Columbine. Newtown. Lakeland. Roseburg. Atlanta. Aurora. Killeen. Santa Fe. San Bernardino. Sutherland Springs. Fort Hood. Virginia Tech. The University of Texas. The Washington Navy Yard. A McDonald's in San Ysidro. A music festival in Las Vegas. In the United States of America, no place is safe from gun violence. Mass shootings occur in schools, churches, malls, theaters, restaurants, nightclubs and workplaces. Today, 11 people were shot and killed in a synagogue by a deranged man who had posted anti-Semitic rants on Facebook. And the President's response? Very predictably, he said nothing about gun control. He suggested schools, churches and synagogues should have armed guards. How sad that our nation has come to this.
11 Dead, six wounded in Pittsburgh synagogue shooting
KDKA-TV, Oct 27, 2018 4:01 PM ET
Eleven people have been killed and six others injured in a shooting today at The Tree Of Life Synagogue in Squirrel Hill. Police sources say the gunman walked into the building and yelled, "All Jews must die." He was armed with an AR-15 and two handguns.
When officers arrived, the gunman shot at them, forcing officers to use their vehicles as a shield. The suspect, a heavy-set white male with a beard, surrendered. The SWAT team had been talking with the suspect and he was crawling and injured. It is unclear the extent of his injuries.
The suspect is 48-year-old Robert Bowers. It is believed that he acted alone. The shooting happened during weekly Shabbat services at the synagogue. Police are also investigating if Bowers announced his intentions on social media this morning. His account has since been taken down. One posting stated, "HIAS [Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society] likes to bring invaders in that kill our people. I can't sit by and watch my people get slaughtered. Screw your optics, I'm going in."
The shooting is being investigated as a hate crime and the FBI is leading the investigation. President Donald Trump called the shooting a "terrible thing" and said "it’s a shame to watch." He added, "If they had some kind of protection inside the temple, maybe it could have been a much different situation. But they didn't and he was able to do things that unfortunately he shouldn't have been able to do."
Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf said in a statement, "These senseless acts of violence are not who we are as Americans. We must all pray and hope for no more loss of life. But we have been saying 'this one is too many' for far too long. Dangerous weapons are putting our citizens in harm’s way. We must come together and take action to prevent these tragedies in the future. We cannot accept this violence as normal."
https://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2018...squirrel-hill/