Shootings

[Max Peck]

DONALD TRUMP IS COMING FOR YOUR GUNS.

I wonder if this will be the what breaks Trump. The GOP is willing to ignore everything wrong about Trump to get their special interest's policies. When he is no longer reliable, they will turn on him. But when?

Do GOP lawmakers genuinely care about guns, though, or do they just play that role because they're so well paid to do so? Trump's heresy could be the cover they need to break ranks, if they still have vestigial consciences.

GOP lawmakers care about what their base cares about, from what I can see. In this case, I'm guessing the base rationalizes Trump's remarks by convincing themselves that Trump isn't talking about their guns -- he wants to take guns away from those other people, the uppity ones over there that aren't Real Americans® anyway. That's presuming that his remarks even make it all the way into their bubble reality in the first place, of course.

[Ralph-Wiggum]

Many ideas, some good & some not so good, emerged from our bipartisan meeting on school safety yesterday at the White House. Background Checks a big part of conversation. Gun free zones are proven targets of killers. After many years, a Bill should emerge. Respect 2nd Amendment!

Seems like he's been told to get in line. I can only assume he's lumping his own ideas in the "not so good" category...

[GreenGoo]

Respect the 2nd amendment.

That bodes well for future mass shootings.

[Sepiche]

I expect we'll see a repeat of the immigration meeting they had.

Drumpf spoke with lawmakers in complete ignorance of what the parties stances on the issues are, and the Republican stances are so far to the right that comments that Drumpf makes that seem obvious are actually relatively centrist proposals that Democrats support.

After the meeting I'm sure the Republicans explained their actual positions to him, and now he'll start to walk back what he said, accuse Democrats of not negotiating, and nothing will get done.

[Holman]

Now that it's coming out that the Parkland shooter had etched swastikas onto his rifle magazines and had posted Instagram selfies in a MAGA hat, lawmakers are finally recognizing that it's time for a serious inquiry into the processes of right-wing radicalization.

I kid. His political views will be down the memory hole before the next commercial break.

Of course if he had yelled an "Allah Akbar," we'd be banning travel from twenty countries and bombing someone by now.

[El Guapo]

Now that it's coming out that the Parkland shooter had etched swastikas onto his rifle magazines and had posted Instagram selfies in a MAGA hat, lawmakers are finally recognizing that it's time for a serious inquiry into the processes of right-wing radicalization.

I kid. His political views will be down the memory hole before the next commercial break.

Of course if he had yelled an "Allah Akbar," we'd be banning travel from twenty countries and bombing someone by now.

It's been pretty dramatically undercovered that this was an anti-Semitic attack. The areas from which Parkland draws are pretty heavily Jewish.

[Jag]

Now that it's coming out that the Parkland shooter had etched swastikas onto his rifle magazines and had posted Instagram selfies in a MAGA hat, lawmakers are finally recognizing that it's time for a serious inquiry into the processes of right-wing radicalization.

I kid. His political views will be down the memory hole before the next commercial break.

Of course if he had yelled an "Allah Akbar," we'd be banning travel from twenty countries and bombing someone by now.

It's been pretty dramatically undercovered that this was an anti-Semitic attack. The areas from which Parkland draws are pretty heavily Jewish.

That is true about 40%. Our local temples had their share of funerals since the attack.

[pr0ner]

Look at all those snowflakes in Georgia, beholden to the NRA.

[Carpet_pissr]

Is giving a discount even a "tie"? That seems like a stretch to me. I know, I know, "PEDANTS FOR $800, ALEX" but the distinction is important. Companies give discounts to a billion and one customers to generate business. I'm not sure it's much more significant than simply selling to them. I certainly wouldn't classify it as a tie.

Note that I applaud the actions by these companies, obviously, but the childish foot stomping coming from the Georgia statehouse can be heard from here. "I DEMAND YOU REINSTATE THAT DISCOUNT!!" WTF.

I could maybe understand if they painted all their planes to look like AR-15's, and everywhere had "DELTA STRONGLY SUPPORTS THE NRA AND ITS MISSION!" on all their marketing pieces, but damn, it's a stupid discount. This kind of overreaction by Georgia lawmakers is one more piece of evidence that we are on the wrong side of crazy when it comes to guns, and the NRA. Just a ridiculous reaction.

