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The Gunited States of America
Author: TriSec    Date: 08/25/2012 12:35:53

Good Morning.

I'm not sure I can turn this into an actual blog without a great deal of rambling, but I'll give it a shot. While the GOP's unique theories on rape and pregnancy have dominated the news, it's been a rather violent week across these United States.

On Friday, everything was bumped below the fold because of what amounted to a disgruntled employee gunning down his perceived nemesis in the media capitol of the world. Tragically, in addition to his victim and himself, 9 bystanders were wounded to varying degree...some by stray police rounds.


Updated at 9:45 p.m. ET: A disgruntled former employee shot and killed an ex-coworker before being shot dead outside the Empire State Building by police, who sources said wounded nine bystanders as bullets sprayed across the crowded street during Friday’s morning rush.

The suspected gunman, Jeffrey Johnson, 58, who was laid off a year ago, approached a former co-worker on the street and shot him three times, killing him, NYPD Commissioner Raymond Kelly said. Johnson's victim was identified, but as Steve Ercolino, 41, a vice president at Hazan Imports, where Johnson had worked until last year.

A police report from last year said that on April 27, 2011, Johnson threatened Ercolino, saying, "I am going to kill you."

A construction worker who witnessed the shooting incident Friday at 10 W. 33rd Street followed Johnson as he walked away and turned north on Fifth Avenue, Kelly said. The construction worker alerted police, who confronted Johnson.
Johnson was walking along the curb in front of the Empire State Building when he turned his .45-caliber pistol on the officers and was killed as they opened fire, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said.

Police fired at least 14 times, Kelly said.

Kelly said that some of those injured in the incident may have been hit by police bullets, adding that the injured are expected to survive. Those hit with police bullets likely suffered ricochet and graze wounds, mostly to the lower extremeties, said Paul Browne, an NYPD spokesman, told NBC News later Friday.


Because it was New York, of course that got all the headlines. But I ran across a story from Chicago, also posted yesterday, about far worse going on in the Windy City overnight. I suppose because it was just an "ordinary" evening instead of a mass shooting, it was easy for the media to ignore.


Nineteen people were shot across the South and West sides from Thursday evening through early Friday morning -- 13 of them wounded over a 30-minute period, authorities say.

The overnight shootings peaked between 9:15 p.m. and 9:45 p.m. That's when eight people, many of them teens, were shot at 79th Street and Essex Avenue about 9:30 p.m.

Then two men were wounded in the Ida B. Wells / Darrow Homes complex at about 9:25 p.m., police said. The men, 27 and 33, were shot in the 600 block of East 37th Street and taken to the University of Chicago Hospitals, police said. The younger man was shot in the head and the other in the right arm, Gaines said.

Around the same time, two other men were wounded in the arms in a drive-by shooting in the 2900 block of West 39th Place in the Brighton Park neighborhood.

About 15 minutes later, a 24-year-old man was shot in the leg and taken to Jackson Park Hospital from the 7200 block of South Jeffery Boulevard, Gaines said. He was treated and released. The man told police he was talking on his phone when he heard a single shot and realized he was wounded.

Earlier Thursday evening, four men were wounded in a shooting in the Little Village neighborhood about 5:20 p.m. Thursday, police said.

They were walking in the 3200 block of South Kedzie Avenue when at least one person inside a vehicle with three others opened fire, police said, hitting the group. Three 19-year-olds and a 22-year-old were wounded.

Just after midnight, a 17-year-old was shot in the back and taken to Stroger Hospital in serious condition, police said. He was walking in the 7100 block of South Vincennes Avenue in the Englewood neighborhood when someone inside a passing car opened fire, police said.

Another 17-year-old was shot after 1:30 a.m. Friday in the 3500 block of West Grenshaw Street in the Homan Square neighborhood. He's in good condition at Mount Sinai Hospital. Someone walked to him and started shooting, police said.


I wonder, though, what the rest of the world thinks of America when they read stories like this? Regrettably, these two shootings are just the tip of a larger iceberg. We seem to have an international reputation as brutish, rude, arrogant, and perhaps violent...and just looking at the summer of shootings, I wouldn't be surprised one bit if other places were considering issuing a travel advisory about these United States.


Shooting at Auburn University in Alabama - June 10
Desmonte Leonard, the 22-year-old suspected shooter, turned himself in to police several days after three people were killed and another three wounded in a shooting at a party near Auburn University.

Bar shooting in Tuscaloosa, Alabama - July 17
At least 17 were wounded after a gunman opened fire with an assault rifle at the Copper Top bar, Reuters reported. The motive for the attack was unclear.

