One mom’s reaction to the Las Vegas shooting

Not again. NOT AGAIN. But yes, again. I turned on the TV this morning and there it was. And I quickly turned it off and snuck bits of it when the kids weren’t in the room. Because they do not need to know the kind of world they live in.

I am SO SICK of this feeling. I bring my kids to a movie theater and someone comes in with a backpack and I get a pit in my stomach. Or a guy walks into Starbucks and walks straight back to the bathroom and I watch. And wait. Ready to do what, I don’t know. Or I drop my kids off at school and I feel bad I yelled at them to get their shoes on this morning because what if something bad happens today.

This is the world we live in.

A world where a mad man can go into a building and open fire on a crowd of innocent people and children with an automatic weapon (or eight if the report I heard is correct). How many people have to die before we say enough is enough? I don’t know what the answer is, but I know what we’re doing right now is not working. This…

image by David Becker/ Getty Images

… is not working.

And yes, I know there are a lot of people who read this blog who own guns, and I don’t usually talk much about it because I don’t want to alienate anyone, but something has to change. Do I think some people should be able to own guns? Yes. But a regular person should NOT be allowed to own an automatic weapon that can destroy the lives of thousands of people in less than ten minutes.

Mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, grandmas, children, babies. BABIES!! That girl in the picture above, that girl is someone’s baby.

In case you’re curious, this is the law in Nevada:

Nevada is an open carry state that does not require gun owners have licenses or register their weapons with the government. There is no waiting period to purchase a gun, nor are there any restrictions on the number of firearms an individual can possess, or any limit on the amount of ammunition a person can buy at a time. (info from Bustle.com)

And I just googled gun shows just to see what comes up and there are multiple gun shows every weekend in Nevada all year long. And yes, I know that most of the people at these shows are nice, good, wonderful people. Most. But not all. I’m not worried about the good people. Wait, yes, I am.

Last night hundreds of people were shot and just five days from now, people will line up at this Friday’s gun show to ooh and ahh and fork over money for more weapons. Please, someone tell me why this is okay. Because I don’t understand.

Usually I tell myself I’ll mourn today and talk about the laws tomorrow because today is about being sad and tomorrow will be about action. Not this time.

Usually I want to make people smile and laugh. Not today. Today I want you to be sad. Feel the weight of this all day long. Think about all of the wonderful, happy people who were just wiped out last night by a single person with a ridiculous amount of powerful weapons and ammunition. And ask yourself, is this the world you want your children to live in?

It’s time to do something. Columbine was the time to do something. Aurora was the time to do something. Virginia Tech was the time to do something. Sandy Hook was the time to do something. Las Vegas is the time to do something. How long is this list going to get before we do something?

If you hate this as much as I do and want it to end, please don’t forget to like and share this. Thank you. 




There are 188 comments for this article
  1. Peggy Hatfield at 10:31 am

    I totally agree with you! Banning automatic rifles (which no one in the general public needs) is necessary. It would not take away the right to own handguns at all. And Nevada should be registering the gun owners. It makes me sick everytime also.

    • Clark at 2:44 pm

      I disagree with registering, history has proven that always leads to confiscation

          • Jane at 8:55 pm

            except if you further read that article the confiscations weren’t at all tied to a registry they were tied to the mandatory evacuations of the poor and minority communities. the NYT article quoted by this particularly right-winged publication mentions that the gov’t didn’t want those evacuated to take guns (or pets BTW) on buses (seems reasonably sensible). After the horrifying handling of Katrina by the Bush Admin (see book on Blackwater for insight into those who made a fortune off of the disaster). Yes, there was a statement at the time that no one but police should be openly carrying weapons outside of the home (this was later retracted) – this was hardly a door to door confiscation of register weapons. There was never any widespread confiscation, and the weapons were even returned. That seems a poor excuse to be anti-registry – you have to register your car and house and schedule 1 drugs and drones and boats … all of these things are listed in a public or gov’t space a gun registry shouldn’t even be argued over.

        • John Doe at 8:36 am

          The ignorance and misinformation in the post, and the comments, are overwhelming to say the least. I don’t even know where to begin. LOL

      • Zinger at 12:34 am

        Canada has had a registry for a long time now and nothing has been confiscated.

        • Bob Blawblaw at 9:29 am

          Canada no longer has a registry. It was turfed about 8-10 years ago. If you have a non-restricted PAL (Possesion/Aquisition License) you can buy a semi-automatic long gun and ammunition simply by showing the license. There is no record kept of the transaction.

          There are clip limits of 5 rounds for many higher powered long guns, however you can buy high capacity clips – they just need to be pinned. The Pins are easy to remove to expand the capacity of the clip.

          There are HEAVY Laws on hand guns/restricted firearms.

          • Giamono at 10:04 am

            Bob, I’m not sure where you are getting your information from but as a Canadian citizen I can tell you that firearm registration is still in effect. You are correct when you said that you need a PAL to purchase a weapon. However any firearm you purchase under that PAL is registered to you. The serial number of the firearm and the license number on the PAL are used to store that information in a Database of registered firearm owner. There are also a lot of other restrictions regarding the use, transportation and storage of a firearm.

            For example any transportation of a restricted firearm (any semi-automatic) needs to be more or less approved by the RCMP. If you want to take your semi-automatic pistol to the range for practice you need to first call your local RCMP to inform them you are transporting a weapon. Give them your route that you are taking, and not stray from that route and that route must be the most direct possible. If you fail to comply with any of the rules and restrictions on owning firearms you will have your PAL revoked and any owned firearms are then confiscated (there may be further penalties as well that I am unaware of at this time).

          • Staples7 at 10:12 am

            People like you are what is wrong with your country. Why is it so d**n important to you to have guns? Enough with the gun culture already. And don’t respond with it’s your right to protect yourself with a firearm because NOBODY needs a semi/automatic weapon to protect themselves. So many people in he world do just fine without any guns to allegedly protect themselves. You love guns and want to shoot them – go to a range.

          • Mike at 9:43 pm

            You definitely do not live in Canada and couldn’t be more wrong. Moron.

          • Josh at 10:13 am

            Giamono is trolling. Bob is correct. There is no gun registration in Canada for un-restricted firearms. ie. Shotguns or rifles, semi-automatic included (it’s common to use a semi for hunting, limited to a small number of shots of course) We had a registry, but it was abolished a few years ago. Again, this is for unrestricted firearms. Restriced is different. (ie handguns). You do need a licence however for all firearms, but each gun you buy isn’t specifically registered with its serial number. Google “gun registration canada rcmp” and you’ll see.

        • Josh at 10:12 am

          Giamono is just trolling and Zinger is wrong on the registry. There is no gun registration in Canada for un-restricted firearms. ie. Shotguns or rifles, semi-automatic included (it’s common to use a semi for hunting, limited to a small number of shots of course) We had a registry, but it was abolished a few years ago. Again, this is for unrestricted firearms. Restricted is different. (ie handguns). You do need a licence however for all firearms, but each gun you buy isn’t specifically registered with its serial number. Google “gun registration canada rcmp” and you’ll see.

      • Bev at 10:49 am

        ..give your head a shake ….seriously ???? Unless with mental health conditions which in turn that person should NOT OWN FIREARMS ….why would it lead to confiscation???? We use registering in canada…… seems to be working out just fine …….

        • Josh Skinner at 10:10 am

          There is no gun registration in Canada for un-restricted firearms. ie. Shotguns or rifles, semi-automatic included (it’s common to use a semi for hunting, limited to a small number of shots of course) We had a registry, but it was abolished a few years ago. Again, this is for unrestricted firearms. Restriced is different. (ie handguns). You do need a licence however for all firearms, but each gun you buy isn’t specifically registered with its serial number. Google “gun registration canada rcmp” and you’ll see.

      • rachael at 9:55 pm

        BULLSHIT. How can they take it away from you when they can’t even enact laws to control guns.

    • Mike at 2:53 pm

      Maybe we should make it so all the automatic rifles are all registered, and you can’t buy new ones. We need minimum ten year prison sentences for anyone with an illegal machine gun, and require fingerprints, photographs, and extensive background checks for those that already have them.

      Oh wait, that’s already the law. And has been since 1934…

      • David Aaron at 4:14 pm

        Automatic firearms are legal in Nevada, so it’s rather hard to enforce that in a state that has virtually no gun laws.

