Friday, April 20, 2007

Virginia

I just had the misfortune of watching the video released by Cho Seung-Hui, the Virginia killer. What good can possibly come of this video's broadcast? I'm sure many people would disagree with me on the grounds of freedom of speech, the right to information, and other principles which are applied indiscriminately. But where do you draw the line between the right to a free press and plain voyeurism, with broadcasting companies profiting from people's misery?

Cho himself admitted that he was a copycat killer, choosing the date as an homage to the Columbine shootings, so isn't it logical to assume, without wishing to promote hysteria, that this kind of thing could just snowball? Isn't the blind application of the right to information potentially just as dangerous and counter-productive as free access to guns and ammunition? Maybe supporting some censorship sounds old-fashioned, but compare that to the blithe and stubborn advocation of "freedom" of the man who sold Cho his weapon who, literally sticking to his guns, says "there were thousands of students there, not one of them was armed "(to take out Cho). Ridiculous.

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