Shocking Tragedy

When I arrived in America, I heard the shocking news about the Virginia Tech shootings. Thirty three dead and dozens injured – this was the worst mass murder shooting in United States history. At first I heard that the shooter was Chinese and I felt shame that one of my countrymen had done such a thing. When I found out it was a Korean, a very small part of the heaviness was lifted from my heart but I was still filled with sorrow. It doesn’t matter if the shooter was Chinese or Korean, the fact that so many people were killed and injured made me heartsick. People were focusing on the fact that the shooter was a Korean, but I think that this kind of tragedy could happen anywhere. No matter what the shooter’s nationality, it should not affect the relationship between countries or the people. If the Virginia Tech shooter was an American, no one would be discussing his nationality – it would just be a terrible tragedy.

Some people believe that part of the problem in our society might be that there are too many violent movies, television shows, or video games that influence our children. They are affected by these things and will grow up thinking that when there is no way out, violence is the answer. Of course movies, television, books, etc. do have influence. For example, some people might watch my movies and learn about martial arts or action. The influence could be negative if they try to practice without a foundation or training; they could be easily hurt. Some people might watch television and hear an actor reciting lines, then imitate those lines and make them part of their own speech. However, can we really blame movies or television for causing a tragedy such as this?

I don’t know what’s going on in the world. There’s global warming, a shortage of drinking water, disease, natural disasters. I can’t help but wonder why all these things are happening. It seems that when something huge or devastating happens, like this shooting or SARS or a tsunami, then everyone is interested and gets involved. But when societies try to educate the public to prevent disasters before they happen, people don’t seem to respond. Hong Kong has been trying to educate its citizens about keeping the city clean for thirty years. The results were poor until SARS hit and then everyone changed their behavior.

I don’t know how to solve these problems, but I think that if we want to change society, we have to start from the roots – education. How can we minimize global warming? Teach people to value our natural resources and not to waste. If we want everyone to keep cities clean, educate them and teach them about hygiene and healthy living. If people are educated, everyone will do the right thing instead of just talking about it. Everyone is talking about gun control now. I guess if there were no guns or weapons, there would be no war. Imagine a world with no war, no disease, no natural disasters, no human disasters --- accomplishing that is not a piece of cake. But still, I believe that if we work together, that dream can one day come true.

When a tragedy such as this happens, it always makes me think about all of the sadness and difficulties in our world. I wonder if something like this will make me lose faith in human goodness. Then I read about people who acted so bravely and unselfishly during the shooting - people like Zach Petkewicz, the student who quickly thought to barricade a door with a table and ended up saving 11 lives or Liviu Librescu, the professor who died after blocking the gunman from entering his classroom so that his students could escape through a window. There is more good than bad in the world; I have to believe that. My heart breaks for all the victims of this terrible tragedy, but I hope that something like this won’t let us lose faith in each other.

Text ©2007 The JC Group. All Rights Reserved.