        • Robert at 7:40 pm

          Uh, Automatic weapons are not legal in Nevada, You need a very stringent FLL with additions to own an Automatic weapon anywhere in the country. They are not a walk into a store and buy them type weapon.You do have to have a background check under the Brady Law and it even cost more to get that done. It’s not the gun and it’s not the laws It’s an evil person doing and evil deed and sometimes there is no stopping that. We can all talk until we’re blue in the face and there are valid points on both sides. As a former LEO I find the topic very fascinating just for the sheer ignorance on both sides of the fence with this issue.

          • Kristina at 9:41 am

            Stop saying they are illegal but you need a special license to have one. That doesn’t make them illegal. It makes them accessible to some. Period. There is no reason someone needs to own multiple assault rifles, or multiple rifles, or multiple hunting guns. When you can walk into 2 or 3 gun stores and buy multiple guns in one year, the system is broken. Do we need to ban all guns, no. Do we need stricter gun laws, absolutely.

      • Dave at 7:13 pm

        Right. And it’s nowhere near enough. Not even close. Thanks for proving the point.

    • BRYAN at 6:57 pm

      Automatic weapons are already banned. If someone wants to have that type of firearm they go through a one year process of a very extensive background check. They get inspected regularly and checked for proper paperwork anytime they transport the firearm. The average Joe also cannot afford it either. These guns cost $20,000+ for the cheap ones.

      The hardest thing to protect against is the lone wolf attacks.

      • Tamara at 10:58 pm

        Yes! Automatic weapons of any form have been illegal to own since the 1980s.

        • Staples7 at 10:15 am

          Aren’t there conversion kits that you can legally purchase? I’m not sure – just asking.

          Semi-autos are capable of creating mass carnage as well.

          Yes they are pricey but rich people have mental illness too.

    • Leo Melancon at 8:54 pm

      There is a federal law making full automatic weapons illegal. A person can apply for a permit to get one., but it involves more and deeper background checks and more money. Sometimes the permitting process takes up to a year. In order to buy any gun from a FFL which includes all gun stores and most people displaying at gun shows, people have to get a permit to carry or permit to purchase. The process takes up to 2 weeks. That includes a FBI background check. It is a federal check(NICS) and Nevada is included for these checks. Please don’t listen to rumors. Consult someone who knows the laws. However, there is a black market out there. You can get anything you want with enough money. The black market is run by criminals and anyone buying on the black market is also a criminal. We already have laws that cover this. More laws won’t make a difference.

      • Kristina at 1:30 am

        How can you say it’s illegal to have an automatic weapon and then in the next sentence say you need a permit and it can take up to a year? That doesn’t sound like a law that makes much sense, nor do most of the gun laws in this country. Agreed a lone wolf attack is the hardest attack to prevent, but how can we not try? It blows my mind the response from people who are so afraid of gun laws; the govt will take them away, we need to protect ourselves, it’s our right as Americans, etc etc. Well it’s my right as an American to not be scared at a concert, at a movie theater, when I drop my toddler off at daycare. How can we have it both ways?

        • Jake at 2:43 am

          Do you really think if the gun law is banned that there won’t be terrorist attacks such as this one. I have been reading blogs, tweets and so on all day from people with a similar idiotic thought process as yourself. This is the first comment I have dropped. There is good and there is evil, there is rite and wrong. You can take away the privilege to own, collect and carry a firearm in this beautiful country we call America.. and your that “dumb” (I couldn’t think of a better word than dumb because it fits) that you think that the wrong person will not get their hands on a deadly weapon to do what they do. To be honest I would be more scared than ever knowing that the only people that have a lethal weapon is the law enforcement (good) and the non-lawabiding citizens (evil). At the end of the day there is good and evil, and in a tragity like Sunday night in Las Vegas good still came out on top. It was very unfortunate that someone would make those kinds of decisions but from what I saw from clips, pictures and articles the American people stood up, and worked together to get through the biggest single terrorist attack on our soil (what I hear). I have ranted a bit and wish I could have done this all day to morons like yourself who decide to make this a political battle, but I have been searching for the positive and have found it, United we stand!!

          • Aunt Sally at 9:14 am

            What a sad dumb f**k you are. The comments of people sick of gums and the ridiculous second amendment or whatever the f**k it is. If you feel the need to own guns you really need to look at the size of your hands or d**k because that’s where your problems lie.

          • rcutchin at 9:16 am

            Jake, calling someone an “idiot,” a “moron,” and “dumb” is not the way to facilitate meaningful dialogue and honest debate. Before you insult someone’s intelligence, you might want to figure out the difference between “your” and “you’re” and “rite” and “right” first.

          • Kristina at 9:33 am

            Wow. And you are exactly the person I’m talking about above. Funny how you instantly assume I’m saying you have no right to carry a weapon and/or protect yourself. I never said I wanted guns to be completely gone, but why do you need an assault rifle to protect yourself from the evil? Or 20 for that matter?? It’s ludacris to think that’s normal. And that’s only for protection. I’m not naive. There is good and evil and where there is a will, there is a way. BUT there’s also common f**king sense. If something is broken in the system, which it obviously is (you don’t see mass shootings and this many dead/injured from gun violence in other developed countries), then we need to fix it. Even if that only stops ONE attack, that’s a positive in my book. As Americans we should not have to stand and work through any attacks. It annoys the hell out of me that it’s always mentioned on TV how Americans have come together through every major tragedy,like we don’t come together as a community for all the good things that happen in life too. It’s sad that you are so stuck in some tunnel vision of guns guns guns, that you can’t even see what’s happening to America right in front of your face.

          • Staples7 at 10:17 am

            Not a terroist attack as far as we know. Just some sick man who had access to a lot of weapons that have the capability of taking tons of people out in minutes. No valid reason for anyone to own this type of weapon.

          • Claire at 1:58 pm

            Nobody needs guns capable of killing and wounding HUNDREDS of people in 10 minutes from 1/4 mile away. Nobody! Yes, there will still be “bad guys,” but a bad guy with a handgun is nowhere near as dangerous! For God’s sake, allowing civilians to own semi- or fully-automatic weapons is asinine.

        • Robin at 7:39 am

          Unfortunately we can’t have it both ways. Bad people, mentally unstable people will find a way to get the guns they want regardless of how many laws are put into place.? If we want more legislation, how about focusing on making mental health benefits more readily available for people.

          • Kristina at 9:38 am

            Agree completely. There needs to be a lot of things addressed, not just gun laws. I think as someone on this thread mentioned, mental health is glorified. Just as the NRA owns the pockets of the politicians not willing to change, so do the pharmaceuticals who supply the drugs for the mentally ill. It’s a battle that we can’t win. Which makes me sad for our future and my kids.

          • Staples7 at 10:19 am

            Or you make legislation so you cannot buy weapons capable of this type of mass assault. Because even the sanest people can snap and your mental illnesss programs would have no benefit on this type.

        • Vincent Lipke at 2:43 pm

          CHICAGO had laws to bam all weapons for many years. There are hundreds of gun related crimes monthly, sometimes on just weekends. Proven there more laws don’t work, isn’t the answer. Criminals don’t follow laws

          • Rose at 10:20 pm

            Look harder. More than half the guns used in those assaults were purchased out of state, specifically from the surrounding states… With almost no gun laws.

            Gun laws do work.

            No one NEEDS to own a powerful gun. Those should stay physically at shooting ranges so gun fans can go try them out to their hearts content. There is absolutely NO reason for anyone to have one in their homes.

            It’s hard to describe just how insane the gun loving US sounds from , well, just about any other developed nation.

    • Joe Saswic at 10:00 pm

      All of the ones he had were modified to fire automatic, wouldn’t have changed a thing.

    • Glen Sams at 8:33 pm

      In case you don’t know, automatic rifles are already illegal to own, and have been for decades unless you have a machine gun license. That license is quite involved and expensive. So, if he had automatic rifles they were already illegal. I’m not sure how much more illegal you you could make them.

    • Aurelia at 6:18 am

      You’re an idiot. Auto rifles are already illegal and legal gun owners are already registered. Should drugs be illegal too? Oh wait they are… That hands stopped anyone! Wow weird huh

  2. Stacy Casebolt at 10:36 am

    I agree, and my family is a gun owning family. So many people can handle it fine, but it only takes one to ruin so many lives.

