A community torn apart, precious lives lost... Such sadness

[mydream]

In a beautiful town in CT tragedy struck in an elementary school today.
My heart breaks for these families... Please take a moment and pray for them, hug your children extra tight tonight !!

Sandy Hook Elementary School Shooting: Newtown, Connecticut Administrators, Students Among Victims, Reports Say (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mobileweb/2012/12/14/sandy-hook-elementary-school-shooting_n_2300831.html)

[nuthinbutpink]

It is beyond shocking. I cannot imagine the heartbreak.

[Rose]

I've been crying all day. Love to all.

[Cinss]

I cant think of anything worse in the world, i am angry and shocked and sad today.

[atomic sagebrush]

Awful, just awful.

[Rosie85]

Sometimes I just hate it here in the united states. We should be ashamed we let this keep happening! I am so sad and sick to my stomach. Poor poor innocent babies.

[OnlyPraying]

My heart bleeds for the victims here...please know that while you have the love and prayers from all in America, it extends further through out the world. I'm in Canada, and I shed tears today thinking of the pain my fellow neighbors are feeling today. Obama made a beautiful speech that really should never had to be said. Please know that the world holds our American friends, especially those in Connecticut up in prayer tonight and always.

[BeadinMom]

My heart is just aching for those parents and children lost.
This is not supposed to happen.

[Shellbelle]

It is so terrible. I have been close to tears all day.

[sugarNspice]

I'm so heartbroken that this happened, and also so terrified, as we live nearby (geographically speaking) and it also feels close to my heart (as I also have a kindergardener).
I have to say (and I do not want to turn this discussion into a political debate) that I do wish our country had stricter gun control laws. That seems like one thing that could keep lethal firearms out of the hands of disturbed people like today's murderer, or at the very least keep not-too-professional-but-very-crazy people a little further from assault rifles or semi-automatic weapons.

[BeadinMom]

Criminals will always obtain guns...legally or (most often) not.

[BeadinMom]

I do wish we could get assault rifles off the street though. There's no real purpose for them, other than to destroy.

[sugarNspice]

I just wish there was something that could be done to prevent another tragedy like this from happening again, ever.

[3boys]

So tragic. I cried when I read about it. Sending love and prayers from England x

[BeadinMom]

Unfortunately, I think things like this are going to happen - until we (as society) acknowledge that mental illness is as real as high blood pressure or Diabetes. I think there is a certain stigma related to it that causes people to not to want to seek treatment - there shouldn't be. It is absolutely NO DIFFERENT than any other medical diagnosis and as such requires treatment.
If this mom saw something in her son and sought help for him, would she AND those 20 babies be alive today? Would things have turned out differently? Who knows.

[Tiggerian]

I've been sat here staring at the picture of one of the victims and that's when it hit home.. Jesus, this is real. This actually happened..! This little girl - She could've been my youngest twin, they look so alike!.. I just thought about my sons, and it just broke my heart!

It makes so many of my problems seem small and insignificant. So many lives have been destroyed.. Not just the lives taken, but the ones left behind. I know that as a parent the grief will never end... One man condemned so many people to a life of grief and pain. Of course there will be light again, but it will never be the same. All we can do is guess why? What makes a young man do such a cruel crime?

Even in England it hit home like a sledgehammer.. When I told my OH all he said was "Damn.." and sank down into the sofa and starred at our boys for good while, trying to comprehend it and it just doesn't compute. It doesn't make sense!

My heart bleeds for them. The victims and the families left behind. But, at least we know that when times get tough Americans band together and stay strong together. I hope the strength of the community will help heal some of the wounds, just a little bit.

[mydream]

The pictures they are now releasing of the victims is making my heart even heavier.

[Momofboys]

Bless their innocent souls all 26 of them!

I don't agree with the gun control (pro gun). Maybe it should be regulated, but we have a right to bare arms they cant take that away from us. Its so hard to get a pistol permit but you can walk into (well used to be able to) a dicks and buy an assault rifle. But criminals will always have access. There are more illegal guns then legally owned guns. There are plenty of hunting guns that are semi auto. They plan on taking them away to? We have guns and all of or LOs know how to shoot and respect a gun also how to respect human life. That woman, rest her soul, shouldn't of had guns in a house where she knew her mentally ill son shared with her. He didn't get the guns illegally they were always right there in front of him. IMO I blame the networks on TV to get their ratings up they drill into mentally ill ppl the 12/21 doomsday crap. His mother was a "prepper" maybe in his mind he truly believed something was going to happen tomorrow. Maybe he thought he was saving them the pain, we will never know. I drink alcohol, do I drink and drive? no. But how many young innocent lives has that taken? Yet it still sits on our shelves. TO me its not a gun issue its a mental health issue. Medicaid doesn't even cover mental health anymore and how many ppl in the states have Medicaid? probably a pretty big number which most have a mental health disorder.
I have seen pro gun ppl say that teachers should be aloud to carry a concealed weapon. I don't fully agree with the idea, cuz we don't live in a frickin war zone. But maybe that would stop crazies from walking into these "no weapon" buildings. That's where all these horrible things happen. But u put a gun man against a legally armed civilian and they aren't going to get very far.
Ok Im done, this is second time I tried posting a comment, had nice detailed one and it logged my off n I lost it all :(

