More Guns, Less Sanity

On the way to school today, a guy shot at some cars, around campus, and eventually shot himself on the 6th floor of the library. There were reports of an accomplice who was hiding in the small building I work in. Thankfully, no one else was hurt and I was at my school and not at work when it happened.

So, here are some observations on watching the event unfold:

1) With so many different ways to get information from so many different sources so quickly, news (and rumors) spread unbelievably fast. It was all anyone was talking about. It's sad that it's usually the extreme and bad events that so intensely capture our attention. I think about all the energy and emotion that pours out and how useful that would be if it could be used for productive purposes.

2) People always want to know more. As I sat in class, the girl next to me spent the whole 3 hours checking news sites, emailing/texting/twittering, and interrupting class to tell what was going on, to the point that it was ridiculous. We were supposed to be working on problems together, at which point i considered closing her laptop on her hands and telling her to focus.

3) The emergency services were super prepared and everything was very orderly. The SWAT team rolled in in armored vehicles/tanks and helicopters swathed the area, and while it's a good thing to be prepared, seeing such bold statements of enforcement tends to set off a panic/overreaction mode.

4) The library has detectors to prevent you from stealing books, but an AK-47 can get through with no problems.

5) Author John Lott was scheduled to speak at the Law School today on his book, More Guns, Less Crime. And after all of this, he's still speaking tonight!