Shooting Rampage at Colorado Springs Planned Parenthood Clinic (UPDATED)

Last updated on: November 28, 2015 at 7:27 am by Kate O'Hare

Shooting Rampage at Colorado Springs Planned Parenthood Clinic (UPDATED) 2015-11-28T07:27:54-08:00 Kate O'Hare

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What we know:

On Friday, Nov. 27, at about 11:38 a.m. local time a lone gunman started shooting at people in or near a Planned Parenthood clinic, located in a shopping center with several other businesses in Colorado Springs, Colorado. According to a lengthy, continuously updated timeline at the local Colorado Springs Gazette, two civilians and a police officer died; four civilians and five officers were taken to local hospitals with gunshot wounds.

According to Planned Parenthood officials, all staff and patients are believed to be accounted for, with no serious injuries among the staff and no injuries among the patients.

After several tense and terrifying hours, the gunman surrendered to police just before 5 p.m. local time and was taken into custody.

What we don’t know (as of this moment, about 6:40 p.m. Pacific time):

The shooter’s name. UPDATE: Now, we do. He’s Robert Lewis Dear, 57 … or 59, depending where you look … of Hartsel, Colorado (per local TV station KOAA). Denver TV station KUSA reports on its Facebook page that he’s from South Carolina.
What reported “items” he placed in and around the clinic (there are reports of propane tanks, but nothing has been confirmed).
The exact sequence of events.
Why the shooter did what he did (other than that he’s obviously a homicidal, if not suicidal, maniac).

What we also know (or should):

That many in the media either have or will acquire psychic, omnipotent powers, allowing them to divine the motives, not only of the shooter but of everyone in the pro-life movement, and especially all Christians (who, as I’ve noted before, are regularly and widely presumed guilty of murderous, hateful impulses).
That fair, careful reporting that does not devolve into speculation beyond the known facts is, and will continue to be, rare. The Gazette, though, unlike sensationalist, speculative reporting from national outlets and cable networks, has done good, yeoman work under tremendous pressure. Bravo.
That all religions are not the same (read: bad), no matter how much many in the media wish it were so (and oh, they do wish it were so — some out of malice and some out of invincible ignorance).
That — and the necessity of stating something so blindingly obvious pains me — if this guy thinks he was going to save the unborn at the point of a gun, he is demented and damned.

In a story at Breitbart, David Daleiden, the man behind the videos exposing PP’s trafficking in fetal body parts, said:

“The Center for Medical Progress does not support vigilante violence against abortion providers. There are people at Planned Parenthood who I still consider friends and my thoughts and prayers are with them at this time for no one to be injured.”

That Planned Parenthood’s coffers will swell in the wake of this, regardless of the shooter’s motives, because if he isn’t a rabid pro-life terrorist (which is such an oxymoron), PP will stoke the fears that a veritable army of them is likely to descend at any minute.

From a statement put out by the organization:

“We don’t yet know the full circumstances and motives behind this criminal action, and we don’t yet know if Planned Parenthood was in fact the target of this attack. We share the concerns of many Americans that extremists are creating a poisonous environment that feeds domestic terrorism in this country. We will never back away from providing care in a safe, supportive environment that millions of people rely on and trust.”

What we should do:

Not expect fair treatment by the media or in social media, but be grateful if it happens (and throw kudos at anyone who deserves them).
Regarding social media; don’t stoke fires; don’t fan flames; don’t feed trolls.
Be fair, accurate and careful in all discussions, knowing they are, almost without exception, minefields.
Mourn the dead.
Help the survivors in any way possible.
Shower thanks and blessings on brave civilians and first responders who sprang into action to protect life.
Know that many consider hypocrisy to be a worse sin than killing the innocent. It’s sad, but it’s true.
Let the law do its job.
If the gunman’s motives turn out to be more personal than ideological, know this makes very little, if any, difference in the minds of many, especially in the mainstream media.
If the gunman’s motives turn out to be in any way connected to protecting the unborn, know that the impossibility of him being truly pro-life will be be lost on many, especially in the mainstream media.
Don’t bother with any arguments that begin with, “Yeah, but if he was …” They’re useless. Many who engage in doublethink and double standards know full well they’re doing it, and they don’t care. And if they don’t realize it, then you’re not dealing with a rational person, and you should just move on.
Pray without ceasing.

Image: Wikimedia Commons

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