    • Robin at 7:57 am

      I agree. It only takes one. It only takes one person to get behind the wheel of a vehicle and plow it into a crowd, or drive drunk… so should we take steps to make cars illegal? Seems like the same argument. We can’t erase evil people who make bad decisions… no matter how much I wish we could. There will always be those in this world who seek to do evil. We can’t live in fear of that 1/10 of a percent out there. I kiss my kids and spouse every morning and say a little prayer that they are kept safe through the day, but it is rediculous to live in fear of what might happen. Any day that you get into your car your could be killed in a car accident (which is a much greater likelihood than being shot and killed even with the increased deaths), but do you cringe every time you get in your car? If every car accident in America was plastered all over the media the way these tragedies are, we would be TERRIFIED to get behind the wheel of our cars.
      I get it. It is scary stuff… but there are so many things that would seem just as scary if the media handled it the same way they do these tragedies. They just bring our attention and focus to one of MANY THINGS that face us every day. They control what we focus on. So I choose to focus on the good… I saw an interview w Mr. Rogers one time and he talked about what his mother used to tell him any time there was a tragedy. She said to look for the helpers. Where ever there is tragedy there will be even more helpers than the bad people who committed the evil. So I challenge you to “look for the helpers”.

      • Rose at 10:35 pm

        The car analogy again, sorry but it makes no sense. A car is a useful machine to move around. A gun only has one purpose, to kill.

        By having a gun in your home your chances of meeting a violent end goes UP significantly, not down. The statistics are solid and consistent on this.

        40 years living in Canada. Number of times I’ve seen someone pull a gun, police or otherwise, zero.

        18 months living in the US. Number of times I saw someone pull out a gun, two, one by police. that and the appaling healthcare (non) system is why I quit a promising job and moved back here.

      • Lisa at 3:14 pm

        “I kiss my kids and spouse every morning and say a little prayer that they are kept safe through the day”
        Robin, good for you. If only so many of us could be that lucky. Its a roll of the dice and these days those odds are greatly stacked against us. Something has to change! Gun bravado is rampant and it’s sickening. I assure you, the day you find out it’s YOUR child, YOUR spouse, YOUR loved one, you will have an entirely different outlook. Until you experience a senseless tragedy like so many of us have, you don’t get to tell us how we should just go with the flow of good & evil. F*you. Come talk to me once you’ve had to go identify your child with the back of their head blown off. Then I’ll tell you to “look for the helpers” to get you through.

  3. Jodie at 10:46 am

    Guns aren’t the problem. Evil is. Evil will always be here, if the gun laws change, they will still find guns. It starts in our homes, teaching our children love and compassion and acceptance.

    • JF at 11:05 am

      But well armed evil is more dangerous. Guns aren’t the entirety of the problem. I don’t think anyone has ever said that. I don’t think anyone believes a good person lays their hands on a gun and suddenly has the urge to go out and kill massive amounts of people. That’s just not a thing. I own guns, we have a rifle and a handgun. We may eventually own more guns, my husband and I enjoy shooting. What we won’t have, because I strongly believe we shouldn’t be able to have it, is a semi automatic rifle with a 30 round clip capable of mowing down a group of innocent people. Know why? Because I don’t need to be able to do that! And anyone who thinks they might need to do that, well, they probably shouldn’t be able to get one. It is beyond me how this is beyond people’s comprehension. And he whole argument that “bad people will find a way”, well, sure, that’s true. Does it mean that that “way” should be as convenient as showing up at any number of gun shows? Or just walking in to a store and walking out with a gun (and for those of you that say that’s impossible, you are dead wrong. Maybe you can’t do it in your state, but you can do it in mine.) Why is the idea of making sure people who own guns know how to use them safely and are in a good mental state to own a tool that has the sole purpose of killing such an outrageous idea? 2nd Amendment, right? Screw that. Screw right the hell outta hear with that. Because a bunch of dead racists with little more than an elementary school education said you should be able to own them? That’s about the dumbest reason I have ever heard. There was NO WAY they could have foreseen what weapons would become. Go buy a freaking musket, I’m fine with that. Have 10 of ’em. Good luck taking out, like, anyone.

      • PW at 1:53 pm

        Perfectly said. We own guns as well. Law makers need to start choosing human lives over everything else. EVERYTHING ELSE! Man, the world would be an amazing place!

      • Jake at 3:08 am

        Your an idiot.. If you need me to expand I will be more than happy too. If you don’t want me to expand I sure as he’ll hope that you left my beautiful country.

        • Dorothy at 3:24 am

          Jake, before you start calling anyone an idiot, you should really polish up your grammar. Your credibility is about 0 right now.

    • Kim Ross at 4:35 pm

      Australia had one mass shooting. One. Guns are banned now, and we don’t really hear about this happening in Australia, do We?
      Time to change your mindset.

      • Leo Melancon at 9:07 pm

        Wrong! Guns aren’t banned in Australia. Just had a guest at my place and listened to him. He owns several guns legally. We also don’t hear all the news from Australia. Some they don’t want the rest of the world to hear.

        • Penelope Rice at 1:44 am

          Guns ARE banned here! There are some people who are able to have them, eg farmers, police but nobody can own a semi-automatic weapon. Of course some criminals are able to get hold of guns, but we don’t have mass shootings. There are people who are shot….usually other criminals. We don’t have news we don’t want others to know about, nothing particularly awful happens

    • Lester at 9:24 pm

      So then why isn’t this happening in Canada…..where the gun laws are quite the opposite!!

    • Rose at 10:25 pm

      Of course guns are the problem. Do try to destroy 59 lives in 10 minutes with a knife… making guns harder to obtain IS a solution.

  4. Kristin at 10:52 am

    I hate to start a disagreement over something so horrible but Jodie, yes guns are the problem. Look at Australia, they changed their gun laws and have had zero, ZERO mass shootings since. This is something the can be corrected and needs to be looked at. I’m a mom of two boys and I’m terrified to let them out of my site, the world and especially the U.S. needs to re-evaluate where we are heading.

  5. Julie at 10:56 am

    I moved from St. Louis to Las Vegas and I was shocked by the amount of guns here. People sell them on swap sites on fb etc. people drive around with hello kitty stickers on the back of their car yet each hello kitty is holding a semi. It’s insane and disheartening. I live in the suburbs of vegas and love it but am really shocked and disheartened about all the guns. I personally don’t like guns. Feel like they cause more problems than they solve. I at a minimum think semi automatic rifles which were really made for combat have no business being sold to the general population. There’s honestly just no reason for it. You don’t hunt with them, etc.

  6. Karl pasiak at 11:41 am

    Guns are not the problem. People are the problem. I do not agree with Nevada gun laws. No ordinary citizen needs to own a revolver. Read about the church shooting in Nashville TN however where an average citizen carrier held down the gunman and saved potentially more lives from being taken. Let’s take a look on society. We used to lock up crazy people. Now we write them a persciption and set them free. He hand out antidepressants like candy. Look up the side effects. Stop glorifying self diagnosed anxiety and depression. The consequences are terrifying.

    • Linda Jamison at 12:03 am

      You’re absolutely right Karl. I bet we’ll find out that the shooter was taking antidepressants. People don’t understand the side affects of theses drugs. This is such a horrible tragedy, and I pray for all the families that lost loved ones.

  7. Dee at 11:56 am

    Well said. My heart hurts for all of those families that lost a loved one in Vegas. I did the same thing this morning. Although my little one is too small to understand she is starting to ask questions about sirens on the tv and police officers and I don’t know what to tell her. When will our lawmakers understand that enough is enough. How many more innocent victims must be in the wrong place at the wrong time?

  8. Sam at 12:13 pm

    Perhaps you should let all the information come in before you make a judgement. Perhaps you shouldn’t politicize a tragedy. Perhaps if you are going to politicize a tragedy you should know that automatic weapons are already illegal in every state, so if that is indeed what the shooter was using, it was already illegal to own. Educate yourself on how many mass casualty events are stopped because of educated gun owners who step up. Maybe we should place the blame on evil people who do evil things. But go ahead, call for your ban on “automatic weapons” that already exists.

    • Kris at 12:35 pm

      Maybe you might want to check your facts. “Automatic weapons are illegal in every state”…..”ban already exists”. YOU are absolutely wrong.

      • Jenna at 12:47 pm

        Thank you!! I wish more people would get the laws right! You have to have an expensive and very hard to get class 3 FFL license to own one and last I checked they don’t give them out easily!Chief law enforcement officer in your community signing off on it

      • David Aaron at 4:23 pm

        Don’t politicize a tragedy? Really? Politics created the lax gun laws that enabled the shooter to bring 20 firearms, including an AR 15 and AK 47 into his hotel room. And politics will change the laws to prevent these mass shootings from taking place in the future.

