord. I think that this Very disturbed individual is a blasphiming, coward of a person, and hope that he spends the rest of eternity burning in HELL!

[Lowell in Atlanta 19 Apr 2007 21:14:43]

In America our firearms are not negotiable. The United States Constitution is not negotiable. This cockroach son of Asian immigrants had evil in his mind. I am not giving you my gun. When you come for it, come armed, and expect a shootout. In America we need our guns to protect against evil like this killer. There are 300 million Americans and at least 20 million privately owned firearms. The WHOLE reason those poor beautiful American children were murdered is that schools were made gun free zones under the Clinton administration. Therefore the ONLY armed person in the building was the lawbreaker murderer.

[Alan Redfern - South Africa 19 Apr 2007 19:02:06]

Let me preface this by saying that the deaths of the students and teachers is of course a tragedy and my thoughts are with the families.

My first comments addresses the news media, all deaths are equally tragic but the saturation news coverage of this incident seems to say that these lives are of greater worth than the 180 plus innocent lives lost on the streets of Baghdad on almost the same day. Where were the hushed words of the reporters there? Where was the in depth analysis of the motives of an equally deranged individual (by western standards) who committed that act. We seem to be somewhat hypocritical in the way we present news.

The second comment echoes one above - America get in the 21st Century. America weeps and wails, hangs its collective head and says never again. But the gun lobby (presumably) continues to sway government and popular thinking so as to never do anything about access to weapons - what was the report some 200 million guns in America multiplied by $400 or so? Its money that talks not the will of the people.

America hides behind it 2nd Amendment to justify the sale of guns to its people. The Amendment was written over 200 years ago and addresses the need for a free and viable militia - one can understand the needs of the day and how armies with no mechanised transport had to be very regional and made up of concerned armed citizens. However the extrapolation to modern society and individuals seems a to be a convenient 'get out' clause.
Even with a liberal interpretation of the 2nd Amendment - I'm sure the founding fathers never had any intention of arming the citizens of other countries. How did a foreign national - never mind his supposed mental state - ever get access to weapons? Does this mean that any foreign terrorist could pop into the local gun store and purchase guns to arm himself and his followers!

[Robert Moran 19 Apr 2007 18:37:17]

Get Real America?
Yea, the rest of the world is so enlightened. How many millions have been slaughtered and imprisoned in the last century by civilized Europeans, Africans and Asians? How many Frenchmen took out ads to explain they weren't Jewish? How many were slaughtered in Iran or Darfur this week? If you watched those videos, did you learn anything about those killers? In Iran they waved the severed head of a victim in front of the camera and praised God. Did you get the message? Did you write a little paragraph and sign your name to it telling those guys that their behavior was uncivilized and not up to your standards? Seems the world is full of little Chos and worse. Didn't I read about some school killings in Germany & UK & Russia a while ago? We can't wait for the day when we have a camera in every room and attached to every tree and pay for someone to watch it so they can call for help after we're killed. Some of our politicians drew big circles around all our schools and called them "gun free zones", because they listened to and wanted to be liked by people like you. The Chos of the world now know just where to go. You have any idea why we delayed so long before entering the last two world wars? Do you think it was because we admired your culture, political history and savy, and wanted to emulate your values and political systems? Just what did you learn from all those deaths? We learned that if we rely on you, the enlightened ones, so ready to become accepted into the glorious confederation of worlds in the Billy Meyer universe, the world goes up in smoke and blood. Last time I was in the UK, Hotels were blowing up in Ireland, a train station I was in had to be evacuated, I had to watch for and report any suspicious packages, endure orange marmalade, undercooked bacon and watch everyone turn into lobsters because the sun came out. Please, give us more of your profound insights about how to become better world citizens, just like you.

[Jake London 19 Apr 2007 18:11:27]

I notice that many media outlets and this TV network couldnt wait to get out on screen the video of this sick kid.........that maybe could do harm in the future...was it really necessary to show it..??

[Daisy 19 Apr 2007 17:32:52]

Brian blurts, "Get real America, the rest of the world is in the 21st century now."

Oh really? The rest of the world is in the 21st Century? Could you provide of list of localities that are in the 21st Century? Last time I looked, the world at large was not up to speed. BTW, how long to you have to wait to get medical care? Just wondering.

[Daisy 19 Apr 2007 17:28:48]

When you listen to Cho, keep in mind that he is speaking to himself. He has, by the time of the video, succumbed to his own dark forces .. and his 'better half' had already come up w/the suicide plan "to save my children (from myself) ..." His "other half" had already started the murder spree that would justify his own self-murder. It's not a good idea to take his words literally. He isn't speaking about other kids abandoning him - he is referring to his own submission to pure evil (unexamined and unrestrained unconscious forces). He's referring to HIS own abandonment of hope/faith/God.

