So, Blogger has a radically new look and way of doing things huh? I hate change so it'll take me awhile to get used to this...
I just wanted to pop in and say a quick hello to everyone (anyone?) still on the blogs. As is always the case, life is kind of ho-hum right now since it is the middle of summer. Unbelievably, though, I only have a month to go before the fall semester starts at my new university. I'm excited and apprehensive at the same time, nothing new there.
Right now, I'm planning two vacations. One vacation will be to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The other will be to New York City to see, among other things, The Phantom of the Opera.
Actually, the main reason I wanted to make a [long overdue] blogpost was to express my reaction to the shooting at the movie theater in Aura, Colorado, only a few days ago.
How many of these mass shootings have taken place in my lifetime that I remember or have heard about? Columbine in 1999, Red Lake High School in 2005, the shooting of 5 Amish girls right here in Pennsylvania in 2006, Virginia Tech in 2008, Fort Hood in 2009, the shooting at Congresswoman Gabby Giffords' event in 2011, the shooting at the Toronto Eaton Centre last month, and now this senseless shooting in Colorado.
My first reaction was not sympathy or compassion for the victims and their families. No, it was anger and frustration. I don't really know why. I just don't understand it I guess. Of course, it is unrealistic to expect any kind of real reform when it comes to gun control since the Second Amendment pretty much makes that impossible. But on thing is for sure, it is needed.
After the tragedy occurred, President Obama issued a proclamation ordering flags to be flown at half-staff until sunset on July 25. I took the liberty of going up to Dad's church and lowering the flags there to honor the victims. Sadly, while driving around yesterday, I noticed the church was the only place in town that had the flags lowered. Not even the post office had them down. The post office is the one place that *should* have them down since it's a federal building.
So, on top of the anger at the shooting, this also makes me sad to see that people can't take two minutes out of their day to show some respect.
