# 10 reported shot in front of Empire State Building. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 24, 2012, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/10-reported-shot-in-front-of-empire-state-building/632487 "2012-08-24T14:12:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2012, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/10-reported-shot-in-front-of-empire-state-building/632487/61 "2012-08-25T15:59:58Z")
So in 24 hours we’ve gone from “mass shooting” to “guy kills co-worker; shooter killed and bystanders wounded by police”. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Tarwater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9de0a6/32.png) [@Tarwater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tarwater)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2012, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/10-reported-shot-in-front-of-empire-state-building/632487/62 "2012-08-25T16:05:38Z")
If only the pedestrians had been carrying, this whole situation could’ve been avoided. ---
**Author:** ![CoffinMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b9bd4f/32.png) [@CoffinMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CoffinMan)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2012, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/10-reported-shot-in-front-of-empire-state-building/632487/63 "2012-08-25T16:14:19Z")
> [@VinylTurnip](#): > > So very rarely, someone _without_ a gun succeeds in killing roughly the same number of people as many others _with_ guns do much more easily, effectively and frequently. > > The sensation of reassurance is like a warm blanket tucked up under my chin. Certainly I am not arguing that a knife or a car or a rolled up newspaper is less lethal than a firearm. As to whether it is statistically less or more frequent for a person to succeed in killing a number of people without the benefit of a firearm, I do not know (but it would be interesting to research) But I agree with Vinyl who basically indicated that this brings to him/her no sense of reassurance- honestly, if a dude with a knife can accomplish the same mayhem as a guy with a gun then it seems that banning weapons of all sorts will have negligible effect with saving folks from harm by the hands of a guy determined to take out as many people as he can for whatever twisted reason he might have. Far from taking away from this any sense of reassurance, I realize that there are other human beings around there will always exist the potential of being murdered randomly and for no good reason, by gun, knife, hand, cheese grater, etc - or to save anyone from being killed by the friendly fire of police officers trying to take the cheese grater wielding atacker down. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2012, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/10-reported-shot-in-front-of-empire-state-building/632487/64 "2012-08-25T16:14:36Z")
> [@Tarwater](#): > > If only the pedestrians had been carrying, this whole situation could’ve been avoided. No doubt. If the pedestrians had been carrying, they could have returned fire and taken out the… Shot by cops, you say? Nevermind. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2012, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/10-reported-shot-in-front-of-empire-state-building/632487/65 "2012-08-25T16:32:07Z")
> [@Tarwater](#): > > If only the pedestrians had been carrying, this whole situation could’ve been avoided. LOL. Two trained cops managed to injure nine people. Now I have this scene in my head of a dozen bystanders all firing wildly and hitting an average of 5 innocents each. 60 shootings that is. Fun! ---
**Author:** ![CoffinMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b9bd4f/32.png) [@CoffinMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CoffinMan)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2012, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/10-reported-shot-in-front-of-empire-state-building/632487/66 "2012-08-25T16:34:04Z")
> [@CoffinMan](#): > > Certainly I am not arguing that a knife or a car or a rolled up newspaper is less lethal than a firearm. As to whether it is statistically less or more frequent for a person to succeed in killing a number of people without the benefit of a firearm, I do not know (but it would be interesting to research) > > But I agree with Vinyl who basically indicated that this brings to him/her no sense of reassurance- honestly, if a dude with a knife can accomplish the same mayhem as a guy with a gun then it seems that banning weapons of all sorts will have negligible effect with saving folks from harm by the hands of a guy determined to take out as many people as he can for whatever twisted reason he might have. > > Far from taking away from this any sense of reassurance, I realize that there are other human beings around there will always exist the potential of being murdered randomly and for no good reason, by gun, knife, hand, cheese grater, etc - or to save anyone from being killed by the friendly fire of police officers trying to take the cheese grater wielding atacker down. Sorry, I missed my window to edit my last paragraph which, upon re-reading was badly worded. I meant: “Far from taking away from this any sense of reassurance, I realize that **as long as** there are other human beings around there will always exist the potential of being murdered randomly and for no good reason, by gun, knife, hand, cheese grater, etc - **and, most tragically, nothing can save us** from being killed by the friendly fire of police officers trying to take the cheese grater wielding atacker down.” ---
**Author:** ![CoffinMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b9bd4f/32.png) [@CoffinMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CoffinMan)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2012, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/10-reported-shot-in-front-of-empire-state-building/632487/67 "2012-08-25T16:35:09Z")
> [@CoffinMan](#): > > Certainly I am not arguing that a knife or a car or a rolled up newspaper is less lethal than a firearm. As to whether it is statistically less or more frequent for a person to succeed in killing a number of people without the benefit of a firearm, I do not know (but it would be interesting to research) > > But I agree with Vinyl who basically indicated that this brings to him/her no sense of reassurance- honestly, if a dude with a knife can accomplish the same mayhem as a guy with a gun then it seems that banning weapons of all sorts will have negligible effect with saving folks from harm by the hands of a guy determined to take out as many people as he can for whatever twisted reason he might have. > > Far from taking away from this any sense of reassurance, I realize that there are other human beings around there will always exist the potential of being murdered randomly and for no good reason, by gun, knife, hand, cheese grater, etc - or to save anyone from being killed by the friendly fire of police officers trying to take the cheese grater wielding atacker down. Sorry, I missed my window to edit my last paragraph which, upon re-reading was badly worded. I meant: “Far from taking away from this any sense of reassurance, I realize that **as long as** there are other human beings around there will always exist the potential of being murdered randomly and for no good reason, by gun, knife, hand, cheese grater, etc - **and, most tragically, nothing can save us** from being killed by the friendly fire of police officers trying to take the cheese grater wielding atacker down.” ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2012, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/10-reported-shot-in-front-of-empire-state-building/632487/68 "2012-08-25T16:36:02Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > LOL. Two trained cops managed to injure nine people. Now I have this scene in my head of a dozen bystanders all firing wildly and hitting an average of 5 innocents each. 60 shootings that is. Fun! Then those innocents also fire back, and the whole thing cascades through Manhattan until it reaches the water. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2012, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/10-reported-shot-in-front-of-empire-state-building/632487/69 "2012-08-25T17:55:27Z")
All we need is a Neo to make all the bullets freeze and fall harmlessly to the ground. ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2012, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/10-reported-shot-in-front-of-empire-state-building/632487/70 "2012-08-25T22:23:03Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > Cops shot a few bystanders. Must of been pretty chaotic. > [http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US\_EMPIRE\_STATE\_BUILDING\_SHOOTING?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2012-08-24-11-49-15](http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_EMPIRE_STATE_BUILDING_SHOOTING?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2012-08-24-11-49-15) Latest story is that all the bystanders shot, were shot by police [http://www.cnn.com/2012/08/25/justice/new-york-empire-state-shooting/index.html](http://www.cnn.com/2012/08/25/justice/new-york-empire-state-shooting/index.html) ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2012, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/10-reported-shot-in-front-of-empire-state-building/632487/71 "2012-08-25T22:37:21Z")
“When the British shoot, the Germans duck. When the Germans shoot, the British duck. When the Americans shoot, everybody ducks.” \*- WW2-era saying. \* [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/10-reported-shot-in-front-of-empire-state-building/632487.md?page=3)