RNDM THOT PTRNS

I hate to admit I've reached that age where I realize the world has officially gone crazy. Fortunately, these feelings are limited to specific themes. Today, it's high school.

Now, I'll be the first to admit that high school was utter hell for me. I felt like I had to audition for the groups I hung out with back then. By the time graduation came around it felt like a play was over and I wasn't told where the after-party was. Many of the friends I had were fairweather at best and back-stabbing assholes at worst.

It was also the grunge age, and it really pisses me off that I reached and passed my supposed sexual peak in the era of baggy flannel. Today's teenage girls wear clothes that hookers would have passed on in my high school days. Not that I find myself drooling over teenage girls, but i do feel great pangs of resentment that I may have been born ten years too early.

The problems I had with high school are now long gone. Partly due to attending my ten year reunion a couple years ago and making my peace with those I saw there. Another major factor, strangely enough has been Myspace. It has warmed my heart to hear from people from high school that, whether I find them or they find me, are actually glad to hear from me. It feels good. I realize now that it was four years of my life that ended twelve years ago. A lot has happened since then to all of us and it's great that we remember each other as people rather than all the stupid shit that happened back then.

But despite my problems and fears I remember from those days, at least it was safe. I mean, the worst I had to expect was the occasional book dumping. I read today about the school shooting in Pennsylvania's Amish country. This is the third shooting in a week, and the thing I've noticed is that these things always happen in small towns. Granted, this kind of thing wouldn't happen in the inner city because A) they most likely have metal detectors, and B) if they don't, there ain't gonna be a stand-off with the police, but instead it's gonna be the climax of True Romance in the Biology lab.

This latest one proves my point perfectly. An Amish school, for crying out loud. Think about that. This goes against every rule here.

First of all, it's the Amish. What the hell did they ever do to this guy? Defective quilt? Bad batch of fudge? Could they have possibly made fun of his buttoned shirt? I'm just wondering about the motive here. This is like holding up a Buddhist temple...on the other hand, keep in mind that Stephen Seagal is a Buddhist.

Secondly, the report also said that he nailed the doors shut with 2X4's. So, he had a gun AND lumber?!?

Lastly, the first tactic in the FBI's hostage situation handbook is to cut the power...Okay, plan B: Let's get the guy on the phone. Shit...Plan C: Trade supplies for a hostage or two. Oh, they live a meekly existance, devoid of want or need for anything they don't work hard for and earn for themselves.

I'm not meaning to make jokes about such a senseless tragedy. My point is that today's events prove that when it comes to man's violence towards man, nothing is beyond imagination. There are so many horrible things that are past our ability to plan for or deal with when they happen. Four girls died there. Four girls whose faith teaches them to reject the world that produced the weapons that caused their untimely deaths.

And despite all of the law enforcement protocols, and all of the things we tell ourselves and our children to give some sense of security and safety, there's always that x-factor. That one guy who decides that this is the final option for him. And as much as I want this to be a perfecty world, it isn't and probably never will be. My greatest wish is that the next time someone out there thinks that the only way out is to kill another human being, a child no less, that better judgement will cause him to direct the gun at his own head. A school graduation is no place for a memorial.