Just another day in the American warzone

[Gob]

Five people have been shot dead by a gunman at Fort Lauderdale airport in Florida, say officials.

It happened at the baggage claim area in Terminal 2, just before 1300 local time (1800 GMT), the airport confirmed.

Five people were killed, eight injured and one person was unharmed in custody, said police and local officials.

Hundreds of people were standing on the tarmac outside the terminal as dozens of police cars and ambulances rushed to the scene.

One of the first reports of the incident came from former White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer, who said in a tweet: "I'm at the Ft. Lauderdale Airport. Shots have been fired. Everyone is running."

A witness told MSNBC that the gunman was a "slender man' who was wearing a Star Wars T-shirt.

The gunman, who appeared to be in his 20s, did not speak before or during the attack, John Schlicher said.

He added that his mother-in-law administered first aid to someone who had been shot in the head.

Hundreds of people have been forced to wait on the airport tarmac for police to clear the terminal

Florida Senator Bill Nelson told US media that the gunman has been identified as Esteban Santiago, but that has not been confirmed by law enforcement.

A man in handcuffs was seen being escorted away from the airport by police nearly two hours after the shooting was first reported.

Mobile phone footage from the scene showed police officers frisking passengers and uniformed Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers.

A Miami TV station tweeted footage claiming to be filmed from inside the baggage terminal.

The video shows several injured people lying on the floor, as witnesses shout for medical help.

The gunman was arrested without any shots fired, said Sheriff Scott Israel.

[Joe Guy]

• Law enforcement sources told CNN that the suspect had declared the firearm. When he arrived at Fort Lauderdale, the suspect retrieved a bag at baggage claim, took out the gun and started firing, the sources said. One source said he went to the bathroom to get the gun out of his luggage and emerged firing.

full article

[Burning Petard]

Baggage retrieval area is outside the security zone in every airport I have used in the USA. Visitors come and go with no restrictions. I was particularly concerned with the one at Atlanta. The exit is just a sidewalk away from a main street and anyone could come in or leave the area quickly.

snailgate

[RayThom]

The FBI in Anchorage knew Santiago was certifiable. At their behest he recently spent time at a regional mental health facility. Sadly his stay was much too short. Although this creep was known to view ISIS videos I doubt if this slaughter will go down being attributed to Islamic inspired terrorism. A small consolation to the dead and wounded.

Soft targets will continue to be the bane of our national security. I fear it is here to stay. It's no long a question of "if" but "when." I bet Washington DC will really be on edge on January 20th.

[BoSoxGal]

A military veteran with mental health issues; how much will the press and politicians vilify him rather than talk about the abysmal shortage of meaningful services through the VA and VA hospitals?


Oh yeah and good thing it's easy to get/have guns.

[Lord Jim]

The suspect showed up several months ago at the FBI office in Anchorage, law enforcement officials told CNN. He was interviewed and said he was hearing voices in his head, including some telling him to join ISIS. He was taken to a hospital for a mental health evaluation, the officials said. He voluntarily checked himself in, the officials explained.

http://www.cnn.com/2017/01/06/us/fort-l ... -incident/

It's a shame "the voices" didn't tell him to watch Adam Sandler videos instead of ISIS videos...

Then the only one he would have wanted to kill would have been himself...

ETA:

Come to think of it, why is it that "the voices" are always telling people to do terrible things, and never any good things?

Why do the voices always say things like "join ISIS" or "push the little old lady in front of the bus" rather than, "join the Peace Corps" or "help the little old lady across the street"?

[Crackpot]

Because the people who's voices tell them to do good things generally aren't a problem.

[Burning Petard]

If an individual American wants to legally obtain a firearm, they must jump thru a series of hoops. The hoops are designed by local, state, federal governments. Each of these hoop designers is in some ways independent of the others. To get the gun, you must comply with all of them. The actual details of the requirements vary according to your location.

AFTER you legally obtain the gun, it is yours, your personal property. Now the hoops run in the other direction. For the government, at any level, to take your personal property, the government must jump through a different set of hoops. Yes, this shooter at the Florida airport had displayed warning signs. But in the interest of various rights for all the public, the government had not seized the personal property of this one individual.