His inner ideology was not completely unlike the Islamist terrorists .. but mainly (not totally) it was personally sick rather than part of a collective evil.

[BOB USA 19 Apr 2007 16:26:07]

The guy looked (to me)like a Palestinian suicide bomber getting ready to blow up a restaurant or bus in Israel.
A cold-blooded killer, coward. Not someone to feel sorry for.

[Pete. London 19 Apr 2007 16:26:01]

Whilst I naturally feel sympathy for the victims of this atrocity and their families, I feel this kind of thing will happen again and again due to the ease with which one can buy a gun. Only when Americans are willing to give up their right to carry firearms will anything actually change for the better.

[John USA 19 Apr 2007 16:22:44]

This story is nothing but a tragic case of a sick, dimented individual. There is nothing to learn here. A very disturbed person had access to guns and acted out delusional fantasies he conjured up from Cinema.

Its time to stop pointing fingers and trying to make logic out of it. Families will need to be consoled and given time to grieve.

The media needs to shut it down. Stop giving Cho what he wanted and stop putting this stuff in our face. Go back to Iraq and Africa where tragedies happen on a daily basis to the innocent and the brave.

Guns aren't to blame for this massacre. One sick, single individual did this. Blaming guns for violence is like blaming a book of matches or a lighter for arson.

Americans have a right to carry guns. If anything, we should make it impossible for the mentally ill, suicidal or people on mental meds to purchase weapons so easily.

God bless the people of VT who have been hurt by this guy, and God forgive this troubled soul for his insane acts.

[jackie adams london 19 Apr 2007 16:12:15]

i think that it is important that the video and all the writings were shown to the public - this guy obviously felt a deep sense of abandoment and lack of cohesion with his peers - this seems to be the pattern and if normal everyday people can perhaps recognise the signs - like this guys teachers did to some extent then perhaps YOU can prevent an event like this taking place. if people remain uneducated to the symptoms of severe mental unbalanace then how can we do anything to prevent such real tragedy - YES this guy has left a chilling legacy but he has also left such a rare insight into the mind of a killer that i am glad that he did this and glad that the press showed it. in the smaller picture of things, however disturbing for the families and friends of those murdered they would have found out anyhow and rather now than at a chilling time in the future. rest in peace with special thoughts too for the 76 year old hero. jackie in london

[Maurice - Northumberland 19 Apr 2007 14:53:24]

LEIGH, Virginia:

Not all of us (if any) swallowed the ramblings of a nut-case.

Take care and best regards and sympathies to those families involved!

[Brian Ashford 19 Apr 2007 13:49:45]

I feel pity for the people killed. However all the time our American buddies persist in their antiquated laws allowing everyone sane or otherwise in the "land of the free" to carry guns this will surely happen again.
Get real America, the rest of the world is in the 21st century now.

[Paul.....HULL, UK 19 Apr 2007 13:03:12]

It seems to me that Cho was bullied and it was suposed to be an uprising against bullies as he is making a stand against the rich folk who probably spoke down to him against his family ( who run the dry cleaning buisness) and just took the mick in general. Some of the wording he used seemed to be against those folk if you take it in a different way i.e " you loved to crucify me, riping my soul etc" Hurtful coments made against him
"torched my conscience" could of meant that he got so wound up that they made him think terrible things"
Its defenatly a whole bullying thing which has come to him totally cracking up. Just look at the context of his wording. Its all there and he was out for revenge as he couldnt take anymore. Wether the first two people who were shot ( mainly the girl) had said something to tip him over the edge is something we will never know.

[Caz -Yorkshire 19 Apr 2007 10:52:47]

I think Cho had major mental problems something that his own tutors had noticed. There was no justification in what he did to his fellow students he murdered them in cold blood. For what? the fact that he was disgusted at their debauchery, that they were rich! he was seeing things that were not there. Obviously a very unbalanced mental individual who reaked havoc on campus.

My condolances to all the victims families .

[Leigh, Virginia, USA 19 Apr 2007 05:30:18]

Cho's comments about "rich kids" at Tech are ridiculous. Tech is not a haven for the rich. It is a public university. Its tuition, fees, and board are well below what private schools charge. Public universities in Virginia offer disadvantaged and middle class students quality educational opportunities at an affordable price, and they pride themselves on the diversity of their student bodies.

Just because Cho wrote about debauchery or rich kids that angered him doesn't mean it was true. He was creating an excuse for inexcusable behavior which you apparently swallow without question.