[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 64 (Friday, April 20, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4789-S4790]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   COLUMBINE ANNIVERSARY REMEMBRANCE

  Mr. ALLARD. Mr. President, my wife Joan and I were horrified at the 
violence and bloodshed at Virginia Tech on Monday.
  I was already preparing to come to the floor today to speak on 
another tragedy. Today marks the eighth anniversary of the Columbine 
murders. Next Thursday, it will be 7 months since the shooting at 
Platte Canyon High School in Bailey, CO. April has become a month of 
awful memories, a month of terrible reminders of the presence of evil 
and the ability of lost souls to stray far into the darkness.
  I stood on this floor in April 1999 to express my shock and dismay at 
what had happened in Littleton. I offered my condolences to all those 
who lost loved ones, and to those whose loved ones have been wounded, 
hurt, and terrified. Today I remember them again, but I also must add 
sympathy and support for those at Virginia Tech.
  Words cannot adequately convey the deep sense of loss all of us are 
feeling over this tragedy. But words--these words, and the words of our 
prayers--are what we have to offer.
  Yet again, America is in shock.

[[Page S4790]]

  There are far too many of my colleagues who have had this 
experience--who have watched as news of school violence spread across 
our country. This week's tragedy was in Virginia, but it is obviously 
of nationwide concern.
  Thirty-two lives, most of them young and from the best and brightest 
in our society, ended Monday by savage violence. Last year, one lost 
life in Bailey; thirteen lives lost in 1999 at Columbine in Littleton; 
and there are others lost around this Nation, and around the world, in 
similar tragedies: Dawson College in Montreal, Gutenberg School in 
Erfurt, Germany.
  These are wounds, scars, that will not be removed, and for those who 
bear the worst of this burden my wife and I offer all our compassion, 
our sympathy and our prayers.
  Our Nation continues to grieve with the families and friends of those 
killed and the injured students and teachers. Although we know 
exhaustive details of what happened at Columbine, and are learning more 
from Blacksburg, we are still attempting to understand why. People are 
trying to cope with the terror that keeps thrusting itself into our 
lives. It has become obvious at this point that there are no easy 
answers. We need to examine the problems facing our youth, but it is 
critical that we take time to carefully consider the solutions being 
offered.
  In the coming months there will be time, and there will be a need, 
for us to commit ourselves to finding a way to attempt to prevent this 
from happening again. We must ask ourselves how this could happen, and 
what can be done to prevent it. There is, I am sure, no simple 
solution. But we must pledge ourselves to doing what we can. After 
Columbine, the Nation took a serious look at school safety. But 
Bailey--and the murders in Pennsylvania last year at Nickel Mines Amish 
School--showed us that it is not always troubled students. Virginia 
Tech showed us it is not just grade schools or high schools. We need to 
think about ways to provide a better, more secure future.
  Watching the aftermath in Blacksburg, I am reminded of the healing 
Colorado undertook 8 Aprils ago. I remember the memorial service held 
the weekend after the Columbine murders. Tens of thousands of people 
attended the memorial service. Among those gathered in sorrow, Joan and 
I witnessed a strong belief in God. We prayed together and searched for 
answers. I hope the students, faculty and families of Virginia Tech can 
find their way to face this terrible time.
  Again, I offer my deepest sympathy to those who are suffering. And I 
want to let my colleagues from Virginia, and their constituents, know 
the people of Colorado will be thinking of you today as we mark the 
eighth anniversary of Columbine.
  I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. REID. I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call 
be rescinded.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so 
ordered.

                          ____________________