Posted on 10/22/2002 3:17:53 AM PDT by areafiftyone
JUST BREAKING!!! Police confirm another shooting. But are not sure if it is related.
No, that not all that grabs me, not by a long shot. What grabs me is that the media and the public are being led around by the nose, with press conferences carefully delayed to build up suspense, with Q&A sessions that are meaningless and absurd, because their are plenty of questions, and no answers, and that so many people, including the media, are buying the BS, while people are dying and others live in fear.
Meanwhile the media and the public, who, if used correctly, can be tremendous sources of info and support, are continually being held at bay -- with Moose speeches condemning the media early on, the much-publicized arrests and prosecution of witnesses (great way to encourage people to come forward), and the lack of public outcry when people are dragged from their vehicles and handcuffed for the crime of driving a white van, which may or may not be connected, by LE's own admission. (At least that particular tactic wasn't used this morning...).
Fear can be constructive, when it makes you more alert to your surroundings. It is also destructive, when it makes you accept tactics, including suppression of information and strong-arm tactics that would not otherwise be tolerated in a free society.
If this is a dress rehearsal for what the Feds believe are "inevitable attacks" on the U.S., God help us all.
I believe (/tinfoil lined saran-wrap) that this is a Hamas or other Muslim-funded offshoot, at least one of which who has worked with federal agents for a time, and they are playing this by ear. The communication is just a ploy to keep the public feeling "in the dark", and the whole thing is just an example of what waits for us in the future from these types.
O.K. but in the bicycle theory, what happens to the weapon?
Not because they are kind-hearted people, but because they raise a lot of cash in this country and don't want to turn off the faucet.
You sound pretty sure, do you know something that you can share?
BY MEREDITH FISCHER AND PAIGE AKIN
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITERS Oct 22, 2002
A note found by police in the woods near Saturday's sniper shooting indicated a possible threat to local schools, according to several high-ranking school and government officials.
That information prompted Richmond-area school superintendents to reverse an earlier decision and close schools yesterday.
Schools remain closed today in most of the metro Richmond area.
The decision-making process began Sunday afternoon, when school officials held a news conference urging parents to send their children to school.
Text. . .
"At 4 [p.m.], the decision was that schools were the safest place for students," Chesterfield County School Board Chairman Dr. James Schroeder said. "At 7 [p.m.], obviously the superintendents had received other information recommending that schools be closed."
About 150,000 students from schools in Chesterfield, Goochland, Hanover, Henrico and Powhatan counties and the city of Richmond stayed home yesterday and will again today. A number of private schools were also closed.
"When school administrators feel or sense that there may be harm placed upon children when they are at schools, the best decision is not having them at school," said Chesterfield Administrator Lane B. Ramsey.
An official from another local county confirmed that the note made reference to a possible threat to schools.
After the decision Sunday night, Henrico schools Superintendent Mark A. Edwards told The Times-Dispatch that local schools would be closed Monday because of numerous calls from parents concerned about student safety.
Edwards yesterday acknowledged police information was a factor.
"Our primary rationale for closing schools did have to with the response from parents," Edwards said. "We used the best data available from law enforcementment agencies in making our decision as well."
Frank Morgan, superintendent of Goochland schools, said the county decided to close both days because of the recomenda- tions of the sheriff's department.
Another school official said that police weren't concerned just about possible violence at school buildings, but also that school buses and trailers would be vulnerable to an attack.
"There was a credible threat made in the area that something was going to happen," one high-ranking local government official said yesterday.
Richmond schools Superintendent Deborah Jewell-Sherman said she had not heard about the contents of the note. But another Richmond school source confirmed that the note was the reason area schools were closed yesterday and today.
The closings were prompted by Saturday's shooting outside an Ashland Ponderosa Steak House. The note containing the possible threat to schools was found in the woods nearby.
The victim, a 37-year-old man, was shot once in the abdomen and remains in critical condition at Medical College of Virginia at Virginia Commonwealth University.
The shooting has been positively linked to the Washington-area sniper shootings that have terrorized the region since Oct. 2.
School officials were especially concerned and cautious.
"We went out at first and said schools are the safest place," Schroeder said, "but if police have information saying our schools might be threatened, we have to respect that."
Could be,..but most portable scanners are "touchy" and hard to keep operating in a car...but you never know!!
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