There are too many hand guns. And they are too easy to get.

The state does little to keep them away from crazy people.

We need headlines and pictures of the people who sell the guns that kill innocent people and terrorize families.

The gun dealers need to be well known and offered opportunities to defend themselves.

Before Ronald Regan decided to “release” people like Ian Stawicki from mental institutions for budgetary considerations, people like this would have been locked up. As Mr. Royer indicates, the problems are quite complex. We as a population want everything free. (Look at how well Tim Eyman does.) We want deranged people to magically get better. If these people were institionalized, they would get their meds that would keep them on an even keel. Yes, that is harsh and presumptive; however, it is part of what is needed.

My son went to school for twelve years with a young man whose parents wanted him “mainstreamed. The first indication that something was amiss was the first day on the school bus when he disrobed and urinated on a female classmate. Everybody was shocked and he was suspended. His father a lawyer was successful in getting an injunction, which reinstated him back into the same school. The parents saw nothing abnormal about his actions. Later when he was out of school, in his late teens, he tried to rape a young girl. He picked the wrong one and now is bound to a wheelchair. The young girl decided at the last minute not to kill him in self-defense. Because of parental blindness, lack of good judgment on the part of the courts, and a whole plethora of other issues, many people have been traumatized and a young man crippled for life.

What the answers are, who really knows. Stricter gun laws do not work, this has been proven. I doubt that the weapon this man used was purchased from a gun store. I would almost bet my life savings that it was purchased on the street. In addition, I bet the purchase was within blocks of wherever he lived since one can purchase a stolen firearm almost as easy as illegal drugs or underage beer.

There are no simple solutions that are only complex solutions and they are not cheap and we do not seem to want to spend the money as a community.

Sorry, but it was not Reagan that released them by the results of a USSC ruling driven by Democrats. Though I do agree this event was a step backwards for civil society.
We do have a society that wants everything for free, as a direct result of the idea Big Brother will provide everything (NOT Tim Eyeman) as constantly preached by the left.
Med are NOT a universal answer, but many think part of the problem. many times the problem is more rooted in personal responsibility (or the wide lack thereof) which is supported by the movements of the left and the supporters of Big Brother ideas.

It is possible to have lots of guns, and not much gun violence.
A good example would be Finland.

If you look at the top five or so countries in terms of guns per capita, Finland is the only real example that is comparable to the USA.

The top countries are usually the USA, Iraq and Yemen, Finland, Switzerland, and Serbia.

Iraq and Yemen are war zones. The majority of the guns there are owned illegally, and the rule of law is negligible, which means that mortars, machine guns, and grenades are common. And neither has a constitutional right to own guns- so, I would suggest, neither is the least bit relevant to our situation.

Switzerland has a high rate of guns per capita, but most are owned by the government, and legally must be kept in the home, unloaded, with ammo separate.

Serbia- another recent war zone, again with no constitutional right to own, and with a huge percentage of its guns illegal.

But Finland is a stable, modern democracy, no war since WW2, with BOTH very high gun ownership (all legal) and very tight gun control laws. And, incidentally, quite low gun violence numbers.
It is just what gun owners here fear- a country that loves guns, and where many many people own guns, but where they are tightly regulated. No concealed carry. Permits required, and "self defense" is not a valid reason to own a gun. Generally, there, its illegal to transport a loaded gun. Period.
And yet, everybody has a gun there. Finns love guns and knives, most rural Finns carry a big sheath knife every day, and its very rare to find an adult male Finn who doesnt know how to shoot.

Gun regulation and very high gun ownership can go hand in hand- but it results in things that many american gun owners would not like. Finns dont carry guns, nor use them in public, either to commit crimes or defend against them. Gun homicides are very rare. It works, over there, and while the exact same system would probably not work here, it is a functioning example that, while it requires compromise from everybody, allows widespread gun ownership, hunting, and target practice, while keeping guns out of the hands of most criminals.

