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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (July 7, 1998)
CONTACTING US NEWSROOM: ADDRESS: (541)346-5511 Oregon Daily Emerald E-MAIL: P.O.BOX 3159 ode@oregon. uoregon.edu Eugene, Oregon 97403 ONLINE EDITION: www.uoregon.edu/~ode Perspectives Actions of heroes deserve acclaim When the gunfire rang out in the cafeteria, only a handful of students reacted by moving toward the shooter AM EMERALD EDITORIAL More than a month after the fact, the images are still clear. KEZI's rumpled-look ing news anchor Rick Dancer report ing live from Thurston High School. President Clinton offering his condo lences. Springfield Mayor Bill Morisette struggling to lead a shat tered community. On May 21, people from all over the world followed the news as it trickled in. One student dead ... two bodies discovered at the suspect's home ... a second student dead ... But even more than the gruesome story of two high school students shot to death in their cafeteria, the nation was captivated by the story of the handful of students who saved lives. The heroes. The news media immediately chose junior Jacob Ryker as their poster boy for heroism. Already shot through the chest, Ryker moved to ward the shooter and was the first to get there. A moment later, Adam Walburger piled on, followed by a few more students. Then Ryker was shot again through the hand with a 9mm handgun as he continued to battle the gunman on the ground. In its July issue, Life magazine ran a cover spread and inside story high lighting the acts of nine Thurston students, including Ryker and Wal burger. "Stopping the bullets: heroes of a high school shooting," reads the cover. Scoffing at the "hero" tag, the students say they didn't even think about their actions. They simply re acted. "I didn't do it alone," Life quoted Jacob Ryker as saying. His attitude toward his own actions has re mained consistent. Just days after the shooting, Ryker refused to appear on CNN's Larry King Live unless some of the others were invited. "I don't feel like a hero," Jacob's younger brother Josh Ryker said in Life. Despite their modesty, these stu dents truly are heroes. A lot of he roes emerged from the frightening in cident. Doctors, students, teachers, parents — they all contributed. Everyone was reacting. Some ran to ward the bullets, and others ran away. Some ran toward the carnage to administer first aid, and others ran away. A handful of teenagers reacted un like anyone else. They risked their lives to save lives. That is a heroic action. It's not what most people would do in that situation, and that is evidenced by the number of peo ple who reacted by leaving the cafe teria. The situation remains sad and dis turbing. A young suspect awaits a tri al, accused of the murders of two classmates and his parents. One vic tim is still recovering at Sacred Heart Medical Center. Friends and families still mourn the premature deaths of Ben Walker and Mikael Nickolau son. A community is still startled. But in spite of the sadness, the title "hero" is appropriate. These students acted quickly and smartly, and they have earned recognition for their heroic acts. This editorial represents the opinion of the Emerald editorial tx>ard. Responses may he sent to ode@oregon. t toregon.edu. I FLIGHT 898 KCDNSIRICTED / DISCO REDISCOVERED / MAYA AHfitLOU S BIRTHDAY MOVIE STAR SNAPSHOTS / TIE EAGLE tAIT / MISSISSIPPI ClEANBP / ANIMAL El, ► Drawing Board V <utruR« J Kip; A<s»o>sr ■ (CrunS') v Tv “ ^ dead 7 'WtwJPfD ZSz A,z“ Arthur KFK^sZZoT Arthur Bremer TEXAS TOWER SNIPER KR4G SBUh-nOS W allace Shooting ^ Sirhan Sirhan James Ear/g, •ay mewAss^smrm c° John Hinckley UN ATTEMPT Ambassador Hote. Ruby Ridge Arkansas ~nve.5 'fSb, PWRAVS TO NIVtR VMOtltO KNOW WITHOUT 6UM$ IN AMIRKA The Oregon Dally Emerald is published daily Monday through Friday during the school year and Tuesday and Thursday during the summer by the Oregon Daily Emer ald Publishing Co. Inc., at the University ot Oregon, Eu gene, Oregon. A member ot the Associated Press, the Emerald operates independently of the University with offices in Suite 300 ot the Erb Memorial Union. The Emerald is private property. The unlawful removal or use of papers is prosecutable by law. NEWSROOM — S41.Vi6.SSll Editor in chiel: Michael Hines Associate Editors: Rob Moseley, Leanne Nelms Photo Editor: Laura Goss Webmaster. Broc Nelson Design Assistant: Kiley Arroyo Reporters: Peter Breaden, Amy Goldhammer ADVERTISING — S41.M6-t712 Becky Merchant, director. Rachelle Bowden, Leigh-Ann Cyboron, Dan Hageman, Doug Hentges, Andy Lakefish, Justice Rhodes, Erick Schiess, Ryan von Klein, Emily Wallace. CLASSIFIEDS — S4l.tt6-4V4S Anne Nielsen, manager. _BUSINESS — S4l.tt(i-«17._ General Manager Judy Riedl Business: Kathy Carbone, business supervi sor. Melanie Jones, receptionist Distribution: John Long, Peter Breaden _PRODUCTION — _ Michele Ross, manager. Tara Sloan, coordina tor. Laura Daniel OREGON DAILY Emerald
