you go to school with the heroes you have

[sisyphusshrugged]

the talking point of the moment seems to be that the shooting at Virginia Tech is all about immigrants.

For some of the students who lived it was

In this morning's lecture on solid mechanics in Virginia Tech's Norris Hall, all was quiet except for the sound of Professor Liviu Librescu's voice.

Then came the gunshots -- in the classroom next door. In an instant, a building dedicated to the science of engineering was torn apart by the worst shooting spree in U.S. history.

Richard Mallalieu, a junior in Librescu's course, said he and about 20 classmates instantly dropped to the floor, ducking under and behind desks for what sounded like the first 10 shots.

"It wasn't like an automatic weapon, but it was a steady 'pow,' 'pow,' 'pow,' 'pow,'" Mallalieu, a 23-year-old from Luray, Va., said in a telephone interview with The Sun. "We didn't know what to do at first."

Then the sound of the gunshots shifted. Coming closer.

Their next move became instantly clear: Get out.

Mallalieu said his professor "held the door shut" while several students darted to the windows. Some climbed up on desks, ledges and a radiator cover to pull the screens down and kick at the metal-framed glass. Three windows easily gave way and swung open on hinges as the gunshots got louder.

Closer.

"It sounded like he was going out into the hallway," said Mallalieu, a civil engineering major.

Once the windows of the second-floor classroom were open, Mallalieu and most of his classmates hung out of them and dropped about 10 to 15 feet to bushes and grass below, he said.

Some students ran immediately to a nearby building. Others waited to help students who were injured by the fall, Mallalieu said.

But then the sound of gunfire filled the classroom they had just fled, sending the rest who had escaped running about 30 yards to Patton Hall, he added.

"I don't think my teacher got out," Mallalieu said.

Librescu, a professor of engineering science and mechanics who was educated in Romania and is a U.S. citizen, could not be reached.

I think it's awfully instructive to look at the number of bloggers who have made this an anti-immigrant and pro-gun talking point.

Sorta makes you wonder how many of these students would be alive if those folks had been standing in front of that classroom today.

I only wish it made some of them wonder.

Comments

[jonquil.livejournal.com]

I still cannot believe that the President's spokesman, giving condolences, took time to express his support for gun rights. Couldn't he have waited a fricking DAY?

[jmhm.livejournal.com]

You know, on the one hand, I almost welcome these people demonstrating proudly what they are.

On the other hand, I strive to be a human being, so no.

[(Anonymous)]

He was speaking to his base, who must have their fixed ideas validated at every opportunity.

But they are probably furious anyway, because Bush didn't explicitly come out in favor of arming teachers and Resident Administrators. And janitors, unless they're . . . you know. [whisper]Foreign.[/whisper]

Stefan

[jmhm.livejournal.com]

You know, it would make me so happy if I occasionally felt as if I were too cynical.

[matertiamat.livejournal.com]

Amen sister.

[mearagrrl.livejournal.com]

Good lord.

I mean, isn't Virginia fairly easy to get a gun permit in anyway? So it's not like this happened in DC where you're not supposed to have a gun at all!

[ckd]

The Jerusalem Post has more about Professor Librescu, who was a survivor of both the Holocaust and Ceaucescu's Romania. May his family and friends be comforted.