Grief

[Christine]

My thoughts and prayers are with all those people affected by the shooting today in Connecticut. It has been hard to focus on anything else as I've wept at the loss of life and innocence. May God bless the children, their parents, brothers and sisters, other family members, friends, neighbors, and all of us with His peace and comfort.

I just heard it was a kindergarten class. Now tears are flowing freely as I think of my sweet granddaughter - a kindergartner!

Our whole discussion group is based on an act of violence, and it seems in our world some things never change. One man can destroy so many lives.

[Mark MacKenzie]

"In this sad world of ours, sorrow comes to all; and, to the young, it comes with bitterest agony, because it takes them unawares. The older have learned to ever expect it. I am anxious to afford some alleviation of your present distress. Perfect relief is not possible, except with time. You can not now realize that you will ever feel better. Is not this so? And yet it is a mistake. You are sure to be happy again. To know this, which is certainly true, will make you some less miserable now. I have had experience enough to know what I say; and you need only to believe it, to feel better at once."

Lincoln from a consolation letter to one who had lost their father.

I hope the discussion of Lincoln and the remembrance and study of him is not based on an act of violence but rather the remarkably good man. There is darkness and there is light.

[L Verge]

A very touching post at this sorrowful time, Mark. Thank you.

I have told several friends today that this is a problem that is always in the back of my mind. My daughter started out as a kindergarten teacher and is now a mentoring teacher in support services. She travels to ten schools a week assisting teachers who are having difficulties. She covers over a hundred miles in her travels and goes into all types of schools. I always fear that she will walk into a situation like this one day - or be sitting at a stoplight when someone opens fire.

I also have a grandson who is twelve years old. He is in an excellent school, but it takes only one disturbed person to turn any school into a death camp. The question is, how do we stop this awful trend?

[BettyO]

Thanks, Mark. Our Forum was set up to discuss history, Lincoln and Civil War history. Yes, unfortunately violence; especially that of the Civil War, is a part of history but hopefully, we have learned from it.

We need to make sure that our schools are a safe place for our greatest commodity; our children - our future. Schools should be a haven not only for leaning, but a place of ultimate security where there is peace, challenges and fun. Nothing this horrid should ever have to enter a child's or a parent's mind. What has happened to our country, I don't know.....

I just know that things like this didn't happen when I was a kid - it never entered our minds. We had Fall Out Shelters during the Cold War, sure....but NOTHING like this was ever thought possible. Unfortunately, times have drastically changed and something went seriously amiss a long while back to allow these tragic and horrid events to occur....

[LincolnMan]

Our prayers and thoughts go out to those in this awful tragedy- and all those impacted by it.

[Rob Wick]

We cannot, as a society, continue along this path. We have to discuss, all sides, what can be done to help stem this tide. Like all questions, there is no easy answer, but the time has long passed not to have a serious and meaningful discussion as a nation how we can stop this.

Thoughts go out to all the families and survivors.

Best
Rob

[ReignetteC]

On February 12, 1934, Congressman George A. Dondero of Michigan commemorated President Lincoln’s birthday with a speech before his congressional colleagues called “Lincoln: Lover of Children.”

Dondero's remarks (highlighted below) are most fitting on this very, very sad day.


“To be a lover of children and be loved by children is truly a personal distinction. Through the ministry of children we are lead away from the hard perplexing problems of life and we become devoted to their sweet simplicity from which we derive rest and comforting assurance. Without guile they come to us fresh from God. May it be a long, long time before we, who are only children of a larger growth, drift away from the virtues of childhood.

“That Abraham Lincoln loved little children is known. That he was a kind and indulged father to his four boys is also known. That he was respected and esteemed by the little children in his neighborhood who knew him in Springfield, Ill., is equally true.

“May we of this House of Representatives, in which he once served the Nation from 1847-1849, believe today that somewhere “‘in the infinite meadows of heaven, where blossom the stars,’” Abraham Lincoln is still loving little children, still loved by little children, and led by them into the everlasting dimensions of his undying manhood.”


"And a little child shall lead them." (Isaiah 11:6)

[L Verge]

Beautiful.

[LincolnMan]

Thank you for that.

[J. Beckert]

That was beautiful, Reignette. Thank you.

What happened today will, unfortunately, happen again. Gun laws don't keep criminals from getting guns, just like drug laws don't keep dopers from getting dope. We live in an age of ever increasing violence, whether it be from terrorists or lunatics. A school administrator with a gun may have stopped this. It's unfortunate we have to think of things that way, but how many school shootings do we have to suffer through before we realize that guns in the hands of those sworn to protect us has taken on a new meaning? Armed school teachers? It makes a lot of sense to me.

God Bless those little souls and those left behind to grieve.

[Rob Wick]

Joe,

Generally speaking, I agree that it would be impossible for gun control to be effective simply because there are too many guns out there. However, no one, and I mean no one, needs a weapon able to shoot hundreds of rounds in seconds. They only have one purpose. That is to kill a large number of people quickly.

Best
Rob

[J. Beckert]

That's true, Rob and I agree that the general public should not be able to have guns that shoot hundreds of rounds in seconds. Those guns should be for those brave young ones who fight for our freedom. This lunatic that did this, as I understand it, was armed with two handguns. One or two well placed rounds could have averted this. I wouldn't have a problem being met by an armed person at my kid's school. I'd welcome it, in fact. If there was someone armed and ready for this all too frequently occurring situation, we wouldn't be talking about this. God Bless those little souls.

[Dawn E Foster]

I just heard it was a kindergarten class. Now tears are flowing freely as I think of my sweet granddaughter - a kindergartner!

I was in our kindergarten class when I first started hearing about this. I can't even find words to say ...

[JMadonna]

I think a large part of these trajedies is due to the 'shock' philosophy now practiced by the entertainment industry. The abundance of crime shows, reality (or exploitation) shows and even sports shows (see the latest ESPN - RGIII controversy) - not to mention violent video games all have a cumulative effect on young minds.

A person with no self-esteem, doesn't care about themselves nor the feelings of others. A violent shock is their way of hitting the re-set button. Unless we change this culture, all the laws in the world will not restrain the violence.

Note: I may well be wrong on this - but thanks for letting me vent my frustrations
- Jerry

[LincolnMan]

Jerry: I venture to say that we all agree with you. I'm sitting here watching a western movie filmed in 1959. A cowboy is gut shot but there is no blood- it wasn't "allowed" them to show it. Today, we see in film and on TV horrible sights-and how many people don't even think there is anything wrong with it? The culture has become so desensitized. How many killings in movies, on TV, and in video games are we exposed to-over and over again?