They're pretty common in my neck of the woods, as well.

Personally, I'm a pro-gun guy. We didn't have these kinds of shootings back when I was a child, but we DID have a gun in every home, and every car. Kids used to literally bring their shotguns into school and lock them in their lockers during hunting season. We had fights all the time, some times several in a day, but no shootings.

I blame the shootings on the drugs. You have to either be a psychopath (rare) or have your emotions artificially numbed (common) to carry out a lethal attack. Most people, especially kids, can't even butcher a chicken without fainting. It's the drugs that give these people the mental detachment necessary to carry out their crimes.