Shooting in Virginia Tech

Many people are going to be wondering if the worst mass shooting incident in US history could have been prevented. But amid the debate, students have to deal with the senseless killings, the loss of friends and professors. And then the fear plaguing any parent with a child in Virginia Tech. Was she in that building? In that classroom? If the phone rings, let it be her.

Being halfway across the world didn't lessen the horror when I listened to a recording of gunshots. Yahoo News also features raw sound footage of the gunshots captured by a student, a longer audio that jarred the still scene of the university campus (though soon, police were emerging from the building carrying injured victims). So many gunshots, and the shouting...the shouting.

The latest is that the gunman - who shot himself after the massacre - could be a Chinese man on a student visa. I'm sure many - myself included - wish they could vent their fury and that immense sense of awfulness on him. Why? Why?

What little comfort they can find in these dark hours, I hope the victims' families and friends receive it. And for those who had their lives snatched away, go well, far away from this haunted world.