Shooting at CT elementary school leaves at least 27 dead, 18 of them children

[J. J.]

Shooter was Ryan Lanza.  Close to 30.  This is insane. 

[J. J.]

There was a guy by the same name, Ryan Lanza, and age who lived in the same community.  I might have found his tweets.  Depressed, hoped the world would end in a fortnight. 

[J. J.]

Honor student and graduated from Quinnipiac. http://foxnewsinsider.com/2012/12/14/fox-news-confirms-suspected-connecticut-school-shooter-was-24-year-old-ryan-lanza/

[J. J.]

That wasn't my source.  The twitter is a different guy, a skate boarder. 

[J. J.]

https:

Last update was 12/11.

I took it down; it looks like the first one.   

[J. J.]

It looks like the first one.  His Facebook page is down, and there were no updates.

[J. J.]

It looks like the first one.  His Facebook page is down, and there were no updates.

How about you stop trying to play internet detective and just let everything play out?

Also, do you have a link for that? As his page was private, I'm curious how you know that. The screenshots posted were from those who were apparently Facebook friends with him.

I do spend most of my time playing "Internet detective." 

I typed his name into Google and it came up.  He is a public figure, unfortunately. 

There was a Facebook page on him, the one on Fox, and it has vanished.  If he were still on Facebook, it would appear. 

[J. J.]

If he were still on Facebook, it would appear.  

Not if he disabled it, which he couldn't do...if he was DEAD.

The site would, in the case of someone notorious (though there already a fake profile on him).

As for him living in the area, at least at some point, I checked an on-line telephone book and found someone of that name living in the area.  Lanza isn't exactly "Smith."

[J. J.]

Either way, why do we need to see his Facebook? Besides you of course being able to say "hey look what I found! I can use Google!"...

Well, because the news photo on Fox, and the claim that it was on were from Facebook. 

Why, J. J.?  What are you trying to achieve?

I generally do that.  Did this guy have an arrest record?  Some political agenda?  Jihadist?  Anti-Muslim?  Were there press reports about previous activities?  Was he a nice family guy with a good job?  Flunk out of school?  Brilliant academic record?  Part of a plot or a lone gunman?

I tend to look at biography. 

[J. J.]

It is reported he was "troubled," and his brother said he was autistic.  That would be high unusual and perhaps unique with any mass murderer.

[J. J.]

Just ban guns.  Make every single gun ing illegal.  Lets become a civilized country.  It's 2012 not 1791.
I want to be free to leave my house in the morning without being in danger of being shot by some gun nut.  Respect my freedom please (and no, I am not going to buy a gun to protect myself because I am only protected when none of you have a gun)!  I don't want to live in a society of fear where everyone carries a gun.

Why not increase involuntary commitments and expand mental hospitals, since Lanza was still dangerous without a gun.  We can lock people up that we think are crazy.  And since there might be a genetic component, we can lock up their families, just to be safe, right?[/sarcasm]

Seriously, look at the ages of the shooters and look at the profile for schizophrenia.  These are almost classic cases.  And then look at people like John Nash, who did overcome it.

Remember that one of the greatest mass murderers did it with a bomb, not a gun.

[J. J.]

Why do people act like it would be so easy to get an illegal gun if the most deadly guns were illegal?  I agree it would be possible for years, until the police eventually confiscate them all, but I definitely don't think it would be easy.  I think most people don't really have any idea where to find an illegal gun...

It's not at all difficult to acquire marijuana despite decades of prohibition.

Can you grow guns in your closet?

You can make them, and a whole bunch of nastier stuff, out of things around the house.  The instructions are now in PDF form. 

[J. J.]

You can make them, and a whole bunch of nastier stuff, out of things around the house.

Not high quality ones. Takes an expert with expert tools to calibrate the aim.

The guns, yes.  The explosives, no, as Timothy McVeigh proved. 

[J. J.]

You can make them, and a whole bunch of nastier stuff, out of things around the house.

Not high quality ones. Takes an expert with expert tools to calibrate the aim.

The guns, yes.  The explosives, no, as Timothy McVeigh proved. 

Exactly, and I did get you meant explosives by "nastier stuff". But the discussion here was about guns.

Well, since the analogy was marijuana, you will not be growing high grade Hawaiian in you closet either.   

[J. J.]

You'd be surprised.

Not that much.  I've known a few people that have tried over the course of the years.  I'm told that in my native West Central PA, there are a few secluded fields, that are of terrible quality. 

[J. J.]

Wait, nobody died in the Chinese school knifing incident? That sure isn't how the pro gun lobby was spinning it. If only Lanza had only had a knife...

Lanza only got into the building because he shot the locks on the door, so yes, there would not have even been an incident with a knife.

Unless he broke a window with the pommel. 

A serious question, from someone who lives in the supposedly bad neighborhood in the supposedly bad city.  Does anyone remember of an incident like this, a school shooting happening in a city?