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Orlando, Florida, June 31 -- A 43-year-old Canadian man who was a regular customer at a shooting range rented a gun, fired a few shots at targets, then fatally shot himself in the head. No motive is known.

It was the second suicide at that range in a year, and the fourth in south Florida since April.

http://www.myfoxorlando.com/dpp/news/or ... vestigated" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

- Jim

Tragic for the community and for that particular shooting range.

What are they putting in the water in Orlando? Sheesh.

what in the world is going on ?
this seems to have become a trend

Suicide is contagious.

Sometimes, when a teenager commits suicide, other teenagers in the area will make successful or unsuccessful attempts. It also happens to some extent after a celebrity suicide.

- Jim

usa1 wrote:what in the world is going on ?
this seems to have become a trend

Not to make light of the deaths, because they are tragic. May God grant peace to their families.

But I'm waiting for someone to take their cue from the last 8 years and say:

"It's Obama's fault."

Another one:

http://www.wesh.com/r/24633697/detail.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Bizarre.

- Jim

"Bring a gun or bring a friend" is a common rental rule at many ranges that rent. It's an extremely effective deterrent.

Well, if the person had a gun he wouldn't need to go to the range to commit suicide, and if he had a friend he might not want to commit suicide.

- Jim

Even bringing their own gun doesn't stop it. I personally know of two cases that the person used their own guns. One was an AR-15 and the other a handgun. I think many people think that committing the act at the range will hold less connection to the house or other personal location for the family that is left behind. It also means the family doesn't have to deal with the aftermath of clean-up.

Keith B wrote:Even bringing their own gun doesn't stop it. I personally know of two cases that the person used their own guns. One was an AR-15 and the other a handgun. I think many people think that committing the act at the range will hold less connection to the house or other personal location for the family that is left behind. It also means the family doesn't have to deal with the aftermath of clean-up.

Oh, even I'm not naive enough to think it completely prevents these events. Suicides are complex things, but the "bring a gun or bring a friend" rule does two effective things: 1) Removes "easy access" to a gun for those that are emotionally despondent, and 2) people are always less likely to commit the act in front of a friend.

Of course, the other issue is that these kind of suicides are _extremely_ rare (given overall percentages), but get a lot of press due to the spectacle and location.

Of course, the other issue is that these kind of suicides are _extremely_ rare (given overall percentages), but get a lot of press ...

This is an actual fact. About 100 people a day commit suicide in the U.S. You will never hear about most of them, which are accomplished by drug overdoses or self-shooting at home or some remote location. It's the public shootings, train jumpers, and bridge jumpers that get the publicity.

BTW, the U.S. is pretty much in the middle of suicide rates among countries. If this wikipedia article is accurate, the rates are all over the map and make no sense in terms of culture, religion, or economics:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_co ... icide_rate" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

- Jim