Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr! Now they're going after the gun shop.

[Stevie-Ray]

This is the 463,259,421st time that the media has engaged it's mouth to further it's anti-gun agenda before putting it's brain in gear.

I often wonder how they would view attacks on the first amendment.

 

[98C5]

I will be going to that gunstore in Roanoke this weekend to buy some goodies. I am a regular there. I will express my support for him and his store. He obeyed the law when he sold that pistol. The media needs to STOP pointing the finger in the wrong direction.

 

[carterbeauford]

preventing this would have been simple: just add another box to the form 4473 that reads:

Do you intend to use this firearm in a mass murder? Y/N

 

[vmi93]

I used to be a regular at Roanoke Firearms before we moved away two years ago. They were (presumably still are) one of the friendliest, most professional stores in Roanoke. I think they may also be one of the busiest, which means that five crime guns purchased there in the almost ten years they've been in business is probably a much better rate than many other stores.

I'm sure that the news report left that fact out, though. I hope they stay in business and prosper.

 

[Big Calhoun]

I'm not a big ABC watcher...well, I'm not a big TV watcher in general. What coverage I have caught locally has been fair and non-biased towards the gunshop owner. I read a piece on MSNBC in regards to the gun purchase, and IMO, it was also fair and non-bias. They quoted the owner stating that it was a legal purchase and that he didn't raise any red flags. They also made mention that he wouldn't have been flagged because his commitment to the facility was voluntary and short.

At the same time, I'd expect certain media outlets to spin this as they see fit. Last night, my wife was watching ABC and I stayed out to watch the segment on the situation. I found it interesting that they didn't bother to include their poll results. I've also found it interesting that some media outlets are seizing on the idea of high capacity magazines when witnesses and victims have reported hearing 10 or so shots, a pause, sounds that resembled a reload, and then the firing continued. Irresponsible journalism at its best!

 

[trueblue1776]

from what I have read this dude didn't like to speak and didn't make eye contact with people, I wouldn't sell someone a gun who didn't make eye contact with me. Seriously, that's just me though.

 

[Autolite]

Would the gun store have any liability insurance to protect them against damages from a civil proceeding? I am curious as to whether or not such coverage would be available in this "litigation happy" society of ours ...

 

[Old Fuff]

Yes it is, and many dealers have it. But if the dealer (as has ben reported) followed all of the rules, regulations and laws when he made the sale, a civil suit probably wouldn't go far. The dealer was pretty much cleared when the customer passed the background check, and there is no evidence of a second-person straw buy.

 

[rmt22]

why not go after the car dealers....

why not go after the car dealers when they sell a car and some idiot in a drunken stupor kills someone

or how bout the 7/11 for selling cigarettes

or McDonalds

McDonald's fries have killed more people in a year than all the wars put together.

being overweight is the NUMBER ONE killer in this country.

The level of hypocrisy is tough to stomach. The reality is even the Dem's are not coming after our guns anymore. 9/11 was the watershed for gun rights and until they start protecting people I don't see any politician having success pushing this agenda.

 

[SpookyRCON]

Gun Control is total red herring

I shop at Roanoke Firearms and just bought a new sidearm yesterday. The idea that the employees of that store had any way of knowing what Cho was going to do is asinine. The State Police Check would only trip an alarm as far as mental state if he had been involuntarily committed and as far as the "Stalking" behavior reported to VA Tech PD....that would only trip an alarm if the female victim had pressed charges! These guys are professional, knowledgeable experts and I firmly believe that they did everything by the book. Yes this incident was tragic and it is unfortunate that so many people are looking to politicize this incident. The reality is the only person to blame for what happened at VA Tech was the gunman....no one else. I have heard several people comment about how they would like to see CCP holders be allowed to carry in class. I have a CCP and even I am not 100% comfortable with that notion...I work as an armed security officer and I am also an Army Veteran. I go to the range on a regular basis of at least once every two weeks to practice. I am comfortable with carrying and have already made the commitment to engage a hostile and resist by any means, but I also have to acknowledge that not everyone has that same mentality. Giving a person who has not made the choice a gun and then putting them in a life or death situation worries me more than a little. The potential for AD/ND or innocents being caught in crossfire is too high too. Where is the answer? I don't know...maybe having those people who are CCP Qualified take a seperate course by VA Tech PD and have them registered with them so that in case something like this happens again they might know who in the classroom might have the means to resist an assault or end what I call the "Colombine Scenario" armed intruders in the dorms or lecture halls firing at will from inside the rooms. VA Tech PD have a lot of campus to cover at any point in time and for the last 4-5 years their slice of the University budget has been getting cut...honestly they need more people and training to have the capacity to better respond to the worst case scenario. This guy was a dedicated and highly motivated individual who lashed out in anger at society as whole...effectively a human smart bomb and it is almost impossible to stop one before an incident happens. All we can do now is hope to learn and improve the response plans and try to train more and do a better job of communicating the warning signs to PD/Faculty/Staff etc. VA Tech is a great school and I hope this does not permanently mar their reputation. God Bless those who responded to the crisis and my prayers go out to those who suffered so much loss at the hands of a madman.

 

[280PLUS]

hah, I knew a guy that sued McDonalds becasue he ate their food every day and it messed up his stomach. He lost because they said he should have been smart enough to NOT eat their food every day. He hated McDonalds after that.

 

[Autolite]

I personally don't have a problem with McDonalds and it is the right of any individual to eat whatever fast food they desire. However, I would support an all out ban of the McRib. In a civilized, and health conscious, society such as ours no honest person needs to own a McRib ...

 

[RNB65]

Markell is on Larry King right now.

He said that Seung-Hui was just a normal clean-cut college kid who came into the shop occasionally.

