UPDATE: Kelley - a white male - was an Air Force veteran and firearms enthusiast. He served on active duty between 2010 and 2014, but received a dishonorable discharge after facing a court martial in May of 2014, CBS News said.
It has been a little over a month since the mass shooting carnage in Las Vegas and now at least 25 are dead after a shooting spree at First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas (a member of the Southern Baptist Convention), not far from San Antonio. As is always the case when such avoidable tragedies occur, Republican elected officials - GOP Speaker of the House Paul Ryan and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott among them - disgustingly "send prayers" but meanwhile block and kind of responsible gun control that might lessen the frequency of such horrible events. Not to sound cruel and heartless in this moment of grief and mourning, but I cannot help but find an element of irony in the fact that the Southern Baptist Convention has doggedly supported anti-gun control Republicans and bows down to the gun manufacturer lobby which hides behind the NRA which is now little better than a front organization for international gun manufacturers. Most upsetting is the fact that children appear to have been among the victims. Here are some details from the New York Times:
It has been a little over a month since the mass shooting carnage in Las Vegas and now at least 25 are dead after a shooting spree at First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas (a member of the Southern Baptist Convention), not far from San Antonio. As is always the case when such avoidable tragedies occur, Republican elected officials - GOP Speaker of the House Paul Ryan and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott among them - disgustingly "send prayers" but meanwhile block and kind of responsible gun control that might lessen the frequency of such horrible events. Not to sound cruel and heartless in this moment of grief and mourning, but I cannot help but find an element of irony in the fact that the Southern Baptist Convention has doggedly supported anti-gun control Republicans and bows down to the gun manufacturer lobby which hides behind the NRA which is now little better than a front organization for international gun manufacturers. Most upsetting is the fact that children appear to have been among the victims. Here are some details from the New York Times:
A gunman walked into a small Baptist church in rural Texas on Sunday and opened fire, killing at least 25 people and turning a tiny town east of San Antonio into the scene of the country’s most recent mass horror.
Representative Henry Cuellar of Texas confirmed the death toll, which has steadily increased throughout the day after the shooting at the First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs.
Accounts of the number of dead have varied: Paul W. Pfeil, a Wilson County, Tex., commissioner, said that he did not have a total count of those killed but that it was “more than 20.”
Albert Gamez Jr., another Wilson County commissioner, told CNN that he was told by an emergency medical technician that 27 people were dead and 24 others were injured. He said he was told by the police that the gunman was chased into the next county and was killed, but it was not clear whether the police shot him or he killed himself.
Mr. Gamez said the victims were still inside the church. Sutherland Springs is a small community where everyone knows one another, he said.
Devin Keen, a constable in Wilson County, said “there were kids involved” in the shooting at the church.
Sheriff Joe Tackitt of Wilson County told The Wilson County News that a man had entered the church and begun firing.
Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas said on Twitter: “Our prayers are with all who were harmed by this evil act. Our thanks to law enforcement for their response.”
Ken Paxton, the attorney general of Texas, said in a statement: “The thoughts and prayers of all Texans are with the people of Sutherland Springs as tragic reports come out of First Baptist Church.
The San Antonio Express-News reports that the shooter who is as yet unnamed, is dead although whether by shots from the police or his own hand is unclear. At least 9 injured victims are in the trauma unit. I will wager that when the shooter is identified it will tun out that the gun(s) used was/were purchased legally - just like the guns involved in every mass shooting to date. This mayhem could be stopped if Republicans would put the lives of innocent citizens above money from the gun lobby.
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