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Oregon gunman was army dropout who studied mass shooters

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By JEFF BARNARD and MARTHA MENDOZA

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The weapons had all been purchased legally over the past three years, some by him, others by relatives, said Celinez Nunez, assistant field agent for the Seattle division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.

Those who knew the shooter described a deeply troubled loner

Fortunately, he could obtain as many guns and as much ammunition as he wanted. FREEDOM!!!

Too bad about all the dead people. America's sick fetish with guns will kill thousands before the anniversary of this disgusting display of FREEDOM!

Thanks to the NRA, Americans can expect, based on averages of slaughters, another seventy to three hundred dead over the next 90 days.

If the NRA had hoped to achieve any goal, some would have hoped slaughter of innocent Americans wouldn't be one of them. So far, that isn't part of the NRA killing profile. More NRA, more dead Americans. ISIS couldn't ask for a better partner.

7 ( +13 / -6 )

There are lonely youths all over the world. And there are also lots of crazy people in every country. ONLY in the USA do make it easy for them to get guns. ONLY in the USA do we make it easy for them to kill lots of people.

One mass murder per week. We're `exceptional' all right!

7 ( +11 / -4 )

Thank you NRA for making it easy for this psychotic to easily get his hands on guns and ammo. Thank you gutless and opportunistic politicians and the gun lobby who has stood in the way of rational gun control. You are as responsible for these unnessary deaths and injuries as the pond scum who pulled the trigger.

5 ( +8 / -3 )

And brother of a president and son of another president, Jeb Bush, says, "stuff happens."

4 ( +6 / -2 )

He was yet another psych failure.

2 ( +4 / -2 )

He seemed to hate various types people for no apparent reasons.

2 ( +3 / -1 )

This shooting again shows that the greatest safety threat to the US lies within: the death industries.

2 ( +6 / -4 )

Yoo bad for the conservatives. They initially declared he was a Muslim. And they wanted it sooooo badly.

But no. He was areligious and a self-identified conservative.

Better start tracking those types...

1 ( +8 / -7 )

Perhaps a high-functioning autistic/aspergers-type mental illness?

I met some REALLY weird characters, both in Army boot camp and Marine Corps OCS. Most (but definitely not all) of the oddballs get highlighted and washed out, but I don't think they end up with any particular record of a psychological screening that brands them as a potential threat...

1 ( +4 / -3 )

Harte said a woman she believed to be Mercer’s mother also lived upstairs and was “crying her eyes out” Thursday.

No doubt. His parents are in way more trouble than background checks for supplying weapons to their "hate-filled" son with anti-government, anti-religious and white supremacy leanings, on top of being a student at a school for the emotionally disturbed.

1 ( +3 / -2 )

Ironically, John Hanlin the sherriff leading the investigation shown in two of the photos with this article is a highly outspoken ammosexual and NRA supporter.

He posted a Sandy Hook conspiracy video online in the past, and lots of other pro-gun propaganda on his Facebook feed which he promptly removed soon after he started gaining worldwide news exposure following the Umpqua shooting.

http://gawker.com/lead-sheriff-in-oregon-massacre-investigation-wiped-his-1734344410

1 ( +3 / -2 )

But not in Switzerland elephant200. Why is that?

0 ( +2 / -2 )

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Enforce existing federal laws and backround checks, they're not working

Unless the mentally ill individual in question has had contact with a court ordered psychiatric treatment or been declared legally insane it isn't going to come up on gun application. That isn't a fault of the background check, that is the way the system was designed, and it actually works fairly well on that basic level.. There are bureaucratic snafus with a waiting period of course, the FBI couldn't catch Dylann Roof in the SC shooting who had admitted to a drug crime due to paperwork errors among the various law enforcement agencies etc. but that doesn't appear to be an issue in this case.

None of it matter when these crazies as you call them come out of homes with family members who at minimum de facto must be knowledgeable about the weapons in the house and are themselves accessories to mass murder.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

the guns prevented crimes

Is this a joke? Gun is responsible for countless body bags in the land of free, proud, stubborn and brave. Gun is just a toy for playground of children in US of the A.

http://edition.cnn.com/2014/08/26/us/arizona-girl-fatal-shooting-accident/

http://time.com/3818931/shooting-ohio-three-year-old-unattended-gun/

https://www.google.com/search?q=mother+shot+dead+by+her+young+son+shopping&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8

0 ( +1 / -1 )

There are lonely youths all over the world. And there are also lots of crazy people in every country. ONLY in the USA do make it easy for them to get guns. ONLY in the USA do we make it easy for them to kill lots of people.

lonely people when they are suppressed they will immigrate to another country to screw it like the country they came out from

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Chatman said several hundred investigators are involved, ranging from federal agencies such as the FBI and ATF to state, county and city law enforcement.

