Tube Gunman

[sp1814]

The scariest story I've read in the past couple of years was the murder of Tom Ap Rhys Pryce.

However, this one tops it:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/6388 769.stm

Does this mean we now have to be wary of lone men with massive chips on their shoulders, as well as roaming gangs?

Is there the danger that if the police focus all their energies on certain communities in London, random psychos like this filth will slip through the net, simply because they don't meet 'agreed racial profiling'?

I ask this because the men convicted executed people in my stomping ground...so it could've been me in the mortuary!!!

[Oneeyedvic]

Am I missing something?

"I ask this because the men convicted executed people in my stomping ground...so it could've been me in the mortuary!!! "

The men who murdered Tom Ap Rhys Pryce were black - so the 'racial profiling' would still be okay.

In the article you refer to, John Laidlaw (white) didn't actually kill anyone (and was it a 'proper' gun since the bullet deflected off the victim's chin?)

[sp1814]

Durrr....typo - that should've been 'man' not 'men'.

[sp1814]

And I've just re-read te report in Metro...the way it's written made it sound like he'd actually killed his victims.

Apologies for the errors. But the question stands - he absolutely wanted to kill these people...he's just a bad shot!!!

[Oneeyedvic]

Well if your question is: "Does this mean we now have to be wary of lone men with massive chips on their shoulders, as well as roaming gangs? "

Then yes - but this is hardly any difference to ten, twenty, thirty or a hundred years ago.

People have been murdered for pretty much no reason on a fairly regular basis for years. The fact that it was a (low powered?) gun is a red herring - if you are murdered you are murdered - it doesn't matter if it was a gun, a knife or indeed lead piping in the billiard room.

[sp1814]

I agree...I don't think the power of the gun is an issue. The fact that it was a gun is scary enough on it's own.

[jake-the-peg]

Michael Ryan ring any bells?

He went around Hungerford With an AK47, a 9mm pistol and a grenade.

So I don't think the fact that it was a low powered weapon is a red herring - imagine what he'd have done had he been kitted out like Ryan.

This is why we have gun control laws

[Oneeyedvic]

sorry, my point is that this is an exception rather than the rule - do you have to be worried - well if you choose to be fair enough, but I'd probably be more worried about other things.

[jake-the-peg]

Agreed I'd be more worried if he'd been able to walk into a shop and buy a proper gun!

Frankfurt alone had 23 people who got drunk and fell down the stairs and killed themselves last year.

[Lonnie]

As you all know, I drive Tube Trains, and every so often we get the police come and ride in the cab, while some, (plain clothes) are in the carriages, sometime they're just tailing a pickpocket, other times its an armed person, who apparently doesn't know he's being followed.
The unfortunate thing about this one, was that he actually injured someone with his gun, and wasn't being followed,

Armed felons on the Tube happens quite regularly, although known ones are few and far between.

[tyler06]

How can you conpair one nutter .with a gang who went around terrorising white & asian people?/

[Dolly1308]

To me this seems like a racially provoked attack (I'm white by the way ),looks like he deliberately targeted black people .Anyway get rid of the racist tag and anyone who attacks another for whatever reason should be put down.

[admarlow]

sp18144, we all know that you are much more likley to be robbed/shot/stabbed/abused by some ''misunderstood'' kids from some sink estate that targeted by a lone nutter, and therefore the police allocate resource accordingly

[anotheoldgit]

SP1814 You have always come across to me as being quite a well educated and intelligent person, and with this in mind I have often wondered why, when you take part in many arguments both for and against a subject, you never seem to enter a question into this arena of debate.

But now having read your question, it has provided me with the reason. You must have been waiting for a news story such as this to appear so you can accuse our police of allowing a random psycho to slip through the net, because it didn't meet 'agreed racial profiling'.

This would be quite laughable if it was not for the fact that there are 'lone men such as you that have such a Massive Chip On Their Shoulders' and would somehow wish the police to ignore certain areas, because they are predominantly inhabited by non whites.

I do not want this to end up in a slanging match between us, but please do try and stop forever playing the 'race card' by always highlighting the fact that you are Black, so what I am White, but what the hell we are all the same colour under the skin. It is what I've said many times before and that is 'as long as we are all given equal opportunities and conduct ourselves in a proper manner, then we can all live peacefully together'.

[NikkiB]

I don't find the white racist gunman MORE scarier than the black knifemen who murdered Tom Ap Rhys. Both are equally scary.
For whatever reasons that both groups of killers/wannabe killers selected their victims, they were all horrific crimes and intent crimes.

[sp1814]

Sorry - been offline moving house over the weekend.

Please don't think that my post was in criticism of the police. I absolutely couldn't do the job that they do, and the vast majority of police do their jobs with exemplary professionalim.

However, my point is that this story reveals that it ain't just Muslims, and black teenagers that are a danger to us (anotheoldgit - I actually held off posting a question about the Muslim taxi driver who was recently beaten to death by a gang of white racists, because I wanted to see whether there would be any 'Kris McDonald style posts here...there weren't).

It's all about balance.

We should be condeming racist violence from all sections of the community, not just when it fits in with the political agendas of the press.

Hands up who even knew about this story until the gunman was convicted?

Oh, and he was a member of the BNP!!!

Anyway, I have to go back to bed...I've been up all night watching the Oscars and am still hoarse at cheering for Helen.

[sp1814]

Errr...not that I mean that all Muslims anfd black teenagers should be regarded as a threat!!!

[sp1814]

Lastly (promise), I've never 'played the race card' in my life!

I have spoken about my experiences as a black man, but only when it's relevant to the subject at hand. The vast majority of my questions have actually been in Music, Adverts and Television.

I strongly refute the allegation that I use my race in any way to gain advantage!