Letter: We have chance to learn from school shooting

Tuesday, May 4, 1999 | 7:48 a.m.

While there are clearly a number of contributing causes, I feel strongly that one of the primary factors was the influence that our culture of violence had on these troubled kids.

The promotion of gratuitous violence and moral bankruptcy are pervasive in our society -- it is spewed from movies and television, from music lyrics, from video games -- and when children are exposed to it day in and day out, trouble is bound to result.

We must therefore hold the entertainment industry liable for its shortsighted "profit at all cost" attitude and unwillingness to police itself. Let's take music as an example: Because of our First Amendment, "artists" like Marilyn Manson and their record producers have every right to release songs with barbaric, satanic and disgusting lyrics.

But we, too, have rights. Besides refusing to purchase or consume these products, we should hold back neither our outrage nor our judgment.

The media and entertainment industry is a powerful and influential lobbying force in America, but in the wake of the Columbine shooting, we should not be willing to tolerate any lack of leadership and self-imposed restrictions on what it is willing to disseminate.

I am fearful, however, that after our national mourning is over, not much will be done and this most recent tragedy will be forgotten with no enduring changes or lessons learned. I hope I am wrong.

WALTER B. ANDONOV