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View Full Version : Shooting at Northern Illinois University



sodascouts
02-14-2008, 09:28 PM
A gunman opened fire in a lecture hall. Currently, they are saying five fatalities including the gunman and at least 14 injured.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23171567?GT1=10856

I pray for the students and their families. Hopefully, those in critical condition will pull through.

Mrs Frey
02-15-2008, 03:09 AM
Oh, I'm so sorry to read this, Soda. My thoughts and prayers are with the families and friends of the victims of this tragedy, as well as the injured and their families and friends.

DonFan
02-15-2008, 10:34 AM
I just heard about this on the Today show this morning. It makes me worry about everyone I know who is on a college campus. Why do these senseless shootings continue to occur? I am also praying for the victims and their families.

Brooke
02-15-2008, 10:46 AM
I just can't understand these people that do this. What a terrible tragedy. All of the victims are in my thoughts and prayers, too.

Ive always been a dreamer
02-15-2008, 12:17 PM
How sad this is. This senseless acts sure strikes home as it conjures up memories of the Va. Tech tragedy. The victims and their families have my deepest sympathies.

glenneaglesfan
02-15-2008, 12:42 PM
That's just awful. On the news here they suggested it was the fourth such incident this week. It seems there are some sick kids out there who seem to feel such horrendous action will somehow make them renowned. There has been a spate of suicides in Bridgend, in South Wales, which some experts have suggested is a way of achieving fame on Facebook and Myspace, by the number of goodbye messages from their friends. It's almost as if they think they'll be able to read them themselves. So sad.

My condolences to their families of all those killed and injured. Is it time there were more strict gun laws in the USA?

tbs fanatic
02-15-2008, 12:58 PM
These attacks are becoming way too common. My hubby teaches at a University - it really makes you think. I don't really see there is much they can do to stop an attack on a sprawling University campus. It's scary.

Perfect Little Sister
02-15-2008, 01:24 PM
It's really sick when my son, who is in the military, seems safer than students at university. My daughter (high school freshman) was afraid to go to school yesterday because the day before some kid in her seminar class lost it and picked up a desk and threw it. My daughter ran and hid behind the teacher when the kid started going off. (Good sense of self preservation. lol) But seriously. These kids have their whole lives ahead of them, how can they have so much stress that they crack like this?

katherine5832
02-15-2008, 04:07 PM
Is it time there were more strict gun laws in the USA?

In a word: "Yes!" I, too, am saddened by this news. I'm so tired of hearing stories like this. It's senseless and I always feel a dreadful sense of hopelessness and helplessness whenever something like this happens.

Glennsallnighter
02-15-2008, 05:41 PM
My thoughts and prayers are with the families of those killed and injured in this latest attack. Unfortunately these are indeed becoming more common, and there is little universities can do to prevent them.

Maleah
02-16-2008, 02:08 AM
It makes me just furious to read news like this. so you're unhappy with your life....big deal! We all are unhappy at some point! so you go and take other people's lives along with you? it just makes me so mad!

And I hope I don't offend anyone with this but if you're thinking that stricter gun laws will stop these...well.....that's just wishful thinking. All that will accomplish is that it won't be a gun killing.....it will be stabbings, or bombs, or who knows what else. When someone wants to kill.....they find a way.....guns or no guns.

What a downward spiral we are in

My thoughts and prayers are with everyone involved in this tragedy. What careless thought for human lives :(

Ive always been a dreamer
02-16-2008, 05:35 PM
It seems to me that we need to do a much better job of teaching our children how to cope with the disappointments in life. As we all know so well, life is full of ups and downs, and in order to stay well-adjusted, it is imperative that we learn to deal with both effectively. However, the individuals that carry out these atrocious acts are very deranged, IMHO. I also feel we need to do a much better job of identifying these types of individuals who demonstrate the potential for such violent behavior and help protect them from themselves and others.

sodascouts
02-16-2008, 09:36 PM
Apparently this guy wasn't a current student, but a former graduate student. Sadly, the death toll has risen to 7.

glenneaglesfan
02-17-2008, 01:53 PM
Oh, so sad. Maleah, I reluctantly have to agree with you about gun laws. After the shocking killing of children in Dunblane, our government banned handguns and imposed much stricter laws on rifles and shotguns. The outcome has been an explosion in gun-related crime involving illegal guns. The only thing about other weapons is that potential victims have a better chance of escape. There is no easy answer. Identifying these deranged kids would be helpful.

Two more suicides in Bridgend this weekend.

Brooke
02-17-2008, 09:35 PM
I also agree with you about stricter gun laws not being the answer. Those that want guns to kill people with will get them anyway. I think dreamer is on the right track.

Glennsallnighter
02-18-2008, 06:50 AM
Identifying these deranged kids would be helpful.

Two more suicides in Bridgend this weekend.

How awful GEF! We all have different problems to cope with in life but it must be terrible for a young person to feel so worthless that the only recognition they feel they will get is posthumously on their website.

