Donni Anderson

I remember April 20, 1999, more than any other day of my entire time in middle school. I remember going to school the next day and viewing my classmates in a whole new light – wondering who among us was hiding deep, emotional secrets that could surface in the form of violence. Now, eight years later as a college student, I find myself once again sitting in class on a warm, mid-April morning, wondering how I could escape or where I could hide if a shooter were to storm in the door.

My heart goes out to all the students and families at Virginia Tech. Perhaps the most painful and frightening fact is the randomness of the crime. One deeply disturbed individual had the power to kill 32 others and injure dozens more while changing campus life in the U.S. forever. As the dust settles, people will be looking for a “why.” The usual suspects will come up – violence on television, racism, bullying, isolation of the modern world and so on.

In the end, 99.999 percent of the population can be holding hands and singing “Kumbaya,” and there will still be one individual for whom life seemingly means nothing. While violence is often unavoidable, it doesn’t have to be this bad. One could not kill so many people so quickly by loading and reloading the type of rifle needed for hunting, and the weapons used in this massacre were clearly not being used for “the security of a free state” by “a well-regulated” militia, as delineated by the Second Amendment. However, in recent years, neither party has even discussed gun control. Rep. Stephanie Herseth Sandlin (D), as well as countless others in her party, has been endorsed by the NRA. Perhaps it is time for us as a country to come together and discuss how we can get the most destructive guns, clearly designed for the sole purpose of killing people, off of our streets.

#1.883409:1154436987.jpg:anderson, donni.jpg:Donni Anderson, From the Left: