Newtown, Conn School Shooting

[NovaAman]

Terrible tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary school... Mass shooting... 27 dead, including shooter, who was a father to a student, and 18 of those are children....

Horrible. Absolutely horrible....

Those families have my deepest sympathies. Any one here on BYC who lives there, my heart aches for you and your families...

 

[sezjasper]

In my opinion the biggest problem exposed by this tragedy isn't guns or gun control, security in the schools or lack thereof...it's the attention to/care of people with mental illness which is pitifully inadequate in this country. Too many people need help and can't get it...too many people are left to wander at will and nothing done about them until they do something to hurt themselves or someone else. I don't know what the solution is but it sickens me to think that the shooter got enough attention for the "experts" to learn that he had autism or Aspbergers or OCD or whatever, but nobody could figure out that he was a tragedy waiting to happen.

And with all respect to Mr. Winters, I hope you're wrong about that "man in the sky" because somebody is going to have to heal those parents' hearts, and I don't think anyone on earth is up to the task.

 

[mom'sfolly]

Saying this tragedy is part of God's wrath ("maybe it is a greater power than mankind telling us we as a society are very, very disturbed") because we allow abortions is an abomination. If your God punishes the innocent for the sins of others, I want no part of him or of anyone who believes in him. This is not how a benevolent, forgiving, just God works. This is how vengeful, deranged person acts; not a god.

 

[Tanichca]

Israel arms everyone, everywhere...

Because they are being constantly bombarded by neighbors who want to wipe them off the map. But this isn't about Israel. And, in the end, it isn't about gun control either. It's about grieving with the families, praying, and appreciating our own families, dysfunctional as they may be. We need to heal and help before we turn this into another mindless political rant.

 

[sezjasper]

Capvin, I offer my compassion to you, your son and family for the terror you must have experienced as part of the Newtown community on Friday. Thank God your own granddaughter is safe. I wish everyone's grandchild could have been safe, too. The loss is too big to comprehend.

I believe all this talk of gun control overlooks what I feel is a larger issue, the culture of violence in this country which only seems to get worse with each generation. All across the country, people are mourning the loss of life in Newtown, especially the children. Yet I believe that for every child who is "treasured," there is a child who is merely tolerated, or worse, abused. Children who grow up feeling unwanted, unimportant and powerless have no choice but to look elsewhere for solace, and where better than a video game where he/she is in control and can wipe out anyone who stands in their way? Violence sells for a reason, and as long as it turns a profit, we'll only see more of it. You certainly don't see shows like Andy Griffith anymore, but the values and culture of those days are what's missing in today's world...and today's children, from which the next generation of killers will come.

 

[Spookwriter]

Guns were invented what, 7-8-9 hundred years ago?
Primitive no doubt.

But still a weapon designed to kill.

We can debate guns all we want. Big guns, little guns,
single shots or fully automatics; they all have the ability
to kill.

Even today, with the sad events of another senseless
school shooting in our minds, it is not the guns fault.

As always, it is the intent of the person holding the gun.
I have no ideal of what caused his mindset to do this
horrible thing.

But if anything, this tragedy, should make all of us as
a nation, more unwilling than ever to surrender our
own weapons.

I believe in concealed carry.

 

[KristyHall]

My heart breaks for the people in Connecticut, those people killed and hurt, their families, and community. I even hurt for the person who did this and his family. May healing begin soon for the people suffering from this, they have a long painful road ahead of them.

 

[NovaAman]

This is just so awful. I think its time that America banned owning guns now. This just happens time and time again - America has the highest rate of school shootings in the WORLD!

Why does America have these shootings, and also the highest rates of child abuse in the world? America prison population also dwarfs that of other counties? Why? America is also the most Christian country in the world - yet with all the prayers and godliness it seems to have the most problems with morals and society.

this is nothing to do with devils or God, its about society - and someone in government needs to be brave and start making radical changes for the better if these shootings are to stop - I am sorry to say sitting about praying and giving out sympathy is not going to sort out these problems.

While I understand the reaction to blame gun and gun owners, I don't think a gun ban is desirable or even possible.

Impossible to totally ban guns without knowing who has them and removing them. There's no way to know this so there is no way to remove guns purchased before gun control laws tracked who purchased them. You could stop all new gun sales and there would still be millions of guns in the U.S.

Seems odd to me that this is a rather new phenomenon. 50-60 years ago, this wouldn't have occurred. Yet our mental health knowledge and treatment of 50-60 years ago was not nearly as advanced as the treatments and medications of today. These people are certainly mentally ill but our improved treatments are not only not working, things seem to be getting worse.

A horrible tragedy. Prayers going to all persons impacted by this terrible act.

