Hillsboro man walks in front of school with shotgun

over the speed limit is illegal anywhere.
possessing drugs is illegal anywhere.
owning and open-carrying a shotgun isn't.

Now, if he shot and killed someone I'd be calling for his life to end. Would you?

 

It seems that common sense isn't legal everywhere either.

btw, the irony that the speed limit in front of schools, even when kids aren't in the streets, is done to improve the safety of the children. Yet, it only makes sense if they're out there. But we do it to set a standard that makes us used to driving slower/safer around schools/children.

Somehow i don't think some guy walking around with a shot gun improves the safety of the kids.

 

Why? Are you going to assume he has a nefarious purpose? Some might argue the kids are safer.

The "common sense" analogy you're looking for is to ban all cars from near schools, since one might run over a kid. Getting hit by a car going 8 mph would be dangerous to a kindergartner.

 

I have two as well.

I'm all for persecuting illegal acts to the fullest extent. The dude never stepped foot on school property, or he would've been arrested. He never did anything in a provocative manner. It seems the "statement" he was trying to make is being made.

 

because most sane people don't walk around in front of a school with a gun exposed. Also, a sane person doesn't do something like this to "make a point".

Some might argue the kids are safer? Why, because this guy was around with a gun? What if the guy was a little strange? Or unstable?

No, the common sense analogy is that a smart person see's a school and goes "oh hey, I'm going to slow down". A smart sane person doesn't go "oh hey, I'm going to bring a shot gun near a school, to prove a point. Whats the worst that can happen?"

Getting hit by a car going 8 MPH does probably less damage to a kindergartner than a bullet would. Just sayin'

 

Why did he need to make a 'statement'?

 

I don't know why he wanted to, but he sure accomplished it. 8 people called 911, and the district sent out a warning notice, locked down a school and instituted emergency protocols for a guy DOING ABSOLUTELY NOTHING ILLEGAL WHATSOEVER.

It's kind of a shame to me. You don't know if this guy is a lunatic who stole a weapon, or the 99.999% of gun owners who are "sane" and "responsible" and yet you think he's insane.

And no, the analogy isn't to slow down. A car hitting a child at 8 mph will seriously injure a child. A weapon will not injure a child unless it is used illegally. The analogy, if we use your feelings on weapons, is that a common sense individual shouldn't want any cars around schools at all because children get can get injured by them. I mean, you don't know if someone behind the wheel in insane, a little unstable, under the influence, on a cell phone...

 

Yeah, because he needlessly made people scared.

Or used legally.

No, common sense says that carrying a gun around schools will scare people, will cause undue stress, and potential overreaction.

You're telling me that YOU would do this same thing and find nothing whatsoever wrong with it? OR that the undue stress and fear that it provides the people who work in schools was necessary?

If my child was at that school and I knew who the guy was, I'd drive my car up to him at 8 mph and illegal drive faster over his legs.

 

Which is a statement about society, not him.

Negative. If he shot at something "legally" and hit a kid, he's going to jail for a long time. With reason.

See quote #1.

I carry a weapon every day here. You're saying that if I was magically transported to the mean streets of Portland that now I'm insane for doing so?

That's nice. Why not use a gun, then, tough guy? I mean, if you're already doing something illegal and insane.

 

This is why I question this guys sanity.

This is an actual quote from him.


"It wasn't in my mind that I was really gonna terrify or scare anybody," he said. "It was just the route I usually take when I go run."

Really? Carrying a gun near a couple schools wasn't going to terrify or scare anyone? I bet there is something not quite right with this guy. No normal person does something like this to justify change. A NEWS station doing it, with FULL KNOWLEDGE OF THE SCHOOL, is far more sensible (like when one of the local reporters walked into one of the area high schools, without any ID or questioning from staff).

And if he's so sure that what he did wasn't wrong or whatever, why not give his name?

 

Um...

 

Perhaps he isn't very smart. Perhaps he misunderstood how poorly some people understand laws. Perhaps he's going to go home and watch the Kardashians.

Or, perhaps he's playing naive, since he did it with a rifle earlier near a High School and had multiple conversations with police about it then.

 

actually, quite the opposite. When someone does something and is oblivious to the negative outcomes, it says more about that person.

Yeah, no one ever has been shot when hunting. A completely legal activity...

So you honestly, and not blinders on, don't see how it's a natural and normal reaction for people in schools to react the way they do?

Carrying a concealed weapon isn't the issue. It's carrying a rifle, exposed, that is.

If carry a rifle, with the barrel exposed, and did so near a school, knowing full well how people in this country react to hearing "guns" and "near school", and then act like you didn't expect people to be terrified or scared? Then yes I'd say you'd be insane for doing so.

Thanks Hacksaw!. But "tough guy (HOOOOOOOOOO!)" aside, I think it's pretty sad that you couldn't tell I was kidding.

 

Perhaps playing naive kind of proves my point.

And this isn't about understanding laws, it's about seeing someone with a gun near a school.

Not around town, or hunting, or in an environment where seeing a rifle is common place, NEAR A SCHOOL.

It's like that part escapes both you and him.

 

considering his mom was a teacher at the school, it wouldn't be terribly hard to find out if my kid went to the high school or middle school.

 

Sigh. He was doing it to make a statement, since he's done the same thing multiple times at different schools, and knows exactly what to say to cops. Haven't you seen the videos on youtube of people doing this, armed with the regulations and filming cops' reactions?

If I shot you, even while hunting, involuntary manslaughter comes into play.

What blinders? I dislike many things that others enjoy the freedom to do, but they still get to do it.

So you'd rather him carry it illegally? Or just not be able to carry a rifle or shotgun at all?

Again, more a statement on the feelings of people in this country. It's not illegal.

Why do you think I appended "tough guy" to it? You think I'm the smack-talking type, julius? :smh:

Look, I'm not saying I'd do this, or even feel comfortable with him doing so in front of a school. But there are plenty of things that I think are wrong that are protected. It seems that people are singling this out as if it's some heinous crime against humanity, when in reality it's a dude walking legally down the street.

 

It doesn't escape me at all. But why is the vicinity of a school more important than, say, a church, or a mall, or Chuck E. Cheese's, or the community pool? There are lots of places where innocent people could be shot if someone illegally used a weapon.

 

doing so with cops and what not is one thing. Doing so in front of a school, and acting surprised people were terrified or scared is another.

dick cheney on line one...

the REACTION to is was a surprise to him.

Actually, no I don't think he should be able to carry a rifle or shot gun near school.

a concealed weapon? don't care. But show me someone who has a concealed rifle, and I think there's a reason.

Not sure why you keep bringing up the legality of it. I'm talking about his reaction to how people reacted to what he did.

well jeesh...why not make it like this "oh yeah? tough guy!? (HOOO!!! !USA! USA! give me a 2x4!)"

I think people are reacting because it scares the fucking shit out of people to hear "oh hey, did you hear that there's someone walking around your kids school with a gun?"