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casingpoint wrote:I believe it has been firmly established on this board that gun control does not work.

I agree that gun control doesn't work in an uncontrolled area and in a free society. But I don't think an active duty military installation is uncontrolled area and I don't think the military is a free society. As previous posts have pointed out, some places do indeed tightly control the presence of guns (courts of law, airplanes, etc). And other posts have pointed out all the rights that our military volunteer to temporarily give up in order to serve.

stroo wrote:If we want gun free zones, then we should make sure they are gun free!!

I agree with this also.

It is also my understanding that a lot of discretion about how "gun free" of personal weapons an installation is is actually left up to the commander and some commanders are more serious about the subject than others.

Some of these bases are huge. Fort Hood is the largest in the nation. Fort Benning (where my son was stationed when not deployed) is the second largest. As I understand it, people go hunting in the woods on both of these bases and bring personally owned weapons on post to do so. So I guess there are already procedures in place to allow for individuals to have personal weapons on base - but I'm also pretty sure it's just not an option for everybody because there's probably significant paperwork and approvals required and the requests of some folks will just never be approved.

But to me the bottom line is what happened at Fort Hood can happen anywhere. If someone decides to go kill-crazy for whatever reason and is willing or wants to be killed in the process, folks are going die whether there are guns around or not.

I am not a vet, but I have a son who is. While I will not try to speak for him, I do agree that during my visits to Fort Benning, it did indeed seem to me to be a much different world and I agree that CHL on post is probably not the right answer in that world.

I remember a phone call with my son shortly after he had completed training and was assigned to 3ID. When his Mom asked what the barracks was like he replied, "Mom, it's a lot like a college dorm, but you've really got to always remember that everyone here is trained to kill and many have done so before and are very efficient at it - so we all really have to be careful with name-calling".

I also note the after return from each of his two deployments to Iraq, there were always events of soldier on soldier violence, which often resulted in a fatality. To this, my son said, it's difficult to transition back and some folks just can't do it. Others come home to wives and girl friends who are shacking up with someone else, personal finance in a mess, no family support and for some, the Army is their family.

I really salute all those who have volunteered to serve, past and present, but I can certainly see how having a multitude of personal weapons on post and readily available might not be the best answer.

frazzled wrote: Can someone with more expertise help me out here.
Am I correct in that she was a civilian police officer?
This was on the base itself correct?
If so 1. where were the MPs shooting at the guy? 2. How did she get on the base? I am not understanding how this works.

My understanding is that she is a civilian police officer for the Department of the Army who worked at Fort Hood. When I visited my son who was stationed at Fort Benning, it seemed to me that the majority of the police activity was carried out by these officers. Most of the MPs seemed to either be deployed or getting ready to do so.

This entire event has saddened me so much I really couldn't post anything until now, over 24 hours later. My condolences and prayers go out to all those impacted, the fallen and wounded and their families and friends. And my never ending thanks go out once again to those who have chosen to serve and their families.

I know first hand the stress caused from having an immediate family member on active duty in these times. And I understand that "home base" is supposed to be a safe secure place where those loved ones are supposed to be the protected, not "on guard" and the protectors. And to have this crime perpetrated by one of their own who is an officer, I guess this is what makes this event so unsettling to me. It just says to me that we can never really stop being vigilant. I can't imagine the pain with which family members of the fallen and wounded must be dealing.

The more recent accounts I've seen say that soldiers reverted to their training, were providing life saving care to the wounded immediately and if that hadn't been the case, the death toll would have undoubtedly been higher. I applaud the professionalism and courage of these fine young men and women. I thank you and all those before you for your service and I pray God Speed for each and every one.