[LordMortis]

Now that it's coming out that the Parkland shooter had etched swastikas onto his rifle magazines and had posted Instagram selfies in a MAGA hat, lawmakers are finally recognizing that it's time for a serious inquiry into the processes of right-wing radicalization.

I kid. His political views will be down the memory hole before the next commercial break.

Of course if he had yelled an "Allah Akbar," we'd be banning travel from twenty countries and bombing someone by now.

It's been pretty dramatically undercovered that this was an anti-Semitic attack. The areas from which Parkland draws are pretty heavily Jewish.

I'm a bit confused. Police won't comment on an ongoing investigation but they went to town with couple from San Bernadino. It feels wrong to me. I get you don't want to alarm people with half evidence but they do it all of the time.

[Zaxxon]

Just another instance of 'free-market' Republican rent-seeking.

[Jag]

2 shot at Central Michigan University, gunman 'armed and dangerous'

At least two people were reportedly shot when a gunman opened fire inside a Michigan university building early Friday morning.

Mount Pleasant Police told Fox News that they are searching for a black man who is considered “armed and dangerous,” after he opened fire at Central Michigan University.

“We don’t know where he is,” police added.

There has been a report of shots fired at Campbell Hall on campus. Suspect is still at large, police advise all to take shelter. If you see something suspicious, call 911.
— Central Michigan U. (@CMUniversity) March 2, 2018

Students and faculty were sent emergency alerts around 9 a.m., Friday that a shot had been fired at Campbell Hall. Local police said two people were shot, their conditions unknown.

The university tweeted that a suspect was “still at large” and that students and faculty on campus should “take shelter.”

[Carpet_pissr]

Price of livin' the dream in America, baby! Suck it up, liberal commie snowflake!

[Isgrimnur]

Central Michican

James Eric Davis Jr. is the suspect in the shooting deaths of two people on Central Michigan University's campus.

The victims have been identified as Davis' parents, James Davis, Sr. a part-time police officer in Bellwood, Illinois, and Diva J. Davis.
...
James Davis, Jr is a sophomore at CMU. Police are describing him as a black man, approximately 19 years old, 5'10" and 135 lbs. He was last seen wearing mustard colored jeans and a blue hoodie, according to a tweet from the City of Mt. Pleasant. He is considered armed and dangerous.

[gameoverman]

Note that I applaud the actions by these companies, obviously, but the childish foot stomping coming from the Georgia statehouse can be heard from here. "I DEMAND YOU REINSTATE THAT DISCOUNT!!" WTF.

The politicians are right there on the open stage for all to see. When they do or say NRA friendly things, it's not hidden. So then if 'the people' really wanted tighter gun control those politicians would get voted out.

This is why I believe that gun control advocates are wrong when they try to claim that there's this groundswell of support for tighter gun control. Those politicians don't get voted out.

So I'm thinking if you're in favor of gun control then you're first step should be working on cultural change, not legal change. I point to cigarette smoking as the example to follow. When I was a kid we had ashtrays in our home even though none of us smoked. It was so common for family or friends to smoke that it was just normal thing to have ashtrays around for them. Now? It's been so long since I have so much as seen a person pull out a pack of cigarettes and ask if they could smoke that I don't remember when was the last time I saw that. Smoking became déclassé. If that were to happen with guns then you wouldn't need new laws. It would be a lot easier to limit the supply of guns if people don't care about them. The easiest way to fail is to tell people they can't have something. People will still continue to acquire that something and prove you wrong.

[Carpet_pissr]

Wise words.

[hepcat]

Honestly, I think we are seeing a cultural shift like the anti smoking movement. It may not end with such an absolute change, but it certainly has shown that a majority of people out there are sick of the NRA and their position of no compromise or discussion. And that they do want something to change.

[LawBeefaroni]

Central Michican

James Eric Davis Jr. is the suspect in the shooting deaths of two people on Central Michigan University's campus.

The victims have been identified as Davis' parents, James Davis, Sr. a part-time police officer in Bellwood, Illinois, and Diva J. Davis.
...
James Davis, Jr is a sophomore at CMU. Police are describing him as a black man, approximately 19 years old, 5'10" and 135 lbs. He was last seen wearing mustard colored jeans and a blue hoodie, according to a tweet from the City of Mt. Pleasant. He is considered armed and dangerous.

