PA - 11 killed, 6 injured in mass shooting at Pittsburgh Synagogue, 27 Oct 2018.

“Tree of Life immediate past president Michael Eisenberg told KDKA-TV that there were three congregations meeting simultaneously, probably totaling around 100 people, at the time of the shooting. They were gathered in the main part of the building, as well in the basement and in the rabbi study room, he said.

Eisenberg said he spoke with a maintenance man who hid in one of the bathrooms during the shooting and witnessed a shot congregant before fleeing through an exit.“

At least 8 killed at Pittsburgh synagogue shooting

 

OF COURSE the recent rise in anti-Semitism, white nationalism, racism, xenophobia and hate crimes — coupled with easy access to lethal force — is relevant to this discussion.

To pretend otherwise is disingenuous at best, imo.

 

Law enforcement respond to the scene of Saturday’s synagogue shooting (NBC News Photo)

Suspect identified in deadly synagogue shooting

“NBC News reports the suspect is believed to be a 46-year-old man”

 

From the link:

“Robert Bowers, the man accused of perpetrating a mass shooting at Pittsburgh’s Tree of Life synagogue, had a social media account in which he telegraphed his intentions for the shooting and shared anti-Semitic and white supremacist commentary.”

 

Yeah I read it, I posted it.

 

Trump calls for death penalty, protection inside synagogue after shooting

Trump calls for death penalty, protection inside synagogue after shooting

 

“About two hours before the shooting at a baby naming ceremony, the 46-year-old Pennsylvania man wrote on his Gab page, “HIAS likes to bring invaders in that kill our people. I can’t sit by and watch my people get slaughtered. Screw your optics, I’m going in.” Authorities say he did just that, shooting multiple people and responding officers in the nation’s latest horrific mass shooting.“

 

FBI Pittsburgh on Twitter

There will be a news conference at 4pm on today's shooting.

 

This statement makes me so sad. It sounds as if there was some responsibility for the synagogue to prevent this. The responsibility IMO lies with the shooter. I personally don't want to live in a country where we have to have armed guards everywhere we go in order to protect us from other armed people. I don't want my children and grandchildren to be in this situation either. Heartbreaking.

 

This man is disgusting and awful I’m sure that this brings back painful memories for people who are Holocaust survivors and/or lost relatives under Hitler’s massacre. It does for me and I’m not even Jewish.

RIP to those who lost their lives today. Senseless.

 

Well said, @LaborDayRN. It is heartbreaking, and, in many ways, it does reinforce the misguided undercurrent of blaming innocent victims for the crimes perpetrated against them.

They did nothing to deserve this whatsoever.

 

I am not sure that is helpful or meaningful. Easy sound bite - but in real life how many decades does it take for it to happen.

It is kind of like telling one of my children I will take away their cell phone if they do X, they do X, and when they are 29 I do it.

So it seems like it is a good sound bite -- but hollow, empty and meaningless.

 

Sad day.

 

Protection already inside the synagogue and police force couldn’t stop this shooter. Not sure what good more will do after the fact, tbh. The damage is done.

Moo

 

I'm sorry, unless the temperature (political heat) is brought down, unless the crazy is abated, there's no hope.

No religious or racial peoples should ever feel threatened, but they do, every day, and they are our peeps.

How is that ok?

Do you think politics has anything to do with humanity?

Honest question.

When I'm out in the wild, I don't think about it. Never.

But when I come inside and I see what's going on...

I'm so sad. I'm a republican on the fence. I'm a democrat disillusioned.

Who cares?

All I can say is we are worried. When a synagogue takes the bullet..

Like never before. And I know they are joined by all ecumenical deities.

Deities, one of those spelling exceptions...

But who cares.

When lives are lost.

 

I feel a little bit like I'm living in the wild west. JMO

 

What protection did they have? Link?

 

(Venting:
Why the hate in this world? We are all just people..we all bleed red..today it’s jews, tomorrow it’s...)

 

I had read that the synagogue only had armed protection during High Holy days, and today was not one of those days

 

Tomorrow it may be another school................. It feels like we're lost. JMO