Off Topic (but not)
If any of you haven't read "Nineteen Minutes" by Jodi Picoult - I highly recommend it.
Nineteen Minutes
tells the story of a mass shooting at Sterling High School, which takes place in 2007 in New Hampshire, America. It follows Peter Houghton's massacre through the grounds of his school after enduring years of brutal bullying by his peers.
Excerpt:
In nineteen minutes, you can mow the front lawn; color your hair; watch a third of a hockey game. In nineteen minutes, you can bake scones or get a tooth filled by a dentist; you can fold laundry for a family of five.
Nineteen minutes is how long it took the Tennessee Titans to sell out of tickets to the playoffs. It’s the amount of time it takes to listen to the Yes song Close to the Edge. It’s the length of a sitcom, minus the commercials. It’s the driving distance from the Vermont border to the town of Sterling, NH.
In nineteen minutes, you can order a pizza and get it delivered. You can read a story to a child or have your oil changed. You can walk two miles. You can sew a hem.
In nineteen minutes, you can stop the world; or you can just jump off it.
In nineteen minutes, you can get revenge.
I read this when it came out in 2007. It is very good at helping you see into the mindset/lives of teenagers. While these shootings have continued over the years since - their evolution into these horrific crimes is mind-boggling. But, for the most part, THE WHY seems to be a thread that weaves its way through them all.
In order for us to get a handle on this - to really start to prevent these catastrophes we've got to start working on THE WHY'S and how to stop them first.
If you want to read more at this there is a nice long excerpt here:
Nineteen Minutes (Jodi Picoult, 2007) examines a school shooting in a riveting, poignant, and thought-provoking novel that asks a haunting question: Do we really ever know someone?
www.jodipicoult.com
And you will really be stunned at the end - there is a bit of a "twist" that I didn't see coming.
Ok - back on topic.
JMHO