Apparently the campus police called his parents to come pick him up after they took him to the hospital for an some kind of drug overdose/interaction. The gun used was his father's, presumably brought with hon when he went to pick his son up. Father was a VA cop in Chicago.

Central Michigan University police called Diva Jeneen Davis on Thursday with a message of concern about the behavior of her son, James Davis Jr., saying that perhaps it would be best if she and her husband came to pick him up.

The police said 19-year-old Davis Jr. was “not really making a lot of sense” when he reported that a man with a gun had threatened to kill him. He was taken to a hospital because authorities were worried about potential drug use. Diva Davis, 47, and James Eric Davis Sr., 48, drove about four hours from the Chicago area to pick up their son from the hospital, just in time for spring break.

On Friday morning, the parents were shot and killed in a residence hall. Davis Jr. shot them with his father’s gun, authorities told reporters on Saturday, leading to a 16-hour manhunt that ended with his capture along train tracks in the freezing Michigan air early Saturday.

[tjg_marantz]

[Kraken]

Wow, that's great.

[tjg_marantz]

It's onions whenever I watch the original. This is even more with the names... Ugh.

[Kurth]

Wow, that's great.

Amanda Palmer never ceases to impress. Moving. Sad.

[Carpet_pissr]

Had never heard of her before now. Just watched her TED talk from a while back. Great stuff, as usual.

'The Art of Asking' if anyone is interested: https://www.ted.com/talks/amanda_palmer ... _of_asking

[Remus West]

Ted Cruz stays classy after winning his primary - Article on the primary mentioning Cruz' ad

Republicans such as Cruz — who released a radio ad after clinching the GOP nomination Tuesday night, telling voters that Democratic opponent Beto O'Rourke "wants to take our guns."

He has also already taken shots at O'Rourke for using the nickname "Beto".

[Kurth]

Had never heard of her before now. Just watched her TED talk from a while back. Great stuff, as usual.

'The Art of Asking' if anyone is interested: https://www.ted.com/talks/amanda_palmer ... _of_asking

Not to derail, but she is great. Some of her stuff is a little over the top drama/artsy for me, but her album Theatre is Evil was pretty awesome. Great takes on social media ("Pictures or it Didn't Happen!") and other timely issues.

Also, she's from Boston, and my wife knows her from high school. We're actually going to see her in concert in Portland next month.

[Isgrimnur]

Ted Cruz stays classy after winning his primary - Article on the primary mentioning Cruz' ad

Republicans such as Cruz — who released a radio ad after clinching the GOP nomination Tuesday night, telling voters that Democratic opponent Beto O'Rourke "wants to take our guns."

He has also already taken shots at O'Rourke for using the nickname "Beto".

Classic Rafael Cruz.

[Smoove_B]

Did Cruz use audio of President Trump saying the government should take the guns, played over images of Beto O'Rourke? Because man - that would be some good use of assets!

[Ralph-Wiggum]

We all know who's really to blame for all the gun violence in the US.

On Thursday, the White House is planning to meet with envoys of the video game industry to discuss how violent imagery on their platforms may desensitize young people to firearms—and even train them to be more effective killers. Industry sources tell The Daily Beast that they are worried the session will be an ambush—an effort to scapegoat them for shootings in schools.

How long until Jack Thompson gets a position in the administration?

[Moliere]

How long until Jack Thompson gets a position in the administration?

He's busy peddaling his services pro bono

Controversial anti-gaming activist and disbarred Florida attorney Jack Thompson is offering pro bono assistance in the Marshall shooting case, suggesting that video games may be a factor in the January 23rd high school shooting, the Paducah Sun reports.

Thompson is offering to provide a sworn statement to officials detailing his involvement in representing families of victims in similar school shootings, the paper reports. He has been in contact with the Marshall County Attorney and wrote a letter to the governor of Kentucky.

The paper reports that Thompson said he has been told by Marshall County Attorney Jeff Edwards that the 15-year-old suspect was also a user of violent video games and that his grandmother had recently taken them away from him. Edwards confirmed to the paper that information has been found indicating the suspect was a user of the games.

Rather than games how about this theory by Owen Benjamin:

Of the 27 worst mass shooters in America only one was raised by their biological father. That’s a profound correlation. So yeah I’ll keep pushing my “family values bullshit.”

