Editorial: Watch for warning signs

Editorial: Watch for warning signs
Date: Sep 19, 2006 9:54 AM
PUBLICATION: Kingston Whig-Standard (ON)
DATE: 2006.09.19
SECTION: Editorial page
PAGE: 4
COLUMN: Opinion digest
SOURCE: Sudbury Star
WORD COUNT: 177

------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------

Watch for warning signs

------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------

The horrendous shootings at Montreal's Dawson College last week are
bound to generate intense reactions.

Answers, as much as the question of "why" can be answered, are likely
to
be found in a detailed analysis. A U.S. study by the federal Education
Department and the Secret Service did just that, looking at school
shooting cases from 1974-2000. The study concluded there is no
definitive profile of shooters other than that they tend to be male
students and they attack at the institution they attend. If one is to
draw any conclusion at the moment, it is to make sure that better
education - of teachers, students and counsellors - takes place to help
them recognize the onset of problems. Depression, a feeling of being
bullied and of desperation and hopelessness are common among attackers,
the study found. Laws and gun registries cannot address these issues.
People must recognize them and take measures to address them.