Moving a legally owned firearm from one place to another is not simple. I suspect the current rules for a private person taking this stuff in their checked baggage is going to end. An ordinary person cannot ship a firearm via UPS (they refuse to take them for business reasons--too many of their employees stole them and they find it easier to refuse to ship them, rather than stop the theft.) The US Post office will not accept them. Last I checked, FedEx takes them with their own set of special hoops to go thru. Hunters and competitive target shooters frequently put up with the time required to just travel with their guns in their car.

snailgate

But much as I hate the current security requirements at airports, I hope the security zone is extended to include baggage retrieval.

[Jarlaxle]

UPS ships firearms.

[Burning Petard]

The Wilmington Delaware UPS distribution center ten minutes ago said they will only take firearms from federal licensed gun dealers.

snailgate

[Bicycle Bill]

Come to think of it, why is it that "the voices" are always telling people to do terrible things, and never any good things?

Why do the voices always say things like "join ISIS" or "push the little old lady in front of the bus" rather than, "join the Peace Corps" or "help the little old lady across the street"?

You're just jealous because the voices don't like you and won't talk to you.

-"BB"-

[RayThom]

... But much as I hate the current security requirements at airports, I hope the security zone is extended to include baggage retrieval.

sg, this sounds good on paper but then what stops a nut job/terrorist from driving up to an arrivals/departure terminal, jumping out, and letting go with a barrage of bullets? Then DHS and TSA expands the security zone to all access roads and passengers and cars now need to be screened a half mile from the airport. Where does it end?

After awhile the ne'er-do-well will just move on to another soft target like a local school bus, or supermarket, or daycare facility. Then what does DHS do... nail our doors and windows shut and push food through the mail slot?

Vigilance is the only answer and that will never be foolproof, but it's all we have for the moment. See something, say something... and very quickly.

[Lord Jim]

Because the people who's voices tell them to do good things generally aren't a problem.

You may have a point there...

People who hear voices that tell them things like, "join the Kiwanis Club" or "volunteer at the local senior center" probably don't make the news all that often...

[dales]

Come to think of it, why is it that "the voices" are always telling people to do terrible things, and never any good things?

Perhaps the underlying paranoia which people with schizophrenia often have to deal with.

[Burning Petard]

RayThom, Same thing that stops them from doing that today--nothing. I noted on the video reports from the Florida shooting yesterday that large numbers of people fled onto the tarmac, the actual area with planes and stuff. A group of bad people in one or more vans could easily pull up in front of the exit area at baggage retrieval and go out into the tarmac with guns and bombs today.

But, our ever protective TSA WILL stop you from bringing the smallest swiss army knife, complete with plastic toothpick, tweezers, tiny scissors, a 1.25 inch spear point blade and fingernail file with slot screwdriver. Your flying safety is their highest priority.

snailgate

[dales]

A somewhat positive occurrence a during the massacre:

There were bullets flying at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport when 13 people were shot.


The 37-year-old traveler from Atlanta brought his school-issued lap top, because he was going to an education conference.

He placed it in his backpack, but didn't think of it when he felt an impact on his back during the shooting. Frappier said he saw a man get shot in the head and heard his wife screaming.

When the bloodshed was over, he said he went to the men's restroom and saw a bullet hole on the lap top. He gave it to FBI agents. And he was in shock when they found a 9 mm bullet in his backpack.

That was when he realized a gunman aimed to kill him, but the laptop took the bullet for him. "If I didn't have that backpack on, the bullet would have shot me between the shoulders," Frappier said.

[Jarlaxle]

The Wilmington Delaware UPS distribution center ten minutes ago said they will only take firearms from federal licensed gun dealers.

snailgate

Directly from the UPS website, they ship firearms.

I wonder if that is a law in Delaware.

[Jarlaxle]

I'm thinking bullshit...if only because a 9mm will go through a laptop like paper.

[MajGenl.Meade]

I just tried pushing some paper through my laptop. I don't think it can be done

[Lord Jim]