Thoughts on the Sandy Hook Elementary School Shootings

I thought I might throw some thoughts out about the shootings at the school in Connecticut. It’s tragic. I think of us, and how much we miss Daniel, and I think of the many families and how much they now miss their loved ones and I just want to (and sometimes do) cry.

The man who did this deserves to have his name blotted out so that no one will remember him. Earlier today, I saw a quote on Facebook that was attributed to Morgan Freeman. After doing a little research, it appears that he did not in fact say this but I like the sentiment so much that I’m going to copy it here.

"You want to know why. This may sound cynical, but here's why.

“It's because of the way the media reports it. Flip on the news and watch how we treat the Batman theater shooter and the Oregon mall shooter like celebrities. Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris are household names, but do you know the name of a single *victim* of Columbine? Disturbed people who would otherwise just off themselves in their basements see the news and want to top it by doing something worse, and going out in a memorable way. Why a grade school? Why children? Because he'll be remembered as a horrible monster, instead of a sad nobody.

 “CNN's article says that if the body count "holds up", this will rank as the second deadliest shooting behind Virginia Tech, as if statistics somehow make one shooting worse than another. Then they post a video interview of third-graders for all the details of what they saw and heard while the shootings were happening. Fox News has plastered the killer's face on all their reports for hours. Any articles or news stories yet that focus on the victims and ignore the killer's identity? None that I've seen yet. Because they don't sell. So congratulations, sensationalist media, you've just lit the fire for someone to top this and knock off a day care center or a maternity ward next.

 “You can help by forgetting you ever read this man's name, and remembering the name of at least one victim. You can help by donating to mental health research instead of pointing to gun control as the problem. You can help by turning off the news."

I do not know who really said it. I know that this has once again brought up gun control and I do not agree that stricter control of fire arms would or could have prevented it. I said on Facebook that I would feel better if someone at the school my children attend knew how to use and had a gun in the unlikely event that some idiot shows up with similar intent. It is true. Having stricter gun control laws will not make me feel safer. Having a gun and knowing how to properly use it would.

I know that it is tragic to lose a child, to lose a family member. According to CNN, here is a list of those killed: Dawn Lafferty Hochsprung, 47, the Sandy Hook Elementary (SHE) School principal, she has a husband, two daughters and three stepdaughters; Mary Sherlach, 56, SHE school psychologist, she has a husband and two grown daughters; Lauren Rousseau, 30, a permanent substitute teacher at SHE; Victoria Soto, 27, SHE 1^st grade teacher, has no children but does have a dog and they grieve, too; Olivia Engel, 6; Emilie Parker, 6; Rachel Davino, 29; Anne Marie Murphy, 25; Charlotte Bacon, 6; Daniel Barden, 7; Josephine Gay, 7; Ana Marquez-Greene, 6; Dylan Hockley, 6; Madeleine Hsu, 6; Catherine Hubbard, 6; Chase Kowalski, 7; Jesse Lewis, 6; James Mattioli, 6; Grace McDonnell, 7; Anne Marie Murphy, 52; Jack Pinto, 6; Noah Pozner, 6; Caroline Previdi, 6; Jessica Rekos, 6; Avielle Richman, 6; Benjamin Wheeler, 6; Allison Wyatt, 6.

Joseph is 6.