22 people gunned down at Virginia Tech

[fabsroman]

GOB,

Regarding the police not entering the situation immediately without knowing what the situation is, I completely disagree. Even if there are 12 gunmen in that building, they should go in immediately. Otherwise, the gunmen are left to slaughter the sheep at will. What is the difference if a police officer dies or a student dies? It is still a dead person. The difference is that it is the LEO's job to put his life on the line. If a police officer goes in and distracts 12 gunmen for 5 minutes, it can save lives and it allows additional backup to arrive.

Now, I am not saying the LEO should go in naked. The LEO has a weapon, he probably has a vest on, and he has training. The other people in the building have a wood door, and if smart enough, a desk, and if lucky enough, a professor to shield them from the gunman. If the gunman gains access to a room, they have nothing to fight back with that would be of substantial use. Granted, if they all rushed the guy at once, they might have been able to subdue him, but how many of us are that brave.

If an officer sticks his head into a doorway and he sees 12 gunmen in the room, I am not saying that he should run into the room and try to dispatch all of them. However, he should make sure that they remain in that room and that the only casualties will be the ones in that room.

I got to look at a short video clip last night that showed some LEO's responding to the scene. However, it started with 5 or so LEO's rushing toward the building, so I have no idea how long they had been standing around listening to the gun shots. I heard 4 or 5 gunshots while the LEO's got ready to rush the building.

Time will tell whether or not the LEO's did what they should have done. Yes, it sucks when an LEO dies, but it sucks even more if a civilian dies because an LEO doesn't want to put his life on the line. Again, maybe this isn't the case, but we will need time to evaluate all the evidence.

I wonder if the gunman was down to his last bullet and he used it on himself, or if he really killed himself because he saw the police coming.