It was an eerie case of deja vu when the news came over the wire about the shootings in Littleton, Colo. Tuesday.

After Jonesboro, Springfield and Pearl, is anybody really surprised about severe incidents of violence in high schools anymore?

That may be the most dangerous thing. When violence happens frequently, or when the American public starts believing it happens more frequently than it does, it becomes commonplace.

And we become jaded.

On Tuesday, high school juniors Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold came to school decked out in fatigues, and they attacked students and teachers in a “suicide mission.”

The duo are rumored to be part of a high school clique called the “Trench Coat Mafia.”

The group, which is made of up about 10 students, was shunned by their peers and known to have an affection for guns and explosives.

Such events still are treated like tragedies, but the media circus that engulfs them almost immediately makes them seem staged and unreal.

These events do point to one alarming truth: It’s a lot easier to become famous for something horrific than for doing something creative or positive.

These young men knew it, and their classmates who were on their cell phones calling the local television stations before the police knew it, too.

This isn’t the media’s fault; it’s a reporter’s job to cover stories of interest, and when madmen attack a high school, it is news.

But the media may make some mistakes when it tries to analyze why exactly these misfits decided to take a common teen-age fantasy to the next level.

Already, some Associated Press writers are lamenting about the Trench Coat Mafia’s fondness for Marilyn Manson and black clothing.

Each crisis becomes the next 24-hour a day ratings-maker with endless panel discussions trying to explain the inexplicable to a hypnotized audience.

You can’t nail the exact cause of the shooting. You can’t blame Marilyn Manson, television or even the reported bad treatment of the “gang” by their peers.

Does anyone claim to have been treated well in high school? And how many choose to act out in such an extreme fashion?

The frustrating thing is there is little anybody can do to prevent this from happening again. So what can we do?

For now, mourn for the victims, their families and friends. For the future, have faith and pray that there won’t be a next time.