Shooting at UAH

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http://blog.al.com/breaking/2010/02/news_links_shooting_at_univers.html

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It was a sea of flashing blue lights and the LEOs were running towards the building where the shooting occurred. I give a big thumbs up for their response, but it's true that, had those faculty members been armed, they would have had a chance to stop the shooter. The shooter might not even have tried this stunt had faculty and staff been armed.

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SFCRetired wrote:

From the different accounts that I have read, it appears that the alleged shooter had just been denied tenure and, according to some stories, was on the verge of dismissal. According to those same stories, a potentially lucrative project she had been working on would have been retained by the university.

All of this is, of course, speculation.

I will add this personal opinion: Even if one or more of the victims had been armed, I believe that the shock of seeing a fellow faculty member pull a weapon and start firing would have been sufficient to delay their reaction until it was too late. Remember that these folks, for the most part, do not think like the majority of us do as far as situational awareness and self defense.

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True, but better to have a fighting chance than nothing at all.

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Oh but wait, it gets better... the shooter had a gun malfunction at one point. One of the "survivors" was able to run and hide.

>,<

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SFCRetired wrote:

I will add this personal opinion: Even if one or more of the victims had been armed, I believe that the shock of seeing a fellow faculty member pull a weapon and start firing would have been sufficient to delay their reaction until it was too late. Remember that these folks, for the most part, do not think like the majority of us do as far as situational awareness and self defense.

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Hey SFC,

I'll grant, if you're indeed retired military as your screen name suggests, you have a level of training (and possibly experience) that only a minority receive in this country. However, please don't stereotype educators. Not all of them are the yuppie types you might think, especially here in the south. Furthermore, if you just write them off, you'll never have an opportunity to help change their mindset.

You may remember the Pearl (MS) High School shooting incident from 1997, where the assistant principal stopped the shooter (who had killed 3 & wounded 7) by drawing on him with a .45. Unfortunately, the principal had to run all the way out to his truck to retrieve the handgun, wasting precious time. I'm sure there are many more like him who are quietly prepared to defend life in our schools.

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SFCRetired wrote:

....I am, indeed, a retired Sergeant First Class of the United States Army. My career started over forty years agoand includes terms in theRegular Army, National Guard, and Active Reserve. The largest amount of time was spent in the Regular Army.

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Thank you for your service to our country and for your continued support of the principles of its Constitution.

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SFCRetired wrote:

I will add this personal opinion: Even if one or more of the victims had been armed, I believe that the shock of seeing a fellow faculty member pull a weapon and start firing would have been sufficient to delay their reaction until it was too late. Remember that these folks, for the most part, do not think like the majority of us do as far as situational awareness and self defense.

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The question isn't really whether or not other armed faculty could engage and defeat a lone surprise shooter, but would a lone surprise shooter attempt such an act to begin with, if they had a reason to suspect, or even no reason to not suspect, that the others in room might just be armed, and able to fight back.

TFred

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SFCRetired wrote:

TFred wrote:

SFCRetired wrote:

I will add this personal opinion: Even if one or more of the victims had been armed, I believe that the shock of seeing a fellow faculty member pull a weapon and start firing would have been sufficient to delay their reaction until it was too late. Remember that these folks, for the most part, do not think like the majority of us do as far as situational awareness and self defense.

Click to expand...

The question isn't really whether or not other armed faculty could engage and defeat a lone surprise shooter, but would a lone surprise shooter attempt such an act to begin with, if they had a reason to suspect, or even no reason to not suspect, that the others in room might just be armed, and able to fight back.

TFred

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From what is coming out about this particular shooter, I do not think that knowing for sure that others were armed would be a deterrent. I'm not a psychiatrist or psychologist, but, if this person (or any other person) is delusional to a sufficient degree, I don't think there is very much that would have stopped her.

At this point, it is all speculation on our parts, but the bits and pieces we are getting point to an individual who has been disturbed for a number of years. That said, I foresee an insanity plea that may very well be successful.

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Good point... I guess given these particular circumstances, it's hard to tell whether that would have mattered or not. Or if it would have mattered, then how might she have otherwise tried to hurt those she was angry with.

As with Cho at VT, the issue is one of mental health, not firearms, despite the efforts of the anti-gunners to make it so.

TFred

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TFred wrote:

SFCRetired wrote:

TFred wrote:

SFCRetired wrote:

I will add this personal opinion: Even if one or more of the victims had been armed, I believe that the shock of seeing a fellow faculty member pull a weapon and start firing would have been sufficient to delay their reaction until it was too late. Remember that these folks, for the most part, do not think like the majority of us do as far as situational awareness and self defense.

Click to expand...

The question isn't really whether or not other armed faculty could engage and defeat a lone surprise shooter, but would a lone surprise shooter attempt such an act to begin with, if they had a reason to suspect, or even no reason to not suspect, that the others in room might just be armed, and able to fight back.

TFred

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From what is coming out about this particular shooter, I do not think that knowing for sure that others were armed would be a deterrent. I'm not a psychiatrist or psychologist, but, if this person (or any other person) is delusional to a sufficient degree, I don't think there is very much that would have stopped her.

At this point, it is all speculation on our parts, but the bits and pieces we are getting point to an individual who has been disturbed for a number of years. That said, I foresee an insanity plea that may very well be successful.

Click to expand...

Good point... I guess given these particular circumstances, it's hard to tell whether that would have mattered or not. Or if it would have mattered, then how might she have otherwise tried to hurt those she was angry with.

As with Cho at VT, the issue is one of mental health, not firearms, despite the efforts of the anti-gunners to make it so.

TFred

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As we know researchers have found that 60% of convicted felons admitted to not targeting people that they knew were armed. That still lieves the other 40%, which I suspect are the mentally challenged or mentally deranged. This proffessor would probably fall within the latter.