[Wanting-a-girl]

The gun control needs to be regulated! Things like this wouldn't happen cause teenagers will be less likly to be able to go take mommies or daddies gun collection... Wou fu*king collects guns anyways what's the point!? I hate guns I don't even let my kids have toy guns! If the states gun laws were any thing like Canada's I'm sure a lot of these devastating mass shootings wouldn't have happend! Our last mass school shooting here in Canada was in 1975! And that was the first and last because our gun control was changed immediately... How many people need to be slaughtered before America gets their head out of their ass

[Bimby]

My heart breaks for the poor souls lost, it took me days to stop crying, imagine the relatives..
My personal view, I will never understand why people in the US need to carry guns??.. I read a stat recently (it may or may not be valid as it was posted on fb) that in the US every year there are over 10,000 deaths by guns - Majority homicides.. In Australia, Uk etc there were under 50 (from memory).. I get there are more people but thats one heck of a difference. Yeah criminals can get guns but that can happen here too yet we still dont get the massacre shootings that the US have - If memory serves me right we've had 1. Im not trying to get into a debate with anyone as I understand everyone has their own opinions which Im sure are valid, Im just saying how I feel...

Unfortunately nothing now can bring back those victims but maybe just maybe something will get done to stop this tragedy ever happening again :( RIP Angels xoxo

[BeadinMom]

... How many people need to be slaughtered before America gets their head out of their ass

Wow. I find this HIGHLY offensive. If you don't live in this country, you have no idea what goes on here, how or why.
I live in a city that has had more than its share of home invasions lately. I don't own a gun because I have small children and I don't feel comfortable doing so. Having said that, when my boys are grown and out of my home, I will consider getting one for my own protection.
You can take the guns away from law abiding citizens who chose to purchase them legally and follow the laws, but that will NOT take them out of the hands of the criminals who have obtained them illegally.
It is a bell that can no longer be unrung.

[Shellbelle]

My husband carries, legally. He works near the border, where it is more common than you would like to believe for people to be harmed by drug traffickers for their vehicles.

I grew up with guns in our home. We never looked for them or cared. It was just a part of life, with a father who was a police officer.

We need to remember that there is rarely a "never" or "always." There is often a good answer to "what rational person needs a gun?" Be thankful that you do not. It is very easy to say "we need more gun control" instead of worrying that perhaps there is a deeper problem.

I have enjoyed this forum because of the lack of offensive and judgmental posts. But this thread has angered, disappointed and saddened me with the tone of many of the posts.

[Wanting-a-girl]

O I'm just giving my opinion.... I don't need to live in america to see all the blood shed

[BeadinMom]

And in my opinion, you are ignorant :)

[Rosie85]

I live in America and my opinion is that I do not feel safe and I am scared to have my kids go anywhere. Can I please come live with somebody In the uk or Canada? I don't want to live somewhere that is full of mass murders. I don't mind if people have guns as long as they are a certain kind. They shouldn't be assault weapons and certainly not any kind that you just press the trigger and a hundred bullets can come out. I prefer zero guns but obviously that's not an option. I agree with the statement that America has its head up it's ass though, only here is money and the right to own a gun more important than our children's well being. Many countries have their own problems but when we statistically worse off in soo many ways you have to wonder why we never change since we are doing so many things wrong.

[Wanting-a-girl]

I'm not trying to offend but and I don think I'm ignorant at all the statistics don't lie! And obviously the deaths of these innocent people don't lie if there was proper gun control it wouldn't have happend like I said there has not been a mass shooting in canada since 1975 how many have been in the states! Proofs in the pudding right there....and as said in Australia the number of deaths by shooting is dramatically lower then the states and really dramatically isn't even the word lol 50 compared to thousands! But no I am not ignorant lol I'm quite level headed.... I am so thankful for where I live and that I can send my kids to the movies to school with a peace of mind

[My Three Sons]

I don't think we should take away all guns. I do however, feel that these assault rifles have no place in the home for citizens. I hate that everyday when we send our children to school, you have that nagging fear that some idiot could go and kill the children. I hate that some raging lunatic could shoot up a movie theatre or the mall. I don't think the answer is arming our teachers, nor would I feel safer for my child to be in a classroom where there was an armed teacher. I am sick of this. I am sick of the lobbyist pushing more and more dollars in the pockets of the politicians to keep the gun restrictions at bay claiming their rights should not be violated, while our children's lives, our lives, are put at risk.