Failure to tackle this slaughter upstream is feathering lots of nests downstream. I wonder if the two are related?

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

This shooting again shows that the greatest safety threat to the US lies within: the death industries.

the guns prevented crimes , If all people are staying in home and doing nothing but reading they won't die and they will be healthy as well , But What a life

-1 ( +4 / -5 )

The US constitution allowing civilian owning guns to safeguard the country from tyranny. A price is prepared to pay and will continue to pay by blood to endure that idea.

-1 ( +3 / -4 )

America ... the supposed "land of the free" .... has so many problems and issues now. When a person like Donald Trump can get so many followers, you know it is a country with real problems. The problem starts at the corrupt top .... but that's the fault of several generations of Americans being so foolish for putting people in power that really did not have any real reason to be there ... other than greed and desire for power. And the fact that criminals like Dick Cheney and George Bush have not been prosecuted, is so indicative of a people that simply don't care what is happening.

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

Once again another mass shooting, when will the yanks ever wake up and smell the coffee? they need to tighten up there ridiculously slack gun laws, just because it violates there constitution it ok to carry on as it is?,,,,sorry its time to amend that constitution, in the UK there are restriction on how much ammo and guns you are allowed to own, its quite simple, if the NRA does not like it TOUGH! get a grip this slaughter can't carry on.

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

Pardon the above typos.

What is very sad is that there is a recognizable pattern in this story that has been often repeated in the U.S. Loner gun enthusiast obsessed with mass murder craving for mass attention. As usual this sort of "troubled" person can get guns easily. When he uses the guns to kill masses of people everyone is troubled. Then everything stays the same. Next next psycho will be able to get guns easily.

Single horrific gun related mass murders prompted the U.K. and Australia to pass stringent gun regulations. Not the U.S.

Would-be mass murderers like this guy would not be able to get a gun in Japan.

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

So, what militia was he a member of, then?

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

MarkG: To me as a gun owner it's simple. Enforce existing federal laws and backround checks, they're not working effectively.

Make any law you want and the gun nutters will make a door that goes right through it. You want stricter background checks? Great....but you won't give up the gun show loopholes or private party loopholes so what "solution" are you really offering us? You intentionally sabotage laws then tell us the laws aren't working.

Every single person in this country could get a gun if they wanted to and you are pretending that we have to way to make people live in some bubble that can prevent that. It's just such a silly position that it's no position at all. Just admit that you love guns and you want to keep yours and because of that we will have school shootings and that's just the way it will be.

Stuff happens.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

-2 ( +0 / -2 )

The laws on the books now are SUPPOSED to keep guns away from the crazies. Evidently they are ineffective. Guns are glorified in Hollywood and the video games. Maybe that's step #2 after the purchasing screenings are effective. The Federal screening is broken.

As the mass murder a week statement above are skewed. Remove the gang and drug violence the number is few. The gangs and drug dealers are absolutely heartless if you don't fit under their umbrella.

-3 ( +2 / -5 )

This shooting again shows that the greatest safety threat to the US lies within: the death industries.

You must also mean armed illegals (for some reason- blame the (D) bureaucratic red tape) who have not been deported. Don't forget about the gangbangers and drug dealers who shoot each other up constantly & terrorize their own communities.

Better start tracking those types...

There aren't any.

Thanks to the NRA, Americans can expect, based on averages of slaughters, another seventy to three hundred dead over the next 90 days.

Well, if the 70-300 are normal law abiding hard working people, students etc- that would be sad.

If they're illegals, crips / bloods, druggies, going nowhere in society. . . . then it would be a "good thing".

@Nobel713. Hats off to you for Marine OCS! As for this Harper-Mercer guy, what a discrace. Couldn't even handle simple Army basics.

-3 ( +1 / -4 )

Remove the guns and the lunatics remain.

Remove the lunatics and guns don't kill.

To me as a gun owner it's simple. Enforce existing federal laws and backround checks, they're not working effectively. Increase regulation to make it a bit harder to obtain firearms with a waiting period to pick it up. And I'll even go to extent of mandatory training for persons who carry firearms. Do this and the occasional whack job will still surface.

-6 ( +3 / -9 )

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