Columbine School Shooting (1999)

I originally wrote the following back in March 2005. With the killings at Virginia Tech yesterday, it seemed apropos. Tragic and horrific as it was, this is just another mass murder. It eclipsed the one before it and it will be eclipsed by the next one. Pillory me as you will, but it is far less important than many things on this list.

This was one of the most tragic news stories in memory for me and pretty hard not to take personally. High School cliques can be so dominating and make some students lives miserable. I suppose it was inevitable somebody was bound to snap and cause an awful massacre like this. I'm not so sure if anything was learned from this, now students are dealing with cyber bullying.

Not earth shattering, but left an impression on me because it happened at such an affluent area...funny how the media ignored the school shooting at that Indian reservation...if Natalee Hollaway, eg, wasn't a pretty whit girl her mom would't have had the outlet to mouth off to the world.

Columbine was truly a very heinous act committed by 2 disaffected teens. One has to consider what the incentive was behind this crime, for it seems that it was a combination of rage and despair that motivated these two guys to kill others and ultimately themselves. Yes school shootings are very rare in comparison to the broader population, but this is a phenomenon that we all need to be aware of, for there are broader cultural consequences here. In explaining these tragedies, we can eliminate guns as the root cause off hand. Guns are an inanimate object and as such it can't act as a motivator for a person. Guns don't cause crime; one has to examine the motivations behind the criminal in order to get a better sense of its causation. We can also eliminate poverty as a cause of school violence. Leftists argue that with the elimination of poverty, crime will go down, but there is no empirical evidence to indicate that this is the case. The overwhelming majority of poor people are not crimi... Read more

Working in the school system for almost 15 years I have seen that at the horrible event of Columbine nothing was learned. The jocks and preps still rule the schools, we had meeting after meeting about what to do to make our schools safer but basically it's all come down to nothing. We're right back where we were before Columbine-destined to happen again if we don't wake up.

A tragedy that ultimately intensified that debate over gun control that still continues to this day. It is truly a sad reflection on our society that even school is not entirely a safe place.

I'll never forget that day... but only being 12 at the time, i don't think i really understood all that had happened. then this past summer, i had the chance to hear Rachel Scott's father speak... Rachel was shot at Columbine that day after being asked the question if she believed in god. when she replied yes, she was shot in the head. Go to rachelscott.com and read her story... the story of her life and death has touched millions. She was an amazing person. the way i was affected by this, makes it the most standout date of the 1990s, in my opinion.

Definetly a very moving story,a sad story, and definetly an eye opener. Two boys from the school, killed 12 students and one teacher and then killed themselves. It's a very touching story that the students are never going to forget. 17 year old Cassie Bernell was one of the students who was killed for her faith in God. The gunman held the gun to her head and asked her if she believed in God, when she said yes, he shot her. It also sparked Michael W Smith's song This is your time dedicated to Cassie. I read the book entitled She said yes and I cried when I read it. Just that somebody that young would stand up for what she believed in, knowing that it would cost her life. I'm wondering if I would have had been so brave, and wold have done something like that. I don't know the answer. I would want to stand up for my beliefs, but keep my life. If I was faced with the choice, I think I would probably say yes though.

I will never forget this event ! It was very tragic indeed, and I will never forget when the one child was hanging out the window bleeding on the news....I broke down crying and I was violently ill...it is bad enough that some adults insist on killing each other, but it seems so much worse when babies are killing babies....awful...:(

It was indeed a moment of tragedy. It pained me to watch as people desperately tried to point the finger at someone. But they failed to see that we ourselves are responsible for our own actions. The movies and video games didn't put a gun in those kids' hands and told them to kill. No, they made their own plans and carried those plans out. I watch violent movies and I play violent games but my body count lies at zero. To put it plainly it's because I know better. These kids needed help but sadly none was received before they went over the edge. I hope the school system and parents learn something from this and never forget it.

A truly sad event that was simply terrible. But, I know that video games were not to blame. Video games do not make people evil (although with Grand Theft Auto...) by default. It was obvious that the perpertators of this shocking crime were evil. Too bad it couldn't have been prevented.