Movie theater massacre in Colorado - July 20
Authorities identified James Holmes, 24, as the alleged gunman responsible for killing at least 12 people and injuring dozens during a mass shooting inside a crowded movie theater in Aurora, Colorado, during a midnight screening of the new Batman movie.

Sikh temple shooting in Wisconsin - Aug. 5
Wade Michael Page, an Army veteran who has been linked to white supremacy groups, shot temple goers and a police officer during evening services at the temple before killing himself. A total of six people died in the incident.

Shooting at Texas A&M University - Aug. 13
Three, including the gunman, were killed after a shooting near the Texas A&M University campus. The motive for the attack was unknown.

Family Research Council shooting in Washington - Aug. 15
Floyd Corkins, 28, was indicted on one federal and two District of Columbia charges after being arrested for walking into the FRC lobby with a handgun, a box of ammunition and 15 Chick-fil-A sandwiches and opening fire.

Shooting near the Empire State Building, New York City - Aug. 24
A shooting near New York City's Empire State building left two dead, including the suspected gunman, and eight injured, according to early reports. The New York Post described the gunman as "a disgruntled worker" who "stalked a colleague down a Midtown street, shot him dead and then turned his weapon on random pedestrians outside the Empire State Building."


Of course, you can't argue with some people about things like this. I think this is where I'm having the disconnect. Look, I'm from the urban Northeast. I have only handled and fired a single-shot, bolt-action rifle at Boy Scout Camp. Aside from on a policeman's hip, I don't think I've ever even seen a handgun, much less handled one. I understand that there are still places in this country where you might have a need of a firearm, but I don't think I live in one of those places.

And then there's this:

A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.


I really do have a hard time looking at what Mr. Jefferson wrote, and trying to reconcile it with this kind of laundry list.

Unfortunately....I don't know what the answer is. Maybe nobody does. But I do know for sure that because this is a divisive issue, and the national parties have taken opposing sides, this issue like every other major issue is going to languish in Congress. People will still die, we will still argue about it, and we all lose a little bit more as a society.
 

9 comments (Latest Comment: 08/26/2012 04:50:52 by Will in Chicago)
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Comment by Raine on 08/25/2012 15:05:36
I would like it very much if we could talk about guns and the mindset behind the reasons why people feel the need to use them--- the second amendment isn't enough to explain our fear based society.

Then there is the issue of Mental health, poverty, gangs and drugs.

Comment by Raine on 08/25/2012 16:01:07
Off to see the Enola Gay! HAve a great day everyone!

Comment by Will in Chicago on 08/25/2012 18:05:09
In the case of Chicago, it seems that our street gangs are having several different struggles. Sadly, it seems like shootings are common place in some neighborhoods.

Comment by trojanrabbit on 08/25/2012 20:23:18
RIP Neil Armstrong.

Comment by Raine on 08/25/2012 23:50:07
Quote by trojanrabbit:
RIP Neil Armstrong.
As we were leaving Udvar Hazy we heard the news today,Oh boy.

It was strange that we were there today. A little poetic. I have to wonder -- does heaven stand up to space and being the first person on the moon?


Comment by Raine on 08/25/2012 23:50:44
Quote by Will in Chicago:
In the case of Chicago, it seems that our street gangs are having several different struggles. Sadly, it seems like shootings are common place in some neighborhoods.
Will why is there such an uptick of gang killings in Chicago?


Comment by Raine on 08/25/2012 23:56:08
Comment by livingonli on 08/26/2012 03:40:55
Nothing like when the anchor of the nightly sports report drops an S-bomb.

Comment by Will in Chicago on 08/26/2012 04:50:52
Quote by Raine:
Quote by Will in Chicago:
In the case of Chicago, it seems that our street gangs are having several different struggles. Sadly, it seems like shootings are common place in some neighborhoods.
Will why is there such an uptick of gang killings in Chicago?



From what I have read, several gangs have fragmented and now are fighting amongst themselves over leadership and territory. Naturally, a lot of innocent people are hurt by these struggles.

I have worked in the inner city as a substitute teacher, and been to schools where they lost several students a year to violence. We need to reject this and realize that all life is precious. I hate to say it, but there is an attitude in our society that if it happens in the inner city, it really doesn't matter. We need to address the problems of drugs, crime, poverty and racism in our society.

As for Neil Armstrong, I mourn his passing. I do not remember seeing the moon landing live but I watched a lot of replay of it growing up.

In memory of Neil Armstrong, here is a song that has helped me in times of mourning. It is perhaps particularly fitting for a man who went where I wish to go. Ad astra per aspera. May we see the day when we are unafraid to explore new worlds and have the courage to follow our dreams.