What I think about the Va Tech Shooting

cho was a loner who possibly had speech impediment- i'm speculating that because 1. he hardly talks to anyone, and 2. in his video he mumbled and was difficult to understand. he was taunted and ridiculed in high school and possibly college too. he was rejected by women of his interest- not only that, these women reported him to the cops. the professor found him so creepy that she took him out of the class and taught him one-on-one. students were afraid to go to class or be near him because he was so creepy and taking pictures of them.

now i'm not giving him an excuse or a reason- because i hate what he did (i know hate is a strong word, but what else can i say), and i really don't like the guy (i have some issues of my own to sort out, i guess)- but if you look at everything that happened to him, the action of the society as a whole was breeding him into who he was.

yes, he killed over 30 people, and his karma suffered. but let's go back and see how karma led to him killing those people? how about those people who bullied and taunted him? what about people who gave him dirty look and called him names? how about people that ran away as soon as they saw the sight of him? were these people at least partially responsible for his action? those people planted the seed of bad karma by not only alienated him, but mocked him as well. but then, who got to pay for their behavior, those victims.

ultimately, cho was responsible and there is no excuse for that whatsoever. he may be mentally unstable, but he was sane to carry out those attacks. however, cho did not have any guidance in life- his parents worked all the time, and they probably barely talked to him, his social interaction with other people was horrible- being teased for his reticence and odd behavior.

we're all responsible for creating 'monsters' like cho and eric harris and dylan klebold. That's karma- it is more than just individual action. it's global. it's how every interaction in the world, no matter how trivial or insignificant, leads to a bigger picture- a butterfly effect.

the next time we think negatively of someone and feel the need to say it out loud, to that person, or to others, we should think about how our words and actions may affect not just that person, but of ourselves, and of the world.

i think the most important thing about karma, is not about what we did, but more of what we do NOW. what seeds will we plant NOW that will lead to tomorrow.

when i use the word 'hate' on someone else, i'll try to remember that, and maybe then i'll try to be more compassionate, and to love.

love, after all, it's a verb.