Much like the citizenship that it is, what proves to have worked is perpetual, insistent, consistent "don't shoot" coupled with respect and education. What has never worked is assuming once fixed, the deed is done.

http://www.npr.org/2011/11/01/141803766/interrupting-violence-with-the-message-dont-shoot

"One of the best uses for a bit of King County's $1.4 million would be to buy a copy of Kennedy's book for every politician, street cop and gangster in the county." C. Cross's close at: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/books/2016348708_br02shoot.html

Eliminate the culture of hunger and despair -- that is, the desperate hunger of the 99 Percent for the obscene wealth and power of the One Percent -- and the violence will end of its own accord, no matter how many firearms are in civilian hands.

Alas, to do that it would be necessary to end capitalism, which is really just infinite greed elevated to maximum virtue -- and is thus not only the defiant reversal of every humanitarian principle our species has ever uttered, but also the sole source of all our death-dealing inequalities.

However since we all know that's impossible -- the One Percent will never allow capitalism to be terminated -- perhaps they will at least agree to end the constant agitation of the hopelessly, eternally impoverished masses that now and for the foreseeable future make up the majority population in these United Estates.

To end the agitation of the masses, the One Percent need only prohibit the advertising of seductively attractive but impossibly expensive products to those who cannot possibly ever again have the legal means to buy such luxuries.

Indeed it is arguable that -- when advertising is aimed at the huge and fast-growing number who are now the nation's permanent poor – the ads themselves are a form of entrapment. Hence to stop the advertising is to stop the campaigns of induced hunger, of goading and envy and temptation, which in turn would -- at least theoretically -- reduce the compulsion to crime.

But of course for even such ameliorative measures to happen, the One Percent would first have to publicly admit the two most bitter truths of American history: that the American Dream is dead – murdered beyond any possibility of resuscitation – and that the American experiment in constitutional democracy is similarly slain.

Meanwhile, hopeless poverty and irremediable powerlessness continue to combine with genuine need and manufactured want, (predictably) fomenting escalating violence...

This is a complicated issue and there are really no easy answers, especially since there were mental health issues involved.

seattlelifer, Ian Stawicki was never institutionalized, so the Ronald Reagan wholesale release wouldn't have affected this at all. Also I do not believe he was ever civilly committed which means he had full rights to carry a concealed weapon.

While we want to figure out what we could done diferently, many times we simply cannot. We can try to be good friends and family members to those we know who need assistance. We can only do our best.

gun control? its not about controlling the guns.. I am irritated by the idea of people thinking that controlling guns will fix the problem of bad people using them to do bad things. what the hell its not the equipment's fault, its like giving a baby a sharp knife and saying after the child has been cut many time, oh it the knife's fault, ??? how stupid are people... if you control the guns every bad guy or person will have them and the good people are defenseless. the parents should be held responsible for the baby getting cut by letting the child have the knife. So should people be held responsible, not the object, gun or knife, any person that thinks any inanimate object is to blame shows the lack of education and understanding of human evilness. its people at the hart not the object, stop being single minded and ignorant to the human aspect of the crime. Guns are not the issue, its the ones using them. any different thought is some person being stupid, and foolish. in the time of war it is always the bombs and bullets and guns that kill people ? oh ya some one has to pull the pin or trigger? idiots! control people not equipment.

Most of the above is either typical Seattle process ("it's complicated"), or a defense of guns ("guns don't kill people blahblah" .

Since this man was never institutionalized, he was able to buy a gun legally. A number of guns, actually, and he was licensed. He was also crazy.

There are solutions and they're not complicated. Outlaw hand guns because they're used to kill, not hunt, and amend the involuntary committment law which doesn't allow for people to be institutionalized unless they are actually in the process of killing themselves or others.

Otherwise, we will continue to agonize and discuss and mourn and leave flowers in front of murder sites.

The article is well written and identifies a major problem: people with mental issues who's problems are not addressed. Years of budget cuts have gutted a system that was essentially dismantled decades ago in a spirit of enlightenment.

On the other side, we have a social contract that is broken in multiple parts of our society. Many juvenile offenders have histories of weapons violations, not just firearms. In the case of the latter, it takes multiple arrests and convictions, to even get the kid off the street.

Each of these is a complicated problem with no single solution, especially more gun laws. The authorities can't enforce the ones that are on the books now. Frankly, some of those laws don’t make any sense either. Can anyone really say with a straight face that laws actually constrain the bad actors before the act.

I raised two daughters around all sorts of guns from an early age. One of them just got her WA Concealed Pistol License. I have had mine for over twenty years. Yes, I carry regularly. I also make sure that anyone with whom I work knows safe handling, applicable laws, and real gun control.