These guns were obtained legally. Obviously, the mother either didn't have them locked up or allowed her son access. Just because someone obtains a weapon legally doesn't mean that they have common sense to keep them in a safe location. Handguns and hunting rifles are the only guns that should be allowed. Period. Sure, if someone wants one bad enough, they can find other ways to hurt people, but a handgun would not have killed nearly as many children as this assault weapon.

The amendment and people's rights do not specify what degree weapons should be allowed. Where does it stop? Is it OK for people to collect grenades, missile launchers, etc? Where does it stop? It is a sad, sad thing that happened and I hate that everytime I see my child's face, I see the faces of those innocent children. I hate this.

Are there other issues that need to be addressed to stop this madness? Of course. No one is saying that guns are the only issue. We do need to enhance the security at schools. We do need to improve mental health in our society and have resources for people to be identified and helped prior to them going off the deep end and killing people. But guns are part of the issue too.

[Rosie85]

I agree 100% three sons. Assault weapons have to go. Zero need for them to be in civilian hands and you are right...where does the amendment stop?

[HopefulMonster]

I think that it is such an unimaginably hideous thing to happen to such little innocent children, it breaks my heart to think about it.

However I believe we shouldn't grab it as an excuse to argue amongst ourselves about gun laws, who is to blame, or whatever. There are sick fucking people in this world and sad fact is that if they want to do something like this badly enough they WILL find a way, whether guns are readily available or not.

I live in the UK and over here, proportionately we have a much much lower rate of gun crime than the US does, it is rare to meet someone who has seen a gun let alone held one or much less own one. However we also don't have wildlife that is dangerous like bears or cougars or wild animals with rabies, or massive stretches of land etc etc - so I can't fairly compare the two, if that mkes sense.

[Rosie85]

Hopeful...wildlife is a silly silly point to try and make it seem it's okay for the US to carry guns. I have never needed a gun to protect myself from the wild...I don't live outside ya know!! Maybe .1% of the population would fit with what you are saying. Therefore it is comparable. I am sick of hearing people saying oh they will find a way with or without guns...except clearly they are NOT finding ways in countries with gun control. Explain that.

[HopefulMonster]

No you misunderstand Rosie! I don't agree with gun ownership myself, I don't think there's any reason for a member of the public to ever need any kind of gun, especially as all statistics show that proportionately the US has one of the highest rates of gun crime, especially compared to where I live in the uk, where we (touch wood) have had nothing similar happen since public ownership of guns was made illegal, which is pretty much all the proof you need imo that gun control laws work.... BUT I have absolutely no idea what it is like to live in america, the scale of the country is just mind boggling, and you know the thought of millions of random people running around carrying guns is actually terrifying to me, it probably would make me feel I needed a gun myself to be safe!!! Guns beget guns don't they!

...So I guess I don't feel like I have any right to say well it works for MY country or whatever because it is different. Everyone over here is totally blown away by the suggestion that teachers be armed - it's like an insane sick joke, I think you'd be hard pressed to find even ten people in the whole of the UK who would agree to it, so obviously the public's attitude towards guns as a whole is different, making the situation different - does that make sense?

[Wanting-a-girl]

Omg I read that they wanted to give teaches guns! Immedietly this scenario played through my head..... Depressed teacher goes to school and shoots all her students!..... And that is not far fetched I could almost guarantee something like that happening if teachers get guns! Instead of making less guns they are handing more out! It's insane! I live in Canada and have only ever see a police gun and probably only once... But let me tell you I can almost guarantee that if my parents had a gun collection growing up there would be a few dead people possibly even me! From my insane brother! I'm telling you if guns were not so accessible the magnitude of these shootings would be so different! Even when this conneticut killer went and tried to buy a gun he was turned Dow so this means that if his mother did not collect guns and did not take her unstable son to the shooting range this would not have happend!

[My Three Sons]

I think that some people would still find a way to hurt people, but it doesn't mean that it has to be so easily accessible for them to do so. I also don't understand why anyone (civilian) would ever need an assault rifle. Ever. We grew up with rifles for hunting in the house, but it wasn't because we'd get eaten by a bear if we didn't have it. My dad and brothers liked to go deer hunting, or rabbits or stuff. It was never a semi-automatic!

I used to teach and I would not feel comfortable with anyone being able to keep a gun in their classroom. No way. I do think that we should have an armed school resource officer in each school. Many schools do and while it may not keep 100% of the bad things from happening, it does help. Even when you have a student that is going haywire or fights. They don't pull their gun on them or anything, but they can be there to protect the students and teachers. But a gun for the teacher? No way.