Markell said he had to shut down his website because of all the threats. Larry pointed out the irony of people who oppose guns making death threats against Markell.

Short but well done interview. Markell pointed out that someone dropped the ball by not making an issue of Seung-Hui's mental health.

 

[Outlaws]

Since gun shop owners have no way of predicting the future, how is this report even remotely worthy of air time?

The news quit being news when they started to have 24 hours to report stuff non stop. The fact is there is not 24 hours worth of news. There is barely an hour worth of news. I feel bad for parents of those victims, but their grief is not news. Asking how they feel after their child was shot is a stupid question. Asking someone who only goes to school and wasn't even involved just so they could fill air time during the immediate aftermath was the single most pathetic "reporting" I have seen in years.

 

[Max Beep]

5th time a gun they sold was used in a crime. I wonder how many total guns they've sold over the years? Probably in at least the thousands if not 10's of thousands. What is that 1/100th of a percent? Seems pretty low to me if you compare it to just about anything.

 

[Max Beep]

5th time a gun they sold was used in a crime. I wonder how many total guns they've sold over the years? Probably in at least the thousands if not 10's of thousands. What is that 5/100th's of a percent? Seems pretty low to me if you compare it to just about anything.

Forgive my math if this is screwed up, I did it in my head!!

 

[Onmilo]

Funny thing about the media.
The Media has absolutely no qualms about ruining a persons reputation and livelihood in defense of "Reporting the News" yet they acted with shock, awe, and disgust when simple citizens speaking their minds ruined a prominant writer for admonishing citizens who choose to own a product considered evil by the majority of ill informed and ignorant masses.

Information is king and an ability to make educated judgements on issues is one of the traits that seperates us from the rest of the animals.

Mental illness is an issue.
This medical condition affects thousands of people.
This mental condition and the records pertaining to the condition, in my opinion, should be released as public knowledge if the individual is attempting to purchase a firearm IF the medical condition is diagnosed as one that may cause the individual to act with irrational violence when placed under conditions of extreme stress or duress.

Even if this was allowed, I am convinced it will not stop all cases of violence any more than banning firearms.
It may only prevent extreme cases of perpetrated violence.

Throwing a businessman to the wolves solves nothing.

 

[Robert Hairless]

Note that the Roanoke Firearms web site now has the following message on it:

Website Is Temporarily Down

Note from all of us at Roanoke Firearms:

To those of you who came to this site to send messages of encouragement -- we appreciate your concern, kindness, and goodwill. We are as troubled by this trajedy as much as anyone, except, of course, those who lost friends or loved ones, and your words of support mean a great deal to us.

To those of you who came here to send hateful emails -- you are entitled to your opinion, no matter how misguided and inappropriate it may be. How many of you called the company who sold Timothy McVeigh the diesel fuel or fertilizer he used to make the bomb in Oklahoma City, or the company who rented him the Ryder truck? Should we outlaw diesel fuel and trucks? How many of you read about a drunk driver who crosses the center line and kills a family, then call the dealership who sold him the car? Should we outlaw automobiles? If we ban silverware, do you think there would be no more obesity?

One individual bears the responsibility for the heinous acts committed at Virginia Tech, and that is Cho Seung-Hui. If you think otherwise, you have not thought this through. Please be adult enough to reach out and help someone in need, rather than leaving anonymous, vitriolic emails on our site.

God bless us all.

Website Updated April 18, 2007 @ 18:00

The solution to this problem is simple. The police need to arrest students before they become violent instead of afterwards.

 

[SpeedAKL]

I've been to Roanoke Firearms several times. They're all really nice, straight-up guys and I'll definitely consider giving them business for future purchases. It's so terrible that this had to happen to them, I can't imagine what they're going through

The media has been terrible with regards to this, not just in terms of guns either. A friend of mine had her roommate killed in Norris Hall, ABC called her that night asking her to go on the air and denounce Dr. Steger, or find someone else to do it. They're trying to stir up as much controversy as possible and attempting to use the students as tools to do it. Luckily, most of us seem to know better.

Roanoke Firearms did nothing wrong. The people there should in no way feel responsible for this. If anything, it was the government's fault for providing inadequate information to them about his mental health condition.

Honestly though, you can't REALLY blame anyone for all this except the shooter.

 

[politicalgeek]

I checked the site earlier and it is down, with the owners message that was posted above.

Any of this store's regulars know if he sells through his website? Something like parts, ammo etc.? I wouldn't mind sending some business his way.

 

[Old Fuff]

A friend of mine had her roommate killed in Norris Hall, ABC called her that night asking her to go on the air and denounce Dr. Steger, or find someone else to do it. They're trying to stir up as much controversy as possible and attempting to use the students as tools to do it. Luckily, most of us seem to know better.

Tells you a lot about ABC in particular, and the mainstream media in general doesn't it? Unfortunately the advertisers that support that worthless pile of .... well never hear of this. :banghead:

 

[denfoote]

I have a question.
What kind of visa did this guy have??
Was it a student visa or permanent resident alien??
Can people with student visas purchase a weapon??

 

[Clipper]

I see that CNN is reporting that the Ding-Dong also bought (GASP) ammo from Dick's Sporting Goods...What rocket scientist thought that was important? I only noticed when I tuned in to see how hysterical they were getting. I notice also that CNN is (not unexpectedly) devoting much more airtime to keeping the pot well stirred than Fox News.

 

[atblis]

News

I actually haven't found the news to be that bad. They seem more interested in why he passed a background check with his known mental health issues.

 

[gm]

Its not the gun shops fault.Its the creation of a victim zone and the killers intent and carrying it out that are to blame.Whats to stop someone from using stolen ID's to get around a check if they are intent on committing this kind of event?Dealers arent magicians or mind readers and cant predict the future.


old fuff, we've blocked out ABC from our channel selection list.