Shooting

The article that appeared in the New York Times, April 4, 2009, was about the shooting that occurred in Bingham New York. Apparently, a gunman entered the American Civic Association Center on Friday, April 3, and opened fire during citizenship classes. The New York Times reports that the killing was over in minutes, but the ordeal lasted three hours. It’s still not clear what the perpetrator’s motivation was that resulted in this tragedy, although some report that it was because the gunman, an emigrant from Viet Nam who possessed very poor English skills, had recently lost his job (Associated Press). The Vice President said Americans must find a way to prevent this kind of bloodshed.

I’m afraid this is only the beginning of many serious dramas that could occur if the American economy does not improve. People are desperate, watching the big shots abuse the Federal bailout money, while the middle class continues to lose their jobs. How long can this disparity between the haves and have-nots continue before someone else snaps? Of course it’s barbaric, and sane people do not behave in this manner, but when you don’t know where your child’s next meal will come from, it could trigger violent behavior in the less stable among us. I don’t know if the gunman had a wife and children, but he was not from this country, and evidently could not speak English well, which probably caused him to lack the skills needed for employment.

A lot of the major corporations have moved to Mexico, or other third-world countries, so they can pay cheap labor instead of paying the workers here a decent wage. This has caused many people who have spent years of their life as dedicated workers to have to search to find new jobs. Many of them are surprised to learn that they lack technological skills needed to qualify for many modern-day jobs.