[GreenGoo]

Unless you're raised by your genetic father you're likely to go on a shooting spree?

Sounds legit.

How many of those 27 were white? What constitutes "worst"? Number of dead? Is it his theory that you are likely to kill the "most" people if not raised by your genetic father, and only "some" people if you were?

Totally reasonable correlation observation.

[Rip]

I was raised by my genetic father and haven't gone on a shooting spree.

So it must be true.

[Vorret]

Another one in Maryland this morning

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2018/03/20/sh ... firms.html

[LawBeefaroni]

That's an average morning in Chicago. But no one cares.


Well, maybe Detroit does.

While America grapples for solutions to keep school shootings from becoming the new normal in the wake of the Feb. 14 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School massacre that left 17 people dead, senseless bloodshed is business as usual in cities like Detroit, which last year averaged more than five homicides and 20 shootings per week.

Harris-Thomas is among those who say inner-city violence isn’t being addressed with the same fervor as relatively rarer killings in suburban and rural schools.

“You watch the news and it’s like, ‘somebody got shot on Puritan and Fenkell; oh, well, on to the next one,’ ” said Harris-Thomas, 36, of Harper Woods. “You hear about the problems in Detroit with drugs, and broken homes, and the justice system that keeps letting criminals back on the street, and people just accept it as normal. It’s heartbreaking.”

...

“Nobody seems to care until white kids start getting killed,” said Barry Randolph, pastor of Church of the Messiah who organizes anti-violence initiatives and hosts events for the survivors of homicide victims. “It’s like the opioid epidemic: Everyone’s saying ‘oh, we need to do something about this, it’s a health crisis’ — and yet black and brown people in the inner city have been dying from these same drugs for years.

“Where is the national outrage over our inner-city kids being killed? Where are our town hall meetings? As a country, we only seem to pay attention when it happens to white people, or in schools where violence is unheard of. We need our voices to be heard, too.”

...

Harris-Thomas said similar problems in Detroit and other cities have long been ignored, including the plethora of illegal firearms on the street, the failure to enforce gun laws, prosecutors striking plea deals for expediency, and a culture in which it’s common for kids to lose their lives over as little as a pair of tennis shoes.

[Freyland]

Another one in Maryland this morning

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2018/03/20/sh ... firms.html

I was confused to see that this was a fox news story. Then I read that the shooter was stopped by an "armed school Resources" employee, and it all made sense.

[Vorret]

That's an average morning in Chicago. But no one cares.


Well, maybe Detroit does.

While America grapples for solutions to keep school shootings from becoming the new normal in the wake of the Feb. 14 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School massacre that left 17 people dead, senseless bloodshed is business as usual in cities like Detroit, which last year averaged more than five homicides and 20 shootings per week.

Harris-Thomas is among those who say inner-city violence isn’t being addressed with the same fervor as relatively rarer killings in suburban and rural schools.

“You watch the news and it’s like, ‘somebody got shot on Puritan and Fenkell; oh, well, on to the next one,’ ” said Harris-Thomas, 36, of Harper Woods. “You hear about the problems in Detroit with drugs, and broken homes, and the justice system that keeps letting criminals back on the street, and people just accept it as normal. It’s heartbreaking.”

...

“Nobody seems to care until white kids start getting killed,” said Barry Randolph, pastor of Church of the Messiah who organizes anti-violence initiatives and hosts events for the survivors of homicide victims. “It’s like the opioid epidemic: Everyone’s saying ‘oh, we need to do something about this, it’s a health crisis’ — and yet black and brown people in the inner city have been dying from these same drugs for years.

“Where is the national outrage over our inner-city kids being killed? Where are our town hall meetings? As a country, we only seem to pay attention when it happens to white people, or in schools where violence is unheard of. We need our voices to be heard, too.”

...

Harris-Thomas said similar problems in Detroit and other cities have long been ignored, including the plethora of illegal firearms on the street, the failure to enforce gun laws, prosecutors striking plea deals for expediency, and a culture in which it’s common for kids to lose their lives over as little as a pair of tennis shoes.

That's crazy, in my town if there's more than 3 cops car together people are going crazy on facebook wondering what's going on

[Combustible Lemur]

Another one in Maryland this morning

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2018/03/20/sh ... firms.html

I was confused to see that this was a fox news story. Then I read that the shooter was stopped by an "armed school Resources" employee, and it all made sense.

