Colorado residents/members, thinking of you this morning (theatre shooting).

[Simpler at Fifty]

We watched the national news tonight and they interviewed one of the guys shot in the neck. He was still in ICU. He was biking across country and decided to stop and catch the movie. He said he will have long scars on his neck but that will be good because he will look in the mirror each day and know he has to do his best. This is the reason I am glad the media flocks to these places. Several states away I would not get to hear that story or see the people that were asked to hug 4 people on the spot last night. Most of us live in places where there have been horrific crimes and the media came in droves. It seems intrusive when it is in your own neighborhood but for those of us that are wondering what is going on, this is our only way to 'see' the good stories that came out of this along with the sad reason they are there.

[lhamo]

ZG, so sorry to hear about your friends. What an awful tragedy.

pug, so glad that baby was fussy!

I am not going to jump into the gun debate but think it is appropriate to raise a related issue -- the role of mental illness in these kinds of things. Can we all agree that a sane person would not act in this way? That seems obvious to me. So what can be done to better identify the types of mentally ill individuals that might act out like this and get them the help they need so that this kind of tragedy doesn't happen? Because if we control guns then without help they will probably still find another way to inflict major harm.

lhamo

[iris lily]

ZG, so sorry to hear about your friends. What an awful tragedy.

pug, so glad that baby was fussy!

I am not going to jump into the gun debate but think it is appropriate to raise a related issue -- the role of mental illness in these kinds of things. Can we all agree that a sane person would not act in this way? That seems obvious to me. So what can be done to better identify the types of mentally ill individuals that might act out like this and get them the help they need so that this kind of tragedy doesn't happen? Because if we control guns then without help they will probably still find another way to inflict major harm.

lhamo

I continued this discussion on the other thread, and in advance, I apologize for copying lhamo's post on that other thread if that is a problem.

[peggy]

Nope, as you may know, I'm very much in favor of free expression. However, this thread was not designed as a vehicle to vent our personal frustrations for or against gun policies. Several of our members have expressed the desire to stop it from going in that direction and I think they are right in doing so. Someone else has even started a new thread where it would be more appropriate. If you want to move the discussion there, I'll be more than happy to comment on your points. Hope to see you there.

I didn't actually start this gun debate in this thread, just added my opinion well into the debate, so it was really kind of unfair to pile on me. But I will gladly take time to gather my thoughts and post them in that other thread.

[Zoebird]

I heard from all of my Co folks today. One in the same area, not at the theater at the time, otherwise everyone else is accounted for.

And, being semi-connected, I still spoke about gun issues in the public policy thread.

pug, glad that your people are ok.

ZG, sorry to hear of the losses close to you, as well as the injured. My thoughts are with everyone of course.

[Gregg]

I'm glad the gun debate will continue on in the appropriate setting because it is an important topic. This is a good and appropriate place to work through some other issues that deeply impact all of us. I didn't know anyone in the theater, but do have several friends in the area. Sending good and positive thoughts to all of you that were affected by this terrible event.

[Rogar]

We've had huge amounts of media coverage here and I have been amazed at the number of everyday heros in this story. I've lost track of how many folks put themselves in harm's way to protect or help a friend or a stranger. Some of them made the ultimate sacrifice.

I've heard a few accounts of ordinary young people using proper first aid or CPR that might have been life saving. The police made an appearance with in one or two minutes or being notified and made an immediate arrest with firing a round, which probably had an element of luck. This person, suspect A, was probably a borderline genius but the devices left in his apartment didn't harm anyone and were defused without destroying evidence or the building.

It is a hugely unfortunate thing, but the acts of bravery and sharp judgement are impressive almost beyond words. I sometimes wonder of all places, why Colorado, for several of these incidents. But I am proud and amazed at the good acts my theoretical neighbors have shown.

[Greg44]

My dd went to our local mid-night showing of Batman -- this was the first time we allowed her to do this -- and probably the last.

We tend to be overly protective. My dw grew up in a very rough part of town and has tried to make sure our dd's avoid situations that could put them in harms way. Basically she specializes in scaring the crap out of them.

I think kids can feel invincible - like it will never happen to them - but unfortunately it can, and they must never let their guard down. In today's world kids (and adults) need to know how they will react in an emergency situation.

My heart go out to these families who have been harmed by the crazy man. Wow, what makes someone turn into such an evil person? I can't help but think that the voilence protrayed in movies today played a roll in this. It seems like Hollywood is always pushing the envelope. I can't even begin to imagine how his family is feeling right now. So sad.

[JaneV2.0]

...
My heart go out to these families who have been harmed by the crazy man. Wow, what makes someone turn into such an evil person? I can't help but think that the voilence protrayed in movies today played a roll in this. It seems like Hollywood is always pushing the envelope. I can't even begin to imagine how his family is feeling right now. So sad.

My first thought was SSRI psychosis, and then I thought maybe incipient schizophrenia. Certainly if he was always a murderous madman, it wasn't apparent to people who knew him casually.

[Zoe Girl]

I was also impressed at how so many people reacted (and knew first aid!). One of mygoals in this coming school year is to form some partnerships based on a conference withFEMA for disaster preparedness for youth inour after school programs. I would love to have babysitter and home alone safety courses as well. I know that in Colorado it seemed that they were not taking any more volunteers for types of citizen emergency responders because they already have so many. I could be mistaken however it seems we have a prepared population here.

My organization wrote me a nice note about how this affected me personally and I thought that was very nice. I was appreciated to remember how these shocks impact us all.