Cho's War

In connection with the shooting at an American university, mourning has been declared in the United States

US President George W. Bush yesterday decided to travel to Blacksburg to personally take part in a memorial service for the victims of the unprecedented tragedy that claimed the lives of 33 people - students and teachers of Virginia Tech University. There have never been such bloody shootings in American educational institutions. “The nation is shocked by what happened and mourns those killed,” Bush said in a special address. He expressed condolences to the families and friends of the victims. By order of Virginia Governor Tim Kaine, a state of emergency has been declared throughout the state since yesterday and state flags have been flown at half-mast as a sign of mourning for those killed. The US Senate unanimously adopted a resolution expressing condolences in connection with the tragedy at the university.

President Bush declared a week of mourning in the country. Until Saturday, flags on the buildings of all government agencies and organizations will be flown at half-staff. Virginia Tech itself has canceled classes. The university administration said that students will return to classes only at the end of the week, and the Norris Hall academic building will be closed until the end of the semester.

The police have already identified the perpetrator who carried out the shooting on the campus and then shot himself. He turned out to be a native of South Korea, 23-year-old Cho Seung Hu, who was studying in one of the senior years of the English department. The management characterizes him as a closed and lonely young man, about whose life and habits there is practically no information. “You pushed me to do this,” a note found in his dorm room said, according to local media. According to RIA Novosti, in the note, Cho Sung Hu expressed hatred for “rich kids,” “libertines and revelers,” and “lying charlatans” from the university.

It is reported that Cho Sung Hu came to the United States in 1992 as a child and spent his childhood in the suburbs of Washington. Shortly before the tragedy, he caused several incidents, including a fire in his dorm room and stalked several women. Local media also claim that he was taking antidepressants.

Around 7 a.m. Monday, Cho entered a dormitory on the fourth floor of West Ambler Johnston Hall and shot and killed two people. At 7:15 a.m., the 911 rescue service learned about the incident.

Now students are indignantly asking why the university administration did not inform them about the tragedy in the hostel on time. After all, two hours later, shots were fired in the Norris Hall academic building, where the science and engineering faculties are located. The attacker killed 30 people there and wounded over 20 people, 15 of whom were hospitalized. Doctors assess the condition of some as serious. Among the victims of the shooting were two teachers. A 75-year-old native of Romania, an Israeli citizen, Professor Liviu Librescu blocked the killer from entering the classroom, giving his students the opportunity to escape through the windows. A 51-year-old teacher of Indian origin, who worked at the Department of Environmental Protection Technologies, also died from the killer’s bullet.

According to student Trey Perkins, the killer burst into the classroom and immediately opened fire. In a minute and a half he managed to fire about 30 shots. Student Erin Sheehan, who was in the same classroom at the fateful moment, said that “the killer was a young guy of Asian appearance, wearing a jacket similar to those worn by Boy Scouts.” "He looked calm," she said. The student reported that there were about two dozen people in the audience. Only four managed to escape, they managed to jump out the window.

The criminal himself committed suicide. His face was severely disfigured due to the bullet hitting him in the head. The police found two pistols from which they fired at the students. Local police chief Wendell Flinchum does not rule out that the cause of the massacre was “personal motives.” Director of the Center for International Studies of the Institute of the USA and Canada of the Russian Academy of Sciences Anatoly Utkin told Vremya Novostei that, regardless of the reason for the shooting, the tragedy at the University of Virginia will give new arguments to supporters and opponents of the free sale of weapons in the United States: “In most countries of the world, governments are trying to limit the acquisition and possession by citizens of automatic firearms.”

The tragedy, however, did not discourage advocates of American gun freedom. According to Larry Pratt, executive director of the well-known organization Gun Owners of America, the tragedy at the University of Technology could have been avoided if students and professors had carried weapons with them and could have fought back the killer: “When will we understand that unarmed is a poor defense ? This school shooting demands the immediate repeal of the gun-free zone laws that have left our country's schools at the mercy of a madman."

Victor VOLODIN