Douglas High School Shooting

[Sour Masher]

My high school wasn't far from Douglas. Close enough to play each other in various sports. Nothing will change from this. Another shooting. More useless commentary. No substantive changes to curb mass shootings. This is the 12th school shooting so far this year. Half way through February.

[Hornsby]

Shooter was an ex-student armed with an AR-15...at last report there were 17 dead.

Can we finally ALL agree that there is NO valid reason to own an assault rifle? And yes, I use that term in all of it's pejorative power.

I do expect there to me much "thoughts and prayers" from politicians though. With the usual results...

[B-Fly]

I agree that banning civilian ownership and use of assault weapons (or requiring that they be maintained and used only in a licensed gun range/facility) seems like an easy and obvious step. Would it immediately (or ever) get every last such weapon off the streets? No. Would it materially reduce the one-on-one murder rate? No. But it would make a huge positive difference for law enforcement, school resource officers, security guards, etc., and reduce the incidence and magnitude of mass murder by lone gunman. It's ultimately a half measure that doesn't solve any of the broader societal issues, but it's a practical step to make it a lot harder for a would-be mass killer to maximize his kills before he's incapacitated, and easier for law enforcement or other would-be heroes to incapacitate him.

[Moonlight J]

[Moonlight J]

This event comes less than a year after the President loosened the laws on the mentally troubled acquiring guns. In looking through the updates we're getting on the shooter now, there were plenty of warning signs from him posting on Youtube, FBI investigations, school sending out warnings, etc.

[Moonlight J]

The video, for those who are asking. pic.twitter.com/KCCfuiFhQK

— Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) February 15, 2018

better than most politicians over the past 24 hours

[Teenwolf]

People with a history of depression, spousal abusers, certain mental illnesses like schizophrenics, all groups proven to commit gun violence at far higher rates than the average person, and Republicans are 100% unwilling to restrict their access to any weapons (let alone assault weapons) because they're bought and paid for by the NRA. Trump's pathetic response shows his stupidity or willful ignorance, by pointing out all of the flaws of the current system. You expelled him from the school, banned him and sent warnings to staff not to allow him on the site, hired armed security, then you let him legally purchase an assault weapon, and keep it in his home, so long as it's locked and only he has access to it at all times.

American exceptionalism, right here folks. Only place on earth this happens. A school shooting every 2-3 days, for years on end.

It's now being reported that the shooter belonged to a White Nationalist Militia, and went to training exercises in Tallahassee... well, it's a good thing Trump ended funding for groups fighting right-wing extremism. Wouldn't want to stop selling to Nazis or people with mental illnesses, or both. After all, if you stop selling to the people who become mass murderers, demand from frightened citizens would slow down, and gun sales can never, ever, slow down...

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/wo...-a7894271.html

[Moonlight J]

Our CDC isn't even permitted to conduct research on the ties between mental illness and gun ownership

[TranaGreg]

good work by the NY Daily News ...

[Sour Masher]

I hope this is an issue Dem candidates in 2020 have the guts to foreground. Very depressing to me that all of our politicians seem to either be in the pockets of the NRA, too weak and fleckless to fight those who are, and/or too cowardly to try to convince gun-loving voters that it isn't a violation of the 2nd amendment to pass and enforce reasonable gun laws.

[chancellor]

Our CDC isn't even permitted to conduct research on the ties between mental illness and gun ownership

Which is good. Since that research should be and is under the purview of the National Institutes of Mental Health, part of Health and Human Services. And they are funding significant research in that area, and linking it to the NIH manuscript site. I'll quote two:

1. "The Link Between Mental Illness and Firearm Violence: Implications for Social Policy and Clinical Practice", Rozel and Mulvey, link: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5784421/
2. "Mental Illness, Mass Shootings, and the Politics of American Firearms", Metzl and MacLeish, link: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4318286/

[gcstomp]

I live in Boca Raton, wife is a teacher. We are a town over from Parkland. Sickening, frightening, too close to home. But we are so inured to such madness, we plod on with our political leaders, deep in pocket of NRA, repeating mantra "our thoughts and prayers go out to victims and families", like cows chewing cud, mindlessly moving mouth like latin repeated at a service that no one thinks about. If Sandy Hook couldnt break through the cloud then what in the world could?

[Moonlight J]

Which is good. Since that research should be and is under the purview of the National Institutes of Mental Health, part of Health and Human Services. And they are funding significant research in that area, and linking it to the NIH manuscript site. I'll quote two:

1. "The Link Between Mental Illness and Firearm Violence: Implications for Social Policy and Clinical Practice", Rozel and Mulvey, link: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5784421/
2. "Mental Illness, Mass Shootings, and the Politics of American Firearms", Metzl and MacLeish, link: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4318286/

except the NIH projects have no funding and are dormant - http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2017/...search-program

[Redbirds Fan]

I live in Boca Raton, wife is a teacher. We are a town over from Parkland. Sickening, frightening, too close to home. But we are so inured to such madness, we plod on with our political leaders, deep in pocket of NRA, repeating mantra "our thoughts and prayers go out to victims and families", like cows chewing cud, mindlessly moving mouth like latin repeated at a service that no one thinks about. If Sandy Hook couldnt break through the cloud then what in the world could?

Winner.

[gcstomp]

Years ago I recall Judge Dredd, a movie based in massive sprawling megacities over run with crime. Giant apartment complexes packed full of people and run by gangs was the backdrop. Simplified legal system, send in squads of cops that were empowered to carry out sentence on the spot, in most cases a bullet to head for any felony, as the courts were a thing of the past, they became so backlogged and unworkable we streamlined that beast.

Why mention this? I think even if we got to that point, system still wouldnt be broken enough to have open talk leading to sensible gun laws. Why in the world is it a good idea that this 19 year old with troubled past, with ties to white supremacy group and facebook postings of him posing with his guns and stating he aspires to be a school shooter, have access to a military style long gun?