After the mall shooting earlier in the week, it's just bizarre that there would be another in the same week, let alone at a religious center. It's scary to think that at two places which would be considered safe to go would both have shootings.
"Two missionaries-in-training were killed early today and two more were wounded when a gunman burst into a residence hall at the Youth With a Mission center in the Denver suburb of Arvada, the police said."
Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/09/us/09cnd-shoot.html?hp
Showing posts with label weapons. Show all posts
Showing posts with label weapons. Show all posts
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Thursday, December 6, 2007
Omaha mall gunman teen
After the chaos that was yesterday's mall shooting some of the details of the shooting are emerging. The gunman was identified as 19-year-old Robert Hawkins. People who knew him described him as "always being depressed." There were also felony charges pending against Hawkins at the time of the shooting.
According to USA Today:
"Hawkins was a troubled teenager who had recently been fired from his job at McDonald's and split from his girlfriend.
Warren said Hawkins stole the gun he used in the shooting from his stepfather and stored it at his father's home."
Is there anything we can do to prevent tragedies like this one from occurring? Since he, a mentally unstable person, was able to get the gun from someone else, is there really a way to prevent these types of people from having access to guns?
Link to updated story: http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-12-06-mall_N.htm
According to USA Today:
"Hawkins was a troubled teenager who had recently been fired from his job at McDonald's and split from his girlfriend.
Warren said Hawkins stole the gun he used in the shooting from his stepfather and stored it at his father's home."
Is there anything we can do to prevent tragedies like this one from occurring? Since he, a mentally unstable person, was able to get the gun from someone else, is there really a way to prevent these types of people from having access to guns?
Link to updated story: http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-12-06-mall_N.htm
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
More information on shooting
USA Today(my Dad's paper!) published some more information the shooting...:
"Update at 6:02 p.m. ET: Less than a week ago, the bomb squad recovered a live grenade at the mall where today's shootings took place. Local news organizations report that the explosive device was found Friday night in a parking area near the Cheesecake Factory restaurant.
As the latest AP story points out, this is the second mass shooting at an American mall in less than year. Sulejman Talovic shot nine people -- five fatally -- in February at a shopping center in Salt Lake City.
Update at 6:46 p.m. ET: The gunman was 21-year-old Robert Hawkins of Bellevue, Neb., the AP is reporting, citing a law enforcement official who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly about the incident. The AP also has confirmed the WOWT report about the suicide note." http://blogs.usatoday.com/ondeadline/2007/12/shooting-report.html
I thought it was interesting that the shooter was young, similar to the Virgina Tech gunman. Again, not all the information is out, so it's hard to make any conclusions.
What do you think of the person's age?... The note? Any other thoughts?
"Update at 6:02 p.m. ET: Less than a week ago, the bomb squad recovered a live grenade at the mall where today's shootings took place. Local news organizations report that the explosive device was found Friday night in a parking area near the Cheesecake Factory restaurant.
As the latest AP story points out, this is the second mass shooting at an American mall in less than year. Sulejman Talovic shot nine people -- five fatally -- in February at a shopping center in Salt Lake City.
Update at 6:46 p.m. ET: The gunman was 21-year-old Robert Hawkins of Bellevue, Neb., the AP is reporting, citing a law enforcement official who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly about the incident. The AP also has confirmed the WOWT report about the suicide note." http://blogs.usatoday.com/ondeadline/2007/12/shooting-report.html
I thought it was interesting that the shooter was young, similar to the Virgina Tech gunman. Again, not all the information is out, so it's hard to make any conclusions.
What do you think of the person's age?... The note? Any other thoughts?
Mall Shooting in Omaha
There were nine people killed today just before 2 p.m. in Westroads Mall in Omaha, Nebraska. A gunman opened fire on 13 people, wounding five, and then killed himself. Seven died at the scene, while two died in the hospital. There are three in critical condition.
Although not all the background information of the shooting is out yet (i.e. who sold him the gun, his mental state) this is another example of how gun control laws, in my opinion, need to be tightened. Obviously this person had mental issues, since he went so far as to shoot people. The fact that this person had access to a gun is disturbing. Although it isn't clear if he purchased the rifle he used himself, it still raises many questions about gun control.
In Nebraska there are certain limitations on purchasing guns, but there are still some concerning aspects of the laws. Here's a link to the Nebraska gun laws: http://www.bradycampaign.org/legislation/state/viewstate.php?st=ne. One thing in particular that's concerning is the lack of safety regulations and the fact that police can't maintain gun record sales.
