Another tragic shooting - and another example of how impotent and ill-conceived the gun registry was and is (this happened long after the knee-jerk politicans reacted over Lepine).

After the BILLIONS mis-spent on the Boondoggle registry for Alan Rock to get more votes in Toronto - it still cannot stop another tragedy.

WE cannot solve all of society's ills by merely "legislating them away".

Maybe we should look at what's wrong with our urbanized lifestyles - and maybe engage and communicate with our youth in a more meaningful way. It's a start.

Victor Robichaud
Prince Rupert, BC

Condolences to everyone touched by this tragic event. The CBC coverage of this event has been responsible and informative from what I have seen. I invite anyone to check out the multi-disciplinary prevention strategy being used at 14 Division Toronto Police Service 'Project Internet-Truancy'. It is not perfect, but it is a start... We must focus on positive relationships with youth, and engage them in proactive conversation about their Internet usage to prevent further incidents. 'We cannot swim unless we are in the pool'

Pete Follter of San Jose, California commented on this webpage that the police officer who shot the gunman should be punished.

Are you insane Pete? I would rather give that cop a medal, and any emotional support necessary after he was forced to shoot the killer.

This police officer, whomever he or she is, will have to live with this horrible event in his or her memory for years to come. The last thing our cops need are armchair quarterbacks telling them how they should do their jobs.

Mr. Follter, I hope that should you ever be in need of a cop to save your life, they decide to use non-lethal (and less certain) means of neutralizing your heavily armed assailant.

I can't believe that some people are using this tradegy as a political tool to defend the usuless gun registry. It makes absolutely no sense that someone like Jean Charest has decided to fight Ottawa over plans to spend the money in areas where it actually might save lives. The fact that the guns used in this crime were registered is additional proof that the registry does not make our society safer. Why would Charest defend it? Last time he ran federally he vowed to scrap the registry saying it was useless and that more lives could be saved by spending the money on programs that do save lives, like healthcare. He was right then, but we all can see how wrong he is now. I suspect this new stance is a cheap political move in order to boost his re-election prospects in the next provincial election. Shame on him, and shame on the special interest of the anti-gun lobby who seemingly can't wait for these tradegies to occur so they claim how gun control saves lives and why we need more of it.

Tony: Sensational coverage!U S networks watch in awe. I change channels when there are too many repeats, or details seem to overwhelming.

I find it distressing that every major media outlet in North America has chosen to repeatedly put the face of the criminal who shot innocent people in Montreal in their publications, never mind the featuring of amatuer cell phone video. What kind of message does this send to our society? If you want to be famous, well just shoot lots of people. I watched a canadian news broadcast last night where the on air personality asked the local reporter how the family of the murdered woman was doing. This is news? You have gone beyond voyeurism, this is a tactical decision to sell media advertising at the expese of ethics. Is this what is being taught in journalism school? It makes one wonder just how far the media will go in the pursuit of selfish goals. What will the media look like in 20 years? It is hard to be optimisitc in the face of this weeks news coverage. I would only ask that you aspire to be better than this.

Mary Ito's interview of the Student Union Co-ordinator of Dawson College in Montreal was heart-wrenching and powerful. The story is sad and shocking, but the interview was well done.

One thing that bothered me about the TV coverage was that, over the afternoon, the same 20-odd minutes of tape (people fleeing, being loaded into ambulances) was shown repeatedly without any indication that it was showing events that had happened earlier. People tuning in after events had begun might think that they were watching real-time footage.

I am relieved that those students interviewed were able to emphasize the peaceful nature of the college. I have two diplomas from Dawson; I worked there for several years in the Seventies; my ex-husband and several friends still work there. It has played and continues to play a large role in the life of Montrealers. It is a marvelous place.

My heart goes out to the familes and students of Dawson College. No child should have to go thourgh that kid of horror. The repetition is annoyingm but that's not the real problem. The problem is being saturated with the news, to the extent that other news is cast aside. I had to go to CTV on Wednesday to get other news. You can't extract something meaningful out of conflicting and often non-existing ifnormation.

Time and time again we hear of these school shooters being relentlessly bullied at school for years. We had our warning with Columbine and Taber in 1999. When will the governments, school boards, teacher associations begin to seriously address the issue of bullying? How many more bullied children are waiting in the wings, when they too can buy a gun and vent their anger. Get involved, take a stand against bullying in all of its forms, or expect more of this.

The Dawson College shooting is indeed tragic, even for the young man that is accused of doing the shooting. It is so sad to know that the police came in with guns ablazing against an obviously disturbed individual. With all the technology and training the police have to use non-lethal means, it is criminal to let the officer who shot the young man go unpunished.

Thanks for raising this topic. Do you think that the extensive coverage will encourage others to mimic the act for their few moments of fame? The shooter was into violent computer games and a gothic wbsite. Are these causes or merely symptoms of his behaviour?

Bravo CBC, great job. But maybe it isn't very gracious to congratulate yourselves in a time like this.

I don't think gun control as previously practiced by the feds is the answer to the current or similar incidents. They spoiled it(poisoned it)by being to bureaucratic. In these kind of incidents there was apparently no red flags, like a previous criminal record, or medical indications(physical or mental.)It seems to be a perplexing problem that even a bit of common sense applied will not solve it.

I think that the CBC did an anazing job covering shuch a horrific event and that they were able to capture the students feelings and comments was very meaningful. I always watch the CBC for their balanced news and in paticular enjoy Peter Mansbridge and Brian Stewart. I only hope that the CBC can continue their sensible news ans political coverage and that the present reform Prime Minister does not cut them off funding.

i was disappionted in the CBC coverage. The webiste and television seemed to be throwing up information and interviews and rumours just to fill the airwaves in this '24/7' environment - trying to be new from minute to minute with too little regard for fact and accuracy and restraint. Just competing with the CNNs of the world. There is too much babble in this 24/7 media world.

One caller to CBC Radio's Metro Morning put it so aptly. He remembers the name of Mark Lepine but he can't name one of his victims. And now, we've given the latest Montreal shooter exactly what a nobody wants. Fame. Recognition. Notoriety. The Internet got there first. And then Newsworld. The National,CBC News: Morning and The Current raced their anchors to the scene. Of course, we have to own these stories when they break, but do we have to blanket them so completely. How do we tell the story without tantalizing future perpetrators with the promise of the same reward? Is there some way we can temper that aspect of the coverage? Do we really need all that minutiae on the gunman?

As each student was interviewed, I began to realize that these young people, although experiencing terrible stress and anguish, were each speaking with intelligence, with good grammer and full sentences, and I couldn't help but feel proud - even of those experiencing great emotion - of how well-educated they sounded and with what dignity they were reacting to the interviewers. I think Dawson College can be very proud of its students- wherever they come from. Jean Koning.

I don't usually watch television. I get my news through CBC.ca and CBC Radio, among other sources.

Yesterday morning when I saw what was unfolding I pulled out my television and brought up a hazy, but legible, image of CBC television because I knew that would be the best place to find current information.

Sitting here, thousands of kilometres from Montreal, I felt a great deal of anxiety and sorrow for these young people of our country. However I was glad to have the story relayed to me from a source I trust.

I did not see sensationalism, and I did not see exploitation. I saw professional journalists wearing the same grave look of concern that I wore, who treated the unfolding events compassionately and delicately.