Free Republic

Security: As the usual suspects call for stricter gun control, the fact remains that a gunman with two prior gun-crime arrests entered a secure military facility with a stolen ID and found no one able to shoot back. It was Fort Hood all over again. Aaron Alexis, a gunman whose prior behavioral warning signs were ignored, opens fire in an installation belonging to the most powerful military on Earth and those who protect our nation and design our weapons are not allowed to have a weapon to defend themselves. He was more equipped than the 12 people he killed on...

“The system of terror was essential to Stalinism. … Terror was the creation to mold politically the control that they wanted.”– Condoleezza Rice, “Joseph Stalin: Red Terror” As we look back at the atrocities that have devastated America over the past 12 years since 9/11, one has to reflect upon history and see how it is that past dictators have profited from the use of “terror.” For example: Hitler was responsible for attacking his own Reichstag to start a world war. He perpetuated a war against the “enemies” he himself created. His propagandists had the Germans believing they were under...

Katie Lyles was a sophomore at Columbine High School when her math class was interrupted by the sound of gunfire on April 20, 1999. She fled the class, and survived. But by the end of the day, she would find out that her lab partner from science class and one of her teachers were among the 13 people killed by a pair of seniors who went on a shooting rampage that day. Fourteen years later, Lyles, now an art teacher at an elementary school in the same Colorado community, decided to become an advocate for expanded background checks and other...

I was in the Columbine parking lot when I heard the first explosion. I thought it had to be a firecracker—some kind of senior prank. Then, I looked up and saw the backs of two guys in black trench coats. They were standing at the top of the hill near the rear entrance to the school. It was Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold. I didn't know their names then, but I'd seen them around. My friends and I would move out of their way in the halls. They scared us. As Eric and Dylan turned around, I saw that they...

I know I’m not the only one who remembers how, almost exactly 6 years ago at Virginia Tech, mass-murderer Seung-Hui Cho chained and padlocked the doors to an academic building shut. That was so that he could effectively trap his numerous (32 killed and 23 wounded) , defenseless victims inside – except for the handful who managed to breach and exit second story windows, suffering injuries from falling to the ground – and to keep the responding police outside for long, crucial minutes while he conducted his murderous rampage. Cho knew he’d face no armed opponent once he had his...

Admittedly, digital media amplifies some of their mistakes and pours salt into wounds, but the behavior and reactions aren't new. What's new is our reaction to childhood aggression -- and our increasing impatience with children and readiness to label them when they make certain mistakes or experience pain. What caused this shift? In a word, Columbine, but not for the reasons many believe. Dave Cullen, in his book "Columbine," wrote that after the 1999 Colorado school massacre, the media crafted the explanation that shooters Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold had been bullied. They apparently hadn't been, but the nation --...

Sign the petition! Evan Todd was wounded April 20th 1999 in the Columbine Massacre. He believes that the legislation the President is proposing to limit American's gun rights will fail. He is not the only person. Evan has penned an open letter to The President with one of the smartest, thorough explanations to date. The American people deserve to hear why The President disagrees. American's deserve better than talking points with flawed logic.

Let's set the parameters, before you read this article. First and foremost, I am a firm believer in gun control. A good site picture, a steady hand, timed breathing, and a smooth trigger squeeze all contribute to gun control and a tight grouping on your target. Being unfamiliar with your weapon or deficient on any of these components will mean poor gun control and imprecise shooting, which is a waste of ammunition. We all have different views on gun control. Most of the readers believe in the ability of the individual to defend himself against home intruders, strong arm thugs,...

Evan Todd will never forget the day that Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris burst into Columbine High School in Littleton, Colo., intent on killing. How could he? He was the first student shot in the library during a massacre that claimed 12 students and one teacher and went down as one of the worst school assaults in U.S. history. Since that terrifying day, Todd has been active and open about his views on social and political issues, including gun control. But rather than fight against weapons, he’s been vocal that he doesn’t believe firearms are the culprit. In fact, the...

School Safety: Critics of the National Rifle Association's call for armed security guards at our schools respond that one famous school did have a sheriff's deputy on scene. But without him, the toll would have been much worse. After remaining silent on the mass shooting at Sandy Hook, the NRA's Wayne LaPierre held a press conference Friday to condemn another tragedy in a gun-free zone and to advocate the placement of armed security guards at our schools as is done at airports, banks and other public venues. "It's now time for us to assume responsibility for our schools," he said....

Firearm prohibitionists love to use tragedy to leverage their agenda. So, it’s important for gun rights advocates to stand their ground and fire back (proverbially) whenever this happens. Last week I posted a graphic on Facebook claiming the average number of people killed in mass shootings when stopped by police is 18.25, and the average number of people killed in a mass shooting when stopped by civilians is 2.2. I based it on 10 shootings I found listed on some timeline somewhere. I honestly don’t even remember where. I presented the case studies in a blog post on the Silver...

