Orlando shooting/The non gun debate

[Whateverist]

[Wyrd of Gawd]

They don't know what isis and al qaeda are talking about...they know what they're talking about, lol..it's just hard to figure out what it was..because they're dumb.  

The man aligned himself, spectacularly, to islamists (who do, as it so happens, hate the west - they're almost defined by it).  That was clearly important to him even if a full understanding of the respective groups and their differences wasn't.

Even so, the point remains that he chose Pulse rather than any other soft target so readily available to him in one of the world's most famous tourist towns.  I mean, even if you look at it through the lens of "He wanted to attack the West," it's pretty obvious that what he was attacking was our acceptance of LGBT people.  Maybe the West was abstractly targeted, but these people died and got shot simply because of their sexuality.

What I find amusing is Drich trying to call foul on the LGBT community for using the tragedy to call for certain kinds of political actions when that's simply what happens in the face of tragedy.  It's not like Republicans haven't been beating the drum against that community for, well, ever, or that they've fought against any firearm regulations for the past 15-20 years.

Remember, the guy was an Afghan even though he was born in the US. That's important because almost every Afghan male is a practicing homosexual or has been raped by one as a child.  In the shooter's case he was a practicing homosexual although he had been married twice.  

So, you have a self-hating homosexual who has ties to a national homosexual culture and who has a Taliban-loving father blabbing about how the US screwed over Afghanistan.  It's no wonder the guy became a homicidal maniac.  The question is how many others like him are waiting their turn to go on a rampage?  They might be muslims but they love their  boy toys.  They even get a herd of them when they go to paradise.  Maybe that's why the women will still be virgins.

[Wyrd of Gawd]

I'm sorry, I misunderstood when you mentioned other soft targets.  I was thinking..."why hit the others...the place was obviously ripe and low, and he was already familiar".  I guess he scouted disney (maybe)..but that's really not as good as pulse, and when it came down to it he might not have been ready to shoot a 3 year old trying to get goofys signature, allah approving or not.

Also, he was probably concerned about being eaten by a gator before he could get the job done.

Gators, the anti-terrorist weapon.

[Losty]

Hey it works for me. I live right in a swampland haven't had a single terrorist yet. Or any visitors for that matter

[The Grand Nudger]

#makeamericagatoragain

[Thumpalumpacus]

Yeah but at least they're super muslimy and hate jews, or somesuch.

Yeah, I think he was name-dropping in order to increase his own media coverage, myself. The more shitbags he could rattle off, the more the media would have a running heart attack ... just in case 49 dead bodies wasn't enough.

[Wyrd of Gawd]

Imagine if Orlando had hired him as a cop. The lawyers would be raking in the dough suing the city for $Billions.

[Mermaid]

I've lived in Orlando all my life, and I can't decide if I'm just numb or disaffected. I know what most of you would say, but after 9/11 I did feel the impact of those events. even the Oklahoma city bombing felt different. This happened less than 10 mins from my church and honestly it feels like another news story. I am not suprise at the reaction or scale of reaction from the surrounding communities and the well wishing across the world, but again it's what you kinda expect from a 'news story of this type and scale.

And, before the haters say that I was rooting for the shooter or I think those people got what they deserve, I don't. It is a really bad thing for any one to shoot up a crowd of people period.

I'm not the only one here who thinks this way. Most people I've spoken who live here, have a similar view, in that it was a terrible thing, but like me tend to see this as another news story. I've even asked others what it had been disney or one of the other parks, and the reaction does indeed change at the thought of little children being caught in the cross fire, but this is all very different. Maybe it is because of the speed and willingness the news and politicians are willing to use this event to cash in or spread their views. (Like how quickly the other orlando thread turned into a gun debate) Idk..

So Im posting this to see what you all honestly feel. is this just another news item tailor made for the up comming election or is there/should their be a 9-11 feel to this?

I have basically the same thoughts. On my way home from work today, I noticed a few flags flying at half mast in front of businesses, but the rest were flown regularly. We just aren't even trying anymore.

[KevinM1]

We're becoming numb to it because mass shootings are happening with regularity. Shit, gang violence is barely a blip on the radar, at least nationally. The only reason this is a story is due to the number shot, who was shot, and the shooter trying to sloppily attach himself to foreign terrorism.

That's why crocodile tears and protestations that it's "too soon" to demand political change are a joke. Because the same thing happens every time those people get their way: the momentum slows, the pain and sadness and frustration fades, and nothing happens. Until another mass shooting.

And we're slowly reaching the point where there's no shock, just resignation. And it's beyond pathetic that so many self-proclaimed patriots seem absolutely fine with this becoming our new status quo. Even more so since they try to hide behind the bodies of the murdered. "It's too soon to talk about it. Let us grieve and pay respects." No. Fuck you. Every time we try to show decorum we lose ground on these issues. It's time for a different tactic.

Kudos to Anderson Cooper for being a real journalist and holding Pam Bondi's feet to the fire. You don't get to say you stand with the LGBT community when you've used your political position to attempt to deny them equal rights. You don't get to hide between "it's too soon" if you're part of the problem and are merely trying to not appear completely reprehensible in front of an international audience.

[abaris]

The only reason this is a story is due to the number shot, who was shot, and the shooter trying to sloppily attach himself to foreign terrorism.

I would reduce that to the number of victims. It's the highest score since Brejvik, the highest score in any US mass shooting, if I'm not mistaken. The nature of the victims certainly wouldn't be that important if the number of victims would have been considerably lower.