Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Golfhaus]

I like it.

It does a good job of pointing out the permanence of the shooting on people's perceptions of Va Tech from now on. Virginia Tech is a good school. Strong athletic program, known academic prowess. But this image may as well BE the school's new logo, as far as people's perceptions are concerned. It's been 35 years, but what's the first thing you think of when you hear "Kent State University?"

It's not a nice message. Not all messages need to be.

[iron_felix]

Well, it looks like people are having a number of different reactions to the cartoon:  Some positive, some negative to varying degrees, and a lot of "I don't get it" responses (which is typical for my friend's cartoons, even his non-political stuff).  But for the most part even the people who weren't offended have said they can understand how others were.

I thought this might be the case.  It doesn't surprise me that reasonable people could be offended by this, but I was hoping for some kind of validation that I wasn't being a dick myself for having liked it, and I think I've gotten that from this thread.  Rumjay, I'm especially glad to know that you, as someone for whom these events have been so close to home, were as moved as I was.  That makes me feel much better about this than I would otherwise.

I wouldn't think too poorly the people at UGA just because a bunch of them want my friend fired, either.  I'm sure some of them of them are just acting a fool over this, but from what I understand, a lot of the students calling for the dude's head had been doing so anyway well before this particular cartoon ran, and this only caused them to redouble their efforts.  Of course, in a way that's even worse than just overreacting, but whatever.  They're people with an agenda, and for all the uproar, it doesn't look like anything is actually going to come of it.

[...] I think the black background combined with the gun made it look too 'trying to be cool' rather than sorrowful.

Although from what you describe, this was NOT his intent, it looks like he's glorifying it with a drawing that looks Hollywoodesque. I don't like it.

I think this brings up an important point with respect to the portrayal of gun violence in American culture.  I suspect a large number of those offended by the cartoon made at least some sort of association with the smoking gun being glamorous, and expecting that the artist intended them to think it was cool.  That's not to say they weren't justified in taking offense for that reason, but if that's really the case it's pretty disturbing in its own right.

Also, very good point about the use of the school's logo linking the killings to the school's identity.  I hadn't thought about it that way, and I certainly hope people won't make that association too readily once this is in the past.  I think the Kent State shootings were an entirely different case, though, due to their political context.  That was a defining moment in the larger historical narrative of the Vietnam protest movement, rather than an isolated tragedy carried out by a lone madman, and therefore it has much more staying power.  It's been about the same amount of time since Charles Whitman did his thing up in the clock tower, and the University of Texas has managed to avoid its reputation being tarnished in the same way.  Hopefully that will prove true for Virginia Tech also.

EDIT:  Wow, what an utterly crap time this was for me to have hit 187 posts.  I'm relieved to have gone back to being Chucklebot again.

[jaydub]

I'll point out with some sadness that "Columbine" has become shorthand for school shootings.  Time will tell whether VT gets the same association.

[pmcd9]

Also, very good point about the use of the school's logo linking the killings to the school's identity.  I hadn't thought about it that way, and I certainly hope people won't make that association too readily once this is in the past.  I think the Kent State shootings were an entirely different case, though, due to their political context.  That was a defining moment in the larger historical narrative of the Vietnam protest movement, rather than an isolated tragedy carried out by a lone madman, and therefore it has much more staying power.  It's been about the same amount of time since Charles Whitman did his thing up in the clock tower, and the University of Texas has managed to avoid its reputation being tarnished in the same way.  Hopefully that will prove true for Virginia Tech also.

Kent State is synonymous with those killings because that sort of thing (thankfully) hasn't happened again.  VTech probably will get a little bit of a reputation because it was so big (32 killed), but it wont become synonymous because this kind of thing has become all too common.  Also, as Jaydub pointed out, Columbine is already the name associated with school killings.

[jaydub]

Its a pity for such a pretty alpine flower, too



(School's namesake - flower came first...)

[linnea]

Its a pity for such a pretty alpine flower, too



(School's namesake - flower came first...)

Yeah. I was really pissed when I saw bumper stickers of columbine everywhere after the incident, then I realized that the Columbine was (duh) the image of the school. The official State Flower of Colorado is forever marred. Sigh.