Mass shooting at Batman premiere in Colorado

[Pidgeon]

GUILTY! Sorry, there was a misunderstanding, though I have never talked about your demise... I'm glad you're well, and of course I've already deleted the tweet after I found out that my glasses must have been fogged up when I've read the FB status. Sometimes it really pays off to have no money...

Haha its fine. No harm no foul.

Anyways, I as well give out my thoughts and hopes to the dead and their families. I didn't know anyone personally but of course when something like this happens so close to home your bound to know someone who knows someone there. It has just come to my attention someone I don't know but is relatively close was at the movie and carried out a woman who was grazed and injured out of the theater. So not only should we send prayers to the deceased but also to the heros of the night. Let's not let them go unrecognized.

[Snail]

Glad to know you're alright Pidgeon. My thoughts go out to those affected by this horrible ordeal. This should not have happened.

[travz21]

Sickening

[Money Maker Mike]

This is absolutely sickening and a disgrace to humanity.

[arbiter]

The guy who did this is a despicable waste of space not worthy of being called human. Going by the bare information, it is obvious he planned this out for a while and chose to use the movie as his convenient scapegoat and attack innocent people. He was not emulating the Joker or Bane but exactly what he is: a murderer. People should stop associating him with any of the characters or the movie outside of his atrocious act. He wanted attention and is probably happy at all the reaction he's getting and how the world is reacting with people being afraid to go to the cinemas and whatnot.

[minuteforce]

People should stop associating him with any of the characters or the movie outside of his atrocious act. He wanted attention and is probably happy at all the reaction he's getting and how the world is reacting with people being afraid to go to the cinemas and whatnot.

As I said yesterday, it was good to see that journalists didn't jump on such associations right off the bat.

[SuperDude526]

This is a terrible tragedy and should be about the victims more than the perp. My thoughts are with them and their families.

That said - and I hate to make this political - I really think at this point it should be abundantly clear that no good comes from civilian access to weaponry.

[Pidgeon]

This is a terrible tragedy and should be about the victims more than the perp. My thoughts are with them and their families.

That said - and I hate to make this political - I really think at this point it should be abundantly clear that no good comes from civilian access to weaponry.

Actually, if anybody there had a weapon the situation could've been vastly different. I mean, if he was unable to buy them he would have gotten them some other way. The kids who did columbine couldn't just go out buy the guns yet they still managed to get guns.

[Todd]

Actually, if anybody there had a weapon the situation could've been vastly different. I mean, if he was unable to buy them he would have gotten them some other way. The kids who did columbine couldn't just go out buy the guns yet they still managed to get guns.

In a dark movie theater with visibility worsened by smoke bombs, do you really want someone with adrenaline pumping trying to shoot the shooter? More guns would've just made this tragedy even worse.

After the Gaby Giffords shooting in Tucson last year, people said the same thing. If only more people had concealed carry, lives could have been saved. I recall one guy who had a concealed weapon talking about how he was in a store next door, did not see the shooting and after hearing gunshots, ran out with his weapon drawn prepared to take down the shooter. He saw a guy with a gun and was prepared to shoot him, but at the last second, decided against it. Good thing he did because the person holding the gun was not the shooter, but one of the brave heros who wrestled the gun away from the shooter. With all of the chaos and so many things happening at once, more guns is the last thing we need.

[Pidgeon]

In a dark movie theater with visibility worsened by smoke bombs, do you really want someone with adrenaline pumping trying to shoot the shooter? More guns would've just made this tragedy even worse.

After the Gaby Giffords shooting in Tucson last year, people said the same thing. If only more people had concealed carry, lives could have been saved. I recall one guy who had a concealed weapon talking about how he was in a store next door, did not see the shooting and after hearing gunshots, ran out with his weapon drawn prepared to take down the shooter. He saw a guy with a gun and was prepared to shoot him, but at the last second, decided against it. Good thing he did because the person holding the gun was not the shooter, but one of the brave heros who wrestled the gun away from the shooter. With all of the chaos and so many things happening at once, more guns is the last thing we need.

It's a fair point that they probably wouldn't have helped in that situation but I still think completely outlawing guns or what have you would keep people like this from getting them. It might be an inconvenience for them but nothing more. So then when you might actually need one you wouldn't have it this guy would. So yes civilians with guns may not have been a good in this situation but the point is they guy would have gotten the guns anyway. He would have done the shooting easy access or not.

[travz21]

In a society where guns are illegal, only the criminals have the guns.

[Filip]

So, I just read that the suspect had no problems with the law before this, and that he always was very happy... What the hell made him do this?

