Virginia Tech Killer Identified

[Alex+R 0]

They'll find out his race no matter what. Although they need to some more in depth research to find what country. In any case, it's getting into censorship issues which is a little out of topic.

I think people would be familiar with "Cho" They report race in most stories, as others have said. It's not unusual in the least. People are hungry to know who this person was, and how he could have done this. Hence, I think, the description of his house. I really wish they hadn't described it, though, if his parents still live there. That would be irresponsible.

@ Gupt Seriously, you know people you think would snap like this? You would believe it? That totally freaks me out (not about you, about, yknow, Americans in general)

[homesick_american 1]

Why do they have to report nationality? It is irrelevant, and is sort of inducing stereotypes to readers who already hate Koreans.

Who hates Koreans?

Apparently Kim Jong Il does...

Hmmm...good point, hadn't thought of that.

[Fandango 1,440]

I'm reminded of the movie 'Arlington Road' There's a bit in there where Bo Bridges was explaining the mentality of having to find the 'reason' for senseless tragedies & the 'lone gunman' angle is a soothing one like 'here's the one guy who was different from everyone else'. I don't think it's used to promote hate amongst the nationalities, but I do think it's used as a tactic like 'hey he wasn't American so we can breathe easier now'

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

They'll find out his race no matter what. Although they need to some more in depth research to find what country. In any case, it's getting into censorship issues which is a little out of topic.

I think people would be familiar with "Cho" They report race in most stories, as others have said. It's not unusual in the least. People are hungry to know who this person was, and how he could have done this. Hence, I think, the description of his house. I really wish they hadn't described it, though, if his parents still live there. That would be irresponsible.

@ Gupt Seriously, you know people you think would snap like this? You would believe it? That totally freaks me out (not about you, about, yknow, Americans in general)

At least he wasn't of "middle-eastern" appearance. Can you imagine?

[Robor007 0]

It is so sad what happened, I pray for the people that died, may God give them a place in Heaven. I can only imagine the fear in all american universities right now, the fear that every mother and father have for their son or daughter student.

I wonder if what happened it will bring new rules in the immigration process.......just wondering.......

Prolly not. It could have been an american citizen born and raised here who did the shooting, him being immigrated here didnt have the effect, it wont do anything with the immigration process.

But it wasn't a US born American citizen. I think that irrelevant detail will only add fuel to the fire for the anti-immigration folks.

I'm listening to the radio right now and one caller blamed, 'letting all of them foreigners in here'. Sadly this country is full of hate and incidents like this fan the flames.

Edited April 17, 2007 by Robor007

[Alex+R 0]

I'm reminded of the movie 'Arlington Road' There's a bit in there where Bo Bridges was explaining the mentality of having to find the 'reason' for senseless tragedies & the 'lone gunman' angle is a soothing one like 'here's the one guy who was different from everyone else'. I don't think it's used to promote hate amongst the nationalities, but I do think it's used as a tactic like 'hey he wasn't American so we can breathe easier now'

Yeah, I think it's weird how people want to get rid of the idea that he's American. Frankly, if he's been here since age 9, he's American. He probably spoke English without an accent and had a lot of American friends. I know lots of people who came here around that age and aren't any less American than those with parents from a different country born here. Maybe feeling a little like they have two nationalities, but 99% American.

[Mel_and_Daniel 1]

I think they thought the first shooting was a murder/suicide... I think I remember reading that somewhere....

Let's see, they thought it was a murder/suicide. They also thought that the gunman had left. Does this make any sence.

They informed everyone of the first incident through email after the second incident was over. Did I hear someone say DAMAGE CONTROL!!!

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

I'm reminded of the movie 'Arlington Road' There's a bit in there where Bo Bridges was explaining the mentality of having to find the 'reason' for senseless tragedies & the 'lone gunman' angle is a soothing one like 'here's the one guy who was different from everyone else'. I don't think it's used to promote hate amongst the nationalities, but I do think it's used as a tactic like 'hey he wasn't American so we can breathe easier now'

Yeah, I think it's weird how people want to get rid of the idea that he's American. Frankly, if he's been here since age 9, he's American. He probably spoke English without an accent and had a lot of American friends. I know lots of people who came here around that age and aren't any less American than those with parents from a different country born here. Maybe feeling a little like they have two nationalities, but 99% American.

Its the distancing effect. Its really quite obvious - the press doesn't have any information about why the guy went nuts like this (such as is possible to explain this sort of thing) - so they turn to the information they do have available to create some sort of sinister picture of the guy from bits and pieces of fragmentary info. So inevitably it starts with how "he's a loner" or "was always a bit weird", the fact that he's an immigrant is great from that point of view because subconciously it shifts the blame from our society. Its a broader equivalent of a mother saying to her husband "look at what your son has done".

[Sinergy 3]

It is so sad what happened, I pray for the people that died, may God give them a place in Heaven. I can only imagine the fear in all american universities right now, the fear that every mother and father have for their son or daughter student.

I wonder if what happened it will bring new rules in the immigration process.......just wondering.......

