Betsy Angert of Daily Kos has posted a long and emotional eulogy lamenting the untimely passing of Seung-Hui Cho, the “loveable and fragile individual” who shot 32 people at Virginia Tech. As teary-eyed as this tribute made me, it just didn’t seem to be enough. I mean, yes, Cho was – technically – a victim of gun violence, too, but in the bigger picture, he was so much more.
First, we should consider Cho’s thoughtful, giving nature. Just think – if it weren’t for Cho, no one would know any of his victims’ names. But thanks to his actions, those 32 names will be enshrined and memorialized forever. When the Indianapolis Colts won the Superbowl, did people start posting names of the entire starting line-up? Heck no! Cho has brought more recognition to his classmates – most of whom he hardly even knew – than Peyton Manning did for all his teammates who made Indy’s victory possible. Unlike this lauded superstar athlete, Cho was an unselfish man.
But he did so much more than bring the spotlight to 32 unknowns. He took a stand for the oppressed underclass of which he was a part. In a country that hates everyone except white people, he had the courage to be openly Asian – something that no one else besides Michelle Malkin has ever done successfully in our nation’s hateful history.
In addition, by his courageous trigger-pullings, he became a true crusader – bringing attention to America’s numerous flaws. Of course, he didn’t actually MEAN to do this, but when it comes to doing the right thing, the brave thing, the courageous thing, it’s well-accepted that intentions matter more than actual results. And if, perhaps, he didn’t actually HAVE any good intentions, still it’s only fair that he should get credit for them anyway, isn’t it? After all, there’s an agenda involved here, and that’s what REALLY matters.
Here are some reasons we all owe Cho a debt of thanks.
He pointed out the need for stricter gun control laws – Cho did his shooting with a .22 pistol and 9mm pistol. Notice that he did NOT use a machine gun, assault rifle, or even a nuclear missile. That’s because those things are ILLEGAL! These shootings are inarguable proof that we need to ban smaller calibers, too.
He pointed out the need for Federal Arts Funding reform – During his time at VT, Cho poured his blackly withered soul into writing a grammatically atrocious 10-page play that was completely lacking in plot, theme, dialogue, and coherance. Yet this brilliant avant-garde masterpiece was never produced for the stage. Sure, it was no Piss Christ, but it’s still a shame that our government stood by and did nothing, allowing this sparkling gem of obscenity, pedophilia, and murder to languish uncelebrated.
He pointed out the need for health care reform – Dozens of people knew there was something wrong with Cho. He didn’t socialize, he mumbled to himself in class, and took cellphone upskirt pics of his teachers – all the classic signs of dangerous psychosis and/or Star Trek fandom. But how was he to get the help he needed in a country so primitive that it doesn’t offer free universal mental health care coverage? I guess those who claim that it’s somehow less urgent than covering physical ailments can just shut the hell up now.
He pointed out the need for immigration reform – America has long been a nation of immigrants, but lately our racist government has completely closed down our borders, refusing to let anyone into the country except for the sane, the employable, and the WHITE! WHITE! WHITE! But if we were to set aside our debased racial prejudices, our country could reap the benefits of entire diverse communities of unassimilated, unbalanced, and unwhite peoples of colors. These groups could then give one another the sort of emotional and interpersonal understanding that only those who have lived the horror of brown eyes, straight black hair, and indecipherably thick accents can give. The sort of understanding that our oppressive, patriarchal, racist government denied to poor Cho.
Finally, he pointed out the need for wage reform – Cho’s parents both had to work 14 hours a day to earn the money to put him through college. Why was this? Mostly because Bush hates yellow people. But also because not one single job in America pays more than $5.15 an hour. If only this nation were sensible enough to institute a fair, livable, minimum wage (ten, twenty, fifty bucks an hour – whatever). If there were that one small fairness in this country, Cho’s parents could’ve afforded to work less and spent quality time with their son. The could’ve listened to his concerns, empathized with his feelings, and taught him important life lessons. Like “when planning a shooting spree, always start by shooting yourself first to save money on ammo”.
