Michael Landsberry
At this point, we don’t know why a 13-year-old student a classmate called “a nice kid” took it upon himself to appropriate his parents’ gun, kill a teacher and wound two other students at Sparks Middle School in Nevada. According to reports, he had been bullied.
But is this becoming one of the standard responses? Why is it that a certain cohort of this perpetually oppressed class have come to believe that murder-suicide in a self-perceived blaze of glory is a reasonable solution? We just don’t know.
What we do know, however, is that the late Michael Landsberry, a 45-year-old math teacher at the school, died in a manner that was completely predictable under the circumstances.
Mr. Landsberry positioned himself between the shooter and the other students and, apparently, was trying to talk the youthful shooter down when he pulled the trigger. The reason it was “predictable” is that Landsberry, like his father before him, had been a U.S. Marine and had served several tours in Afghanistan. This was a man whose natural instinct was to save others before himself.
In my professional career, I have spent a good deal of time with law enforcement and military personnel, and I have to say, the ones I have had the privilege to know are not “like” the rest of us. What I mean is, while no sensible person wants to die in the prime of life, these men and women are not afraid of it, and all of the ones with whom I have been associated consider dying in the service of their nation, community or cause, to be a good and noble death. It may sound like a cliche, but if so, it is only because the rest of us cannot live up to that high standard.
“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”
Rest in peace and God bless your sacred memory, Michael Landsberry. In a world of turmoil and ambiguity, yours may be the only motivation we truly understand.
Thank you, Mr. Olshaker for bringing this story of true heroism to my attention. Mr. Landsberry is a true hero, and, as noted, his response was one you would expect nothing less from, he is a Marine.
One thing I took from your commentary yesterday about Mr. Landsberry, about his heroism, was to “STOP” everything for a moment. Stop my mind from its idle chatter. Stop the busy work which never seems to get me anywhere. It was time to stop and think and to later make sure I shared some thoughts with my family.
It’s sad, but I realized yesterday, that I do not take the time normally, like I did after reading your commentary, to give heroes today the recognition they deserve. So last night after reading, unlike my typical attempt to satisfy my psychoanalytic pondering, I found myself drawn to wondering more about Mr. Landsberry ‘s heroic character instead. I couldn’t help but wonder what it must have been like for him or how he felt at that moment in time. I wondered if he felt afraid or what thoughts went through his mind in determining the best action to take. Then could’t help but consider if, in his case, that is, in a Marine’s case, or, a hero’s case, whether he hardly gave it any thought at all. Perhaps, it was simply his instinct to save lives. His instinct, in a sense, was to act in a way one would more readily see a parent do. It would not be a surprise to see a parent do anything to save the life of their child or family. Mr. Landsberry treated our children as if they were his. He gave his life for them.
What more can a person ask for? That could have been my child or yours. Imagine, what the parents felt to learn how close their precious child came to danger, then, to learn that someone, the “Math” teacher, took every action he could to protect them and in doing so lost his life.? As a parent, I know how I would have felt. When I think about the depth of gratitude, praise and respect the parent’s must have experienced, well, it takes my breath away.
Lastly, when I thought about how frightening it must have been for the children and the relief they must have felt when Mr. Landsberry stepped in, I had a vague memory of a feeling that I had once, when someone taller and stronger protected me. How relieved it made me feel. But when I think about how important it was to me and how valuable I felt just knowing someone cared that much to protect me, what I remembered most of all, is that I felt loved. So I wonder now, did the children feel loved too? I choose to think so and I choose to believe Mr. Landsberry knew it too, in the last moments of his life.
Beautifully stated, Dr. J. Thanks.
What has changed in society that causes young people to take their anger out on others by killing them?
There have always been bullies in school, but the kids who were bullied didn’t shoot their teachers or classmates.
Some choose to blame the reason on easy access to guns, but when I was in school it wasn’t unusal to see guns in the gun rack in the back glass of trucks that students drove to school, at least in rural areas, and especially during hunting season, and it wasn’t against the law, but nobody went and got a gun when they got upset about something and started killing anyone.
Most homes had weapons and they weren’t locked away. Children were taught they were not toys to be played with, but they knew where they gun or guns were, and in most cases knew they were loaded, but they didn’t take them to school to shoot people.
We grew up watching westerns and other shows of violence, but we knew that violence was not the way to handle conflicts. so what in society has changed that is causing these young people to respond in violence?
Lack of accountability or consequences for ones behavior?
Degree of tolerance and political correctness for those who are different, lest we offend them?
Inability for students and teachers to interact with each other for fear of consequences, so problems that have might have been discussed and resolved by teachers and peers before they got out of control in the past, that could have helped someone who was troubled be able to cope with their situation, now go undetected?
Society is changing! These days, Right is wrong and Wrong is right, and young people are becoming increasingly more confused. There are no clear boundaries that define right from wrong in many homes, and what would have been unacceptable in the past is now seen as discrimination.
And more and more people are turning away from God and Christianity and becoming more tolerate of all religions, (which is clearly against God’s teachings) and many of those man-made religions promote radical behavior such as what we are beginning to see more of.
I could also throw out there the idea that some of these people may be victims of mind-manipulation.
Anyway, just a few thoughts I have on why I think there is an increase in these type of crimes.