3 Oakland police officers dead

[MikeWaters]

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/22/us...d.html?_r=1&hp

Gunman, it is noted, used an assault-style rifle.

Things to take away:
1. the guy was on parole for what must be a felony, and had a warrant for his arrest. His possession of that gun (or any gun) was illegal. He was breaking the law.
2. the relationship between the Oakland PD and the community is atrocious, it appears. When you get to the point that you have two officers laying in their own blood, and 20 people are taunting the police, that is beyond the pale.
3. We have areas of the country that are completely ruled by criminal enterprise. You don't get that from the nytimes article, but reading the comments of a sfgate.com article yesterday, that was the definite impression about what is going on in Oakland. Forget the terrorists in Afghanistan for a second, and consider the homegrown non-Islamic terrorists in our backyards.
4. CNN is reporting that this POS had "an extensive criminal history." You wonder why this guy was on the street and not behind bars. I support the 3-strikes law--we need career criminals removed from society. I'm sorry guy, but if you have 2 felonies, and you decide to rob a bicycle from my garage, you are going to prison for the rest of your life. How many crimes do you think the average criminal commits for every conviction? I will give you a hint: it is on average, more than one.

[MikeWaters]

Here is an article finally detailing the murderer's background:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...MNH016L58R.DTL

Convicted of assault with a deadly weapon, prior parole violations, suspect in a murder. In other words, a decent young man, trying to make his way in the world.

Family says "not a monster."

I liked this comment from a reader:

From the moment I first saw this story, I told my husband that eventually the SF Chron would attempt to paint the perp as a "decent young man who was just starting to turn his life around." It's not hard to figure out why this paper is going bankrupt. God be with the families of the brave officers...and as for the family of the perp...please just stop trying to convince people that he wasn't a monster and accept the fact that at the end of his life that is exactly what he became. He is the monster every wife/husband of a cop fears when their loved one goes off to work every day. Stop trying to defend him.

The guy illegally possessed a handgun and an AK-47, in a state with, if I'm not mistaken, the strictest laws against ownership of both. For example, if I were to own a semi-auto AK-47, and then move to California, I could not legally bring it with me and possess it. The sale of many handguns are banned as well. That's why if you go to sites that sell handguns over the internet, the Federally licensed gun dealers there often state that they do not sell ANY guns to residents of California, because of these rules.

Yet somehow the bad guy got guns ANYWAY. And the family knew all about his parole violation, and DID NOTHING, and I would bet, also knew about his gun possession, and DID NOTHING, and now say, "Sorry about all the killings, but he was a good guy."

Welcome to this wonderful world.

[Archaea]

In the comments, it appears Cali is opining:

The creation of guns and the right to keep and bear arms (2nd Amendment) is the problem here. Only law enforcement officials should be allowed to touch a gun. Young lost souls like this guy should have never had the opportunity to hurt innocent bystanders or cops who are protecting law obeying citizens. Although the gun was illegal it should not have been allowed to enter this country or be manufactured here. * If you believe I am wrong, select a thumbs down but I bet your thoughts will change when it affects your or someone you know personally.

[8ballrollin]

There is hope:

A woman who lives in the East Oakland neighborhood where four police officers were shot dead told The Chronicle that she was the tipster who alerted police to the small apartment where the gunman was holed up.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...BAQD16LJOV.DTL

It's time for every Oakland resident who can lift a sign, shout a slogan - or use a pair of binoculars in a neighborhood watch program - to do so. Because if we don't all come together to put an end this madness, what happened Saturday may turn out to be not just one of the worst days in Oakland's history, but a sad harbinger of its future.

and despair...

By late afternoon Saturday, a group of about 50 people lined 73rd Avenue, a block from where Dunakin and Hege were shot. Some shouted obscenities aimed at police. Others said the officers' deaths were retribution for the fatal shooting of Oscar Grant, the unarmed Hayward man killed by a BART police officer on an Oakland train platform New Year's Day. Shouts of, "They had it comin!' " were heard in the crowd.

http://www.sfgate.com/columnists/johnson/

[MikeWaters]

It's time for responsible Californian citizens to get trained, and get their concealed carry permits under the shall-issue law in California, forget "binoculars."