    • Philip carey at 12:43 pm

      Fully automatic weapons are banned nationwide however you can set up “gun trusts” and place automatic weapons, silencers, and other paramilitary equipment in them and, once approved by your local sheriff you can use them.

    • Trish at 2:46 pm

      Evil people will do evil things… Psychopathic criminals spend time developing plans to pull off this sort of horrific event… They have no qualms about going over and above, in order to get what they want, so that they can do what this evil killer did…THEY WILL BREAK THE LAW, in order to get whatever they need, to bring their sick plans to fruition. Are we really gonna delude ourselves into thinking MORE LAWS will be the answer?! Do we really think EVIL will be controlled with MORE LAWS?!
      From THE BEGINNING…the LAW could never accomplish what it was intended to – ONLY JESUS can. We can complicate it with so many ideologies and theories and quick – or not so quick – fixes…but, the TRUTH is this: there is an enemy and he is alive and he is EVIL.
      Stay prayed up…it’ll get worse, IN THE WORLD.
      Love, and the gospel of PEACE… so UNDERRATED.

    • Rose at 10:52 pm

      Not politicize a tragedy?? This is about ending senseless daily violence, not politics.

      Every time an immigrant does any violence the president jumps on twitter with ‘see see I told you those brown people are dangerous!’ how is that not politicizing violence? But if it’s a white man, well he was clearly deranged, congrats to the first respondents, blah blah.

      If the murderer was taking any meds all of the media will jump in with ‘ah it was his meds, he was clearly mentally ill!’ offer money to mental health research perhaps. But wouldn’t it be easier to just NOT have efficient killing machines in the hands of citizens… The laws are moot if a semi can be turned into an auto with a free kit and a few tools no?

      Nuclear bombs don’t kill people, people kill people! So let the (clearly level headed-not) leader of North Korea have them no? Where does the analogy end?

  9. Philip carey at 12:39 pm

    Couple of things, in Australia there has been mass shootings since the Tasmania shooting in 1996 – for example in 2011 a man shot and killed three people and wounded another three; two of whom were police officers. The gun ban in Australia is not the success its represented to be. The United States has a unique paranoia that was demonstrated by Orson Wells in 1938 with his radio version of War of the Worlds – members of his radio audience were out in force shooting at water towers, aircraft and each other. It takes little for people to feel threatened here and reach for a gun. I served in the UK military and feel the sincere need to protect my wife and daughter from craziness like this but I also support a nationwide ban on all assault rifles. If legislation is introduced I will happily smash my $6000 H&K rifle to pieces on my driveway – until then I keep it locked up or take it to my gun range. Make no mistake about it; the legislation may arrest some of these horrific incidents but it won’t completely eradicate gun violence. This is a fabulous but young country – it is time to start growing up.

    • Maire at 2:42 pm

      But you’re also comparing two that occurred in a 15 year time frame to the, what, at least 8 that occurred in the US in the past 10 years?
      Also, I believe Port Arthur is what set the gun laws in place and probably isn’t the most fair representation of the gun ban, because it didn’t actually exist yet. That leaves a single shooting in about 21 one years with a death count under five. In the US it feels like we’re lucky if the count actually doesn’t break at least 10 victims.
      In my opinion, with those stats, the ban seems very effective. That being said, I know there are nations that do very well with guns, such as Switzerland, but the US is neither of those nations. If we need to try a ban to see how it works for us, so be it, it can always be changed, but it’s better than sitting and doing nothing, watching the masses fall around us. Maybe the country needs its nice things taken away for awhile, such as any bratty child, to learn maturity.
      But I do agree that the nation has some serious growing up to do.

  10. Heather at 1:52 pm

    Fully automatic weapons are already banned.

    • Philip carey at 2:05 pm

      No they’re not, you can get a fully automatic assault rifle with a silencer in this country.

  11. LANamtro at 2:08 pm

    my family owns many guns. I carry. Most of the shootings mentioned, guns were bought legally. i am all for registration, like a car. That way ownership transfers and these Gun shows have to keep records of sales. i also support back ground checks at all venues. Yes im checked out thoroughly when i buy one from a store but i can walk out the door and sell it to anyone. just like s*x trafficking and drugs..it wont go away. but there is more we can do, there is always more.

  12. Amanda at 2:13 pm

    It’s not just about gun laws, it has a lot to do with mental illness in the country. everyone is so quick to talk about gun laws, but what about the millions of people walking around this country with some sort of mental illness?! That’s d**n scary for me. I feel most of these acts are someone with some sort of mental illness. Or at least that’s what I tell myself because I just can’t wrap my head around how someone can do something like this.

  13. Zak at 2:25 pm

    I enjoy your blog, and don’t make judgements based on any one post or statement but this one is close. Automatic weapons are illegal to own or sell in the United States. Let’s not get twisted here, if this was in fact, an(or many) automatic weapon(s), then he acquired it(or modified it) illegally. No amount of governing can prevent evil from finding a way. Per capita Nevada has some of the lowest gun violence rates in the country. Please let just mourn for those affected and not turn pro/con gun. We have to stay diligent in protecting our children and I will not give up my firearms, or give up teaching my family to use them safely.

  14. Virginia Roof at 2:29 pm

    While we are all debating what would work and what won’t, why don’t we free up researchers in the government to study the problem and actually design reliable prevention measures that would work (just as we would do if this was any other kind of epidemic)? It is because the NRA has successfully lobbied our elected officials to prohibit our government from doing so. We should be studying this and coming up with solutions, not offering up our “hopes and prayers.” ENOUGH.

  15. Anne Brown at 2:32 pm

    I agree. I lost a former student in the Aurora theater shooting. Guns cause too many problems in the wrong hands.

  16. Jenn at 2:33 pm

    We need universal registration (a national registry) and mental health checks. We have to get a license to get married. Why not to carry a gun? I’m not taking away anyone’s gun ownership. I’m just asking that we take the time to check to make sure there isn’t a legitimate reason that someone shouldn’t own a gun. If this means putting an end to gun shows, so be it.

    And there is no need for the type of gun that he used NOR for the type of bullets he used, made to create maximum damage.

  17. Debbie at 2:47 pm

    ??? I feel this all so deeply. Been in tears all early morning as it was happening and now. Raised in an avid gun owner home…hunting my family would have starved many a time when I was a child if my daddy wasn’t an avid hunter, fisherman and trapper. My daddy (now my bed patient for last 7 Years) belongs to the MRA. I just want to say I will not go for my guns being taking away. However I agree that no one needs mass ammunition or any rapid continuous fire power but our military for the same reason bombs are not allowed….can cause mass casualties in matter of seconds. NRA is afraid if we let this be inforced it will pave the way for no gun rights someday. I disagree. Every right we have dies and should have sideline laws and clauses. This (rapid fire and ammo) is one we need legislation on so badly. I am extremely extreamyly beside myself. At the end of the day however today I will mourn and Pray. It’s just all I can muster to do. The blood is on the shooter or shooters hands and any affiliation confirmed in the moments, days and weeks ahead. God Bless is all. Love, Deb.??❤️???

  18. Shannon McPartland at 3:00 pm

    I am going to challenge you to take down the picture you have used for this blog today. These are “somebody’s children” photographed and used today for the shock value of driving home a point. I have no quibble with your blog except this is a day of mourning and someone who knows these fallen family members may see this and it will not help in any way. This was a “share” on social media I logged into this morning and I chose not to respond there as to have the picture be “shared” again. I have watched much coverage on the deeply horrific and tragic events and saw none quite like this…am sure they are out there…just not fair to use this day to drive home your point.

  19. Amy at 3:25 pm

    I live in Canada where you can’t buy assault rifles. Shootings still happen here but very rarely. Nothing compared to what happens in the states. I found it interesting that you said this is the world we live in. It’s not. It’s the country you live in and it’s gun laws

    • Suzanne Wright at 3:41 pm

      Agreed. I live in Canada too and although there are small instances of mass shootings. It’s not as frequent and the lost of lives aren’t as much because guns are illegal here. It seems like every other month there is a mass shooting somewhere in the states and the amount of toddlers and young children shooting themselves or other kids with their family’s gun lying around is astonishing . And yet they still don’t see that guns need to be illegal.

