[OT] Sniper plays D&D?

[takyris]

Well, I could have been all message-boardish and gone into some huge tangent about my right to post whatever I wanted to while inserting small personal attacks into my defense, but I have this whole thing about trying to behave on boards as I would in real life. And you did pretty much nail me -- or at least, someone else who posted something not unlike what I posted.

For people who know stuff, then -- what does it strike you as? I'm taking all y'all's word for it on the range stuff (given that I'm a sissy vegetarian martial artist who doesn't know squat about guns), so if that's right, what does it say? Are there other guns that would use the same type of ammo but not support such a high-range? I dunno, something smaller and easier to conceal? That would indicate that it was still a professional, but a professional using an esoteric weapon and trying to skulk.

If there aren't any guns that could use the same ammo, or if other evidence (like fragmentation of the bullet or gunpowder streaking) doesn't support that, then what does that mean? Someone who's a big target-range shooter but not a live game hunter, who's nervous about going after a live target and shooting from a closer vantage point? Or someone who just isn't as good a shot, someone like a son stealing a father's gun?

Or could there be some other reason for getting closer? Something evil, like wanting to visit the scene afterward (ditching gun or tossing it to buddy in car, who takes off to confuse the issue)? Or wanting to be able to see their faces when he shoots them?

Just throwing stuff out there,
-Tacky

 

[coyote6]

The news reports I recall described the rounds recovered from the victims as being .223, which means it might very well be an M4. Though I doubt it; probably an AR15 or something cheaper.

Also, isn't 700 yards a little long for a regular M4? ISTR the military considering a full-barrel M16's effective range as being on the order of 500-600 yards. Of course, I could be misremembering.

In any case, a couple of hundred yards still isn't a particularly long range for a .223 rifle.

 

[Felix]

To tell you the truth, I know about the weapons I own, and not too terribly much about stuff I don't. None of the weapons I have fires .223. Here's what I think:

Because all of his kills have come from one shot, I would say that the sniper (let's call him Bob) is using an assualt rifle with a scope. He has so far resisted the urge to fire multiple shots so he is disciplined. His bullet is powerful enough to kill, but he must hit the right spot to do so. Bob takes his time aiming.

Of course, many weapons can use a .223 caliber round. You can also modify the gun or the bullet in order to use a different weapon.

Many guns are collapseable and can be broken down quickly for ease of transportation.

150-200 yards is close for a scope shot and is a range for a damned good iron sight shot.

Motive: the note on the tarot card implies that he has a reason for what he is doing; he wants to tell the police the purpose as his death toll racks up. What that reason is, I don't know.

Bob is smart. Careful. Paced. He might have laid out a schedule for when he goes to kill people. Bob might be two smart, careful, paced people.

That's as far as I can go.

Coyote: hey, I did mention Marines, not the other services. At least, that's the info my buddy down in Paris Island fed to me on their training. I'm inclined to believe him.

 

[Buttercup]

Don't you realize that perhaps, *maybe*, gun enthusiasts like myself don't enjoy having crazies go shooting people becasue the rest of the country is so quick to damn us???

and

Nope. Not millitary. Perhaps self taught at ranges, but not millitary.

And that's why I think that every gun club and range in the area is pouring over their member list right now. Sane, law-abiding gun enthusiasts will have even more reasons than everyone else for wanting the sniper/s caught asap.

 

[Agback]

you can lure a boy with D&D, yeah but you can also do it with a candy

The difference is that candy is bad for you.

Regards,


Agback

 

[coyote6]

Because all of his kills have come from one shot, I would say that the sniper (let's call him Bob)

Let's not.

Coyote: hey, I did mention Marines, not the other services. At least, that's the info my buddy down in Paris Island fed to me on their training. I'm inclined to believe him.

Might be. My memory is hazy, and most of my gun knowledge stems from reading spurred by RPGs, so it's certainly not expert. OTOH, I've known a few people who were Marines, and some of 'em were reputed to be good shots (one was training to be a sniper), but others, not so much.

OTOH, they all had the proper Marine attitude, which would be consistent with, ah, shall we say, a slightly inflationary view of reality, at least in relation to all things Marine?

As for the killer -- I have no idea, aside from pulled-out-of-a-hat guesses, and I'd rather not feed their ego (even though I doubt they're reading ENWorld) by indulging in the urge to speculate.

