Information Related to "Reflections on the Dunblane Tragedy"
| Audio/Video |
|
Was the massacre of innocent schoolchildren in Scotland only an isolated incident, or is it an indicator of a much greater problem?
by John Meakin
will never forget March 13, 1996. I had been out most of the day and returned home around 10 p.m., just as the evening news was beginning. My wife and son were transfixed in front of the television. It was soon obvious why they wore looks of shock, horror and disbelief.
Over the next 30 minutes, I watched as the grim story unfolded. An unprecedented disaster had taken place that day in a quiet Scottish town, a town that I personally knew.
A local man had run amok with four handguns. He rampaged through the local school firing indiscriminately, then entered the gymnasium, where he systematically began slaughtering the first-grade children and their teachers. It was later revealed that more than 100 spent cartridge cases were found at the scene. The gunman killed or wounded 31 before turning a weapon on himself to take his own life.
That night it was impossible not to shed tears for delicate little lives snuffed out so brutally - as well as tears for the shattered lives of tortured parents, tears for the grieving families and tears for the devastated community.
The school's headmaster, Ron Taylor, commented memorably: "Evil visited us yesterday. We don't know why, we don't understand it, and I guess we never will." The sheer numbing horror of it all stunned a town, disgraced a shocked nation and dominated news headlines around the world.
Over the ensuing days, the facts behind the horror were painfully exposed and explored. Families and a quiet community known for its peace struggled to come to terms with their shattered world and overwhelming grief.
"Why?" became the dominant question. Why such violence? And why did this happen to so many utterly defenseless, innocent children? The parents, families, news media, government and nation all asked the same question. The stark message on one of hundreds of sprays of flowers asked simply, "Why?" Why did such an appalling evil take place in such a quiet, peaceful town?
Related Information on UCG Sites:
Table of Contents that includes "Reflections on the Dunblane Tragedy"
Other Articles by John Meakin
School shootings: