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I just heard the news about the attack on the elementary school.
I'm shocked and sick at heart at the news.
My heartfelt prayers to all those involved or touched by this horrific event.
18 ABF Recitals, Order of the Red Dot European Piano Parties - Brussels, Lisbon, Lucern, Milan, Malaga, St. Goar Themed recitals: Grieg and Great American Songbook
Same here.. I just don't get it. If you feel like you can't take it anymore, and you want to go buy a gun and shoot everyone in the world and then kill yourself because someone served you a red slurpee instead of a blue one, fine. I get it. I agree with you. Go for it. Just shoot yourself first. Is that really too much to ask?
Every day we are afforded a new chance. The problem with life is not that you run out of chances. In the end, what you run out of are days.
This is SO incredibly heartbreaking to hear. My eyes are tearing right now as I am reading this. You see, I grew up in Trumbull CT for nearly 20 years which is the next town over from Newtown. Many of my High school classmates still live in the area, some of which have their own children now that may have gone to this school. One of my best friends from high School IS the Lieutenant of the Newtown poilce Dept.
This is just such absolute bullsh*t for this to happen.
The problem is gun control. There is no law strong enough to get them off the streets. Even if they tried, only the honest people would turn them in which means only the honest people are UN-armed.
I own 2 guns. (I have a concealed weapons permit). I remember when I received my 'certification' (weekend long course at a Howard Johnsons or something) how bad I felt after receiving it.
I felt bad because I never wanted to get it to begin with. It's just that we take long rides in the forest on our off road cart and sometimes way out in the middle of nowhere you stumble upon what seems to be people camping in a trailer. Normal right?....WRONG. Our public camping grounds (the forest) have become the new place for Meth labs (portable meth labs) inside of camping travel trailers located deep in the woods under the guise of 'camping'. The people inside are HEAVILY armed and you are not doing yourself any favors by even being seen by them as you are now a witness!
I absolutely HATE the fact that I must carry a loaded 44 mag with me at all times just to feel safe. Safe from other people that is. The 400lb Black Bears, 800 lb Elk, 200 lb Mountain Lions, well they're no problem at all. They never have been.
I'm pissed today! I really hate crap like this. Dammit.
Mr. Super-Hunky, I am so sorry to hear how closely this touches you. I agree with you though - even if the laws changed, it would be the law-abiding folks who turned in their weapons not the criminals such as those who attacked today.
I've been weepy all evening just thinking about the parents of those children.
Gun control is just one aspect of what is wrong and what leads to this kind of thing --- I can not, and never will, understand how anyone could even think of taking such violent action against others. I just can't.
I continue to send out prayers for healing and comfort.
18 ABF Recitals, Order of the Red Dot European Piano Parties - Brussels, Lisbon, Lucern, Milan, Malaga, St. Goar Themed recitals: Grieg and Great American Songbook
I'm with you guys. I shoot competitive skeet and sporting clays and have numerous shotguns but... I am all over gun control. Something needs to be done or done better. This is just sick.
My heart goes out to all of those parents right now. My children are grown but I know what this would have done to me. I would rather die a hundred deaths than have my child murdered.
I hate to see such a tragedy turn into a politically-charged debate, but I am glad to see that most people seem to agree that creating a law banning guns would effectively only disarm the US citizens who already abide by the law (which does not include murderers).
Mark, I'd like to discuss the "Japanese solution" further, but I'm going to refrain because of what happened in CT. However, let's circle back on it at a more respectable time.
For anyone who reads the article Mark posted, it's long, but worth the read. You may be tempted to skip parts of it, but don't skip the last two paragraphs. Also, do find the authors own comments in the section below the article, where he states that most "disarmed" countries are more violent than they were before disarmament. Japan's "exception" is based on its culture, not its laws.
Every day we are afforded a new chance. The problem with life is not that you run out of chances. In the end, what you run out of are days.
I just cannot see a criminal - at least in the sense that I imagine criminals - committing such a heinous act. I just see mental illness. What a tragedy. My heart and healing thoughts go out to all involved.
Forrest
Mompou, Cancion y Danza #6 some Chopin, some Bach (always), Debussy My beliefs are only that unless I can prove them.
I just cannot see a criminal - at least in the sense that I imagine criminals - committing such a heinous act. I just see mental illness. What a tragedy. My heart and healing thoughts go out to all involved.
Forrest
I think for future sakes, this is what people absolutely need to focus on. Unfortunately I've yet to hear a single news report that approaches the story from the standpoint of the shooter being a mentally ill individual - in the literal definition of the word. Simply calling an act of violence by such an individual "evil" is no way productive or going to help prevent similar acts in the future.
Actually considering barely a day has gone by there have been a few suggestions about the shooters mental health. I've read in a number of places that he was slightly autistic and lived with his mother. And that he had "personality disorders". You can bet we will be hearing a lot more of this and time moves along. The shooter went to the school as a child and I would not be at all surprised to hear that he harbored deep resentment from his days there. Being mentally ill perhaps this was his way of dealing with it.
Being our piano forum this is not the place to discuss it but I would love to talk more about the gun issue...
