Yesterday, we all received an e-mail from President Steger about a threat that came from Italy claiming that March 18th would be the “next April 16th.” I received a plethora of e-mails, texts, and phone calls from students who were worried about attending class. The university receives threats often, and if they acted on every threat, we would have classes canceled more often. However, in my opinion, this one is different. Back in October, there were YouTube threats talking about an attack in the near future at Virginia Tech.
Later, it was traced overseas. However, similar threats have recently resurfaced. This time, students are legitimately being targeted. E-mails that were sent directly to students had some just awful content, describing the unthinkable in detail. Also, some of the recipients of those e-mails had their apartments broken into. In addition, the e-mail was sent out the afternoon before March 18th. The specific day we were threatened. In Steger's letter he warns us that there will be heightened security and that, "an overabundance of caution is appropriate." If we as students should be cautious, we should not be required to go to class.
As a student I am fearful going to class tomorrow, but with attendance, quizzes, tests, and projects, class is required. In my opinion, I think that classes should be optional and that professors should allow safety to be a viable excuse if a student chooses to miss class because of the words conveyed by the anonymous man.
Brandon Carroll, SGA president
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No, it shouldn't be optional. If we close school every time there might be a threat, we'll never have school. You want evil to win? Let it, just like you're suggesting.
Just allow people to have their rights to self-defense. Then, if someone decides to try something, they'll be stopped cold by a loyal Hokie. ... Alas, I know the comments that follow will talk of how students, faculty, and staff are too irresponsible to handle such responsibility.
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if you were here for 4/16, fine.
if not, you have no right to type.
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No, I couldn't know anything if I wasn't here! Get real.
I was more than "here for 4/16", thanks.
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so you were a freshman in 2006-2007 like myself
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I was a freshman in 2004, and was indeed here on 4/16, but that hardly has anything to do with recognizing the individual's legitimate right to self-defense.
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So using your logic, if you haven't been to Iraq you have no write to offer an opinion about the war there? If you haven't been to Haiti you have no right to type about the earthquake there? If you haven't been to Iran you have no right to type about the whether they should be allowed to develop a nuclear weapon? Please.
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Wow, way to make that day a club you sick ticket.
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no no ken he is right, we should all stay home and curl up in the fetal position and suck our thumbs. oh please don't hurt me!
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Or you could go be shot? I think I'd rather stay home.
Someone making threats isn't going to think any less of you for being safe, he's going to think about the other people he/she can kill that didn't stay home. Why do you care what a heartless maniac thinks about you to begin with?
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dont even post your name how original
a serious matter and you try to make a joke out of it when 32 innocents lost their lives on 4/16 how pathetic are you.
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jteearo, you have no right to call me out. trying to make your point sound better by adding the emotion is weak.
anyway, neither of you care if bad people run your lives, huh? just chalk up another one to "scared to death to live".
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i don't understand how students who are concerned and decide to stay home is "letting evil win." If anything were to happen, and less people were hurt, is that not winning? Isn't those students having peace of mind instead of being terrified all day winning?
I would rather let evil win if it means my friends stay safe should something actually happnen.
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"I would rather let evil win if it means my friends stay safe should something actually happnen."
Oh.
My.
God.
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Do you people seriously not get what is meant by letting evil win? It's referring to instances when a threat of violence keeps you from going about your normal routine. This is exactly what you're doing when you stay home from class - altering your routine...unless you routinely skip class anyway, of course.
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oh so go to tech like me, senior year graduate from hs in 06? you dealt with 4/16 like i did, lost a friend from hs like i did?
if so, i feel for you
if not, get out you commenting means nothing, stay safe in your mothers basement like you know anything.
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Stop using emotional appeals to justify your irrational opinions as if your position is unique and no one else can relate to you.
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how is my position irrational?
if you can relate to the situation of a murderer letting loose on your campus, then by all means provide your opinion
if not i highly doubt whatever you input you may have actually correlates to the issue at hand
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A person does not need to experience a thing firsthand in order to formulate a valid opinion on the matter. If anything, the opposite is true: personal experience often leads one to form an opinion that is based upon emotion and anecdotal evidence rather than logic. Asserting that all others' opinions are illegitimate due to their lack of personal experience is irrational.
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Try writing in complete sentences using proper punctuation if you want to be taken seriously.
And FYI, you have no more right to post a comment than anyone else.
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I admit I was not there in 2006; I was at Tech before you were a bad idea in your father's scrotum. I currently pay a buttload of taxes to support your education, so I am admittedly dismayed to learn that my alma mater is producing a student who finds the written word such a challenge. My 11-year-old son writes better than you.
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@jteearo
You're not being very convincing with the hostility and the name-calling.
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Does the SGA President actually do anything besides put it on his/her resume?
