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- luckylittlelady
- Rep: 20
Re: Fatal shooting at Finnish school
Eight people have been killed and at least 10 others injured in a shooting at a school in southern Finland, police have said.
The incident took place in Tuusula, some 50km (30 miles) north of the capital Helsinki.
Finnish police said an 18-year-old man killed five boys, two girls and the female principal of Jokela High School.
The gunman shot himself in the head and is in hospital in a critical condition, police said.
About a dozen other people are being treated for injuries.
It felt unreal - a pupil I have taught myself was running towards me, screaming, a pistol in his hand
Kim Kiuru
Jokela school teacher
Police have not identified the gunman but a teacher said he was a student at the school.
Police responded to a call made at 1144 (0944 GMT) and made contact with the gunman when they arrived at the school 11 minutes later, said Timo Leppala, the officer in charge of the police operation.
"Police ordered him to surrender, to which he answered by shooting towards the police," Mr Leppala said.
He described a scene of chaos with students jumping from school windows and running for shelter as more police arrived.
It is not clear when the gunman shot himself in the head.
FINLAND GUN FACTS
5.2 million population
World's third highest gun ownership
56 guns per 100 people
Low rate of gun violence
Guns used in 14% of homicides
Police said he was armed with a .22 calibre pistol for which he obtained a license on 19 October. He did not have a criminal record and "was from an ordinary family," a police spokesman said.
A Tuusula municipality spokeswoman said the gunman opened fire during a lesson at Jokela secondary school, which has 400 pupils between 12 and 18.
'Ran in opposite direction'
Kim Kiuru, a Jokela teacher, said the head teacher announced over the school public announcement's system just before noon (1000 GMT) that all students should remain in their classrooms.
"I stayed in the corridor to listen to more instructions having locked my classroom door," Mr Kiuru told Finland's YLE radio.
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"After that I saw the gunman running with what appeared to be a small calibre handgun in his hand through the doors toward me after which I escaped to the corridor downstairs and ran in the opposite direction."
"It felt unreal - a pupil I have taught myself was running towards me, screaming, a pistol in his hand."
Mr Kiuru said he saw a woman's body as he fled the building. He said he then told his students to "jump out of the windows... and all my pupils were saved".
YouTube video
A video called "Jokela high school massacre 11/7/2007" was posted on the YouTube website by an 18-year-old man during the past two weeks.
The video shows a picture of a building by a lake and two photos of a young man holding a gun.
Going by the username Sturmgeist89, the person who posted the video calls himself a "social Darwinist" who would "eliminate all who I see unfit". "Sturmgeist" means storm spirit in German.
The video has now been removed from the website and police have not yet commented on it.
He had also reportedly posted on another website a rambling manifesto.
In it he said: "death and killing is not a tragedy... Not all human lives are important or worth saving."
He wrote that he was acting alone and nobody is to blame for his actions. "This is my war: one man's war against humanity, governments and weak-minded masses of the world."
- DoubleTalkingJive
- Rep: 74
Re: Fatal shooting at Finnish school
In reading this I couldn't help but think of Columbine.
They did it because of students treating them bad, this guy says "eliminate all who I see unfit" and "death and killing is not a tragedy... Not all human lives are important or worth saving."
Hmmm, are these people who have wronged him or he just picked out of the school that he felt, should die because they are unfit what does that mean?? Not living according to what he felt their standards should be, doing wrong to him...what?
My heart goes out to the parents of these kids murdered and the principal as well. Trajedy like this doesn NOT have to happen if this insane person would have sought out some help. One thing that is a positive is that he killed himself, instant justice, although I am sure his family is hurting and now has the stigma of what he did attached to them.
Re: Fatal shooting at Finnish school
A video called "Jokela high school massacre 11/7/2007" was posted on the YouTube website by an 18-year-old man during the past two weeks.
Like I said in a different thread in this section, its a sign of the times.
People need to wake up quickly because the young generation is turning into a bunch of mindless bots, and nobody is doing a damn thing about it or seems to care.
Re: Fatal shooting at Finnish school
In reading this I couldn't help but think of Columbine.
The shooter was, in fact, an idolator of Eric Harris, the other half of the Columbine massacre.
Hmmm, are these people who have wronged him or he just picked out of the school that he felt, should die because they are unfit what does that mean??
The grapevine is that the only person with whom he had a personal grudge was the high school principal, all other victims were apparently selected randomly during the first few minutes as the shoot-out began. Moments later, the principal confronted him outside the school premises; some students, now barricaded in nearby class rooms, observed the events through the windows and witnessed him order the principal to kneel on the ground and shoot her point-blank in execution style.
The next day, the Finnish government began their major rethink on local gun control. Currently, minors between the ages of 15 and 18 can acquire a firearm for the purpose of sport or hunting with the consent of a guardian. However, any new ruling on the matter wouldn't prevent a new Jokela situation, as the shooter was already an adult and had obtained his handgun through a membership in Helsinki Shooting Club. The last time HSC made it to national press was when a 30-year old IT expert shot and killed three men to death on the range in 1999. She was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia and has received treatment in a local mental institute to this day. Debate was raised on whether restrictions in HSC and similar shooting clubs should be raised throughout the country, but in 8 years, nothing of consequence came to be.
You reap what you sow, unfortunately.
Re: Fatal shooting at Finnish school
Its a pity that the killer will always be remembered more than the victims...
- DoubleTalkingJive
- Rep: 74
Re: Fatal shooting at Finnish school
DoubleTalkingJive wrote:In reading this I couldn't help but think of Columbine.
The shooter was, in fact, an idolator of Eric Harris, the other half of the Columbine massacre.
DoubleTalkingJive wrote:Hmmm, are these people who have wronged him or he just picked out of the school that he felt, should die because they are unfit what does that mean??
The grapevine is that the only person with whom he had a personal grudge was the high school principal, all other victims were apparently selected randomly during the first few minutes as the shoot-out began. Moments later, the principal confronted him outside the school premises; some students, now barricaded in nearby class rooms, observed the events through the windows and witnessed him order the principal to kneel on the ground and shoot her point-blank in execution style.
The next day, the Finnish government began their major rethink on local gun control. Currently, minors between the ages of 15 and 18 can acquire a firearm for the purpose of sport or hunting with the consent of a guardian. However, any new ruling on the matter wouldn't prevent a new Jokela situation, as the shooter was already an adult and had obtained his handgun through a membership in Helsinki Shooting Club. The last time HSC made it to national press was when a 30-year old IT expert shot and killed three men to death on the range in 1999. She was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia and has received treatment in a local mental institute to this day. Debate was raised on whether restrictions in HSC and similar shooting clubs should be raised throughout the country, but in 8 years, nothing of consequence came to be.
You reap what you sow, unfortunately.
I am not surprised that he admired Eric Harris as the shooting does put Columbine in ones head.
It's very hard to obtain full gun control and take matters like this against the gun clubs and stores. I am sure it's looked at that is it not the fault at how they obtained the gun, beit an adult and if obtained legally. wWhat happens after that transaction fully exonerates them because it's not the their responsibility how the gun is used and should be the responsibiliy of the person who used it. In some ways, I find this to be true however, I do think that psychiatric tests should be given to anyone that wants to purchase any kind of firearm, then maybe it would cut down on some of the massacres and other killings that go on.
I don't even know if this is a standard procedure already, if it is, then I applaud the powers that be in this arena for trying to do something preventative when it comes to gun purchases, if not then they should start.
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