    • Terry Pittman at 6:45 pm

      I’m a Canadian citizen as well and you can purchase assault rifles, but you need a restricted gun licence to do so

  20. Lisa Swensen at 3:28 pm

    I wish we could share this article without the picture of dead bodies 🙁

  21. Suzanne Wright at 3:33 pm

    Guns are the problem and the evil people who use them for evil. My heart goes out to everyone who is affected by this horrible act of Terrorism. So sad and horrible.

  22. Elsie Fitzpatrick at 3:33 pm

    So sorry to here of the people who got killed in the shooting in Las.Vages and those who were injured our thoughts and prayers go out to all of their family’s

  23. Lorraine at 3:35 pm

    Guns don’t kill people PEOPLE kill People.

    • Rose at 11:02 pm

      People kill people a heck of a LOT faster with guns…

  24. Katie at 3:39 pm

    American’s as a whole are selfish and only out for what they can get. They in no way think of the greater good. They just think anyone who tries to regulate anything is a communist and trying to start a police state. It is literally insane to live here. The orange monkey is “in charge” but it started way before then. I am scared for my family and my children. But in a way I have also given up. Something like this happens and it is prayer, prayers, prayers…f**k prayers. DO SOMETHING. Stop polarizing the country. Trumpers stop being so stupid, liberals stop being so f*****g tender. Get off your asses and stop this. But you won’t. Everyone will just keep typing prayers and thinking that God or what ever flying spaghetti monster in the sky they worship has got their back. You know what folks? God may be there, but you gotta help your fellow man. Doesn’t matter if they are a different color or creed from you. Doesn’t matter if they love Trump or hate Trump. Use that mass of goo on top your head and look around for once.

    • Craig at 5:57 am

      So “orange monkey” is ok to you?….but when Obama was in office would “black monkey” be OK? We all have to stop with the name calling. Your words: “STOP POLARIZING THE COUNTRY”. It starts with the man in the mirror.

  25. Alex at 3:42 pm

    Early reports say this was already banned weaponry (based on the staccato heard of the bullets, sadly).

  26. Briana Scoggins at 3:47 pm

    I am blown away by how well written and perfectly summed up my very own thoughts about this tragedy is. I literally feel like I wrote this. Everyone in this country needs to take the same action in regards to gun laws and the countless other wrongs that need to be fixed. Every single one of us need to stand up and do something about the things that Propel us forward. Everyone needs to make their version of taking a knee and remember what is at stake. There are countless ways to make our voices heard but we would rather scroll through Facebook then take the time to make a difference. I hope that it doesn’t take countless other tragedies before people start doing whatever they need to do for our babies, for our selves for our country. I hope that your article Inspire some people to look towards activism. Thank you so much for writing this

  27. Amanda at 3:59 pm

    Look that crazy guy was what 64, even if he bought one bullet a day legally since the day he could purchase them. He could have 16,790 bullets all legal. It’s not going to stop what he chose to do that day. It took him almost a week to set up in his room and wait. This is evil from the start. No law abiding citizen does these things to anyone. The amount of pain he caused in minute’s will haunt people for the rest of their lives. It is easy to stand back and say it’s the guns but I hate to say this out loud, I wish it was that easy. Problem solved!!!! No its all of us allowing people to be mean to one another, hate, anger, evil it spreads like wild fire. Someone’s could have prevented this, some friend, family member, a work coleage, stranger in the hotel, staff member cleaning the room. That little voice that said something is wrong…..usually is correct. They didn’t say anything for what ever reason and alot of innocent people will never go home, or hurt forever with wounds that will take months, years to heal. How sad!!! It’s our problem, we are America. We need to fix this!!!

  28. Megan at 4:19 pm

    This photo pisses me off.

    To be honest, we can provide all the resources in the world. We can scan every persons computer for wrong doing. We can take all guns away etc…

    If someone wants to do something like this, they are going to do it. Regardless of wtf resources are available, or guns available… I feel in times of crisis, people shouldnt be uploading dead people on the internet. We get it. We know 58 people are dead. Why do we need photos to prove it? Esp when family members are still trying to find their loved ones. What a fu!#×d up way to find out.

    I just passed a car accident scene with a red curly haired person with their head smashed in. I cried all the way home. Should i take a photo all because Im there? Will that bring awareness of what car accidents can do? There’s plenty of those photos. People still speed. People still cut semis off. People still drink and drive.

  29. Mignon Allen at 4:39 pm

    Out of respect please remove this graphic picture

  30. Renea at 4:46 pm

    No law will protect you from a criminal
    – criminals don’t obey the law! Do you actually think rules and regulations are going to stop anyone with the mindset of this man??? Unfortunately, “if there’s a will there’s a way” applies to ill will as well. There is always someone out there selling guns illegally to someone who’s buying guns illegally.

    • Camilla at 11:09 pm

      Thank u!!! Drugs are illegal too but i bet i can go to any city in this country and get whatever in a matter of minutes!! Why cant people see this?

  31. Don at 5:39 pm

    Call me stupid, but what purpose other the military does a regular person need a automatic rifle for?

  32. Kristen at 5:47 pm

    What happened is tragic and horrifying. I’d suggest using factual information and double check the validity of your information sources when publishing information. Your information about Nevada’s gun laws are incorrect. Rather than going off of Bustle.com try looking hem up on the Nevada state’s website. Also, automatic weapons have been illegal since 1934 for all except military, law enforcement, and carriers of a federal tax stamp. That stamp is incredibly difficult to get.

  33. Kristen at 5:56 pm

    What happened is horrifying and tragic. I encourage you to fact check before publishing information. Automatic weapons have been banned since 1934 with the exception of military, law enforcement, and federal tax stamp holders. Getting a federal tax stamp is incredibly difficult. Also, your statements about Nevada’s gun laws are incorrect. Try checking the State’s website instead of bustle.com. There is a 3 day waiting period for all first time gun owners as well as a background check.

  34. K wood at 6:00 pm

    On another post, a person suggested that every gun should be insured by its owner against accidental and purposeful tragedies, I can see insuring up to say ten guns, but how much is it going to cost someone to insure 20 or more? How many increases the risk level and the cost of the premium?

  35. Lindsay at 6:15 pm

    You really should take that picture down. It’s disrespectful.

  36. Michaela at 6:24 pm

    Well said.
    From what I heard on tv this guy was a nice guy who lived in small town and didn’t have as little as parking ticket.
    He was a nice guy up to the moment he killed so many . Who knows what made him do it.
    But without those guns ( M 16 ?!?! Really ?!? )
    Close to 600 !!! Families wouldn’t be crying tonight. My thoughts are with you .

  37. Heather Watson at 6:24 pm

    While we are at it with taking guns away from people, let’s make murder against the law.. oh wait. . how’s that working out? Guns are not the problem. . where there is a will to cause harm, a way will be found every single time. Knives, bombs, vehicles… the list of ways to kill people could go on and on.

  38. Chantal at 6:37 pm

    I totally agree with this article but I wish I didn’t see that picture. I feel it’s a huge lack of respect for the friends and family of the victim and it’s way too disturbing for young eyes to see…

  39. Cathy at 7:06 pm

    How disrespectful of you to post that picture. Your right, that is someone’s daughter. Imaging the horror that mother or father must feel seeing that picture. You seriously disgust me. Your message fell on deaf ears after seeing that picture. May she Rest In Peace.

  40. Deb at 7:26 pm

    I shake my head in disbelief not at the worst attack in American history but at the attitude of the American people. Las Vegas was just the next city to be attacked in a long list of others to come. Guess what folks GUNS kill people!!!!the rhetoric I hear is ‘it’s our second amendment right’, ‘we need to be able to protect ourselves. Really! Your founding fathers are rolling in there graves as I’m sure this was not they intended and you tell me how arming yourself for protection would have help in Vegas. You folks have to WAKE UP doing background checks don’t work but NO GUNS would!! My heart breaks again at the senseless loss of life I thought for sure Sandy Hook would do it but it doesn’t matter that babies were killed so long as you keep your guns. The greatest country on earth, yeah okay (not)

  41. Karen at 7:27 pm

    I’ve seen this photo on another site. I hate it. Yes, she is someone’s baby, but for you to repost it just to get some likes and shares is crappy.

    “If you hate this as much as I do and want it to end, please don’t forget to like and share this. Thank you.”

    Okay… I want it to end. I “liked” your blog post. I shared your blog post. Dang… someone should have told us it was this easy to end mass shootings… all we had to do was like and share. smh.

