Virginia Tech

It seems that every incident of violence in America more serious than a rape or homicide becomes a "national tragedy," and although some do deserve such a title, others are blown out of proportion quite a bit. It has always seemed too hard to relate a bunch of killings to my own life, when I'm so far removed from the situation.

In response to today's Virginia Tech shootings, however, I can understand that such a divide in opinion may be moot when such an incident occurs in an environment that feels so close to home. That home being, of course, the campus of Bowling Green State University. The x-number of square acres that make up campus, although populated by some 20,000 students, feels as small as it truly is. I've spent the last four years of my life in an ever-changing state of learning, exploring, making new friends, etc.

Even though the Virginia Tech campus shootings today happened hundreds of miles away from BGSU, it is not hard to relate to the incident. BGSU shares all of the same principles of VT, much like any college campus does: open spaces, open environment, and open attitudes. It is perhaps one of the most hypocritically advertised places of "safety" in America. It seems that as long as nothing more than the expected occasional theft, mugging, hell, even rape occurs, a college campus is a "safe place to send the kids."

Never once in my life have I thought about a major national incident as potentially affecting me. After all, there aren't any tall skyscrapers that terrorists would fly a plane into in Northwest Ohio, nor are there any nationally important figures that might be scrutinized for an assassination attempt. Buildings to blow up? Nope, just ma-and-pop stores with the occasional office thrown in for good measure. The very city of Bowling Green is quiet and quaint, minus the college, of course. I could not think of a more "median yet perfect" place in America to want to grow up.

And yet, the VT shootings seem very real to me. After pouring over new feeds all day from the Internet, reading first-hand accounts on Facebook, and considering the BGSU campus, I believe that such an incident could be very well realized. I go to BGSU as a second home, a place that I can openly express myself, move about, and feel positive about myself. Since 7:15am this morning, the students of VT will be lacking such freedoms. I too worry about my safety on campus, and although it's a small worry, it nonetheless exists. That voice saying to me, "it could happen here."

I sure as hell hope it never does happen at Bowling Green State University.

That's my two cents. Thanks for listening.

Out.