Thread by @FreedomFriesInc

Thread: Mass shooting in a Walmart store, Chesapeake, VA

Here is the latest at 4am Eastern. At 8am Eastern, local police will hold a media briefing.

Yet another shooting. There are some relatively easy ways to prevent most of them...

edition.cnn.com/2022/11/22/us/…

I'm talking about changing the way domestic violence incidents are handled, and doing more to put long term distance between known DV offenders and their legal access to guns.

An idea best espoused by the outstanding @BeauTFC. Link to follow.

The outstanding @BeauTFC talked about this issue here:


(The video he was referring to is this one: )

I don't yet know if the Chesapeake shooter had a history of domestic violence offending, but most of these shooters do. Regardless of the underlying causes of shootings that happen in or just outside of workplaces, it is well known that DV can "spill over" into the workplace.

People who manage workplaces need to really lift their game when it comes to the personal safety and security of employees and everyone else who uses buildings and facilities. There are so many things that would be feasible and reasonable to do at that level.

But the wider issue is what to do as a country. I've heard all the standard arguments made on both sides of the gun access debate in the US. Most of them are mere political talking points; not concrete, viable options that correct the imbalances in existing laws.

I have found @BeauTFC's commentary on gun access laws to be extremely well researched and reasoned. And as always, easy to listen to. The man's a policy analysis machine.

Highly recommended.

#GunControlNow
#MassShooting
#Chesapeake

linktr.ee/Beautfc

Update at 3pm Eastern, 11/23/22 (the day after the shooting.)

Fuck you, Walmart.

And fuck you, every large employer that doesn't give a shit about your employees and customers.

"“He said if he ever got fired from his job he would retaliate and people would remember who he was,” [the witness] said.

Neither [of the two witnesses] reported any concerns about Bing to management, they said."

IMHO, both the company and the witnesses are partly responsible.

Source of the above quote: edition.cnn.com/2022/11/22/us/…

Folks, there's a reason the plea to #SeeSomethingSaySomething exists.

Everyone, and I mean everyone, at this Walmart in Chesapeake, VA, knew for YEARS that 31 year old Andre Bing was a potential mass murderer.

6 innocent people are dead, some more are fighting for life in hospital, and hundreds of others & their families will never be the same.

I know the kind of pushback I will get from some people when I call out those who saw something(s) and didn't say something to law enforcement and failing that, the media and public.

I don't care.

Take responsibility for yourself, your family, and your community.

It's just too fucking late when the bodies are laying on the ground.

This is how we got Jan 6th. YES, the "person" at the top of the seditious conspiracy is the one MOST responsible. But so are the hundreds of officials who knew security on the day would be utterly inadequate.

I do not give a flying fuck how much you think that "reporting someone to management" will cause trouble and not work. Don't tell "management." Tell cops. And more than one agency if needed.

I support the FBI as an institution. But my heavens they have ignored a lot of tips.

Every LE agency in the US, from the 5-person Uvalde school district to the 30,000 strong FBI, includes good cops and bad cops. That does not mean folk should stop trying to help them to help you by addressing and preventing crime.

And if they do nothing, then tell the media.

And if you can't get media to take notice, find others to tell. When I see something, I leave no stone unturned, as scary as that is at the time. I have to clear my conscience.

Courage needs to replace cowardice, in every part of life.

At the same time, gun laws must change.

After most other mass shootings, it becomes clear that law enforcement's prior response to violent offenders, especially those who commit domestic violence, failed to put effective distance between the offender & legal firearms.

Changing that won't fix it all, but it's a start.

Here is a more appropriate photo of the shooter. Looks like a mugshot from an earlier offense, doesn't it?

Below is the most recent official info at time of writing. I am sure police know the motive, but they are right to take an open minded approach with the public, for now.

To me this crime was similar to another avoidable tragedy in nearby Annapolis, MD. The 2018 mass murder at the Capital Gazette newspaper office.

I'm talking about taking action when the threat of violence is clear to those in charge of a workplace.

https://twitter.com/ErinatThePost/status/1012511710396190721

Making sensible changes to some gun laws is necessary but not sufficient.

Individuals and facility managers need to wake the hell up.

And, many of us can choose where to shop, work, and play...

Yes, adults can almost always choose before entering a facility or space that may have extremely low security levels.

But not always. For children, and vulnerable adults, the choice is seldom available. So: it is a community problem, which brings it into the realm of politics.

The American community voted against unfettered gun access "rights" in 2018, 2020, and 2022.

These voters understand that 2A includes the term #WellRegulatedMilitia. The intent was NEVER to provide an absolute right to lawfully access a gun.

Well regulated.