A while back, some guy walked into a packed movie theater in Colorado and shot a bunch of people.
If you measure time in news cycles, it was eons ago. As big, splashy stories go, it followed the typical arc: After the initial newsflash, there was the rush to be first with details and the identity of the shooter. Then there were the inevitable mistakes that come with the rush to be first. For several hours after that, there was the same footage over and over, with the same words spoken, only by different people, so that we knew that there was blanket coverage.
Then there was the analysis of the event, followed by analysis of the initial coverage, and then analysis of the preceding analyses. And mixed in was a bunch of stupid crap from the gun lobby.
It seems like so long ago, but on Friday, Aug. 3, it’ll be two weeks. It will fade, but will never completely go away. It also means that, for a time, Aurora will be the last name on the list of slaughter sites, that list that sickeningly and far too easily rolls off the tongue—Columbine, Virginia Tech, Tucson …
Being more of a word guy than a visual one, I tend to focus on that which is said during times like these, be it wise or vapid, emotional or brain-dead. Some of what I will remember from this awful time:
There is a Jim Holmes of Aurora, Colorado, page on the Colorado Tea Party as well, talking about him joining the Tea Party last year. Now, we don’t know if this is the same Jim Holmes. —Brian Ross of ABC News.
Yeah, that’s what we need, to allow the Tea Party people to paint themselves as victims of a media conspiracy. What’s really bad is that it wouldn’t have mattered if the shooter had identified himself as a Tea Party member. It’s not really some monolithic political party. It’s an odd assortment of people (or maybe an assortment of odd people) who are generally against everything and who talk and vote as though Attila the Hun were a squishy leftie.
The Tea Party has a rather high percentage of clods and haters, but I can’t imagine that even one person who is part of that movement is sympathetic in any way to the shooter. At the same time, I’m sure that most Tea Party people are darned happy to live in a country where a deranged guy can buy a thousand rounds of ammo online (!) and can legally possess a weapon, the sole purpose of which is to kill lots and lots of human beings in a very short period of time.
It does make me wonder: With all those people in the theater, was there nobody that was carrying a gun that could have stopped this guy more quickly? —Texas Congressman Louie Gohmert.
Let’s see: You have a darkened theater with a movie playing, and every seat occupied. A guy walks in dressed in all black, throws a tear-gas device, and opens fire. With terrified people screaming and scrambling, tear gas billowing and assault-weapon bullets flying, what could possibly make this scenario worse?
Oh, I know! Crossfire.
We’ve reached a state of stasis on this issue, and we’re not going to move on it. —Democratic strategist Bob Shrum on Meet the Press.
Shrum said that the gun lobby’s hold is so complete that no one would even dare talk about legislation following the shooting. The typical National Rifle Association line is that gun-control talk is a knee-jerk reaction whenever something like this happens, but when are we supposed to talk about it? On a day when nobody gets shot in this country? Good luck with that, seeing as how more than 80 people are killed by guns in the United States every day!
Shrum went on to say that the ban on assault rifles (originally signed by Bill Clinton and then allowed to expire by George W. Bush) led to the Republican takeover of Congress, and that no one has been willing to take on the gun lobby since. Here’s the best part: So powerful is the NRA’s grip that even people on Homeland Security’s terror-watch list can still buy whatever weapons they want. That’s stunning.
I also believe that a lot of gun owners would agree that AK-47s … belong on the battlefield of war and not on the streets of our cities. —President Barack Obama.
First off, Mr. President, you should ask around. Every gun owner I know wants more firepower, not less.
Then again, this is a president of the United States who, after the murder of a federal judge and a 9-year-old girl, and the attempted assassination of a member of Congress, got in front of a national audience and called for (wait for it) better background checks! Writer Aaron Sorkin, who uses his Newsroom TV drama as a personal bully pulpit, gave President Obama straight F’s across the board when it comes to gun control.
And now, after the second mass shooting in consecutive years, the president is again addressing background checks. Whoa! You keep going down that road for another 8,000 or 9,000 miles, and eventually, somebody is going to accuse you of being a Democrat on this issue.
This article appears in Aug 2-8, 2012.
Tom, you really don’t understand, do you? This incident was vital to the gunnists who use such to promulgate the need for MORE GUNS!
The point of, we should not immediately point as the guns problem, is that we as a society seem to think that the gun was the primary danger here. It was not; it was the lunatic that planned out this killing. We are only talking about the gun because he used one. If he couldn’t get the gun he would have still killed those people, he would have just used another method. This was a smart person that was fully capable using other lethal means. (he did, in fact, build other lethal devices.)