If only Cho had saved more money on ammo.
So sad.
Sorry dude, I know what Kos did was rediculous and stupid, but it hasn’t been long enough for this kind of post yet.
If one waits for the most appropriate time for this sort of thing, then it would never be written. I support mocking the killer, if only because he will never be a victim in my book. It’s fair game. The MSM has been calling for gun law reform since the story hit the airwaves after all.
This post made me chuckle.
shakes head
My God, Cho was right…
What is wrong with America?
Perfect timing Frank. If we wait to respond to the idiocy of the left their short attention spans will have caused them to forget what the argument is and they win by indifference. We need to learn to fight back as quickly as possible before the nutroots take hold of an issue.
I don’t have a problem with the timing, either. What I DO have a problem with is the Kos post that Frank was criticizing. Did you read that? I thought about fisking it, but I don’t think I could do it justice. It’s hard to take seriously. I’ve read some stupid things on the ‘net, but nothing that so confuses up with down and black with white. I couldn’t even read the whole thing; it was just too creepy.
Good Job Harvey. I don’t think it was too early, except in the sense that there will never be enough time for the crap you are responding to to be appropriate. Holy cow Batman when did we reach the point where it would be lauded (read the comments on the Kos post only if you have an iron stomach.) for sainting the killer and blaming the victims?!
Sorry Harvey for giving credit to Frank. Please forgive me for not reading the byline.
If only Cho had saved more money on ammo.
True. All he really needed was the one slug he used on himself. Too bad that that particular bullet didn’t inch its way up to the front of the line a bit sooner.
Why is it here at IMAO we worry about the timing of a post?* At the Dirty Krust they don’t worry about timing.
They lamented the death of the murderer of 32 people, who had mothers, fathers, husbands, wives, children and friends who are devastated. The people who died did not offend their murderer all they actually did was breathe.
We point out how offensive and ridiculous the Kos post is and we’re the bad guys. I don’t think so.
*we worry because most of us are responsible, humane people with some class and empathy. I’m not exactly sure what brand of being they have over there, and I really don’t want to know
STANDING OVATION FOR HARVEY
No, no it’s not too soon, in fact I would have loved for Harv to get the message about saving ammo to Cho before he got onto campus. The problem with wacko’s like Cho is they are generally aware that there is no one around to stop them before they take out quite a few folks. I’m thinking if he had an idea that he wasn’t gonna get past one door because someone else would have popped him as soon as he pulled his weapon, he would have been deterred.
Yeah, I realize he was crazy and sometimes crazy people don’t think on terms of self preservation. All the more reason to have someone in that school to pop him off before he had a chance to go berserker on anyone else.
Well said, Harvey!
Huh. This must’ve been a better piece than I thought. I’ve already been called “Frank” twice.
Which I take as a compliment.
Absolutely despicable and disgusting
When exactly was it that suddenly everything bad that happens affects all of us?
OK, I’m sad that a large number of people were killed.
OK, I’m not exactly shocked that our perps rights are, again, much more critical than victims rights.
But, honestly, the only real effect this has on me — and likely most other people in the US outside of that immediate area — is the gun laws.
Once again we have people trying to say that guns kill (they need a cluebat to the head to make them understand it’s the bullets that kill), and others worried about this attack on our rights again.
At least that’s what I thought until I read Harvey’s parody and realized that I do need to be worried: there is a huge huge of mentally deficient dangerous people – KosKids, MoveOners, and other acolytes of nihilism.
Is it just me or do other people think that this is the end result of shrinks getting drugs forced on the young (mostly male)?
Good Job, Harvey!
What makes Harvey’s post so ironically funny is that here, it’s dry sarcasm; to the souless liberal, it’s basic belief.
And the very fact that someone eulogized Seung Hui Choad and tried to paint him as a victim in the VA scenario should scare the hell out of each & every one of you. I’ve read elsewhere that he was repressed and that what he did was self expression.
