Shooting in Connecticut

[Vince@Meanstreets]

Originally Posted by The Patch

I disagree. Semi-auto "assault weapons" are highly effective self defense tools. Think riots.

and the zombie apocolyps

[Shmoov69]

Originally Posted by Ravenworks

As a former Marine NBC Warfare officer I appreciate the thoughts!

This country doesn't have a gun problem, we have a spiritual decay problem that has been going on for decades. The decimation of families, abortions (not starting a fight, just pointing out how cheap life has become), the dumbing-down of education, the hollowness that comes with celebrity worship, and the focus on exterior appearances have all contributed to the decay. Hollywood has a fixation on the young, the people with the least life experience and therefore the least wisdom. Even the music industry is affected, imagine the stars of the 60' & 70's being put through the "image-conscience, camera-friendly" world of todays music industry.
There is no depth in our society today, no wisdom espoused to a greater audience, no appreciation for (or knowledge of) our history and that of the world. I'm a 100% capitalist but our rampant consumerism has pushed artisans and craftsmen to the side, so little we make is of value anymore.
We have "9-11 truthers" and other people so gullible it's beyond my comprehension.
I look at my boys, 16 & 18, and I weep at the thought of the world they may end up living in. I've taught them what they need to be self-sufficient, to protect themselves, and taught them the lessons of history. I hope it serves them well when I'm not around any longer.
I also weep when I see this sort of event unfold. I avoid watching the news reporters and all their "experts" trying to "understand" what has happened, as if they could, while making the nutcase a celebrity in the process.
To be honest, I also feel an enormous amount of frustration when something like this happens and there is nobody like myself there to intervene. I have begun carrying in those "gun-free" zones as it seems this is where the shootings are most likely going to happen. Nothing is more tempting to a coward than not being a target himself.
Should I ever be present when one of these horror-events happen I will make certain that the tax-dollars spent to train me will not have been spent in vain. I'm not itching to start a fire-fight but have no problem finishing one. In the mean-time I will continue to train those in my life on how to protect themselves and others should they ever need too.
May God bless the vicitims of this, and other shootings, and may God have mercy on us all...

First off, THANK YOU AND YOUR FAMILY FOR YOUR SERVICE!!

And secondly, you are absolutely correct on the "problem", it IS a spiritual problem.

[GregWeld]

Found this in an article today... about a kid that had "plans" to attack his school.



I thought it interesting that there was a quote from a legislator....


Some Oklahoma lawmakers, reacting to the Connecticut shooting, called Monday for allowing teachers and school administrators to carry firearms on school campuses.

Rep. Mark McCullough, R-Sapulpa, said he is working on a bill that would allow teachers and school administrators to receive firearms training through the Council on Law Enforcement Education and Training, which would authorize them to carry weapons at school and at school events.

"It scares me that a madman could come into my children's school and kill my children," said McCullough, who has two boys, ages 7 and 9. "We need to harden these targets, harden these facilities with simple, common-sense steps.

[Vince@Meanstreets]

Some states already have carry able teachers. I have mixed feelings about this. Like unarmed guards in a prison wing. You hate to see it but the chances for a bad guy to get his hands on it is high too.

I hope they get Magpul combat training and be able to hold a carry license.

[GregWeld]

An interesting bunch of statistics on guns in this country:




http://nbcpolitics.nbcnews.com/_news...n-america?lite

[realcoray]

Originally Posted by Shmoov69

First off, THANK YOU AND YOUR FAMILY FOR YOUR SERVICE!!

And secondly, you are absolutely correct on the "problem", it IS a spiritual problem.

This is so wrong that I don't even know where to begin.

What video game did Charles Whitman play in the 1960s before killing 16 people?

Google for a list of school shootings (or massacres, they are nearly one and the same). You'll find a list that extends hundreds of years, where people including kids killed someone at their school.

Have we been on a decline that long, since basically the country was created?

Or has it been the case that damaged people have existed and will continue to exist, and that their access to high powered guns has simply increased, meaning as a group it's a lot easier to kill whole groups of people very quickly?

I'm not saying that's the only issue in play here but it's certainly one of them.

[Sieg]

Originally Posted by GregWeld

An interesting bunch of statistics on guns in this country:




http://nbcpolitics.nbcnews.com/_news...n-america?lite

the 1993 Brady Act prohibits the establishment of any electronic registry of firearms, firearms owners, or firearms transactions.

.........maybe a little insight to the brilliance of the people establishing regulations to guide our society.

Interesting data. If the US restricted only cheap Asian imports I imagine it would have a major impact on the total number of weapons. I see no need to sell junk weapons at Walmart pricing thus affordable to everyone. That alone would be one effective gun control measure.

[Vegas69]

Originally Posted by cmraman

While the gun debate heats up. There is another debate that is closer to my heart. The shooter was recognized as having Aspergers, a form of Autism. He also had some mental illness. I'm a father of 2 Autistic boys and have a close friend with a Highschool son with Aspergers. She is dealing with hatred already. I'm afraid for my kids as well. Please don't judge these children on an isolated event. My boys are very innocent and loving. My friend's son is a very good kid as well. Here is a statement from the Autism Society of Wisconsin's Facebook page....