We need the right to protect ourselves from nuts like this. If guns are banned then only the bad guys will have guns. Unfortunately that principle didn't have a gun or this could have ended much differently. We need armed guards at our schools. There was a shooting at my daughters school a few years back and it's a very scary feeling. My heart and prayers go out to those who lost a child.

Banning guns is not the answer. Armed security... That I can see. We have armed security in schools here in my town. I think the American prision population arguement if crap. I am all for excuting violent offenders. My brother is a violent offender. He won't see the outside for 40 years. I personally say put a bullet in his head. I am a Christian, and the bible I read gives very clear directions for dealing with rapists and murderers. ( I know, it also gives some very serious directions on other crimes...) But take those proven offenders out, our prison pop would dramatically be reduced. I don't believe in second chances for child rapist, murderers, rapists of women and men... They are evil. Plain and simple. No need to evaluate their mental state. Nor do I see a need to continue to house them and feed them and provide them better medical care than a lot of poverty stricken families get.

Our country unfortunately glorifies movies of extreme and unbelievable violence towards others. Those movies and games are protected under the freedom of speech laws. Parents let their kids watch these things, play those games. Movies like the Saw series... I have never seen it. I will not see it, now will I let my kids see it. That is needless advertisement of violence. Glorified violence for no reason. There was no reason for it, there is no reason for it. People do those horrendous things to each other because they can. There is no moral to any of this.

Morals are not being taught to our children clearly.We have become such a consumer driven society that both parents are having to work in order to pay bills, keep up with the Joneses... Our children are going off to day care facilities, homes, etc... and for 8-9 hours out of their day, they are being raised by some one else who may not be raising the kids, or teaching them anything. Just keeping them busy, entertained, until their parents come and get them. Go into the store, you will see parents at their wits ends because their kids are out of control, screaming their heads off. They try and discipline their kid, they get dirty looks and snears. They don't discipline, they get dirty looks and snears. The snears come from both sides. The ones that think children need to be free to express themselves, and the snears from the parents who have their children under control. SO, which way do these parents go?

We can pray. I think prayer is a very good thing. We can continue to dope our kids through medications and chemically processed food and water starting at a very early age which directly influences their brain development... And continue to desensitize them with violent movies and videogames with first person shooter action where you are shooting people, not monsters or aliens... Continue to be a consumer driven country. Drugging up a kid because they are hyper as heck from the food additives and being locked in the house cuz mom and dad are just to darn tired to go to a park and let them run it off.

I think having the govt come in and make radical changes, you are asking for a whole new bag of trouble. Already we have politicians who are bought out by this group or that. They are not in it for you. They are in if for them. Look at laws that have passed even with a public uproar. Taxes that get passed and we don't even know. Little special interest bills stuck in the middle of important bills just so you'll get this group of politicians to sign on... More govt is not the answer. Taking away my right to protect my family from someone on a spree of evil enjoyment is not the answer.

Taking action is necessary. I think if the govt stopped using our tax dollars like personal pay days, and put our tax dollars to work arming the schools with security guards, stopped OKing food additives that have shown to have adverse affects on developing brains (Hey parents... look up what flouride really does... and city people drink it everyday), stop vaccinating children at 2 months old and on with vaccines that still use mercury as a base .. look up what evidence there is that it also changes how a brain develops and the increases of autism and mental illness in the last 70 years, and continues to be getting worse every decade. Stop medicating kids to keep them calm or help them function more NORMALLY, when the side affects can be "changes in personality, violent outbursts, suicidal behaviors...(BTW, yes they are still using mercury based vaccines, and Bush didn't feel the need to pass a bill that would stop it's usage, and parents are willingly dumping these into their kids bodies because a doctor said so).

Looking at the picture of the young man who commited this atrosity, he is vacant... Look at him... there is no soul manning the ship. He had it out for his mother, and he had it out for the kids that took his mother away from him... I am just sorry that he offed himself and he will never tell us why he had to kill those children...

Anyway.. this isn't about guns, it isn't about mental disorders, it is about our society as a whole being shocked to heck and back that these things are happening here in our country, when all you have to do is really take a step back and evaluate how far our country has come and how fast it is falling. All great countries rise, become powerful off the backs of its citizens, and then fall when they forget history. Egypt, Greece, Italy...

 

[punk-a-doodle]

I would actually like to see gun education classes offered at an early age. I am very glad I learned how to respect and properly use guns at a young age, and that was done through my school first, then parents.

 

[Poultry Couture]

Can we get back to praying For this school and not arguing about guns?
Think about how many lives were lost!

I pray over their families right now. Hope that they're all ok