Sunday, April 27, 2008

A Virginia Tech Memorial Ceremony

In a gesture of compassion for the 32 victims of a year ago, the man who sold one of the weapons that killed them came to the Virginia Tech campus this week to express his dismay ("I felt like I was hit by a truck") and sympathy (""My heart goes out to the parents and anyone who lost a loved one").

Speaking to Students for Concealed Carry on Campus during "Firearms Education Week," online gun dealer Eric Thompson underscored his remorse by announcing on his web site a sale of guns at cost for two weeks to "help give law-abiding citizens the tools to prevent tragedy."

Organizers of the meeting reacted to a University spokesman's disapproval, saying it would "serve to inflame potential conflict" and placed armed guards at the entrance of the meeting room.

Thompson was bringing a humanitarian message. "We all want to be safe, and we want our kids to be able to go to the park and play."

No word of whether his backers are planning to organize a subsidiary, Tommy Guns for Tots.

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