[kcmel]

OK, I accidentally green thumbed Traks post. Just so you know only 1 COTHer (so far) "appreciated" it.

[Superminion]

If he hadn't gotten the guns from his Mom, he would have stolen them from somebody else.

I had a close friend in college whose brother was severely depressed. He dropped his girlfriend off at home, drove his car back to his house, and then ran 15 miles (in Jan. in Upstate NY!) breaking into homes until he found one with a gun, and shot himself in their kitchen. He was going to do, what he was going to do, no matter what. That house just happened to be the first one with a gun.

He had no clue who the people were, and his family had no clue that he was depressed. Straight A stupid, Quarterback, handsome, pretty girlfriend, tons of friends, wealthy parents, etc.

[MHM]

Well, I have a couple of military guys in my family, including a Medal of Honor recipient

Off topic, but....

Didn't I just see him on a talk show the other day discussing the book he wrote? I thought of you when I saw him. Please pass along my appreciation and my thanks for his service.

[Windsor1]

Well yeah, but it just seems with so much misinformation at first, might be nice to just give a day or two to grieve.

I do understand that the media coverage these shootings receive could well fuel the "glory fantasies," or whatever, of the next lunatic. And that is regrettable. But a news blackout--yikes. Who decides what is to be blacked out and for how long? We don't want to go there. We REALLY, REALLY don't want to go there.

[Kenike]

Please realize that in the case of handguns "semi-automatic" simply means you can carry 10 bullets in a clip (versus 5 or 6 in a standard clip or revolver) and that you don't have to manually cock it to fire every time. Not to mention the gun won't fire unless you manually chamber a round (via pulling the slide). Not all weapons have a safety because they WON'T fire without a round chambered.

[Sannois]

Bring on the red thumbs... which is fine.

Criminals are going to get their hands on guns, despite the fact that they are outlawed or not. If MORE people were armed, and able to respond to the threat perhaps the bastards wouldn't have gotten as far as they did.

EXACTLY RIGHT! It is the criminals that will always gain access to guns, they do now, nothing will stop that, but disarming law abiding citizens, makes them victims. Just ask Australia and countries that have strict gun laws.
There have been so many horrific things like this that could have bee stopped
If there had been an armed citizen to take the shooters down. And yes I have a concealed carry permit.

[relocatedTXjumpr]

So what do we know now...he was 20, not 24 and he killed his mother at home, not at the school, with the guns she legally owned. Father and older brother are being questioned and a girlfriend and other friend are missing...

So, if his mother wasn't at the school, WHY did he even bother going there?? She was a teacher but wasn't at school...so did he really just want to shoot a bunch of kids??

I having a hard time wrapping my brain around this, as I am sure everyone is.

For the most part, it seems everyone here agrees we need to do SOMETHING...that there needs to be some sort of stricter laws in regards to permits, etc.

[FlashGordon]

So, if his mother wasn't at the school, WHY did he even bother going there?? She was a teacher but wasn't at school...so did he really just want to shoot a bunch of kids??

I having a hard time wrapping my brain around this, as I am sure everyone is.

For the most part, it seems everyone here agrees we need to do SOMETHING...that there needs to be some sort of stricter laws in regards to permits, etc.

I know, it is just horrific. I'm not terribly passionate about gun control or politics or any of this crap but I think I am so struck by the sadness of this tragedy that it has made me angry.

My daughter had a school holiday function tonight, kids were oblivious (which is good) but all the parents were somber. It was hard watching her skip through the hallways, knowing there are parents tonight who are desperately missing a child. I can't imagine the heartbreak.

[Windsor1]

So, if his mother wasn't at the school, WHY did he even bother going there??

I heard one theory that his rage was such that he not only wanted to take out her, but the things she loved/valued.

[Bluey]

So what do we know now...he was 20, not 24 and he killed his mother at home, not at the school, with the guns she legally owned. Father and older brother are being questioned and a girlfriend and other friend are missing...

So, if his mother wasn't at the school, WHY did he even bother going there?? She was a teacher but wasn't at school...so did he really just want to shoot a bunch of kids??

I having a hard time wrapping my brain around this, as I am sure everyone is.

For the most part, it seems everyone here agrees we need to do SOMETHING...that there needs to be some sort of stricter laws in regards to permits, etc.

The fellow was mentally ill, had been for some years now, that is where we need to do something.
Guns were handy, but he would have found another way to do mayhem, burn the school down, bomb it, run a car head on into their school bus, who knows what.

Crazy like that doesn't has to have a reason, they have their own world they live in and no one else understands it.

Any of us could have ended up like that fellow, or killed by someone like that, crazy doesn't discriminate.

[MistyBlue]

Latest blurb I heard was that his brother and past neighbors have said he was possibly autistic and/or never seemed "right."