Bill Nye, the so-called "science guy," recently said that the teaching of creation to young people is harmful. I beg to differ. Does anyone remember Columbine? The shooters were not wearing Christian T-shirts. They were wearing evolutionary t-shirts touting "natural selection." These losers apparently believed that if they were only the results of mutation and natural selection over millions of years, with no God or afterlife, then why not vent their anger and go out with a bang? ----------advertisement----------- It's little wonder that they were fans of Adolf Hitler, another avid disciple of Darwin, and committed their atrocities on his...

SEPTEMBER 7--Alarmed by Facebook posts promoting a “Killing Spree” this month in Littleton, Colorado--home to Columbine High School--FBI agents last week raided a residence allegedly connected to the online threats and seized several guns and “eight books and notebook involving killing,” court records show. Law enforcement officials learned of the Facebook posts after a tipster contacted police in Littleton to report a variety of disturbing images and messages on a Facebook page in the name “Eric Rebdomine.” One of the Columbine killers, Eric Harris, used the online alias “Rebdomine.” Investigators discovered that the “Rebdomine” account had created a Facebook “event”...

On July 25, 2011, the Miami-Dade grand jury released several sweeping recommendations in a detailed report on the Nubia Barahona case. The murder of 10-year-old Nubia, apparently at the hands of her adoptive parents earlier this year in Florida, was a heinous crime for which the perpetrators should be severely punished...While it is right to conduct a thorough review in the aftermath of tragic events in an effort to prevent similar tragedies, it is also important not to overreact. Unfortunately, the grand jury report overreacts in its recommendations to amend Florida’s homeschool laws because of Nubia’s adoptive parents’ claim that...

DENVER, Colo. -- The man police said planted a pipe bomb at a Littleton mall was released from prison one week before the incident. A nation-wide manhunt is underway for Earl Albert Moore, 65, who's accused of planting the explosives Wednesday, the anniversary of the Columbine High School shootings. Moore is considered armed and dangerous. The FBI confirmed that he had been serving time in a Georgia prison for a 2005 armed robbery in West Virginia. Moore had been sentenced to 18 years, but was released early on April 13. Authorities said just seven days later, he planted a pipe...

<p>A photocopy of a magazine cover about the Columbine school shooting was found among the belongings of Australian twin sisters who shot themselves in a suicide pact at a Colorado shooting range, authorities said Friday.</p> <p>The magazine cover was found among stuffed animals, cell phones and jewelry the twins left behind at the nearby hotel where they had been staying. No suicide note was found.</p>

As another school shooting rocks Littleton, Colorado, Dave Cullen reveals the secret meeting of Eric Harris' parents with his victims' kin—offering a rare glimpse into how they saw their son. It’s been nearly 11 years since the Columbine tragedy rocked the nation, and the largest remaining questions center on the killers’ parents: Did they see it coming? Why do they think it happened? How did the tragedy affect them? Do they feel remorse? Have they expressed it to the victims? Sue Klebold finally addressed those questions last October in an essay in O Magazine. But her son Dylan was the...

Perhaps the biggest tragedy of the Columbine school massacre is not the dead and wounded but of the myths perpetuated.These myths dishonor the lives lost because they impart faulty lessons. Columbine was never about poor picked upon Eric Harris (REB) and Dylan Klebold (VoDKa) striking out at their tormentors. Horrific though it was, Eric dreamt of much more than gunning to death twelve students and one teacher. Eric wanted to annihilate the whole school and then the assembled police and media, live on national television. His goal was to insert this nightmarish vision into our national psyche. Frighteningly enough, he...

Starbucks Coffee shops recently told liberalnazis and socialist moon bats throughout America to blow it out their noses when confronted over not banning firearms in its stores. Gun control activists have quietly been going door to door in major city businesses demanding that they make their stores gun free. Those that do not comply face threats of boycotts and harassment buy the gun grabbing haters. This is an easy task in liberal cities or concerning companies run by leftists such as those in California. California Pizza Kitchen and Peet's Coffee and Tea are two companies that have changed their rules...

Second Teen Arrested in Alleged NJ High School AttackBY STEPHANIE BARISH wpix.com 7:14 PM EST, December 12, 2009 SOUTH RIVER, N.J (WPIX) - A second teenager has been arrested in connection with an investigation into a planned "Columbine-style" attack at Bridgewater-Raritan High School. Somerset County Prosecutor Wayne J. Forrest said the second teen is a friend of the 16-year-old who was arrested on Thursday. The suspect has only been identified as a 17-year-old boy who lives in Bridgewater and is a senior at Immaculate High School in Somerville. Last night, police searched the 17-year-old's home and reportedly found a wide...