On Friday, 27 people in Connecticut lost their life through the acts of a single person. These people were children, teachers, husbands, wives, mothers, fathers, brothers, and sisters. Today, their families are experiencing grief that cannot be described. Individuals impacted by Friday’s tragic shooting are in the hearts, thoughts and prayers throughout the Autism Society network.

Many national media outlets are reporting that the shooter was autistic. While as of yet, this has not been officially documented, many newspapers and television outlets are stating that the individual who shot the children and teachers was autistic. And, in such reports, there is an implication that autism might have had an impact on the person's mindset in leading to the shootings.

There is absolutely no evidence or any reliable research that suggests a linkage between autism and planned violence. To imply or suggest, as some are doing, that some linkage exists is wrong and harmful to the over 1.5 million law abiding, non-violent and wonderful individuals who live with autism each and every day. Stereotyping an entire group of individuals because of the actions of one is something is wrong and can't be accepted.

We ask that people not judge any autistic person based on what is being said about the killer of the innocent children and teachers. Rather, we ask that we continue to put our nation's attention on being there for the children and teachers who were killed on Friday.

One of my best friends has a 17 year old son with Autism. He's very intelligent but doesn't speak. In the last year he has had episodes of violence hitting his mother to the point where his father must put his life on hold to be with him at most times. It worries me as my buddy has many guns but he has never operated guns around him. However, it would be pretty easy for him to go on youtube or other sources to figure it out.... This is a prime example of a situation where a gun safe is MANDATORY. It's clear that his son is very frustrated with his situation. He has communicated that he wants to move out and have his own life through an Ipad. Unfortunately, he'll likely never be able to do so. I can see how these type of situation could lead to great violence.

Please don't take this negatively against your boys. I just wanted to point out that some autistic kids are violent by nature depending on the degree.

[GregWeld]

I'd still argue that controlling "guns" isn't going to solve the problem... when we can't control the PEOPLE that wield them.

When you read the first couple of lines in that article --- there's more guns in the USA than there are people! So it seems to me to be an already impossible task to put controls on something where you really have no control.

I do agree that there's a reason we aren't all allowed to have machine guns... and that high powered semi-automatics with huge magazines are a "problem" - but given the millions of these things in circulation (I own 3 myself!) how do we go about keeping them out of the wrong hands? There's so many ways to get hold of these and no registration or laws etc are going to affect someone bent on killing innocent people.

I still think it's a knee jerk, reactionary, feel good, kind of thinking that doesn't solve anything.

One of my police buddies stopped last night - he'd been to Wades (a shooting range/gun store) and every semi-auto AR 15 style rifle they had was sold out as of Monday morning. Why? Because people fear they'll be banned.... OMG!! So because of this talk -- they'll sell millions more!! Now what good has that done and what has it solved?

You know -- the funny thing is -- I'm not even a gun fan! But I have CC permits in two states -- have a safe (burglary and fire safe!) where they are stored (and the ammo and the magazines!). Is that because I'm afraid for my life? No -- I'm afraid they'd get into the wrong hands! So I do everything I can to keep them safe.

I read a statistic this week that said 60% of Americans own guns... 60%! Holy cow. My guess is that about 10% are hunters.

[cmraman]

Originally Posted by Vegas69

One of my best friends has a 17 year old son with Autism. He's very intelligent but doesn't speak. In the last year he has had episodes of violence hitting his mother to the point where his father must put his life on hold to be with him at most times. It worries me as my buddy has many guns but he has never operated guns around him. However, it would be pretty easy for him to go on youtube or other sources to figure it out.... This is a prime example of a situation where a gun safe is MANDATORY. It's clear that his son is very frustrated with his situation. He has communicated that he wants to move out and have his own life through an Ipad. Unfortunately, he'll likely never be able to do so. I can see how these type of situation could lead to great violence.

Please don't take this negatively against your boys. I just wanted to point out that some autistic kids are violent by nature depending on the degree.

First of all educate yourself. First you said the child is non verbal. Mine are too. Have you ever thought that the reason for the outbursts is frustration?? Autistic children CAN'T express themselves. You need to think about the child's POV. First, how would you feel if you couldn't speak or express your wants or basic human needs at all, and would do anything out of frustration to try to communicate. My experience has told me that your friends' son is frustrated. Maybe it's provoked? I don't know the homelife. Do you? This is the narrow-mindedness that worries me. My oldest has at an early age, beat his head on the concrete driveway out of frustration for sure. THink about the parents as well. I'm sure there is a fair amount of frustration there too. Image for one minute, if you have kids, they cannot tell you when they are sick, hungry, upset, sad, happy, that they want to do certain things. Hell, they can't even say I love you. As a parent, when my child suddenly bursts out in tears and hits himself, I can see he's upset and frustrated about something, but he cant tell me why, I can't seem to figure out why. In the case of last Friday, there is much more to the story that what the media is saying. If your friend is concerned about the weapons, then he needs to take more precautions and keep them locked away. I'm not against the right to bear arms, but there is a certain responsibility that needs to take place. This also doesn't mean, any child with a disabiltiy is capable of hurting people either.

My friend who has a son with Aspergers found this. Here 18 year old son is already getting shunned at school. This sickens me. People need to educate themselves.

http://shine.yahoo.com/parenting/why...164900109.html