I'm wondering when it would be good timing to show up at a movie theater with firearms!

Wow! Some people are unbelievable!!! Really...guns in your car, in plain view, at a movie theater??? Can we say STUPID?!?

In a perfect world with rainbows & unicorns, NEVER would be the answer to your question Margaret. But unfortunately in OUR real world, a good time might have been a little after Midnight in Aurora, Colorado when there was no one able to stand up to the Jackass who went outside to get his. He easily folded when confronted by Police, maybe a citizen with his own gun forces him to stop sooner?

Call me a crazy liberal, but MORE people carrying guns as they go about their daily business is not a comforting thought to me. Even if I had a hand gun, I would not be able to stand up to someone with an automatic weapon, and I would probably do more harm than good.

I would prefer these comments don't descend into name calling which they often do. It is perfectly OK and understandable that you choose not to have a gun. You realize Margaret that you are unshure if you would be willing or able to stand up to someone in this situation. But there are real world examples every day where responsible CCW holders have and will stand up and protect you and your loved ones. This has almost turned into a cliche' at this point, but a ban on weapons means only the criminals who don't care about the punishment will have one.

There seems to be something missing from the story: the alerts came because the guy was taking pictures, not because he was doing open weapons carry.

Back to my perfect world, I am not advocating a ban on weapons. I would just prefer that highly-trained, mentally stable people own weapons that cannot kill twelve people in a matter of seconds. I don't know how we get there, but it seems reasonable to have the conversation at least. There will always be sick people who will find a way to hurt others despite all of our precautions. I don't want to live in fear because of them, though. I still take planes after 9/11; I drive a car despite the high number of DUI-related accidents, and I will still go to the movies without taking a weapon to protect myself. (Thanks for your name-calling policy, by the way. Lowering the hatred in public debate might lead to a more civil society overall.)

I find this story interesting because of what it does not say. How did they know he had guns if they were in his veheicle? Were they in a gun rack in the back window of his pickup? What kind of weapons were they?
And, Margaret, the weapons used in Colorado were not automatic weapons, they were semi-automatic. That means you shoot one time with every trigger pull. With an automatic weapon it keeps firing as long as you hold back on the trigger. I do agree though, no one needs a drum magazine the holds 100 or more rounds.

Sammy, i believe in ywff's coverage of the story said that he had ammunition in plain view which is not illegal...but along with his video recording and just strange behaviour, patrons reported him to the policeman on duty. Once the police confronted him, he allowed a search of his vehicle that lead to the finding of the weapons. Hope that clears it up for you.

*wyff