  42. Pam Greer at 7:34 pm

    Yes, by all means register your automatic weapons. I’m sure all of us legitimate sound minded, humanity loving people already have. Come on!! Seriously, it’s not about registering weapons or passing a psych test before owning a weapon. It’s about keeping weapons out of the criminals, mentally unstable and those angry teenagers. But you can’t. Those people aren’t going through the same channels as average Joe is. Stolen weapons can’t be tracked, not can weapons bought out of a trunk of a car. So now what?

  43. Statia at 7:56 pm

    I think it’s pretty messed up that you even put up this picture. “The girl above” as you so eloquently put it, is someone’s baby. Do you really think that their mother would appreciate her baby girls body on your blog hours after her death?
    While, you make a relevant point are you really that much better?
    I didn’t think it would take long for the, “for guns and against guns” people to come out but at least do it respectfully.

  44. Stacey at 8:07 pm

    It’s not the guns. It’s the criminals. The only thing that will stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun.

    • Rose at 11:20 pm

      If only it was that black and white. What if this ‘good guy’ with zero history of crime, was on drugs for depression? Those are known to cause manic violent thoughts in a few people.

      If a pill made him ‘sick’ is he still a good guy?

      Those meds do save countless lives, should we ban them because a small fraction will ‘crack’ and go on a killing spree?

      Isn’t it far more simple to keep such powerful weapons out of people’s hands…

      You can say over and over that those weapons are already illegal. If an average Joe can stockpile them so easily the clearly the laws are not enforced, not the right ones, need changing???

  45. John at 8:14 pm

    Learn the laws… Most citizens cannot legally own a fully automatic rifle. There goes your argument….

  46. Irene at 8:28 pm

    Well spoken. Like Barack said: thoughts & prayers are NOT ENOUGH. We must demand gun laws that protect mass society and not the NRA, hunters & mass
    Murderers.

    • Robin at 9:16 am

      So do you genuinely believe that evil people willl not resort to some other means? Take their guns and wicked men and women will find another source…vehicles, explosives, or getting it illegally, which they already do. All of this back and forth misses the point by both sides all together and it’s incredibly sad.

  47. Jai at 8:48 pm

    I honestly stopped reading after the movie theatre comment and Starbucks bathroom comment. What stupid comments feeding into fear and hostility. There is so much beauty and love in the world. One man made this decision to change the lives of hundreds, no one knows why but obviously he was mentally ill. This was a massacre where yes women, children and men lost their lives…and yes someone’s baby! Are you for real?!? Posting a picture of someone’s baby like that???? Don’t post images of someone’s child laying dead in street…have some class if it was your child I’m sure you would not a picture of her lifeless body laying in the streets. FOR ANYONE READING THIS PLEASE DONT LIKE OR SHARE. Tasteless

  48. Jacki at 9:02 pm

    It’s become pretty clear that this country places a higher value on the right to bear arms than on the right to life. Plain & simple.
    These two things obviously cannot coexist.
    It’s really sad when you think about it, that so many people are not willing to sacrifice their guns but they are happy to risk death to random people they don’t know so that they can keep their guns.
    Open. Your. Eyes. People!

  49. Erin at 9:25 pm

    Perhaps those of us who support reasonable gun laws should boycott visiting or spending money in states that don’t.

  50. Pam at 9:42 pm

    You are right. The poor girl above is someone’s baby and you need to respect her family. Take her picture down instead of using for your own agenda. How selfish . Give her respect.

  51. Casey at 9:47 pm

    Automatic rifles are illegal. And it is a Federal law that anyone purchasing a gun has to have a background check before they can purchase a gun. Now if you buying off the black market, which would allow people to get these kind of weapons, you just need the cash.

  52. Wanda at 10:25 pm

    I am from Canada and we have way stricter gun laws than USA and far fewer shootings. I live close to the Manitoba border and have never figured out why someone would need a gun to go the grocery store but I have seen it. I also recall having a conversation with a gentleman in Oregon who could not believe that we in Canada walk around without guns and feel safe. This gentleman also informed me that he owned around 20 guns, which I again could not understand. I feel safer knowing that no one is carrying a gun and might have a moment of insanity or an accident and shoot someone. In Canada you cannot legally carry a handgun and to be able to hunt you have to have a couple of different courses. My husband is a hunter and we rely on that meat to feed our family. I also think that it is just a totally different mindset regarding guns. We don’t mind not being able to carry a gun everywhere we go. As far as protecting yourself, I am sure that the people in Vegas had guns themselves and were still unable to protect themselves. I agree with many of the previous posters that something needs to be done and for those fighting to keep their guns I understand you think it is your right, but how can you stand by and watch things happen.. Something needs to change – three canadians were among those killed and they probably didnt have a gun.

    There is a comedian on You Tube from Australia who talks about American gun laws. Although this is not a funny thing that happened in Vegas I urge you to watch this as it makes a lot of sense. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rR9IaXH1M0.

  53. James at 10:25 pm

    So there are gun shows weekly in Vegas, you can open carry firearms, this is the first shooting of its kind, and all of a sudden let’s ban automatic weapons? Do you ban hockey because there was a fight? Do you ban ufc when a long term fighter has brain damage because of the strikes to the head? Do you ban gambling when it ruins the lives of thousands of people a year in Vegas alone? No, you don’t. Banning automatic weapons is an easy answer, that is proven not to work.

  54. fiona at 10:32 pm

    I too turned the television on the this morning to be met by another horrendous story of some wacko with nineteen automatic weapons gunning down people who were just having fun. I am so sad for you to have to go through this over and over again. I live in Australia. Our gun laws are tough. The article below was written by one of our major newspapers this morning. Australia hasn’t had a mass shooting since 1996.

    http://www.heraldsun.com.au/rendezview/thank-you-john-howard-from-a-bleeding-heart/news-story/1b1b55105f21f9986e0df0c1d6335f26

    I am sure that you realise the rest of the world wants this carnage to stop for all Americans. You are our allies and our brothers and sisters. We want you to live in peace not fear. God Bless All of Us. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

  55. Steph at 10:43 pm

    So SICK of hearing people say that guns aren’t the problem. This guy (evil or not) did not kill/would people with his bare hands. GUNS KILL PEOPLE. Ugh. There was probably thousands of people (no sources, just a guess) who own and/or carry a weapon at Route 91 Festival. IT DID NOT HELP THEM ONE BIT. A gun in you purse, or glovebox, or nightstand will not help you in a surprise attack. So take away the guns from everyone. Good and bad. Simple logic. Understanding the logistics of this would be a massive undertaking, but you have to start somewhere.

    • Jake at 2:57 am

      Giving you the same answer I have given a few… but I personally want to say that you are living on a different planet with your idiotic thought process…

      my comment-
      Ban “crack” in the US.. OH Wait we did, there are still crackheads everywhere..

      You must be one of them

  56. Rae at 10:48 pm

    What needs to change? Gun control, no. Godlessness, yes. Turn your hearts to the Lord. He created you in His image. He loves you. He forgives you. He is the answer to death, sadness, hopelessness, lobeliness, darkness.

  57. Erik Campbell at 11:19 pm

    You can make all the guns illegal. It’ll never take them out of criminals hands. I’m not going to make up numbers here. But there has been plenty of times guns in the right hands, have thwarted crimes. People are too quick to blame guns. This person could have built an Oklahoma city style bomb and taken out probably everyone there. So would it make sense to ban the delivery trucks used to make that? What i mean to say is, you can take away guns. But people “Sick people” will find a way to pull off such completely horrific acts of violence, no matter what gets banned. It is especially hard when this person had a practically squeaky clean record. No one could have forseen this happening. I have seen many brutal and graphic videos before. But this video or this attack is almost too hard to watch. The complete fear of realizing you are f*****g fish in a barrel to some piece of s**t. That is a kinda fear i wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. Please excuse my language there. Seeing this just pisses me off all the while being heartbroken for people i dont or will ever know. Prayers to everyone involved. I’m sorry that has happened to you and completely unfair robbing all those people of their lives. And i mean all concert goers, injured or deceased or not.

  58. Martina Hoffarth Kee at 12:05 am

    I will always say…if you are going to commit murder/suicide, start with the suicide~!! We have to assume he had a mental health issue, we need to talk about that more~!!!

  59. incidentalmayhem at 1:28 am

    If guns aren’t the problem then what the hell is wrong with your crazy wack-a-doo culture that makes people go crazy and shoot things????

    Adults do it, kids do it…

    Get a grip on yourself people and start making a serious attempt at making America great again.