Prolly not. It could have been an american citizen born and raised here who did the shooting, him being immigrated here didnt have the effect, it wont do anything with the immigration process.

But it wasn't a US born American citizen. I think that irrelevant detail will only add fuel to the fire for the anti-immigration folks.

I'm listening to the radio right now and one caller blamed, 'letting all of them foreigners in here'. Sadly this country is full of hate and incidents like this fan the flames.

regardless, i seriously DOUBT this will have anything to do with the immigration process. No immigration procedure can check to see if a person is going to blow up a building or shoot ppl is mass quantity before granting them a visa. and if if they can, then i owe you a beer.

[peejay 327]

Why do they have to report nationality? It is irrelevant, and is sort of inducing stereotypes to readers who already hate Koreans.

It is relevant if he is a foreign national. Although Green Card holders may purchase and possess guns...foreign tourists, students, workers, etc. here in the USA on visas cannot. The fact that he is a foreign national student does raise questions such as whether he legally purchased the gun or whether he could legally posses one.

[almaty 19]

Sources tell ABC News Cho bought his first gun, a Glock 9 millimeter handgun, on March 13; they say he bought his second weapon, a .22 caliber pistol, within the last week. The serial numbers on both guns had been filed off, they said.

Authorities found the receipt for the 9 millimeter handgun in Cho's backpack. They say the bag also contained two knives and additional ammunition for the two guns.

Legal permanent resident aliens may purchase firearms in the state of Virginia. A resident alien must, however, provide additional identification to prove he or she is a resident of the state.

[Marilyn. 340]

on a different note... I was reading one of the many articles on this incident and it mentioned the colour of the shooter's house... how is that at all relevant...???

Officials said Cho graduated from a public high school in Chantilly, Va., in 2003. His family lived in an off-white, two-story townhouse in Centreville, Va., a Washington suburb.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070417/ap_on_...a_tech_shooting

still wondering how this is relevant to the story....

Why do they have to report nationality? It is irrelevant, and is sort of inducing stereotypes to readers who already hate Koreans.

It is relevant if he is a foreign national. Although Green Card holders may purchase and possess guns...foreign tourists, students, workers, etc. here in the USA on visas cannot. The fact that he is a foreign national student does raise questions such as whether he legally purchased the gun or whether he could legally posses one.

i thought he was an LPR.....

[almaty 19]

on a different note... I was reading one of the many articles on this incident and it mentioned the colour of the shooter's house... how is that at all relevant...???

Officials said Cho graduated from a public high school in Chantilly, Va., in 2003. His family lived in an off-white, two-story townhouse in Centreville, Va., a Washington suburb.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070417/ap_on_...a_tech_shooting

still wondering how this is relevant to the story....

Why do they have to report nationality? It is irrelevant, and is sort of inducing stereotypes to readers who already hate Koreans.

It is relevant if he is a foreign national. Although Green Card holders may purchase and possess guns...foreign tourists, students, workers, etc. here in the USA on visas cannot. The fact that he is a foreign national student does raise questions such as whether he legally purchased the gun or whether he could legally posses one.

i thought he was an LPR.....

i agree sister marilyn, they drag up any trivia information to look like they are doing a good job of news reporting

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

on a different note... I was reading one of the many articles on this incident and it mentioned the colour of the shooter's house... how is that at all relevant...???

Officials said Cho graduated from a public high school in Chantilly, Va., in 2003. His family lived in an off-white, two-story townhouse in Centreville, Va., a Washington suburb.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070417/ap_on_...a_tech_shooting

still wondering how this is relevant to the story....

Why do they have to report nationality? It is irrelevant, and is sort of inducing stereotypes to readers who already hate Koreans.

It is relevant if he is a foreign national. Although Green Card holders may purchase and possess guns...foreign tourists, students, workers, etc. here in the USA on visas cannot. The fact that he is a foreign national student does raise questions such as whether he legally purchased the gun or whether he could legally posses one.

i thought he was an LPR.....

i agree sister marilyn, they drag up any trivia information to look like they are doing a good job of news reporting

This always happens during ongoing investigations with unreleased information. They have to find a way to satisfy demand for news of the story - usually it involves making a story whatever way you can with whatever information you have at hand. No doubt when all the information is released in the coming days we'll have a clearer picture of the events and of the perpetrator. Its unfortunate though that the public discourse is often colored heavily by those early stories, which are based on the fragmentary information available at the time.

[natty bumppo 297]

Sources tell ABC News Cho bought his first gun, a Glock 9 millimeter handgun, on March 13; they say he bought his second weapon, a .22 caliber pistol, within the last week. The serial numbers on both guns had been filed off, they said.

Authorities found the receipt for the 9 millimeter handgun in Cho's backpack. They say the bag also contained two knives and additional ammunition for the two guns.

Legal permanent resident aliens may purchase firearms in the state of Virginia. A resident alien must, however, provide additional identification to prove he or she is a resident of the state.

If the handguns were purchased in VA, it would be interesting to see the rest of the story ... like what enabled him to purchase two handguns in VA within a 30 day period?

http://www.vsp.state.va.us/Firearms_MultiplePurchase.shtm