Of course news right now is a combo of fact, fiction, conjecture and rumor and probably will remain that way for the next 24/48 hours with all sorts of claims coming forward until everything gets ironed out a bit.

I'm hoping that this latest blurb is just more conjecture or rumor as I can't see someone with a supposed lifelong obvious mental illness or defect being thought of as "possible" as opposed to diagnosed. And haven't ever heard of autism causing this....

[Bluey]

Schizophrenia more likely.

[FlashGordon]

Schizophrenia more likely.

Possible, especially at that age. Just posted on another thread about my uncle who had severe schizophrenia and was allergic to his meds. He lived in another universe and could be violent. He was lucky in that his family was HIGHLY involved and did what they had to, to protect him, and everyone else. But that is often not the case for people with mental illness, unfortunately.

[suzier444]

Gun control doesn't stop violent acts from taking place, and clearly there must be some other root cause(s) in the US driving the violent tendencies in the first place. BUT...easy access to guns makes a violent impulse that much easier to act on, and it makes widespread damage MUCH quicker to inflict. I'm in favor of stricter gun control laws and believe there's a world of difference between "the right to bear arms" and "the right to keep a loaded AK47 in your unlocked nightstand."

JMO.

[Chief2]

I don't have all the answers, but I do think that when we live in a place where it's easier to get a gun than it is to get a driver's license, something has got to change.

A deranged person just used guns not registered to himself to hunt and gun down a bunch of five year olds in a so called safe environment. Responsible adults with children in this state are talking about this tonight. I spoke with one tonight who is a gun owner, and feels anyone caught with a hand gun not registered to him or herself should be automatically thrown into prison for 20 years. He cannot fathom why anyone would need to have a hand gun, and this is a man from the inner city, where to hear gun shots means you hit the floor. In some parts of this state, that is a nightly occurrence. He is furious, and he is not alone. I know the gun lobby is powerful and people are passionate about remaining armed, but a bunch of little kids paid for it with their lives today, and many of us are saying, Enough is Enough. Maybe it works for you if you live somewhere out in the Great Open Spaces, but in congested Connecticut, something's got to change.

[wireweiners]

just for the record, Bluey, since the OK City bombings all ammonium nitrate fertilizer (the kind you can use to make bombs) has a chemical signature so it can be traced back to the manufacturer and distributor. My brother works for an ag chemical company and he says the amount of paper work you have to fill out and keep track of when you sell ammonium nitrate is so horrendous that many stores will not carry it or will order and sell it only to long time customers.. They have to keep accurate accounts of all the ammonium nitrate that is shipped to their store, who buys it and in what amounts and the amount they receive and the amount sell has to match. So it seems there is more regulation on the sale of fertilizer than guns.

For the life of me I cannot understand why anybody needs a concealed carry permit. I just don't understand the need to go around armed all the time.

[Dance_To_Oblivion]

Information regarding CT's gun laws http://www.bradycampaign.org/stategunlaws/scorecard/CT

Note that their map also indicates that all of the surrounding states (share borders) have fairly strong gun laws as well.

and Suzier444...if your nightstand can fit an AK47 in it I would like to see a picture! That's a pretty big nightstand!

The guns weren't the problem here...the problem was the mentally unstable young man

And now because of him all the families that are suffering

[Kat the Horse]

I don't believe Britain has less crime at all. In fact I read this today:

"Britain's violent crime record is worse than any other country in the European union, it has been revealed. Official crime figures show the UK also has a worse rate for all types of violence than the U.S. and even South Africa - widely considered one of the world's most dangerous countries."

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...#ixzz2F5T2kQOV

Just putting this out there.

This was another 'Gun Free Zone' where the law-abiding left their guns at home...and one very sick, evil, LAWLESS man did not. To believe that 'gun control' is going to stop this stuff is crazy.

These children did not die because of GUNS. They died because of ONE MAN'S EVIL.

I nearly died of shock when Geraldo Rivera said "There should have been an armed security guard at that school." He is absolutely right. I believe every child is that precious, don't you?

[suzier444]

and Suzier444...if your nightstand can fit an AK47 in it I would like to see a picture! That's a pretty big nightstand!

The guns weren't the problem here...the problem was the mentally unstable young man

I actually have shot an AK47 (ROTC in college), and do have a rather enormous nightstand, but that's not the point.

Access to weapons of that type are absolutely part of the problem here. The scope of damage that one person can inflict before being stopped is a very relevant part of this discussion.

[MyGiantPony]

For the life of me I cannot understand why anybody needs a concealed carry permit. I just don't understand the need to go around armed all the time.

Should I have my friend who saved his and his wife's life with his concealed pistol call you and explain?