    • Jake at 2:50 am

      Guns are going nowhere weather banned or not. Do you think a crack head can’t find crack? Pretty sure crack is Illegal.

  60. Kim Weins at 1:39 am

    I will suggest only one correction…this is not the “world” we live in. It’s the COUNTRY we live in. No other developed nation has anywhere near the number of guns or gun deaths as we do in America. Yes there are shootings elsewhere, but nowhere close to what we have. Check the facts and you will see there is a correlation between more guns and more people dying from guns. We need common sense reform. I support Moms Demand Action https://momsdemandaction.org/
    Check it out and donate or join if you want things to change.

  61. Ands at 2:07 am

    Automatic firearms are already illegal in every state, before you start calling for gun control know the topic you are writing about. In order to obtain an auto the licencing and application process are extensive I encourage you to research them.

  62. Terry moore at 2:54 am

    Once again someone that thinks a gun pulls its own trigger. It’s the absence of God in our society that is the problem. Thanks to liberals and wrong thinkers such as yourself is the reason we are where we are now. Not just anyone can have a fully automatic weapon. And if you take away peoples only effective way to defend themselves then you will really see evil take off. What we need is less people trying to take away our rights and more people praying!

  63. DDDDDDDDDD at 3:08 am

    Not to jinx it – but how often do you here of this stuff happening in Canada? Just saying.. we can’t just walk in and buy a gun..

  64. DDDDDDDDDD at 3:10 am

    And by no means does the ordinary citizen have any need for an automatic weapon. If you want the thrill of shooting one – then go to a controlled facility where you are supervised.

  65. Linda Whalen at 5:06 am

    If this latest massacre does not lead to change,there is no hope

  66. Robin at 6:23 am

    After reading this piece, I believe the intent is good. We are all at a loss and grieving an absolutely horrific tragedy! I do want to take the time to respond to this though because I disagree. The “bad guys” and evil people will obtain any means necessary to accomplish their agenda. Guns are sold underground all day, everyday, and if someone is determined or desires to get a hold of them, they most definitely will and still continue to commit heinous crimes. It’s a simple fact. In Japan, where guns are banned..A man walked into a facility with a knife and attacked and killed numerous individuals in a mass killing. With motive or intent to kill innocent lives, it will be done. We cannot be naive enough to think that explosives wouldn’t be the next most logical option. While I do believe “something has to change”….I absolutely don’t believe it’s banning guns. I currently have a license to carry, I am a law abiding citizen who wants to protect my family. Wouldn’t it be good if when something tragic like this happens, that someone who is there, is carrying handgun legally, and can intervene?? I know I’d be forever thankful for a hero in a situation like this! I personally don’t believe amidst the grief and loss, this is the right time for this discussion, because people are mourning the tragic loss of family and friends right now. But if it has to happen, and it is…I’m going to be a voice for the other side of the coin.

  67. LT at 6:50 am

    Automatic weapons were banned in 1986, and none of the guns he purchased were purchased in Nevada, but California, who has the strictest gun laws in the country, & you can not own that many guns in the state of California so the reports that all these weapsons were obtained “legally” is most likely far from the truth. I agree something needs to be done, but we all also need to be educated, & stop being blinded by the media.

  68. Vic at 7:04 am

    You people are just going back and forth, most of the anti gun comments are just inaccurate at best.
    If you aren’t a firearms enthusiast you will never understand. Unfortunately bad stuff happens.

  69. Hanna at 7:32 am

    Honestly… mental health care is a start. A lot of people who have been the shooters are mentally ill. Then yes, of course laws on guns. We have the right to protect ourselves but why on earth and how did he get a hold of so many automatic weapons? The military uses automatic weapons. The most a hunter needs is an automatic shot gun with no more than 3 shots at a time. I am a teacher. I hunt. But why do people feel the need that more guns is the answer to being safe from guns? Isn’t that a catch 22? no pun intended… I am with you here… how and why does this keep happening and why is nothing being done about it? We want to keep people from getting into concerts etc but why weren’t there more ways to get out? Why wasn’t there hotel security? But do we really need metal detectors on every entrance to everywhere?

  70. Andrew at 7:49 am

    FYI automatic weapons are already illegal and have been so since 1986. The real question is how he was able to obtain one.

  71. heidi at 8:15 am

    AUTOMATIC WEAPONS ARE NOT ILLEGAL. Stop saying they have been since 1986. That federal ban was allowed to expire in 2004.

  72. Chels at 8:42 am

    I know crazy conspiracy theorist here but this was the government… this was a false flag… I have proof that the media. Police are lying…. the shooter was not in the 32nd floor, he was on the twelfth and CNN messed up by showing the real shooter on the news station…

  73. Valerie Verret at 8:58 am

    I agree with you to a point, the automatic rifles he had was illegal to own, so how do we fix that?? The government wants to make stricter laws but criminals don’t follow the law. If we ban all guns, then criminals will find a way to get them while law abiding citizens are now unarmed. Something does need to happen, but what?

  74. Shyla at 9:06 am

    Laws on guns will not solve this problem! Maybe they shouldn’t be as easily assessable. But no matter what – strict gun laws and all….. the bad people, the people who have made up their minds to do something this disturbing will gain access to these guns. They dot care about laws. Guys come on look at the bigger picture. It isn’t going to be fixed with a change of an amindment. So you take away gun rights…. how do the good honest people defend everyone else. Talk about sitting ducks. My husband and I both have permits to carry. My husband is a trained Army Vet. I’ve been in a helpless situation where my life was threatened and there was nothing I could do about it. No more… we also need to be able to protect ourselves and the other helpless victims.

  75. Nadine Nixon-Thompson at 9:08 am

    I am not going to get into this conversation as I am Canadian and love this beautiful country we call Canada, but as a mom and and nana, please, please, remove this picture!!!

  76. kate at 9:10 am

    Making certain guns illegal isn’t going to help or change? do we need change somewhere, YES!! but if that was the fix of all problems, then we should make heroin illegal too!!, OH…..wait….?the Terrorists (any race or gender) can and WILL get a hold of these things if not make them ….so the world has a violence problem not gun problem…

  77. Adriana at 9:32 am

    Sadly…the gun lobbyists are one of the biggest groups.. (probably next to pharma)that donate a ton of money to politicians to pass these “gun friendly” laws…
    I do NOT understand why the right to bear arms trumps the right to be able to go to a public outing and not fear for your life…We do NOT live in the time when the Constitution was written.. when is this “right” going to be applied to more modern times where it really SHOULDN’T be a right ?what is the need for a person to own assault rifles?

    “The Second Amendment was created so that the states could form militias or armies to destroy insurrections or slave rebellions because the federal government had no standing military for a long time. The Founding Fathers were frightened by a standing army, because they feared coups. Without a standing army, the only protection the people and the government had were militias.”

    HOW IS THIS RELEVANT TO TODAY’s TIMES!!!!!!

  78. Erin Lynn Groves at 9:42 am

    I own guns. My husband owns guns. Neither of us are crazy or irresponsible. Its the person, not the weapon. This man easily could have taken a truck or car and driven into the crowd. If you want to cause harm and death, guns are not the only way. Its sick and sad. Guns are always blamed. Blame the person.

  79. Dee at 12:04 pm

    Because people that want to commit murder, which is already illegal, always abide by the law. This guy would have just obtained these guns illegally. He wanted to commit murder and I’m sure he would have found a way. These people aren’t even in the ground yet. Can’t we wait a bit for our political agendas?

  80. Pretty Terisita at 12:30 pm

    I would have probably read your blog post had it not been for the picture you posted; those are people who were once loved. It’s completely inappropriate to use that image for the dignity of the families and the injured; plus it’s horrifying to have to see that image. Imagine what the friends and relatives must feel.

  81. FancyFreeRV at 12:42 pm

    Some of these comments are completely ignorant … You can’t just buy a kit to convert into Auto. You have to know how to machine the lower to accept and engage for full auto. It’s not that simple. It baffles me that no one questions why it was this easy for him to achieve this and how convenient it was that he got a room on the right side of the building and also at the right end. Also convenient that he “shot himself” Always … they kill themselves after. So no questions can be answered other than! Let’s take these guns away .. Hmmm

  82. Adriana at 1:04 pm

    As someone mentioned about the mental illness… it IS a shame when mental health benefits are scant in employer sponsored policies and even with medicare..The political arena has been less than encouraging when it comes to comments on mental illness…its kind of swept under the rug and although I personally do not like to associate what this evil man did to mental illness because lets face it….if it was an Arab, Hispanic, Black…the label of “mental illness” would not even be brought up but because it was a Caucasian male…its thrown out there, but I digress.. the point being that mental health is often ignored and dehumanized with no real strategy in place..
    Again bringing up the lobbyists for the pharmaceuticals…(taken from Wikipedia)
    pharmaceutical companies spent $900 million on lobbying between 1998 and 2005, more than any other industry. Sadly….its ALL about the money and not the well being of humanity.