So then Seung merely “expressed” 32 people to their deaths & dozens of others into hospitals, is that it? Professor Liviu Livescu survived the Holocaust, but died because of someone else’s self expression? I DON”T THINK SO. They were murdered. They were mercilessly killed by a loser who knew exactly what he doing, so don’t try to tell me that he was insane; he most certainly was not. Disturbed? Perhaps, but he did what he did with detailed planning and malice aforethought, i.e.
premeditated homocide.
Speaking of Professor Liviu Livescu, here’s a brief eulogy for him. Sure, to the left, he was merely another Jew, but to lots of other important people, he was a pillar of strength, a father, a role model, a teacher, a survivor, and in the end, a selfless hero.
As for li’l Betsy Angert & Markkkos Zuniga, I’d love to “express” a few dozen things to them & their filthy, lying comrades. Referring to Cho-boy as a “loveable and fragile individual” is the same type of tripe that Big Fat Moore tried to spread in Bowling for Columbine & how Eric Harris & Dylan Klebold really just victims themselves!
My comfort is that Cho is burning in hell for all time and that someday, Markos & his ilk just might be united with him.
AlanABQ — the mental health profession has a tip of the hat to the old idea that insanity, epilepsy, etc. were caused by demons — for one crazy person to go AWOL from a mental institution is “elopement.” Kos’s article is a bit too much for me to read, but the general idea isn’t quite as crazy as it sounds — there are medicines that can treat certain mental illnesses, maybe not Cho’s, but at least certain ones, and, in a “Jekyl and Hyde” manner, prevent Hyde from destroying Jekyl. Whatever good Cho may have become was also destroyed that day and would have been just as much if he’d only been “conserving ammo” such as many suicides simply do — most of whom are sufferring from mental illness, often treatable.
It is sad that Cho got carried off by his demons. That doesn’t give us any reason to eulogize, and certainly not to hero-ize or victim-ize the perp. But be careful about hell. We want everyone to avoid hell. As difficult as it is to imagine, we even want Kos & Co. to see the errors of their ways, repent, and avoid hell. Hell is for demons, not for people.
Oh, and to save poor demented fools we need good people like Prof. Liviu Livescu.
Alan –
1) Just because somebody holds an opposing political view doesn’t mean they’re “soulless.”
2) There is absolutely no reason to tie Markos to the Ku Klux Klan. Markos has committed a number of verbal sins, but Klan beliefs or sympathies are not among them. Let’s lay off the name calling, especially something like that. It’s no better than “Bushitler” et al.
Everybody –
I know that damning somebody to hell has become a shorthand for expressing anger, but let’s be careful how we use it, especially when applying it to an individual. We should not wish ANYBODY, no matter how bad we feel they led their lives, to be condemned to an eternity in hell. Jesus taught us to love our enemies, and to forgive our brother not 7 times, but 70 times 7 times. The story of the good thief shows that people can repent and convert even at the last moments of their lives. Even if we don’t think that likely, we shouldn’t HOPE against it. We don’t KNOW the state of anyone’s soul; we should hope and pray that perhaps they repented, even at the last moments of their lives. And before we decide who is in hell and who isn’t, let’s remember how often you’ve asked God to “forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” I understand the need to express anger, but we should give some thought to what we’re actually asking for.
I thought it was good, Frank!
Capitalist_B-
Yeah, it was a very angry thing I said. And I know that I should not hope for eternal damnation for anyone, but regardless; that’s not my decision anyway: God gives him or her the choice. You and Stephen are right; forgiveness comes to those who seek it.
Maybe there was medical evidence to support a chemical imbalance or underlying physical defect in his brain. Maybe he could’ve taken some medication to help. I’m sure we agree that might’ve helped him.
But really, so what? It’s too late when someone makes the decision to commit a senseless, evil act. Demons or dementia? Pick one.
