Aftermath of a Tragedy

Apr 1, 2007 12:00 PM, LARRY ANDERSON, EDITOR

In the sad aftermath of the Virginia Tech massacre, second-guessing has ensued. It's natural that a public haunted by the tragedy would look for answers. How could we have prevented it? Did we miss the warning signs? Given the randomness of it all, one might ask: Is anyone safe? It is perhaps also not surprising that some would turn to the government to make it all better, to explain it, to keep it from happening again.

Details of the shooter's psychological problems have been among the more troubling revelations, followed closely by questions of why such an individual would be allowed to buy a gun.

Is there a problem with the adequacy of the background checks that scrutinize potential gun buyers? Are states reporting insufficient information on mental health records? Did a difference in wording between the statutes in Virginia and at the federal level cause a disconnect related to enforcement? Perhaps more troubling: Did lack of communication among governments (a lesson we thought we had learned) allow yet another tragedy to occur?

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