Some thoughts on the Colorado shooting.

[Renew Deal]

I haven't commented much on the Colorado shooting. There's a few things I need to say.

The Colorado shooting is a big deal, but not because it's the biggest shooting in US history. The reason it's such an impactful story is that it is so random. A guy in a public place attacked people he didn't know in a small town in a facility where people felt safe. This was no large terrorist attack with a clear motive, or a school shooting that could be explained. This was completely random. And it wasn't in a big target city like NYC or DC. It was in a small city in the middle of the country.

The Colorado shooting is what we all feared after 9/11. After 9/11 a major concern was attacks on apartment buildings and shopping malls. Why? Because they are small populous targets and there's too many to protect.

There's only one reason this isn't called a terrorist attack. Because this guy doesn't have the right physical appearance. He looks more like a lone wolf nut who lost it and that's what he shall be. If James Holmes was Moustafa Holmes we would instantly have a different storyline.

There are heros in this mess. The three boyfriends that died protecting girlfriends as well as the three service men (one of which was a boyfriend) are heros. They aren't the only ones.

I saw the statement from the Navy about John Larimer. I don't know who the guy was that made the statement, but he looked like an officer. His voice cracked when he talked about Larimer. That was sad. But nothing was sadder than the young mother with the young daughters had to explain to her daughters why daddy isn't coming to her birthday party. That was tough to watch.

And then there's the argument about banning guns. If guns are banned, the terrorists win. OK, maybe not. But there is a strange similarity in reaction to 9/11. People are going crazy trying to figure out what needs to happen so "this never happens again." Do we need to ban guns? Do we need to be searched before entering theaters? Do we need to outlaw costumes at theaters? Break out the full body scanners because being secure isn't as important as feeling secure. FEAR

That's pretty much all I remember for now. The reality of this situation is that these types of events will never stop until we can prosecute thought crimes. Maybe that will be the next great idea.

[MrMickeysMom]

1. Point taken re: 9/11 and what it would be called...

It was terrorism in CO, just as it was in NYC... the names are different, plus, there is a real face to this. Only problem... it's white, educated and domestic.

Were it not, well... then we'd have repeated our biggest fears, which were churned up on Sept 11th.

[brewens]

2. I've been hoping to hear more about just what was in his head. Then I realized maybe

I don't want that. We're too used to the cops and prosecution leaking key finds to poison the jury pool. Not that it appears it needs much. It sure looks like they got the right guy.

I like seeing the guy that runs the local gun range. He evidently called him about his application and heard something really bizarre on his voice mail. He wasn't going to let him in without talking to him face to face. I suppose we will eventually find out what that was along with other stuff from his apartment.

It could be awhile before we know much if the cops and prosecution do their jobs.

[pnwmom]

3. No, there's another reason we're not calling this a terrorist attack, as we did

after Timothy McVeigh's attack on the Federal Building.

It's not because of his ethnicity, which is the same as McVeigh's; it's because no evidence has yet been unearthed showing that he had political motives that he was trying to accomplish using terror.

Until we know more about him, we can't say whether he was a terrorist with some sort of political or cultural motive or some random, deluded, sicko.

[Marksman_91]

4. No, it was not an act of terrorism.

An act of terrorism has some kind of message behind it, something intended to speak out to a certain group to do X or Y. 9/11 was carried out by a group that wished to end US intervention in the Middle East. It was a political act. The Colorado shooting, just like Columbine and Virginia Tech, were acts of a demented lunatic who wants to become famous, just like all the other psychos that carried out those attacks.

Nevertheless, whatever the reasons were for any of those acts of violence do not make them any better. They're still just as atrocious, no matter the motive.

[Tumbulu]

5. I think that the pollution of our collective imagination

with violent content is the real cause of this incident.

Violent video games, violent movies, easy access to these outlandish weapons at very little cost and no liability insurance required.

Raw milk cheese is illegal in the US, but not these outrageous weapons.

I am fed up with these highly profitable industries- making these ruinous profits while we the ordinary citizen pay the ever higher price of it all.

And don't tell me that all these violent games and images did not play into this- why was the guy dressed up like a character in the movie?

[pipoman]

6. Well,

maybe by dressing up he could walk right into the theater wearing body armor and toting a rifle?

[redgreenandblue]

7. What makes the service men heros by default?

The one who shielded his girlfriend I get, but you single out the other two as heros before other victims. Why?

[HopeHoops]

8. We do NOT need to ban guns. That said, there are reasonable restrictions on military equipment.

Anyone who says they need a semi-automatic to hunt obviously can't shoot worth shit. You can't own an RPG launcher. You can't own a bazooka. You can't even own a mortar launcher. Semi-automatics have no purpose except for mass killings. Yes, it is reasonable to ban those. Shotguns, hunting rifles, and even low-magazine handguns serve legitimate purposes. The 2nd Amendment was written at a time when it took almost a minute to reload between shots. There's no way they could have envisioned AR-15s and if they DID they would have put the restrictions in when they wrote it.