P.S. Glad to see Pidgeon's ok after all this panic...

[Codename Xero]

It's Tech School all over again. o.o

[Mark]

I have a question: what the hell is a 4-month-old doing at a midnight showing of The Dark Knight Rises?

[Codename Xero]

We never said Adults were smart.

[minuteforce]

I have a question: what the hell is a 4-month-old doing at a midnight showing of The Dark Knight Rises?

You're not the only one either. A fair few people have put this question up, both here and elsewhere.

[Snail]

Thoughts?

[Filip]

Thoughts?

Good old conspiracy theories begin...

[Hybrid]

Thoughts?

I didn't watch that video, but judging from the title I'm guessing the guy is building up some crazy off the wall conspiracy theory about terrorism. Since the police have said that this is an isolated incident and was not an act of terrorism, I'm just gonna dismiss that as someone trying to make a name for himself in the wake of this horrible tragedy. Fodder.

[Louis]

This is a difficult issue because I think a lot of us are beginning to face a question that, while it has come up in front of us a few times, hits us a little closer to home considering the nature of this particular tragedy.

The truth is, from what it looks like right now, no one really knew that this was coming and no one really had anything to expect from him. I suppose, the same could go for every other shooter we've had - but at the same time those other shooters had histories - medical issues and very, very off-views (Giffords shooter in Tucson). This was very...actually quite more unpredictable. It's unreal, really - because if anyone is going to carry an AK-like weapon into a theater - someone is going to die.

But anyway, I think we're facing two problems here and I'm curious as to what you all think because this brings up some very major rights issues.

The Gun Issue

Obviously, and this is something that is questioned after just about every single public shooting, is whether or not our ability to legally purchase a weapon like a gun is too easily granted. The question comes up too often about whether or not we should or should not have guns, whether or not we should impose restrictions, etc. I wanted to know what you all are really thinking, especially following the Aurora shooting, what the issue is in terms of legality and whether or not something about our gun rights need to change.

My personal opinion is that I don't think any time is too late to impose some more restrictions on when we can have guns, how easily we can access them, etc. Now, some people have pointed out - and this is true - that any one who truly wants a gun will get one at any cost - but I think restrictions could potentially deter some people (imagine what a medical background check could have done for the people who died at Virginia Tech some time ago). I would like if we could impose that people can't own guns before the age of 25 (unless they are military trained), must have permits and have intense training, must show those permits if they are going to carry those guns around (this concealed no-permit bullshit that they have in Arizona is just wrong), etc. Now, the age rule might be odd to some people, but I think it's no coincidence that most shooters are under 25 years of age. Medical studies have proven that most people begin to develop serious mental issues between the ages of 18-24. Giving someone a gun at the onset of these issues, when they are perhaps most volatile and have not received treatment, is a terrible idea - the same way a law proposed in Arizona to allow people to carry guns on campuses is a bad idea. It takes on person at that age to snap for something to happen. I know the argument is there that anyone could snap at any time - but by age 25, I'd argue that people have been diagnosed, or at that point haven't developed anything major, etc. I know it's a bit general, but I don't think it's unfair to go off of that.

So yeah, the gun issue - what do you think? And the other issue:

Protection of Public Space

This has raised a lot of questions about whether or not we need to put more security and protection in place to be less vulnerable in public settings such as a theater or sports venue. I know sports venues and some music venues check bags and purses and do some body searches before entrance as a way to prevent the entrance of a weapon or other illegal substance. I've seen no cinema do the same thing - and people are wondering about whether or not maybe we need to do that. A cinema is a vulnerable place, definitely, but this brings up a larger issue - no public venue is completely safe. We are never 100% safe at any time, and as such - do we need to find a way to protect our lives in public? Do we need to have security everywhere?

I personally think that something does need to be done - but I don't know what that something is. I think it's a very weird issue. If we're going to put security everywhere, are people really going to feel that much safer going out? Aren't people going to feel even a little bit uneasy with police everywhere? Does that not change the way we act, and is not perhaps an infringement of our rights in some way? Privacy does exist to an extent in public space, and security at more and more venues might change that.

But at the very least, we need to start thinking about this - the same way we need to start thinking about guns and how they're impacting our lives. Criminals will always be there and illegal obtainments of weapons and substances will always happen - but can we be preventative and more proactive? 'Cause at this point, we are nothing but reactive - and any preventative action at this point really isn't so proactive following a shooting like the one at Aurora, let alone those in Tucson, Virginia Tech, Columbine, etc.