Letter: Governor Kaine deserves our respect
Letter to the Editor
April 27, 2007
As a Virginia Tech alumnus and a resident of the Commonwealth, I wish to commend Gov. Kaine for his actions and statements of the past week.
Given the questions raised by the school's handling of events, both on the day of the shooting and in light of the previous homicides in Blacksburg last August, the governor's decision to name an independent commission is the only proper course. The qualifications of those he has named are, of themselves, unimpeachable.
But there is at present a glaring omission in its composition: no one on the panel has gone to Tech, worked for Tech, or--so far as the public record shows--ever physically been at Tech.
Any conversation concerning the university's response should be informed by a basic understanding of the institution--its physical layout, corporate culture, inter-departmental communication, town relations, etc. The absence of members on the commission possessing any knowledge of the school's internal logic, therefore, is likely to result in the non-exploration of certain paths of inquiry.
Quite simply, there are certain necessary questions that a panel composed exclusively of outsiders will not think to raise.
The need for a presence on the panel by members with some lived experience at Tech--former presidents, retired senior faculty, etc.--is in order.
Those in agreement are urged to request of the governor that he makes the appropriate appointments.
Joseph Pierro
M.A., History (2004)
Virginia Tech