Oh wait, never mind. California doesn't have a shall-issue carry law. They only have a "white, rich, politically connected" can-carry law. Buy the binoculars. But conceal them. :???:

[MikeWaters]

Good kid, just trying to make his way in the world. When he isn't raping women.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...LGNH.DTL&tsp=1

[MikeWaters]

Sadly another evil liar offers his deception to the public:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...BAVF16LQ9U.DTL

The use of the deadly weapons - which can fire hundreds of rounds per minute - has become an all-too-familiar feature in the gun violence being played out.

It has been a purposeful strategy of the left to confuse the public with the terms "assault weapons" and "assault rifles" to have them believe that these are fully automatic weapons that are being banned, ones that shoot "hundreds of rounds per minute." Of course, it is a lie. They are attempting to ban SEMI-AUTOMATIC rifles, because the fully automatic ones have been banned from new-manufacture sale and normal sales channels since the 1980's. The old ones still in legal circulation are so expensive, they are not used in crime. No one pays $15,000 for a rifle, to use in a crime.

So yeah, I'm getting tired of the lies. It is already illegal to buy a normal SEMI-AUTOMATIC AK-47 in Kalifornia. Yet somehow, this cop-killer, rapist, thug, thief, and previously suspected murderer illegally possessed one. What do the liberals want to do? They want to prevent YOU and ME from being able to defend OURSELVES against these predators.

How do you win when the media outlets just monopolize the coverage, portray this evil man as someone given a bad break, and lie about what happened, in order to pursue their political agenda.

[il Padrino Ute]

Originally Posted by MikeWaters

Sadly another evil liar offers his deception to the public:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...BAVF16LQ9U.DTL



It has been a purposeful strategy of the left to confuse the public with the terms "assault weapons" and "assault rifles" to have them believe that these are fully automatic weapons that are being banned, ones that shoot "hundreds of rounds per minute." Of course, it is a lie. They are attempting to ban SEMI-AUTOMATIC rifles, because the fully automatic ones have been banned from new-manufacture sale and normal sales channels since the 1980's. The old ones still in legal circulation are so expensive, they are not used in crime. No one pays $15,000 for a rifle, to use in a crime.

So yeah, I'm getting tired of the lies. It is already illegal to buy a normal SEMI-AUTOMATIC AK-47 in Kalifornia. Yet somehow, this cop-killer, rapist, thug, thief, and previously suspected murderer illegally possessed one. What do the liberals want to do? They want to prevent YOU and ME from being able to defend OURSELVES against these predators.

How do you win when the media outlets just monopolize the coverage, portray this evil man as someone given a bad break, and lie about what happened, in order to pursue their political agenda.

You sound surprised, Mike. Liberals have no sense of accountability. If someone robs a convenience store and puts a couple of rounds into the clerk, the gun is at fault, not the perp.

And I agree. Liberals want to deny us our 2nd Amendment right so they can feel safe because if there is one thing I've learned from liberals, it's that criminals will go through the legal channels to purchase the gun they want for use in committing a crime. If we get rid of the guns, crime will go away.

[MikeWaters]

Raped a 12 year old. And suspected in several other rapes.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...M2CH.DTL&tsp=1

Let me hear again from his family about how he is "not a monster."

What the hell does it take to qualify as a monster these days? Holy hell.

All the people that helped this POS and protected him should be punished. That would be a good start.

What a sorry SOB, even liberals are having to work overtime to defend him.

I was told a long time ago, that when Gary Gilmore was executed by firing squad, hundreds of Utahns volunteered to be on it (apparently volunteers were required).

I doubt I would ever volunteer. But this guy makes a convincing case.

Sad state of affairs that this guy walked freely in society, with impunity, preying, "savagely" raping and sodomizing (from the SF report I linked). You don't believe in monsters? I've got news for you. They are out there.

And everywhere, supposedly good citizens do nothing, prepare for nothing, and do absolutely zero to stop them. Someone else's job. What is wrong with this country? It's time some people around here started carrying some water.

[MikeWaters]

Wait, hold on everyone, breaking news: it's Nevada's fault!

That's right. California did everything correctly, but evil Nevada doesn't give a damn about human life, and let this tragedy happen.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...BAEO16M3TM.DTL

Here is a comment from a reader:

Oh wow, now I've heard everything. Even somebody who considers themsevles an "evil liberal" (Myself), I don't think I could spin this any better than blaming Nevada for California's fU@^&up. Last time I checked It is illegal for a felon to own any firearm let alone an AK-47 in California. Lets just consider CA gun laws to be an epic FAIL and trade them in for NO PAROLE FOR VIOLENT OFFENDERS. FAIR? OK, good.