  83. Kia at 2:14 pm

    I haven’t brought up up to my daughter, she’s 6, because while she should know there are people in this world that want to hurt others, I don’t know how to tell her. Her school had a drill last week if there’s a shooter on campus. She came home terrified and it was just a drill. It’s sad they even have to have drills like that.

    I can’t wrap my head around it, I just can’t. I read more in depth today that while it’s hard to get an automatic weapon there are modifiers you can buy to turn a semiautomatic into an automatic weapon. They run around $350. That’s it. Who needs that? Things like that need to be illegal.

    The US will never get rid of guns and in this situation background check was done and he passed. People need to call this what it is, it’s a terrorist attack. It doesn’t need to be Isis or.a Muslim for it to be a terrorist attack.

    Like you, I don’t know what the answ er is. Every time something like this happens there’s an increase in guns sold because the gun nuts think their rights will be taken away and they won’t be able to go gun shows to buy more.

    I hate that my child has to grow up afraid of being shot or hurt in some way deliberately by a complete stranger. There’s always been things and people to keep your children safe from but it just keeps getting worse. It’s extremely depressing to try to explain to my child why we have a president that is allowed to bully others, that it will probably take many more years before we have a woman president, that she’s not safe anywhere.

  84. Kurt Malott at 2:42 pm

    I do agree with background checks, but that will not catch everything. Doctor’s can’t even detect some forms of mental illness. So everyone is blaming the guns again. Saying guns kill people is like saying spoons make people fat. Another thing, how was this guy able to get a pilot’s license if he was mentally ill? We should count our blessings he didn’t load a plane full of explosives and crashed it into a heavily populated area, the devastation would have been a lot worse. The monsters that commit these horrific acts will always be able to find ways to kill. Guns don’t kill, people do…….God bless all the victims and their family and friends. It’s a sad day in America once again.

  85. Beth at 3:14 pm

    Thank you so much for this post. As a stepmom of a little girl, I have so many of the same feelings and exhaustion over our refusal as a country to see what needs to be changed. I’m so glad I found your blog and will continue to read.

  86. Shelly at 4:29 pm

    I’ll tell you why it is ok. Because when our right to bear arms is removed, so is our ability to protect ourselves. Then only the bad guys and the government will have guns. You think THIS is bad? Imagine a place far worse. Hell, travel to one and look around. Think about Nazi Germany and just try to understand that while guns can do tremendously powerful things, not owning them leaves you powerless against them. Neither is THAT ok.

  87. Tonya at 5:50 pm

    Automatic rifles, pistols are banned in 90% of the US. But it doesn’t stop criminals or people intent on killing people to modify a weapon into an automatic weapon. Know the correct info before you start blabbering on and blasting the constitution. It isn’t for you to say who can and can’t own weapons!

  88. Raymond at 6:53 pm

    Automatic rifles ARE illegal in thr U.S., LEARN the law before you try to change it

  89. Denise at 8:25 pm

    You have no idea what has been confiscated by Canadian police. All I can say is why does any one asca civilian needs a semi automatics to run around cities or even for hunting.

  90. Ally at 8:49 pm

    First of all, we mourn with you. Our hearts ache once again for all the needless tragedy. Innocent people killed. Many innocent people killed or injured.

    People have been focusing on the one girl laying with blood on her legs. Why? I think it is too real for you, because you see blood. There are actually at least four people down in this picture. It is real, see the blood. Try to imagine it being your loved one. Maybe then you might taken action to prevent this from repeating.

    We are not American. We are your allies. The countries you will turn to for help if/when war starts. We do not carry guns. We can’t imagine going anywhere and seeing guns being carried by local civilians.

    My thought at the moment is, You make your bed – Lay in it. This is the result of years and years of you people insisting you have the right to bear arms. Well this is what happens.

    This is so pathetic! You will never get it.

  91. Sue at 9:04 pm

    That picture of the two women lying obviously hit with gunfire is chilling. This is enough already! Private citizens should not have the ability to purchase any sort of semi or automatic weapon…….PERIOD!

  92. Mary at 9:06 pm

    The photo is reality. That is somebody’s daughter, wife….after the candle blows out & the flowers die who will remember these people–this horrific photo should stay in your mind.

    I had a friend whose parents were murdered. He told me “I wish that SOB would have to look at a photo of my parents in the pool of blood everyday for the rest of his life…because I will have to live with that photo in my memory for the rest of my life”

    Tell me if you’re upset with the photo then are you upset with all the gun violence on TV & movies? Do you turn off the TV or walk out of the theatre? That is the problem-we try to sanitize reality of what happens when you open fire on a crowd. This is not a game to hit the reset button or a TV show to be continued next week. People need to see the truth. Kids need to know that when you shoot someone it is forever! The families of these people don’t want you to forget their loved ones–their reality shouldn’t be scrubbed away because you don’t want to see the horrific reality.

  93. Pat at 12:53 am

    As a Canadian proud of my country’s attitude towards responsible gun ownership, I would like to see the leaders/lobbyists ‘for guns’ step up and say “Okay, this changes things, and we ask our members to back us up as we negotiate a way to saner rules and regulations to implement them.”

    • Rose at 11:39 pm

      Source or statistic please.

      Nope. The US is the ONLY developed nation where this horror happens regularly.

      Every other rich nation manages to live peacefully without people needing guns to protect themselves.

      Wake up.

  94. Marek G. at 9:06 am

    widen your gaze Holmes ….. this article is only half true if you post it without mentioning the real bad news that happens inthe world… im sorry but this article CAN be chucked up to click baiting b/c you neglected, or was ignorant to the real terror in this world…. i think maybe you’re living in a country that blinds you or you blind yourself…. or you just wanted to benefit off this media attention…. hard to say when you dont include other countries in your article.

  95. Katie at 9:27 am

    Very good read! I live in Canada – we DO have gun laws, very strict laws! I truly believe there needs to be something done. As I watch all the details unfold on TV it hurts my heart! We lost some of our Canadians in the shooting as well ?I have never understood why you would need to carry a gun on your person?
    My thoughts and prayers are with all the families that had to go through this senseless act.

  96. Steve at 2:51 pm

    Fully automatic rifles are already illegal. They have been illegal for decades. So arguing they should be banned is doing no good and just makes you look foolish. In rare cases a class 3 license is granted mainly for dealers which does allow them possession but is strictly regulated and heavily taxed.

    We are blaming the tools used here. Not looking for the root cause at what causes people to do this. Whether it’s the pills we are prescribing or the lack of mental illness treatment available we have to identify and treat the underlying causes. Then you can try to take our guns.

  97. Mikey Mike at 4:31 pm

    You alone control your emotions and you shape those of your children. The press can show bloody pictures and screaming victims all day- and they will. But, after all is said and done, you are still more likely to die from choking on a hot dog than being shot by a mass murderer. So, statistically, there is no reason for worry. But there is every reason to evaluate how we treat and handle the crazies among us.

  98. Michelle Outmezguine Outmezguin at 8:03 am

    I agree 110%. I thank god everyday that I live in Canada, a country with sensible gun laws and wonder when our close friend & neighbour, The United States, with whom we share the longest border in the world, will finally wake up and realize that their second amendment should not mean that people have the right to purchase an unrestricted number of weapons.

  99. Daryl at 9:38 am

    I do hate this all. As a result I am boycotting the USA. I will not travel to the States until changes are made. It’s only a matter of time until the next one. I’m tired of hearing about sick people who abuse the system. The source of the problem is Guns. There is no need for a person to have a gun apart from lawn enforcement. Shame on USA.

  100. Donna Applegate at 9:40 am

    Ok. I will tell you. Until we get a handle on the crazy people in this world. It will continue. If a crazy wants a gun they can buy it black market. They do. Don’t take a background check for that. I say we need a gun in every home and everyone should take classes on how to use it. Even the kids. I was handling a gun at 12. Learned respect for it. How it could kill. Just like driving a car. Deadly weapons. Take our guns away and we are all in trouble. Cops and criminals is all that will have them.