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What a disrespectful and pointless question. Why don't you go to an SGA meeting before you ask such questions?
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What a sham of a position. SGA is worthless.
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ditto this. SGA is nothing but a pointless popularity contest. But then, so is most politics.
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Another ditto. The SGA president embarrassed himself at this years homecoming game by performing his speech completely wasted. The SGA should be disbanded.
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I'm thinking SGA is a lot bigger than most realize. There are a lot more people involved than just the elected four positions. SGA funds things like Big Event or Relay for Life. They fight for the student body trying to become a more diverse and green campus. Motorcycle parking to expanding the BT, even the Farm and Fields project in Owens. They do a lot of things behind the scenes and some of the stuff they have done already is taken for granted.
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You know Brandon, youre right. I have this hard Calc test coming up next week so I gotta go make a legit looking threat bbl!
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jteearo better seek some mental health treatment before he goes all Cho on us.
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Wow, the SGA president is fearful of March 18th.
Can you imagine the President of the United State being fearful of today?
A president is supposed to be a leader, not a scardie-cat, wimp or sissy in the face of threats.
Since SGA President Brandon is fearful of today, he should resign his office today too.
Va Tech needs a leader when faced with threats, not an excuse for cutting classes.
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Ha. the president of the US...like he's a good example to start talking about
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haha... completely agree laur
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why does it have to be an anonymous man? so sexist. but stop being a pansy and go to class. go online and buy some body armor with your sissy self if it makes you feel any better
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School's always optional. The only thing "required" in this case, and may others in life, isthat you accept responsibility for the choices you make.
If you're that scared, don't go. Just don't act like it's the fault of anyone but yourself if your grades suffer for it.
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I feel like if this guy who was making threats really did intend to harm university members, he wouldn't choose a day where everyone stayed home. That would be rather ineffectual--though--does anyone remember all of the bomb threats before 4/16? This does seem awfully familiar.
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you're right. they should cancel relay for life where there will be a large group of students in one location. that doesn't seem like a good idea with such a hostile climate.
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really? You're fearful of going to class because of anonymous youtube and email postings? Good grief man, how are you ever going to function in the real world?
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Easy - in the real world, people aren't denied so many rights as they are in college. Especially at public colleges, at that...
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When you get in the real world, go tell your boss you aren't going to work because that guy made a youtube threat against your company and you are too scared to go in.
Good luck buddy.
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Donald Trump To YOU: YOU'RE FIRED!!!!!!!!!!
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Maybe if 4/16 never happened the threats could be taken lightly. BUT IT HAPPENED, so why, when it is threatened to happen AGAIN, do we not get out of school? because nobody thinks it could happen again. How come whenever somebody called in a bomb threat to any of our high schools, we were all evacuated, but when somebody calls in a massacre threat to VIRGINIA TECH, where it has already happened, all goes on as normal. Somebody please explain how that makes sense
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It makes sense, Dave, because a bomb threat against a single building can be quickly checked out by searching for the bomb. This was a non-specific threat of general violence toward a campus the size of dozens of high schools. Anyway, if people left campus, what's to stop the person from just carrying out the plot the next day?
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I think that there are two important things that stand out to me in these "comments." The first is the person who lost someone on 4/16. I too was here for 4/16 and having been a long time Blacksburg resident and VT student, was hit HARD by the violence. I agree that one does not have to lose someone to understand the pain and suffering...but there is also something unique to attending the funeral of someone whose life was cut at 18 or 19 years of age because of a senseless serious of acts of violence. So to the individual who posted in such pain, I hope you talk to someone to try to work out your pain...
The second thing that emerges is this idea of safety, security, and whether it will happen again. I think it's safe to assume that "anything" can happen again and while I would hope that it doesn't, I agree with the few posters who have advocated for not being paralyzed by fear and unable to maintain or establish a routine.
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So what do we do about it? SGA may not be a perfect organization but the last time I checked, no one, and no organization was/is perfect. I think there are multiple organizations on campus that have tried to address many of these issues and concerns: SGA, GSA (graduate student assembly), CSA (commission on student affairs), the Office of Equity and Inclusion, the Women's Center, the Center for Peace Studies, the Black Caucus, Hispanic Caucus, LGBT Caucus, Hokies United, the Recreational Sports Department...the list goes on. But what are YOU as an individual trying to do about it? So I would say let's try to help each other out a little more...show some support to those of us who lost a friend, a colleague, a family member, an acquaintance; try to understand where those of us who may not have lost someone but were here may be feeling; try to understand what those of us who may be new to the community and would like to understand but don't because we were not here or were not as affect for whatever reason...
Isn't it time we stop dividing ourselves over these issues and unify on the important points? Isn't it time to unify as Hokies...or as people?
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