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Shooting rampage

The shooting rampage at the Virginia Tech University that claimed 32 innocent lives is unfortunate. Violence on campus is not new in the United States. The right to bear arms is an important civil liberty there. Two hundred million guns are in circulation among a population of 300 million. Astonishingly, many Americans argue that such incidents take place not because there are too many but because there are not enough. The U.S. certainly needs to take another look at its arms licensing policy.

Lt. Col. (retd.) A.E. Charles,
Coimbatore

* * *

Shooting in schools and colleges across America is spreading like a virus and taking place with regularity. The Columbine High School tragedy in which two teenagers killed 12 students and a teacher before committing suicide stands out as an example of how students can bring firearms to places of learning and use them to such horrific effect. The Virginia Tech incident should make America tighten its gun control laws.

S. Kamat,
Bardez

* * *

The news filled me with shock and grief. The dreams of students and professors were shattered in an instant.

Shaheema Shaw,
Chennai

* * *

The unfortunate incident reflects the restlessness of the younger generation in the most developed nation. Heavy doses of sex and violence in the media are to some extent responsible for this.

Karavadi Raghava Rao,
Vijayawada

* * *

Unless the U.S. government takes stringent measures, such incidents will send a wrong signal to students planning to study abroad.

G. Muthunarayanan,
Chennai

* * *

The carnage is painful and condemnable. The need of the hour is to console the members of the grief-stricken families. The Tamil Nadu Government deserves praise for acting swiftly to enable the family members of the slain professor, G.V. Loganathan, to leave for the U.S. immediately. Its gesture of bearing all the expenses for their travel is commendable indeed.

R.M. Manoharan,
Chennai

* * *

One thing becomes clear from the incident. Students going abroad for study or work should not remain loners. They should adapt to the conditions and develop a positive frame of mind.

G. Swaminathan,
Coimbatore

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