Finally, anyone who carries with good intent should ask himself (sexist, but grammatically correct) whether or not he is willing to use deadly force in any situation. If not, one does not want to carry. I doubt that this question even occurred to any of the recent shooters. A free society is inherently more dangerous than a controlled one.

Every other country in the top ten of gun ownership per capita has stricter gun laws than we do. And they also have less guns in the hands of criminals, lower rates of gun violence, and virtually NO guns in the hands of the mentally ill.
So when people say that gun control doesnt work- we have only to point to real world examples around the globe where it DOES work- where it allows legal gun ownership, and yet manages to keep guns out of the hands of people like Stawicki.

Another good example is Cyprus. Cypriots LOVE guns with a passion- a recent New Yorker article accused them of pretty much singlehandedly decimating the migratory bird population of europe, they hunt so much. Cyprus has a per capita gun ownership rate of around 36 guns per 100 people, and rank around sixth globally in terms of gun ownership. They allow carrying a gun in public, if you have a permit. Most guns are rifles and shotguns, but most households have a weapon.
And yet, they have pretty strict gun laws.
All sales have to be by a state licensed and regulated gun store. And all sales have to be recorded, and to a permit holder.

The USA is unique in the world, aside from lawless zones, in our gun laws. Nobody is as free to buy, sell, own, and carry guns as we are. We are an experiment, at the very far end of the spectrum, and the results are pretty obvious in the papers everyday.

Many countries that have high legal gun ownership rates have managed to strike a compromise, with much lower gun violence rates, and much fewer guns in the hands of criminals and the mentally ill.

Every other country in the top ten of gun ownership per capita has stricter gun laws than we do. And they also have less guns in the hands of criminals, lower rates of gun violence, and virtually NO guns in the hands of the mentally ill.
So when people say that gun control doesnt work- we have only to point to real world examples around the globe where it DOES work- where it allows legal gun ownership, and yet manages to keep guns out of the hands of people like Stawicki.

Another good example is Cyprus. Cypriots LOVE guns with a passion- a recent New Yorker article accused them of pretty much singlehandedly decimating the migratory bird population of europe, they hunt so much. Cyprus has a per capita gun ownership rate of around 36 guns per 100 people, and rank around sixth globally in terms of gun ownership. They allow carrying a gun in public, if you have a permit. Most guns are rifles and shotguns, but most households have a weapon.
And yet, they have pretty strict gun laws.
All sales have to be by a state licensed and regulated gun store. And all sales have to be recorded, and to a permit holder.

The USA is unique in the world, aside from lawless zones, in our gun laws. Nobody is as free to buy, sell, own, and carry guns as we are. We are an experiment, at the very far end of the spectrum, and the results are pretty obvious in the papers everyday.

Many countries that have high legal gun ownership rates have managed to strike a compromise, with much lower gun violence rates, and much fewer guns in the hands of criminals and the mentally ill.

Thanks, Jordan. Yes, these things do keep recurring and we keep looking for "answers" to stop them. A typical American belief that, for every problem, there is an answer which, if applied, will fix the problem. We had a recent dialogue about this after the Giffords shooting incident in Tucson.

Tightly applied gun-control laws would help. But, in many places, the laws or their enforcement are lax. The country is awash in firearms and they are not difficult to obtain, even in so-called strong gun-law states. And, yes, many disturbed people are walking around without
receiving treatment. And, yes, there is a sub-culture which treats
shootings and violence as a perfectly normal means of expression.

Bottom line: There are disturbed people, as well as sociopaths and
truly evil people, who will kill others. Firearms are often the chosen instrument. These people have always existed and will continue to exist. Try as we will, we can only affect this at the margins. A sad reality of life.

This country is awash in firearms BECAUSE they are not difficult to obtain.

Of course there will always be disturbed people and sociopaths and truly evil people, however you define that. But firearms would NOT be their chosen instrument if those firearms were not easily available.

Stawicki is an example: mentally ill, had many guns. He bought those guns, he was legally licensed to own them, he killed with them. He didn't walk into that cafe and kill people with knives. He killed with guns, which are fast and efficient. Why is it so difficult to get that picture?