Thanks again to everyone for the kind words and wishes. None of my friends, colleagues, students, or former students were among the victims, so on a purely selfish level I am happy about that, although I still feel awful for those who can't say that same thing.
The stage door that the shooter walked through is the same damn door that I have been walking through every Monday and Wednesday this semester. Needless to say, that is a little bit eerie.
With regards to the concealed weapon question, as someone that stands in front of a group of college students day after day, I know that I would personally feel far LESS safe if I thought that some of the students were armed. With that being said however, situations like this are tragic, and I find it rather distasteful when either side of a political issue attempts to use a situation like this to forward their agenda.
Personally I am an advocate of strict gun control laws. Others are gun advocates. Fine. We disagree about that, but when I hear people on television - on both sides - trying to score cheap political points while NIU families are planning funerals, it pisses me off a bit.