I do acknowledge that he was disturbed, but disturbed or not, he was stable enough to be a college student. He was lucid enough to plan an attack on his peers & teachers. His aim was apparently pretty darn good. Then, as a final F-you, he offs himself.
It just seems so much like the alcoholic who is DWI & kills a carload full of people. Do you blame the availability alcohol? Do you blame the guy’s alcoholism on something else? The guy who won’t seek help & gets behind the wheel? The people who knew he was intoxicated & did little or nothing to stop him? Or maybe the people who knew he had a problem, but choose to look the other way?
Stephen-
//Just because somebody holds an opposing political view doesn’t mean they’re “soulless.”//
No, it doesn’t. You are absolutely right. But this isn’t just political, is it? It does show what kind of soul somebody has when they pay homage to utter atrociousness, such as the flowery BS excreted by Betsy Angert for Mr. Cho.
//There is absolutely no reason to tie Markos to the Ku Klux Klan. Markos has committed a number of verbal sins, but Klan beliefs or sympathies are not among them.//
If you were deeply offended by my alluding to ‘kos being a Klansman, I understand. I thought it was a simple analogy, but the views expressed by him, his contributors & the commentaries at his site really demonstrate a wide range of anti-Semitism & racism, especially when a “minority” doesn’t jump through the hoops provided for them.
I will apologize to almost anyone who dislikes what I wrote. After all, this is not my blog.
And I wouldn’t want to steal anyone’s dreams–
Dear Harvey or Frank,
Please–where did cho’s demons go??
Alan, your apology is fine, but I doubt it’s necessary. There should all be clear thinking conservatives here and while I totally appreciate Cap_B and Stephan’s admonishment, another thing that doesn’t get mentioned about the Bible often is that however a man thinks in his Heart, so is he. Kos and their ilk may not actually go out and murder and abuse minorities, but their words speak their hearts. There is no level of sin, there is just sin and so it’s not hard at all to put the libs on the same scale as the KKK.
Now before somebody starts screaming about judgementalism, let me say, God doesn’t want us to judge, that’s His job, but He’s really good about gifting us with discernment. It’s not wrong to say something is wrong when it is and cho snuffing out 32 folks is wrong, and anyone eulogizing him as a victim is wrong. I know Jesus came into the world to command us to forgive, but there’s a difference in forgiving and whitewashing cho’s evil act as the act of a “victim”. Jesus also came to hold up the laws of the old Testement.
Check out Proverbs 24 verse 25 and see what God says about judging the guilty.
Alan,
As far as I know this is still a free country and you have a God given right to have an opinion. Just like those at DK. All of us have the right to express that opinion in what ever way the host of a blog deems appropriate, and to disagree with one another.
It is only those who seek to silence descent that try to control what is said. As much as I dislike what is written (the ideas are moronic but the language is abominable) at the DK I defend their right to say it. Just as I comment on it here and on my own blog. That is my right don’t feel I have to apologize for that. I don’t think you should either.
.
We’re not condemning him to hell. We don’t have that power. He condemned himself to hell. As for the others (Kos, Moore, etal)- they still have time to repent – right up till the time they die. We are allowed to point out that in their current state they are heading in that direction very fast. Hopefully that by telling them that they are heading to hell by their actions some will see and repent, but Most don’t want to follow Jesus – only themselves.
Was that too preachy??? I get tired of people telling me I can’t call evil evil.
Oops, I forgot to include myself in the list of those that need to repent.
No, not at all too preachy. I’d say it is the job of any compassionate person to point out when someone is going to hurt themselves.
For example, if someone was going to walk in front of a bus you’d try to warn them. If they pushed you aside and said “I don’t need or want your help, you stupid Jesus freak” you’d have done what you could without taking away their God given right to be stupid.
But that’s just me. I have an overwhelming sense of “Free Agency”. It’s pretty much the core of my belief system.
Am I prescient, or what?
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070424/ap_on_re_us/virginia_tech_shooting
“The Virginia Korean leaders asked Kaine to boost mental-health funding for immigrants and their families.”