Mass shootings
By ElicBxn
@ElicBxn (64169)
United States
April 17, 2007 12:07am CST
This recent shooting at Virginia Tech refers to an event that happened in my home town.
To quote from the story:
In the former, Charles Joseph Whitman, a 25-year-old ex-Marine, killed 13 people on the University of Texas campus. He was killed by police.
My family & I were getting ready to fly back from NJ when, as I was turning off the TV I saw them break for a news story & then the UT Tower came on the screen. I called back in the rest of the family & we watched the news.
Then we worried about our friends all the way home on the plane. Thankfully, it was all over by the time we got home & no body we knew was hurt, tho it turned out that the friends that lived behind us were down at a theater on the Drag, another family friend was eating lunch with a friend in a resturant on the Drag.
When I meet my former roomie she told me that when she first moved to town about 5 yrs later she was hanging out on campus & suddenly realized that she was looking at a bullet hole in a statue base. She followed the line up until she was looking at the Tower and then her blood ran cold.
The observation platform was closed for years after the shooting, opened briefly (the only time I ever got up on it) in the 1970's, then closed again after someone jumped off. Now it is covered so people can't jump & you have to go thru a metal detector to go on the platform.
SO... do you remember this event? How did you learn about it?
3 people like this
6 responses
@gberlin (3836)
•
18 Apr 07
I remember the event. It seemed like Texas was not a place to be in the sixties with President Kennedy getting shot and then the UT sniper. I also saw the movie about this incident. I forgot the name of the movie but I remember seeing it.
@ElicBxn (64169)
• United States
19 Apr 07
I remember the movie too. I also remember that the University wouldn't allow it to be filmed on its campus so it was filmed on some other university's campus.
I've heard reporters who were there for it talk about it. All thru the '60's & '70's it was like they were trying to forget it happened. Now, tho, they have special services & programs about it. I guess they've learned that you have to acknowlage things like that go get past them.
1 person likes this
@66jerseygirl (3877)
• United States
22 Apr 07
Did this event take place in the 70's? I vaguely remember a shooting in texas but i dont remember too much about it.
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
17 Apr 07
how horrible for you. I remember last fall how shocked with Montrealers were when it happened in Dawson College, my old alma mater. ONly one young life was taken, a several injured but that was one young life too many. The kids have still not gotten back to normal. It is just so hard.
@Katlady2 (9904)
• United States
17 Apr 07
That particular event happened the year I was born, and to be honest, I didn't know anything about it until they spoke of it on our local news station. They showed all of the footage of the shooting and the people hiding behind the cars. It's just so scary that these things have been happening for so long. And to think that there are probably more that we haven't heard about!
@LordGregoroftheSith (667)
• United States
19 Apr 07
I do remember this event. I live in wichita falls, texas. Just a few hours north of you, so it is no suprise I heard about it. I think it came from a family member or friend. I am sad to hear this though, because to me, it seems it is happening more and more often in the world.
@kodie420 (872)
• Canada
17 Apr 07
No actually this is the first I have heard of this incident but really does'nt surprise me. I have noticed through out the years times are changing fast and becoming more violent with each day that passes. Almost everyday you can flick to any given channel and see or hear about many people dying from war, terrorism or just overall burtality.
