If you think Columbine was the first school massacre it wasn't here's a little known incident that happened in Michigan years ago. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bath_School_disaster
AJ, I think the two are intertwined. If the male role models were in the lives of the kids, there would be far less time that the kids had without adult supervision and guidance. Another issue that we may not have thought of: It takes a sick mind to pull off these disasters. What if the media was the primary culprit here? Hear me out. This could be a person that will never be known for anything in his/her life. They see the nationwide coverage of such horrific events. They try to gain fame by surpassing the previous mass murder. A sane person wouldn't think this way but we are dealing with anything but sane people.
I believe Bob is dead on. Unfortunately that wisdom will never be seen in the mainstream. They will only want to focus on the implements used to carry out the crimes... Because that is a much easier and popular target to take on.
Jim just showed me an article in the LA times a man in China went into a school yesterday and killed 27 students w. a knife. seems this happens alot there so very sad. all those young people.
This is a horrible thing...I just can't imagine it...how, why? I cannot even begin to figure out what those poor families are going through. So I am NOT trying to downplay it in the least. Nor am I debating all of the societal factors that all of you correctly bring up. But in fact, school violence is decreasing, according to what I have read. Homicides in Schools; http://www.npr.org/2012/03/16/148758783/violence-in-schools-how-big-a-problem-is-it?ft=1&f=1001 I find it somewhat reassuring that, despite all of these horrible, horrible high profile tragedies/crimes, our children are actually safer than ever, it would seem.
I'm still researching the quote of a congressman who quoted that... I will say this... I would gladly give up my tactical 223 with high round clips if someone could guarantee that this would never happen again...
The media and the coverage of these events are what is different. Atrocity, even such as these, is nothing new. We immortalize and celebrate those who commit these horrible things. No longer is there a true scarlet letter. We must somehow empathize with the killer according to the media, who in the next breath makes them a celebrity. There are also countless other contributing factors, and I'm much in line with Huskerman on those other reasons. In a related, unrelated note.. I know we love to wave the banner and chant USA USA... and then pass a few more laws to make us feel safer, maybe start a ribbon campaign... for whatever any of that is worth, until the next slaughter happens.. then we'll rinse and repeat. The truth is, the world is a scary place and there is such a thing as bad (even if due to mental illness) people. Nothing is assured, there is nothing that is full proof and there will always be the unspeakable. On facebook I know a lot of mom's chimed in on my thread about how they wanted to rush to school to pick up their children. I left them alone, but I thought to myself... but then what do you teach your children? Panic? I understand that emotion and compulsion to want to go grab them, but who is to say you don't get hit by a drunk driver on the way home?! Now you and your child are in a box, because you were in the wrong place at the wrong time when really, you should have been at work and your child should have been at school. I know we don't get a lot of Chinese news over here, but do you guys know there have been a wave of knife attacks on schools and school children in China over the past 2 and a half years? There was one just a few days ago. They've been going on that we know of since 2010. (it's not like news is easy picking coming out of China) You can read a little more about them here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/School_attacks_in_China_(2010–2011) All I know is that more gun control, armed teachers and other such restrictive measures won't fix, cure or prevent a damned thing. We have to look at how we value ourselves and our society. We have more gun regulation than ever before, how's that working? The war on drugs is bigger and the liberties given away forever to law enforcement in the name of this battle are almost too many to count, yet there's more drugs on the street than ever before. We have these ridiculous school security measures that are in place and enforced rigorously. These teachers and admins are doing their job. We have on campus police and police dogs. What message does that send? Do those security measures work? The answer, as in the other two points, is a resounding no. We either take a good long look at how we value ourselves and our society, or we'll continue to live with the unspeakable...regardless of how many laws are passed and ribbons are tied. In my opinion, anyway.
I've been sick the last few days, so I'm just reading through all of this now. I think Bobda nailed it. Mental health is what our country does worst. I'm always reminded of guys like Lee Harvey Oswald who was diagnosed as dangerous/violent by the New York City schools, but was allowed to just disappear out of state with no follow-up. People just don't know what to do. In a free society, we're all allowed to act a little crazy, but where is the limit? When I was in college (1973) my best friend committed suicide. I knew he had gone over the cliff when he pointed his loaded .357 magnum at me. I thought about contacting his father, who was a colonel at Norton Air Force Base in San Bernardino, but I didn't do it. Who was I and what qualifications did I have to make such judgements? I only knew what to do when I heard that my pal Patrick had blown his head off with that same revolver. Not much help... Somewhere, out there, somebody saw this coming, but they were afraid to speak out. We need to have a national dialog about mental health. Allowing dangerous people to roam the streets in the name of "civil rights" is a bogus issue. Bobda is right...
:!: :idea: :arrow: http://lonelyconservative.com/2012/12/interesting-statistics-regarding-deinstitutionalization-of-mentally-ill-and-crime/
San Antonio: Man Attempts To Open Fire On Movie Theatre Crowd, Off-Duty Sheriff Carrying Her Firearm Stops Rampage With One Shot… Michael Bloomberg unavailable for comment. (WOAI) — Two people are hospitalized after a gunman chased terrified restaurant patrons into the lobby of the Santikos Mayan 14 movie theater during a showing of “The Hobbit” last night, 1200 WOAI news reprots. Police detectives and sheriff’s investigators say the incident started in the China Garden Restaurant on Southwest Military Drive about 9 PM Sunday, when an employee of the restaurant walked in looking for a woman. When the woman, who officials say is also a restaurant employee, wasn’t there, the man pulled a gun and attempted to open fire in the restaurant but his weapon jammed. “It started at the restaurant and then went into the parking lot and then into the movie theater,” Deputy Lou Antu told 1200 WOAI news. Investigators say some of the terrified restaurant patrons poured into the movie theater, and the gunman followed. He opened fire, shooting one man in the chest, before Antu says an off duty sheriff’s deputy who was working security at the theater shot him once. “The officer involved, she took the appropriate action to try to keep everyone safe in the movie theater,” Antu said. The gunman and the patron are hospitalized. Antu says the gunman never made it into the theater itself, thanks largely to the heroic work of the off duty deputy. “She did what she felt she had to do,” Antu said. “I feel that she saved a lot of lives by taking the action she had to take.”
Kes, To heck with the quote... find where this has happened where guns are allowed. I can find none. I'll wager on this place never being held up again. I have a savings account there: <object width="416" height="374" classid="clsid27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" id="ep"><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><param name="movie" value="http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/.element/apps/cvp/3.0/swf/cnn_416x234_embed.swf?context=embed&videoId=us/2010/09/28/pkg.bank.robbery.guns.khou"><param name="bgcolor" value="#000000"><embed src="http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/.element/apps/cvp/3.0/swf/cnn_416x234_embed.swf?context=embed&videoId=us/2010/09/28/pkg.bank.robbery.guns.khou" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" bgcolor="#000000" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" width="416" wmode="transparent" height="374"></embed></object> I prefer this quote: "The management recognizes the second amendment, and the other is, if you come in here wanting to rob them, you better watch out. You might get something more than money."
http://www.nbcconnecticut.com/news/national-international/NATL-As-Mourning-Continues-Focus-Turns-to-Gun-Control-183877701.html