Blue Like You

Archive for August 1st, 2008

I think I’m one of many Canadians recovering from the horror of what happened on that Greyhound bus en route to Winnipeg. It’s hard enough to read the details. Just imagine being one of the people who witnessed it.

The whole thing is difficult to process. We struggle to understand how one human being could act in such a savage way, and yet be so emotionally detached from his actions.

Vince Weiguang Li, 40, of Edmonton has now been charged with second degree murder.

There are calls for increased security measures, although the nature of Greyhound Bus transportation makes it difficult to enforce airport-type precautions.

Surely though there must be a way to check for weapons before boarding. I’ve had my backpack searched at Wonderland. You have to go through metal detectors there and at many concerts and sports events these days. Why can’t something be set up to give passengers and staff a chance to ferret out psychopaths with weapons?

We can’t stop a random act of violence, but we should be able to get on a bus knowing that fellow passengers’ bags have been checked for concealed weapons.

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Sunday Update: I highly recommend this column by Lorne Gunter - A random, senseless act (Edmonton Journal).