I just cannot see a criminal - at least in the sense that I imagine criminals - committing such a heinous act. I just see mental illness. What a tragedy. My heart and healing thoughts go out to all involved.
Forrest
I think for future sakes, this is what people absolutely need to focus on. Unfortunately I've yet to hear a single news report that approaches the story from the standpoint of the shooter being a mentally ill individual - in the literal definition of the word. Simply calling an act of violence by such an individual "evil" is no way productive or going to help prevent similar acts in the future.
Being our piano forum this is not the place to discuss it but I would love to talk more about the gun issue...
You are right, this is not the place to discuss it as this sort of discussion doesn't relate to the piano at all and invariably turns ugly.
Although off topic, expressions of grief for the victims and their families are understandable at times such as these which are becoming all too frequent but lets restrict ourselves to that please and leave the larger social issues such as public treatment of mental health victims, gun control to be discussed elsewhere.
My heart and thoughts go to the children, their families and the community.
Being our piano forum this is not the place to discuss it but I would love to talk more about the gun issue...
You are right, this is not the place to discuss it as this sort of discussion doesn't relate to the piano at all and invariably turns ugly.
Although off topic, expressions of grief for the victims and their families are understandable at times such as these which are becoming all too frequent but lets restrict ourselves to that please and leave the larger social issues such as public treatment of mental health victims, gun control to be discussed elsewhere.
My heart and thoughts go to the children, their families and the community.
Several people have expressed an interest in continuing the discussion regarding gun laws as well as mental health issues. It is also obvious that these issues have nothing to do with pianos for the most part. In addition, Greg has done the right thing by asking that we deal with these issues somewhere else.
For this reason I'd like to respect his request and discuss these issues further somewhere else for anyone who is interested.
There is a 'General Discussion' section at the very bottom of the page that has a '9/11' heading that talks about issues of terrorism and such. I'm not sure if a discussion regarding gun laws or mental health issues would fit the '9/11' heading but maybe it could.
If Greg or Frank can give us the okay to discuss these issues there or somewhere else on the site, we can then discuss these issues further as a group.
Everyone is entitled to their own opinions of course, but if we keep these discussions based on supported facts we should be okay.
Several people have expressed an interest in continuing the discussion regarding gun laws as well as mental health issues. It is also obvious that these issues have nothing to do with pianos for the most part. In addition, Greg has done the right thing by asking that we deal with these issues somewhere else.
For this reason I'd like to respect his request and discuss these issues further somewhere else for anyone who is interested.
There is a 'General Discussion' section at the very bottom of the page that has a '9/11' heading that talks about issues of terrorism and such. I'm not sure if a discussion regarding gun laws or mental health issues would fit the '9/11' heading but maybe it could.
If Greg or Frank can give us the okay to discuss these issues there or somewhere else on the site, we can then discuss these issues further as a group.
Everyone is entitled to their own opinions of course, but if we keep these discussions based on supported facts we should be okay.
I was thinking maybe in the coffee room forum but just went to it and saw it was shutdown in 2008. guess that won't work....
The coffee room used to be for any discussions our members wanted to have that were not "piano" related.
We are obviously all human beings with feelings and thoughts and emotions that go way beyond the simple subject of piano.
I don't have a problem giving our membership a place to discuss other subjects. It's just that the coffee room got so far of tangent that it turned nasty, not something I wanted associated with Piano World.
I'd say the 911 forum is fine for further discussions, as I consider what happened In CT to be a form of local terrorism.
I lived in CT for over 20 years before moving to FL (to be with Kathy, not because I like heat). I still have many friends up there, including teachers and people with young children. My heart bleeds for those who lost there children, and those who lost their mothers/fathers.
When I called my sister yesterday afternoon, she was still crying. She is 72 and has seen and heard a lot, but this was extra sad, and senseless.
I don't know what the answers are, but doing nothing doesn't seem like the right one.
My Keyboards: Estonia L-190, Roland RD88, Yamaha P-80, Bilhorn Telescope Organ c 1880, Antique Pump Organ, 1850 concertina, 3 other digital pianos ------------------------- My original piece on BandCamp: https://frankbaxtermrpianoworld.bandcamp.com/releases
Me banging out some tunes in the Estonia piano booth at the NAMM show...
While I appreciate the desire of many long time forum members to discuss this issue further, the decision was made long ago to restrict all of PW to piano related discussions only. There was an attempt to have an "off topic" sub-forum ("the coffee room" for long time members) but it got too nasty, too personal and, as might be predicted, animosities created there persisted elsewhere and permeated the forum at large.
Simply put, there's no place to have that discussion here on PW. I suppose the idealist in me would prefer that it be otherwise and that friends who participate here could have reasoned discussions on controversial topics unrelated to the piano but history has shown, time and again, that it's simply not possible. While Mr. S-H, Peyton and I might be courteous and civil with each other the root problem is this is a public forum and the onlookers might not be so circumspect and choose to wade in with both barrels blazing. This problem is further compounded by the fact that the medium we use to communicate isn't sufficiently nuanced to fully convey intent so irony, sarcasm, humor, etc., are often taken literally and as intentionally offensive when that's not the posters intent.