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Maxs Facts:
Teenage Shootings
by Max Peters (AKA Stan Unger)
(Published in AU Newsletter 6/98)
Apparently, there were no strong philosophical beliefs, or passionate ethnic causes involved. This seems to be simply the result of a culture that encourages men -- and boys -- to have guns, and to learn to use them, and to use them.
Inevitably, there are interviews with some of the surviving students as to their feelings. More and more frequently, the students will say something such as, "They are in a better place."
This response always jars me, and I find myself wincing. I have no doubt that saying these words helps survivors bear up to the emotional stress involved. In other words, it makes them feel better.
And, since it makes them feel better, I try not to react against people saying this, but I can¨t help thinking, What a display of ignorance! It¨s hard for me not to dismiss words as ridiculous as these.
A close friend of mine, a practicing Catholic, lost his four-year-old daughter in a swimming pool drowning. At the funeral, the mother of the child said to me, "She¨s in the arms of Jesus now." Apparently, I showed my disbelief in my expression, although I tried to hide my feelings. She then added, "I know you don¨t believe it, but, if I didn¨t believe it, I couldn¨t handle her death."
I quickly gave my sympathy to her by saying, "I know you believe this." I carefully avoided expressing my true beliefs. Why argue with her at this time? And so, I said nothing, which, for me, is very untypical.
The point of this column is this: The widespread belief that the tragic death of young people by an undeserved, violent means is just that -- a tragedy. By even expressing the belief that they have gone on to a better existence trivializes their death, and turns the crime into a glorious ascendence into a paradise.
You can¨t make a silk purse out of a sow¨s ear.
You can¨t turn a tragedy into a good thing. A crime is a crime, and
a tragedy is just that. To claim that the innocent victims have gone
æinto the arms of Jesusī is an idiotic belief, and worse, diminishes the
horror of the crime and the tragedy of their deaths.