sullen & solo

According to today's New York Times, the mother of mass murderer Seung-Hui Cho, viewed her son as "sullen."

Synonyms of "sullen" include "morose," "resentful," and "sulky." Such words are descriptive at the surface level, but they don't shed insight on the inner workings of the mind. Etymology takes us deeper.

"Sullen" derives from the Middle English "solein," meaning "alone, soliary," which in turn comes from a Latin word "slus," with the same meaning. We do know that Mr. Cho lived a lonely existence even in the midst of a crowded campus.

"Slus" also gives us "solo" and "solitude," words with positive creative and spiritual connotations.

We might speculate that a limited amount of "slus" is desirable. On the other hand, an excess of aloneness--either impossed deliberately as in solitary confinement or randomly as the result of one's genes or upbrining--may produce horrific results such as the tragedy at Virginia Tech.

As my father used to warn: "All things in moderation."

Glock

Mr. Cho, the student blamed for mudering 32 students at Virginia Tech, apparently used a Glock 9 mm pistol to commit the crime.

Although Glock is known for manufacturing efficient weapons--including weapons of mass destruction--a visit to their website (Glock.com) suggests that they are also masters of Orwellian language.

Their logo reads: "Glock Perfection." Perhaps they feel that their 9 mm pistol is perfect for assassinating large numbers of innocents.

The word "safe" appears prominently on the Glock home page, along with "Safety Pack." Do the students at Virginia Tech feel safer thanks to the folks at Glock?

Glock doesn't limit itself to making guns. They also offer a line of tactical lights with the slogan "Shed light on any dark situation." I invite the Glock team to shed light on what happened at Virginia Tech.

We've all heard it said that guns don't kill people: People do. Do you suppose that the people at Glock think of themselves in as people killers?