Those of us who are parents or teachers (or both) or who work with young people in any capacity need to bolster their self esteem and self confidence. Young people need to be encouraged to feel valued and worthy in society. We need also to show them that while failure and disappointment do happen too they are not the end all and we need to teach them the strategies to cope with these and move on.

We all need to recognise and most of all love those children and young people who come into our spheres for who they are if we are to rid the world of these senseless incidents.

tbs fanatic
02-18-2008, 02:55 PM
There needs to be a complete overhaul of Mental Health help in this country. There needs to be more of it and it needs to be easier to navigate. As the Mom of two boys with mental health issues of various kinds I can tell you first hand that it is not an easy process to get help. Lots of red tape and bs - you have to have the hide of an elephant to get your way through it. Fortunately my husband and I do but anyone who is even mildly intimidated would give up before they got to the help they needed - it is so grueling.

LOL - don't get me started on this I could go on for hours.

Glennsallnighter
02-18-2008, 06:12 PM
Its much the same over here TBSF! However they may argue mental health services over here operate on a 9-5 Mon-Fri basis. So if you're feeling depressed on a Friday night chances are you won't be able to access the services needed until at least Monday. I don't mean this to sound flippant. We have had several cases in recent years where people have committed suicide in the interim, and in many of those cases they took partners/kids with them. In some of those cases the victims had tried to access services and found no emergency cover.

Oh and then theres the waiting lists............ :roll:

And the shortage of acute beds/placements.......... :roll:

And I hate to say it but its usually the people with the least financial and emotional resources that suffer most.

TBSF keep the elephant skin on. Your boys deserve the best of whats available. Good luck to you all.

tbs fanatic
02-19-2008, 11:57 AM
We have had several cases in recent years where people have committed suicide in the interim,

We had that exact thing happen in our little town a couple of years ago - a young girl whose Mom had taken her into our local hospital emergency room only for her to be sent back home for some bs reason or another and that night the poor girl committed suicide. It was so sad. It caused a huge uproar locally with lots of promises made by officials to improve our Mental Health help locally but, of course, we are two years down the road and absolutely nothing has changed. It's really a disgrace.

Ive always been a dreamer
02-19-2008, 12:20 PM
I totally agree - our entire health system here in the U.S. is in dire need of a major overhaul, including mental health services.

tbsf, good luck with your boys. I know it takes a strong will to get them the help they need and deserve. Kudos to you and hubby for your persistence.

sodascouts
02-19-2008, 01:10 PM
Yes, good luck TBSF. It's a shame that instead of making things easier for you, the government seems intent on creating as much difficulty in possible in getting your sons the help they need.

Perfect Little Sister
02-19-2008, 01:32 PM
Years ago I took my son's cub scout group to the local police department in our little bitty town. I was surprised to find out that they had a counselor on site 24/7 for mental health emergencies. The problem is, if you aren't aware of it, you can't access it. Who would think of turning to the police instead of a doctor during such a crisis? Although, now that I think about it, if the system is inadequate, having the police declare one incapacitated would put one in a bed.

Brooke
02-19-2008, 03:48 PM
Yes, tbsf, keep battling for what you need. I wish you the best of luck getting your sons all the help they need.

So, looks who's getting in on health care now!

http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Insurance/InsureYourHealth/WalMartExpandingInStoreHealthClinics.aspx

Now we can go to Walmart to the doctor! :shock:

tbs fanatic
02-19-2008, 05:07 PM
:shock: :shock: :shock:

Glennsallnighter
02-19-2008, 05:49 PM
We have had several cases in recent years where people have committed suicide in the interim,

We had that exact thing happen in our little town a couple of years ago - a young girl whose Mom had taken her into our local hospital emergency room only for her to be sent back home for some bs reason or another and that night the poor girl committed suicide. It was so sad. It caused a huge uproar locally with lots of promises made by officials to improve our Mental Health help locally but, of course, we are two years down the road and absolutely nothing has changed. It's really a disgrace.

Two cases spring to mind over here. In the first a few years ago a young man who had learning issues since his school years and which had been exacerbated by a road accident was refused a place in his local hospital when his mother brought him in feeling that he was a danger to himself and others. The powers that be felt he wasn't 'bad enough' to admit. The following night he killed a teenager and is now in prison as a result. His parents had done their best for him and BOTH had given up their jobs in an effort to provide him with the care and stability which he required.
In the second case a young mother tried to access service over a weekend to help her depression. When none was forthcoming she drove her car into the sea killing herself and her 2 young daughters.
These are stories which make the headlines. I'm sure for each of them there many more where parents, children and carers are trying to access a service which is seemingly nonexistant.

Glennsallnighter
02-19-2008, 05:51 PM
http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Insurance/InsureYourHealth/WalMartExpandingInStoreHealthClinics.aspx

Now we can go to Walmart to the doctor! :shock:

Is there anything you people in the States CAN'T buy in Walmart?