We need to look into how to identify people who may do this and get them the help that they need to avoid this path a simple ban and a “Mission Accomplished” banner won’t fix it. Because that is what we would do, place the ban then consider the matter solved and forget to answer the big question of how to stop these people from deciding that the best solution is to go on a killing spree. That is until someone uses a different weapon to kill then we will try to ban/control that weapon continuing to ignore that we have the mental health problem to solve (because it is by far the more difficult problem and we like easy)
I completely support banning people who would do harm with these weapons, but I also don’t see the harm in “Joe the plumber” imagining he is a elite fighter at the gun range on the weekend. (the other use of the rifles would be shooting inanimate targets for fun, probably imagining that your life is more important than it is while doing it)
After this horrible incident the first thing Brian Ross does is check to see is if this maniac belongs to the Tea Party. I notice ” Mr. objective journalist” didn’t check to see if the suspected killer was a registered Democrat. Then Good Ol’ Tom makes it like the Tea Party is at fault. According to Tom most Tea Party members are clods and haters. And what does ” civil Tom” base this on ? Good question. Probably because he’s a self-centered schmuck who would keel over if his fat ass ever had to hold down a real job. Consider the source.
Mr. Swanson’s take is that the deranged person would have found a way to kill all those people anyway without automatic weapons designed exclusively for killing humans. I would gladly take my chances with the deranged if they have knives, slingshots, swords, cubs, etc. Even a bomb, or incendiary device might be more difficult to assemble and execute (pun intended) for similar purposes than the firepower Mr. Holmes amassed. Automatic weapons, as we have clearly leaned since Charles Whitman, almost 50 years ago, puts one person in a very dominant position over a large, and in the the case of an Aurora, CO movie theater, trapped audience. What will it take to learn? As the selfish and decadent society we have become, we tend not to be inclined to make any sacrifices for our culture or for our fellow humans. Mr. Swanson says “I completely support banning people who would do harm with these weapons…”, banning them from what? He also states, “I also don’t see the harm in “Joe the plumber” imagining he is a elite fighter at the gun range on the weekend.” This seems like the mentality of a 3 year old who wants to keep his toys all for himself, at the risk of alienating his siblings or friends. Sadly the toys the NRA lobby and it’s followers aren’t willing to sacrifice often and easily end up in the hands of those incapable of good judgement. Seems like more than one party in these equations is incapable of good judgement.
Guns don’t kill people, but they are hands down the easiest way for cowards to kill people.
ronko…There were NO automatic weapons in the Aurora shooting, the weapons he used are fired MILLIONS of times without any harm to anyone. Those weapons are used in LESS than 5% of all crimes involving guns. In Charles Whitman’s time MACHINE GUNS were readily available, yet rarely used in crime, Mr Whitman used a bolt action rifle…you want them banned too?
The MOST terrifying shooting in American History, was done with one shot at a time…you want to ban single shot firearms…?
Empire, I confess, as you can clearly see, I am a weapons illiterate. How have I made it through life this far with such poor gun IQ? Dodging automatic, semi automatic, and single shot weaponry. When I was a kid, I went rabbit hunting (I carried a BB Gun) and a rather undisciplined shooter in our ranks fired a 12 gauge shot gun close to my right ear. I heard the shot, and my ears have rung ever since. I am 59 now. Accidents happen. I dodged a bullet. More precisely I dodged buckshot, getting my ear pierced, or my head blown off. All I am asking is that the pro gun people/lobby think seriously about innocent potential victims…when doing their Xmas shopping. Are we unwilling to sacrifice weaponry, hollow point bullets, tools of violence for the sacredness of human life? If I had my way, yes, ban them all. The instant gratification of shooting guns for target practice or superhero fantasy seems selfish when one thinks of innocent adults and kids falling victim to an insane man’s demented visions. Wouldn’t this world, this city be better if precious Christina Green were alive today?
Or if Gabby Giffords could function with the same capacity she once had. Have these events taught us nothing?
Yes, Ronko these events taught us something. Gun control does nothing to stop the criminal or mentally ill. It only effects the sane, law-abiding person. Empire is right. Whitman used 2 bolt action rifles, an M-1 carbine and a shotgun. Hardly assault weapons. Yet, you ramble on about weapons when you admit you don’t know squat on the subject. I carry a ” tool of violence” loaded with hollow points precisely because I DO care about the sacredness of life. Starting with mine and my family’s. Six dislikes already !! Keep ’em coming boys. God, I love annoying the left !!!