SRO'S ate typically cops with specific training assigned to schools. Depending on the district and resources. They may be district employed cops or also just security guards. My last two schools have had three cops each. Still called SRO.

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

[msteelers]

Another one in Maryland this morning

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2018/03/20/sh ... firms.html

I was confused to see that this was a fox news story. Then I read that the shooter was stopped by an "armed school Resources" employee, and it all made sense.

SRO'S ate typically cops with specific training assigned to schools. Depending on the district and resources. They may be district employed cops or also just security guards. My last two schools have had three cops each. Still called SRO.

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

Correct. At least here in Florida they are law enforcement officers, usually with the sheriffs office. A portion of their income is covered by the school district.

[Remus West]

That's an average morning in Chicago. But no one cares.


Well, maybe Detroit does.

While America grapples for solutions to keep school shootings from becoming the new normal in the wake of the Feb. 14 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School massacre that left 17 people dead, senseless bloodshed is business as usual in cities like Detroit, which last year averaged more than five homicides and 20 shootings per week.

Harris-Thomas is among those who say inner-city violence isn’t being addressed with the same fervor as relatively rarer killings in suburban and rural schools.

“You watch the news and it’s like, ‘somebody got shot on Puritan and Fenkell; oh, well, on to the next one,’ ” said Harris-Thomas, 36, of Harper Woods. “You hear about the problems in Detroit with drugs, and broken homes, and the justice system that keeps letting criminals back on the street, and people just accept it as normal. It’s heartbreaking.”

...

“Nobody seems to care until white kids start getting killed,” said Barry Randolph, pastor of Church of the Messiah who organizes anti-violence initiatives and hosts events for the survivors of homicide victims. “It’s like the opioid epidemic: Everyone’s saying ‘oh, we need to do something about this, it’s a health crisis’ — and yet black and brown people in the inner city have been dying from these same drugs for years.

“Where is the national outrage over our inner-city kids being killed? Where are our town hall meetings? As a country, we only seem to pay attention when it happens to white people, or in schools where violence is unheard of. We need our voices to be heard, too.”

...

Harris-Thomas said similar problems in Detroit and other cities have long been ignored, including the plethora of illegal firearms on the street, the failure to enforce gun laws, prosecutors striking plea deals for expediency, and a culture in which it’s common for kids to lose their lives over as little as a pair of tennis shoes.

That's crazy, in my town if there's more than 3 cops car together people are going crazy on facebook wondering what's going on

Who said anything about 3 cop cars getting together? If that happens in Detroit we just assume the Wings won the cup and a parade is starting. Or at least we used to assume that. Now we'd probably assume Kid Rock is in town.

[Freyland]

Another one in Maryland this morning

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2018/03/20/sh ... firms.html

I was confused to see that this was a fox news story. Then I read that the shooter was stopped by an "armed school Resources" employee, and it all made sense.

SRO'S ate typically cops with specific training assigned to schools. Depending on the district and resources. They may be district employed cops or also just security guards. My last two schools have had three cops each. Still called SRO.

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

Good education for me, but my point still stands. Likely a prominent story for Fox, which is more likely to downplay shootings, because someone on location was armed.

[LawBeefaroni]

Well, if the SRO wasn't there or decided to hide in the parking lot, it might have been different. 17 kids weren't killed so it's not as big of a story, understandably, but the what-if shouldn't be ignored.

"He responded exactly how we train our personnel to respond," St. Mary's County Sheriff Tim Cameron told reporters.

As soon as the gunfire began, Gaskill rushed to the scene. He fired a round at the shooter, who also fired a round at the same time, Cameron said.

It's not yet clear whether the shooter, Austin Wyatt Rollins, was felled by the officer's bullet or killed himself.

"DFC [Deputy First Class] Gaskill fired at the shooter ... almost simultaneously as the shooter fired," Cameron said. "This is something we train, practice and in reality, hope would never come to fruition. This is our worst nightmare."


....

Gaskill's response was hailed as an example of exactly what a resource officer is supposed to do in such a circumstance, particularly when contrasted to the actions of the security officer in last month's shooting in Parkland, Florida. (In the incident at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on February 14, the armed school resource deputy waited outside the school building as the shooter gunned down students inside.)