But these "profilers" that every news show in the universe seems to have acquired -- them, I'll rant a little about. I'm tired of listening to them babble. You know, profiling serial killers hasn't been done for too terribly long; so where did all these guys come from? Did the FBI get bought by Hasbro, and have the requisite rounds of layoffs? Shouldn't they be, oh, I don't know, helping law enforcement find killers, rather than helping the media scrape up ratings? Or have I just had the strange luck to see the bits where the media interviewed a profiler (and seen a different profiler, too) everytime I've seen a segment on this story?

 

[Aristotle]

emphasis added

Oh. Ok. Sure. It's the NRA's fault now. Or whatever survivalist group has safehouses. Safehouses???

I don't know if you've been to a shooting range lately, or another place where us crazy-nutziod NRA folks hang out, but I can assure you that the attitude towards the sniper IS NOT one that would inspire us to house the sniper in a safehouse! More likely, the sniper would be tied up to the 100 yard range marker and the shooters would fire at will.

I truly apologize that you took offense from my, aparently, poorly worded post. Let me make an attempt at taking the foot out of my mouth and explaining myself...

I come from a large hunting family. My grandfather was a police chief and ran a gun shop on the side. I'm not a gun owner myself, but have been raised to respect guns.

I in no way meant to point the finger at "all gun enthusiests". I was specifically speaking about militias (survivalist groups typically run with a strong racist or anti-government sentiment) and other organized, home grown terrorist, communities that operate within the united states. These communites are quite real... they live among us, and yes they most certainly would put up a fellow member or provide him with provisions and such.

I, in no way meant to sound like I was acussin the entire gun enthusiest community or the NRA for the actions of one lunatic. Once again, I apologize...

 

[Dinkeldog]

Hey crew. This thread is appearing to have run its course, but I'll leave it open for a little bit longer, as it does have some merit. The easiest way to ensure the thread gets closed is to make accusations about groups in the US that might or might not be supporting, tacitly or otherwise, or been the organ that trained the bad guy(s).

I am going to label the title as off-topic, since we are now way off topic.

Please be aware that if this thread appears to go any further downhill that it will get killed quite quickly. (Aristotle, good show with the apology--clearing up miscommunication helps a lot. )

 

[hong]

Can we get back to bashing Tragic: the Spending now?

 

[Ghostwind]

Profilers going after FPS games now

Well, this morning NBC upped the ante on sensationalism by bringing in an "expert" by the name of Jack Thompson who is an attorney specializing in video game violence. This expert was using the interview to actively campaign how FPS games (specifically Sniper and Counterstrike) used scoped weapons that actually teach you how to do one-shot kills. He went on to postulate that the sniper is most likely going for a higher body count than that Columbine (making references to writings by the shooters there) and that he is most likely as young as 15. The interview really did nothing informative other than give un-educated parents more mis-guided information about FPS games and how "detrimental" they are. This expert was really on the bandwagon about how this sniper was probably self-trained by computer games.

Now I have a really good knowledge of firearms because of my background and I have to say that video games cannot teach you how to perform a one shot kill from a long distance. It isn't possible. There are too many real world variables that come into play (like recoil, wind drift and bullet drop). Most likely, the sniper is using a Colt AR-15 or a Ruger Mini-14. My guess would be the Ruger since there are many customizable features available for the gun including flash and sound suppression systems that are easily accessible (and it doesn't visually stick out quite as much as the Colt). The .223 caliber can be fired at ranges in excess of 500 meters but at ranges beyond that it gets more tricky to be accurate. It's a cartridge more suited for 400 meters or less.

Furthermore, a person as young as 15 doesn't have the patience and maturity to do what this person is doing without making huge mistakes. If this guy is ever caught, most likely he will come from a military background and be/been on prescriptive medicine for a mental condition (depression, schizophrenia). I will agree that he is most likely on a power trip (as the expert at CNN postulated - I just wish he hadn't mentioned D&D) and is using the sensationalistic coverage to feed his ego. Wanna shut him down? Quit talking about him in the media. Remove his source of power and you will see him make a huge mistake in very short order that will lead to his capture/elimination. So far he has responded to the media's reports in precise and calculated ways beyond the initial shooting. Everyone's focusing on the Tarot card as though it really means something while I'm willing to bet it's a blind duck. The sniper threw it there to thumb his nose and nothing more. This guy's a pro (unfortunately) and probably on the genius level side of IQ. But that just my opinion based on my background (professional and educational).