I hope that out of this, the country will take a closer look at gun purchases, regardless of whether or not the shooter was the one to buy the rifle.
What do you think of U.S. gun laws? What type of regulations need to be created, if any? Will anything change after this shooting?... Or will people continue to ignore the issue of gun violence, like people did after the Virginia Tech shooting?
Link: http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/12/05/mall.shooting/index.html
Although not all the background information of the shooting is out yet (i.e. who sold him the gun, his mental state) this is another example of how gun control laws, in my opinion, need to be tightened. Obviously this person had mental issues, since he went so far as to shoot people. The fact that this person had access to a gun is disturbing. Although it isn't clear if he purchased the rifle he used himself, it still raises many questions about gun control.
In Nebraska there are certain limitations on purchasing guns, but there are still some concerning aspects of the laws. Here's a link to the Nebraska gun laws: http://www.bradycampaign.org/legislation/state/viewstate.php?st=ne. One thing in particular that's concerning is the lack of safety regulations and the fact that police can't maintain gun record sales.
I hope that out of this, the country will take a closer look at gun purchases, regardless of whether or not the shooter was the one to buy the rifle.
What do you think of U.S. gun laws? What type of regulations need to be created, if any? Will anything change after this shooting?... Or will people continue to ignore the issue of gun violence, like people did after the Virginia Tech shooting?
Link: http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/12/05/mall.shooting/index.html
Monday, December 3, 2007
Iran and Nuclear Weapons
A new U.S. report concluded that Iran stopped development of a nuclear weapon in 2003, but still remains a threat.
"We judge with moderate confidence that the earliest possible date Iran would be technically capable of producing enough highly enriched uranium for a weapon is late 2009, but that this is very unlikely," the report says. A more likely time frame for that production is between 2010 and 2015, it concludes. "
"We have good reason to continue to be concerned about Iran developing a nuclear weapon even after this most recent National Intelligence Estimate," he told reporters at the White House. "In the words of the NIE, quote, Iranian entities are continuing to develop a range of technical capabilities that could be applied to producing nuclear weapons if a decision is made to do so."
"Sen. Joe Biden, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said the fact that Iran was several years away from nuclear weapons capability meant "the international community has a significant window of opportunity in which to act to avoid the stark choice between going to war or accepting a nuclear Iran."
It seems really hopeful that there is time to find out about Iran's enriched uranium plants, and also time to decide what a smart plan for dealing with this situation because Iran won't really be a threat for the next few years. We can only hope that with the government has learned from the Iraq war and won't enter into a war without really thinking through the coincidences, and making sure the country is truly a threat.
Do you think that Iran will turn into another Iraq?... Or will we repeat history(as often happens), and make another brash decision, which enters us into war? Is Iran a big enough threat to us that we need to seriously consider entering before they become a bigger threat?
Link to article: http://edition.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/12/03/iran.nuclear/?imw=Y&iref=mpstoryemail
"We judge with moderate confidence that the earliest possible date Iran would be technically capable of producing enough highly enriched uranium for a weapon is late 2009, but that this is very unlikely," the report says. A more likely time frame for that production is between 2010 and 2015, it concludes. "
"We have good reason to continue to be concerned about Iran developing a nuclear weapon even after this most recent National Intelligence Estimate," he told reporters at the White House. "In the words of the NIE, quote, Iranian entities are continuing to develop a range of technical capabilities that could be applied to producing nuclear weapons if a decision is made to do so."
"Sen. Joe Biden, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said the fact that Iran was several years away from nuclear weapons capability meant "the international community has a significant window of opportunity in which to act to avoid the stark choice between going to war or accepting a nuclear Iran."
It seems really hopeful that there is time to find out about Iran's enriched uranium plants, and also time to decide what a smart plan for dealing with this situation because Iran won't really be a threat for the next few years. We can only hope that with the government has learned from the Iraq war and won't enter into a war without really thinking through the coincidences, and making sure the country is truly a threat.
Do you think that Iran will turn into another Iraq?... Or will we repeat history(as often happens), and make another brash decision, which enters us into war? Is Iran a big enough threat to us that we need to seriously consider entering before they become a bigger threat?
Link to article: http://edition.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/12/03/iran.nuclear/?imw=Y&iref=mpstoryemail
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