Originally posted by: PrinceofWands
Originally posted by: feralkid
Originally posted by: PrinceofWands
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2 dead in German courthouse shooting By ROLAND LOSCH ? 2 hours ago LANDSHUT, Germany (AP) ? A man opened fire at a courthouse in Bavaria on Tuesday, killing his sister-in-law and injuring two other people, German officials said. He then shot himself dead. The shooting took place at the administrative court in Landshut, 47 miles (75 kilometers) northeast of Munich. Prosecutor Christoph Stroetz said the incident appeared to stem from a long-running inheritance dispute. The man had been at a hearing on the dispute. During a break, the man ? a 60-year-old from nearby Dingolfing whose identity was not released ? pulled out a revolver. He shot his 48-year-old sister-in-law in the head, and she died at the scene. Two other people, a lawyer and another woman, suffered serious but not life-threatening injuries. The gunman then went into a courtroom and shot himself in the head before emergency services arrived at the scene. "The police did not fire a single shot," police spokesman Leonhard Mayer said. Investigators said the man had been licensed since 1974 to own three recreational firearms, including the revolver used Tuesday, and authorities had no record of him having violated firearms laws. Asked how the gunman was able to bring a weapon into the building, court spokeswoman Elisabeth Waitzinger said there are no checks on people attending civil cases of the kind the court handles. Bavaria's state justice minister, Beate Merk, called for increased security at court buildings, including stepped-up checks at court entrances. Mayer said there had been no warning of the shooting, which came "out of a blue sky." The court is located in a modern building outside the center of Landshut, a city of 63,000 people. Last month, 17-year-old Tim Kretschmer killed nine students and three teachers at his former high school in Winnenden, in southwestern Germany, before fatally shooting three others. Kretschmer then took his own life in an exchange of gunfire with police. Copyright © 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
Granted, their gun crime/murder rates are EXTREMELY low. This is an outlier, not a commonality. HOWEVER:
It's also an example that no matter what gun laws you institute, no matter how quickly or severely a government acts/reacts to mass killings - in the end, these things WILL ALWAYS happen.
There are going to be MANY more of these throughout the world btw, and especially in the US. These types of things are largely driven by socio-economic conditions (though not in this case) and our economic decay is impacting the world, or it's simply a facet of growing population (more people, more events) .
I would expect this year to be the highest rates of crime and violence in nearly 30 years.
That's a pretty bold assumption to make.
I don't think so.
1) Bad economic times cause drastic spikes in crime and violence. This is the worst economy in a long time, therefore it will be the worst spike in a long time...especially since both rates have been decreasing steadily for so long
2) A number of international issues are coming to a head or escalating in such a way as to directly involved the US. These include:
a) Mexico drug cartels
b) Afghanistan military operations
c) Pakistan Islamic encounters
These, and other similar, international issues will cause escalating tensions here in the US as anti-xxxxx sentiments rise and create conflict. There is also the increasing likelihood of terrorist activity within the US for a number of these situations.
3) Divisive and extremist political adherents create tension, move the media to incite panic, and lead to irrational outbursts of emotions. The rift between D and R, left and right, or what have you is still terrible. The current administration (and general business) response to the economic time is exacerbating this conflict, resulting in flared tempers.
4) World population continues to increase, as does density. These inevitably bring an increase in both crime and violence. Especially when not paired up with increases in technology or social programs designed to address population issues.
All in all I'd say it's a given. Even if it doesn't reach the per capita 1979 levels, I'd bet we come close to the raw numbers.
