E-mail was error in tragedy

This column was supposed to be about the eighth anniversary of Columbine.

But the actions of (apparently) one more lone gunman changed that with the massacre on Virginia Tech's campus early Monday.

By the time the first classes began in Commerce, most of the 32 victims - as of this writing - had been killed. (I don't count the gunman as a victim.)

And while there will be a buffet of blame to go around in the aftermath of this tragedy, as is tradition in America, let me be what marketers would call an early adaptor in one of these finger-pointing games.

E-mail is not an acceptable method of alerting students and faculty an armed gunman is on the loose.

Who decided it would be best to use e-mail to warn students and faculty? And how soon will this person be fired?

Perhaps it's too early to be critical of the university. As I write this, it is still less than 14 hours since the first shooting.

Virginia Tech President Charles Steger said officials had "some reason to think the shooter had left campus." What? A note that said, "All done. I'm not coming back to campus. All clear. Trust me."?

While I realize it will be days, weeks or never before we have a full story, perhaps the university should have erred on the side of being more diligent in its responsibility to students.

If there's a fire, would they send a text message? For a flood, do we get billboards in commons areas? And what if there's an outbreak of another bacterial infection: Smoke signals?

Maybe we should follow in the footsteps of a bygone era and use bull horns and public address systems. (Like they did with the bomb threats previously.) It would be just like elementary school with the words "psycho with a gun" thrown in. How else can people in the commons find out? What about the emergency broadcasting system? What about the people in cars on their way to campus?

I understand caution. I understand wanting to not scream fire in a theatre. But sometimes there is a fire and somebody should scream like hell and make sure everyone knows why.

When Greenville High School faced its recent tragedy, it made announcements to the classrooms to keep everyone informed. No in-room Pas? Use the speakers for the music. If the campus doesn't have speakers, then call professors on their phones.

Get the word out.

Maybe the university president was in shock. That's reasonable. He defended the university's apparent lack of action.

"But it's one of these things that no one anticipated and you have to remember that you can only make the decision based on the information that you know at that moment in time," he said. "And you don't have hours to reflect on it, you have to take immediate action."

Immediate action? The first e-mail went out at 9:26 a.m., 11 minutes after the second round of shooting and more than two hours after the first killing. The word immediate must have a different meaning in Virginia. (Depending on what news source you rely on.)

Maybe I'm just old-fashioned. I think when there is an emergency or a message to get out, the biggest, brightest and loudest efforts should be made to inform people. Stop worrying about concern for the image of the school and be upfront with the good or bad of the situation.

Besides, students don't read e-mails. They like their own accounts, but not their campus accounts. If you were notified through myLeo, how soon would you know? To adapt a line from Ron White: After the bullet hit.

Go ahead and fire the person who made this tragic decision. And tell 'em by e-mail.

E-mail Troy at theeasttexan@gmail.com