Why do these sick people do these things? At least, I hope it was a sick person. The alternative is that they were just plain evil. It's easier to deal with mental illness than evil.
If you think this is sick, you should rrad some of the responses to this over in the entertainment section.
Lots of people there are more concerned that parents allowed a 3 month old baby into a theater at midnight than the deaths.
The shooter got in through the back emergency back door. Threw a can that releaced smoke and started shooting. I'm glad the police caught this sick ****.
More and more people are hitting the streets that have a mental illness since a lot of facilities were closed during the recession. This is only the beginning.
More and more people are hitting the streets that have a mental illness since a lot of facilities were closed during the recession. This is only the beginning.
I'll have to find the links again. I was just reading that the guy arrested for this crime had dropped out of the Univ of Colorado. He was going for his PhD in neuroscience.
Rumors are going around as well that he lead the Occupy San Diego protest as well.
I'm just looking at the live news reports right now at this guys apartment. The police say the bomb inside could take hours or days to remove safely. All 5 apartment buildings have been evacuated.
This is preposterous. More people firing guns in a crowded, dark theater filled with tear gas would have somehow led to fewer casualties?
Absolutely! I understand if you are anti gun, but having one or maybe a few trained people that know how to use a fun would have saved lives. 100%! As a person, I would rather have something and not need it then to need it and not have it. This applies to all aspects of life, not just self defense.
Absolutely! I understand if you are anti gun, but having one or maybe a few trained people that know how to use a fun would have saved lives. 100%! As a person, I would rather have something and not need it then to need it and not have it. This applies to all aspects of life, not just self defense.
But there's a limit. I'm guessing you also walk everywhere with a helmet and a bullet-proof vest. Better bring roller blades, too, just in case you need to make a swift getaway. And don't wear anything metal, since you're more likely to be struck by lightning then to be killed in a random act of violence.
In all seriousness, though, my issue here isn't about preparation. It's that even a well trained civilian could have (and likely would have) done more harm than good in this situation. With all that was going on, it's unlikely that anyone could have gotten a full read on the situation quickly enough to really resolve it. What if the gunman opened fire and was immediately gunned down, but someone else thought the second shooter was the person firing at innocent people and then shot him? It's very easy to conceive of a situation where lots more people could have gotten hurt. Not to mention this guy was carrying an assault rifle, which even the most paranoid of gun nuts doesn't often bring with him to a movie theater.
The solution to problems like these (which are very, very rare) are to make it a) more difficult for people to buy assault weapons and b) keep closer tabs on the mentally ill.
The solution to problems like these (which are very, very rare) are to make it a) more difficult for people to buy assault weapons and b) keep closer tabs on the mentally ill.
The VA tech massacre took place without "assault" weapons. Two regular hand guns. It makes no difference.
More and more people are hitting the streets that have a mental illness since a lot of facilities were closed during the recession. This is only the beginning.
Seems like the guy was smart and organized enough to have a post-graduate degree and booby-trap his apartment with sophisticated materials. With no prior record of any crime, I'm not sure what mental institutions have to do with this.
Also, considering the dude was wearing bullet-proof protective gear over his chest, neck and head, armed with a powerful assault weapon, and with a gas mask, I don't understand how a poor chap with a hand gun, breathing pepper spray, could have stopped him.
Seems like the guy was smart and organized enough to have a post-graduate degree and booby-trap his apartment with sophisticated materials. With no prior record of any crime, I'm not sure what mental institutions have to do with this.
Also, considering the dude was wearing bullet-proof protective gear over his chest, neck and head, armed with some a powerful assault weapon, and with a gas mask, I don't understand how a poor chap with a hand gun, breathing pepper spray, could have stopped him.
This is a pretty sound point. Though there are surely ways we could work to better prevent violent tragedies in general, the sad truth is that, in a free society, things like this just happen from time to time.
I don't own a gun and don't plan to every acquire one, and I don't think an armed citizen in the theater would have made a difference, yet I don't believe more gun control would do much to stop the occasional shooting spree.
Cases in point:
Mohammed Merah (France), back in March 2012. Shot 7 people to death, including kids and military men using Kalashnikovs and Uzis, in a country where handguns and assault weapons are illegal, and hunting rifles are strictly regulated. He was never diagnosed with mental illness.
Anders Behring Breivik's weapons (Norway) were legally registered in a country with strict gun laws. Killed 69 people. Never diagnosed with mental illness.
If a lone person is dedicated to killing a bunch of people with no fear of getting killed or captured, he/she will find a way. Not much anyone can do about it.