Then said Jesus unto him, Put up again thy sword into his place: for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword (Matthew 26:52, King James Version)
Tis better to have a sword than watch thine wife raped or thine children murdered.
I think it’s more like more BS from columnists then anything and the fact there are any quotes from “MR President” used in this article tells me it was written with no clue.
I read all sorts of newspapers, listen to all types of news, and I have been doing so for decades. I like to keep up with news. I have never heard of a gun toting man saving his wife from a rapist or his potentially murdered children saved from a murderer. Maybe it happens, but like lightning and the lottery, the statistics are not supportive of such fantasy. Freud would certainly have an opinion regarding the macho gun toting malitia….but you wouldn’t want to hear it. I simply believe there has to be a more positive way to prevent murder and rape, and senseless mass murder. No one prevented Christina Greens murder and there was a man with a gun at the scene besides the killer. He chose NOT to pull his weapon in that confusion. Oh, and I am not annoyed…been here before. Frustrated yes, but only for the dead.
I can’t. She passed away two years ago. Lotta class there, Allan.
Reinstate the Federal Assault Weapons Ban. Hunters don’t need assault weapons. Tell your members of Congress.
Class? Like comments about carrying, hollow points, annoying the left, calling danehy a “fat ass”
That kind of class?
At least I leave mothers out of it. I was also classy enough not to mention your sister.
The Arizona gun nuts are out in force! Losers.
Just dawned on me. Danehy must be writing this shit for free. Seriously. Only fools would pay for this drivel. It’s not even helpful to his own cause. I feel as though I’ve stumbled upon a train wreck and can’t look away. Must move on…
Drivel. Tucson Weekly should stick to reviewing coffee shops.
He was asking for trouble and got it. He’s fired. Good luck finding another job here in Tucson.
Judging by the comments to Danehy’s column I can only surmise that we have the blind leading the blind in this town. Especially when trying to convince those of us who don’t mind calling a spade a spade. Killing people would be a lot more difficult without free wheeling owners of guns and their true “Weapons of Mass Destruction! ” End of story!
Gotta love you civil folks on the left. Mr. Bartlett writes about using his always loaded penis on my deceased mother and I’m the one who gets 5 dislikes. Amazing.
Wow, and now with another shooting in WI this morning in a church, when next, where at? And the excuses all people makes about “guns don’t kill people”, or “we need guns for hunting” or “we need huge numbers of bullets in a gun for target practice”. Every person should be armed 24/7 and alert for being attacked or attempted murder. Oh yes, those really smart, intelligent people running our government and making the laws, said all the people in the theater should have been armed so they could take out the killer. Really in a dark theater. When will this nation finally get a GOOD educational system that promotes more intelligent thinking. Chicago has more killing weekly then all the mass killing. They cannot do anything.
It is too late to disarm or stop the guns. Billions of dollars are spent in this country to promote mass killings. The NRA uses blood money to fund our Congress people. The NRA gets there biggest donations after a mass killing.
This intelligent in this nation better wake up, develop some solutions to the USA being the mass killing country in the world.
I know words don’t have much meaning, but maybe some day, some year, the people will take power and force the issue. Today, money talks, not the voices of the people
For all of you who like to annoy the left, simply read an account about the yesterday’s shooting in Wisconsin.
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/07/us/army-…
The shooter wasn’t emotionally or mentally handicapped, he was just a bigot. 9 mm semi automatic…most likely blew that police officer’s head clean off after 8 or 9 shots at point blank range. Now I am really getting annoyed.
The dislikes…It’s because you sit on a motorcycle wearing a “shirt” without sleeves.
ronko, you’re just a idiot.
Allan!!!
I am hurt….how could one with a classic Mothers of Invention album ID be so hurtful. My favorite band in the 60’s and 70’s. I had all of Frank Zappa’s stuff…we’re practically brothers man. Good thing your libel isn’t bullets….I’d be dead. And by the way even a second grader learns that the correct version is “ronko, you are AN idiot.” Learn to laugh, and chill bitch.
Any mass killing is a huge fund raiser for the NRA. They take in record donations after a mass killing. They then take the blood money and donate it to the politicians. That is why we get no action. Politicians are getting rich off the NRA and lobbyist.
The politicians don’t have to do anything, Congress is on vacation or recess 70% of the year.
It is say that even a dialogue gets shot down by gun lovers and politicians But the USA and Chicago we are a killing field. The Tea party and Republicans love that attention.