Thursday, February 14, 2008

NIU SHOCK

Not what my post for Valentine's Day is supposed to be about but my alma mater Northern Illinois University in DeKalb is the one where the shooting today occurred. I am totally at a loss for words.

To think I sat in the same exact hall as the one where a gunman fired shots at students just an hour ago.

MORE THOUGHTS:

It's really surreal when
it happens at your alma mater,
and the place
where you met your husband.

A place where you sat
previously in that same lecture hall
17, 16, 15 years ago,
listening to a math professor drone on;
where you tried to stay awake for Citizen Kane
during Film Class,
or passed a note to a boyfriend.

Say a prayer for the victims.

27 comments:

Melisa Wells said...

I am also speechless. It's not even on the Yahoo homepage yet and I realize how close to home this is.

My heart goes out to the families and all of the NIU students today.

How do we stop this madness?

cubmommy said...

Hubby's cousin goes to NIU. We are waiting word if he is ok. Very scary.

Melisa Wells said...

Keeping fingers crossed for your hubby's cousin, Cubmommy. xoxo

Laura ~Peach~ said...

just heard it on the news here SO SAD. prayers heading for the families and friends !
Hugs Laura

AutoSysGene said...

I have a friend who works there. I will be checking in with him tonight.

Kate said...

My heart goes out to everyone effected.

Monnik said...

Scary news. Cubmommy, hope your cousin in law is ok.

House of Jules said...

I know, it's terrible. Hope your cousin is OK, CubMommy.
Jules
House of Jules

Cecily R said...

Oh I am so sad for everyone involved. My heart just goes out to everyone.

lilypotter said...

I hadn't heard yet. My heart goes out to the families, though. Too sad, and it happens too often.

Roger Miller said...

Our friend's son goes there and we're still waiting to hear from them. I can't imagine what they are going through. They said that the environment there has been getting worse over the past two years, but I don't think they thought that something like this would happen.

Our prayers are going out to all those involved. Really scary.

MaNiC MoMMy™ said...

Oh my God, cubmommy and Bug, please, please let us know when your loved ones contact you. This hits way too close to home. Thoughts are with you. It seriously makes you wonder what on earth is the problem.

I just don't understand.

Please let us know, OK?

ORION said...

NIU is my alma mater. I am waiting to hear from my friends and praying they are okay.
We need to get these guns out of our country. I heard the news people talking about more security...and just wanted to say "its the guns, stupid!"

Laski said...

This story is just so upsetting. I graduated from NIU. Yup. Sure did. Oddly enough, I was in the parking garage (the largest one on campus) when I first heard of the Columbine shootings. How crazy is that. The phones have been buzzing and e-mails have been exchanging all day. What is with people? Why does this keep happening?

Kim Rossi Stagliano said...

Yes, the college years are supposed to be a chance to grow up, become an adult, enjoy your newfound freedom - not a death sentence. We've discussed this, Manic. I truly believe we have grossly injured our kids (you know my kids have autism) neurologically. And then many of these raging kids are on meds for years and years. And they snap. I feel for them. And their families. And God for the families who lost an innocent child in the crossfire. Our kids are broken. I say it all the time. Our kids are broken. This rage is not normal. It isn't.

K

MaNiC MoMMy™ said...

Kim, we did discuss this, and you're absolutely right.

What the hell has changed from 20, 30, 50 years ago? Why all the violence now? Or did we have it then but it just wasn't so readily publicized-in-our-face-happening-at-this-moment?

I'm going to focus on something fun and post My Funny Valentine Now!

kay said...

i'm so sorry that this is hitting so close to home for you.

i just cried and cried.

Mom said...

I am still trying to get over the Gruesome shooting at VA Tech! I jsut don't understand why these young adults feel they need to go out in what they think is a blaze of glory. It is frieting to me to thiknn my kids could be in this situation one day. I am sorry for you adn your alma mater, I will keep you adn the victime in my thoughts and prayers.

Anonymous said...

I know Cole Hall well myself. Let us pay our respects to the dead, and let's not let some nihilistic twerp ruin our memories.

Seriously, that would be wrong. There's probably a lot of people who will demand that the building be torn down, or some such thing (heard a lot of that after Va. Tech.). That would be like conceding that Mr. Evil Suicide Stunt won. Let's preserve public spaces for the living, and the good, and our happy memories.

Anonymous because I'm ashamed to admit that I'm not only an NIU alum, I'm a former Sociology graduate student. I'm sure I didn't know the shooter but I know others who surely did, and the fact that they will be wounded by association with him enrages me.

Unknown said...

It is absolutely horrible, and I just don't understand anymore what is going on with these people wanting to kill so many others. I mean, this is the third one in two weeks, isn't it? I pray for the families as much as I can.

MaNiC MoMMy™ said...

Anon, I totally get that you say it would be so wrong for people to say to tear down the building because then the guy would win. TOtally get that.

But then you confuse me by saying
that you're ASHAMED to admit you're an alum and a former soc grad student. How does that make you ashamed? You don't think people will associate YOU with the killer do you? That's a shock to me that people would do that!?!! I really and truly hope you don't feel that way.

It makes me sad to be associated with a school that will now be known as a school with a shooting, but not ashamed. Just really sad.

Anonymous said...

Hello it's me, former NIU Sociology grad student again. Sorry for subjecting you all to my P.O.'ed rant. Let me explain where I'm coming from:

I went through exactly the same program that this guy did. Had some of the same faculty advisers. I don't know any of his cohort of grad students, but I have a huge amount of empathy for what they and the faculty have to go through. They have to return to their offices, answer a lot of questions from law enforcement and media, walk up and down the halls thinking, "I shared this office with him","I wrote a letter of recommendation for him to go on to his PhD program", "I nominated him for this award"...you get the idea.

The grad students and faculty are a tight-knit group who interact a lot, and the sense of betrayal has to be huge. I know I feel betrayed, and I'm only on the far perimeter of this group.

MaNiC MoMMy™ said...

Hey Anon, totally get where you're coming from. It hits you way closer to home than I can imagine. I haven't checked the news this a.m.--have they shared his name yet? Going to check now.

cubmommy said...

Just wanted to update everyone that Hubby's cousin is ok and safe. What a relief! Thank you for your positive thoughts!

Tanya said...

I'm so tired of this. I just blogged about it last week. While I don't know anyone at NIU, I did have a close friend who was in the Engineering Program at VTech, so I have empathy.

Its a sad world we live in.

MaNiC MoMMy™ said...

cubmommy--thank God--that is good news.

Robin said...

When I leave the campus after class, my mom always worries about me being attacked by a "stranger". Now days, I think there might be more danger from the students.

Why, why, why.