A couple of thoughts about the article below.
1. "He said administrators had asked the faculty to engage students on the issue." If true this was a mistake by the college. The college did not give proper respect to the abilities and knowledge require to properly "engage" students and consel them. College professors are specialists in their field and should not be expected to do this. They could direct students to qualified personnel.
2. Probably not politically correct to point at students and say "Pow" but content is important and I don't know if it was put in proper context. "Student Junny Lee, 19, told The Boston Globe that most students didn't appear to find Winset's demonstration offensive." One student that was there thought it was not offensive.
3." the public's ``celebration of victimhood,'' said the professor, Nicholas Winset." I think this is a valid point (Note - do not confuse my agreement with being against the idea of celebrating the victims' life. Nor do I disagree with the idea that "No Man Is An Island".*) If the professor was trying to say that it is better to fight than be a victim, I have to agree with him. That is why I think (hope) it will be difficult to hijack another airplane - the people have learned to fight rather than be flown into a building. (Note: I don't know what happened in those classrooms; some may have fought. I know of 1 professor that tried to bar the door and he was shot - a holacoasut survivor I believe.).
I believe we become what we observe. If we observe heroic behavior we will become heroic.
There has been a great amount of time given to the grieving process **and those doing it. (I don't know if it is too much but, I'm leaning to believe it is. And yes, grieving is OK with me.)
Are we raising the next generation of victims? I think we are.
How in the aftermath of the VT tragedy become something more heroic - Do something tangiable that helps people for year to come***. All the efforts put into the ceremonies represent a great human potential that was directed to the grieving process. Some of this potential could have been directed to a living monument for those who died.
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http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlates...579925,00.html
Professor Fired Over Va. Tech Discussion
Monday April 23, 2007 1:46 PM
BOSTON (AP) - An adjunct professor was fired after leading a classroom discussion about the Virginia Tech shootings in which he pointed a marker at some students and said ``pow.''
The five-minute demonstration at Emmanuel College on Wednesday, two days after a student killed 32 people on the Virginia Tech campus, included a discussion of gun control, whether to respond to violence with violence, and the public's ``celebration of victimhood,'' said the professor, Nicholas Winset.
During the demonstration, Winset pretended to shoot some students. Then one student pretended to shoot Winset to illustrate his point that the gunman might have been stopped had another student or faculty member been armed.
``A classroom is supposed to be a place for academic exploration,'' Winset, who taught financial accounting, told the Boston Herald.
He said administrators had asked the faculty to engage students on the issue. But on Friday, he got a letter saying he was fired and ordering him to stay off campus.
Winset, 37, argued that the Catholic liberal arts school was stifling free discussion by firing him, and he said the move would have a ``chilling effect'' on open debate. He posted an 18-minute video on the online site YouTube defending his action.
The college issued a statement saying: ``Emmanuel College has clear standards of classroom and campus conduct, and does not in any way condone the use of discriminatory or obscene language.''
Student Junny Lee, 19, told The Boston Globe that most students didn't appear to find Winset's demonstration offensive.
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*No man is an island
No man is an island entire of itself; every man
is a piece of the continent, a part of the main;
if a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe
is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as
well as any manner of thy friends or of thine
own were; any man's death diminishes me,
because I am involved in mankind.
And therefore never send to know for whom
the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.
John Donne
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**I listen to all the ceremonies that are being held.
- Moments of silence
- Candle light vigils
- Wearing of the school colors
- Ringing of bells
- Reading of Names
- Holding of hands in a circle
***Look how much thought, time and money is going into the memorial for the 9/11 victiums at the World Trade Center. How about a smaller memorial at the site and a fantastic school was to be built in the South Bronx; staffed by the best teacher in a secure enviorment. But I dream!
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