I do not believe the ISIS claim about Las Vegas. It’s possible but I think it’s another kind of terrorism. And it’s part of the bigger, crazier picture.

Over at FP I expounded about the tragedy a little more:

There’s something wrong with society, with civilization itself. You know that. There’s no hiding it. This is but the latest, dramatic example.

ISIS has claimed responsibility for the massacre. That was my first guess. Now, even with the claim, I’m not so sure – I doubt it. If a crime is committed and the suspect is killed before he can say anything, why not claim responsibility. It’s self-serving but not necessarily believable.

Make no mistake: this was an act of terrorism. The motives will (may) be uncovered as time goes by. Per my First Law of Terrorism it is a given that this suspect was known in advance to some authority somewhere. Someone knew something. They always do. Always.

“America is reeling from the worst mass shooting in its history after 58 people were killed and 515 wounded at a country music festival in Las Vegas on Sunday night.

The shooting broke out on the final night of the three-day Route 91 Harvest festival, a sold-out event attended by 22,000 and featuring top acts such as Eric Church, Sam Hunt and Jason Aldean.

Police say the shooter was 64-year-old Stephen Craig Paddock, a resident of nearby Mesquite,
Nevada, unloaded thousands of rounds on the festival taking place at Las Vegas Village from a room across the street in the Mandalay Bay Hotel at 10:08pm.

Clark County Sheriff Joseph Lombardo said that his officers breached Paddock’s room on the 32nd floor and found Paddock dead inside, among an ‘arsenal’ of 10 firearms. Lombardo said that Paddock shot himself dead.”

-Daily Mail (UK)

The only good news here is that the worthless sack of excrement is dead. That’s it. The rest is pointless tragedy. You don’t need my details. Just watch the news or read anything anywhere.

There are videos from the concert which capture the horror and the sounds from the attack. I’ve been around guns of all kinds for a long time. That was a full-auto battlefield rifle. Either it was mechanically automatic (light machine gun) or it was fitted with a high quality bump stock. I strongly suspect the former. I would guess an AK or some other .30 caliber weapon.

The killer rained what must have been thousands of bullets on the crowd. The shots came in constant burst of 30? 50? 60? Maybe more? rounds. Sustained fire. He either had high-capacity mags or perhaps even a belt.

The shooter was on the 32nd floor of a hotel some distance from the concert. I don’t know but I estimate the distance was maybe 1,000 feet, give or take a few. A long distance attack from an elevated position. This was obviously premeditated for maximum carnage.

Just as with the Orlando gay club attack last year, last night the concert-goers were distracted from the shooting by the music. The shooter knew that. One can actually see the distraction play out on video. The SOB fired off a long burst of bullets and the band played on. The victims didn’t realize what was happening until people started dropping.

And there were plenty of targets. From the distance I estimate and in the dark it would be almost impossible to target any specific person. That wasn’t necessary as there were over 20,000 people packed closely together. It was merely aiming in the general direction and firing with a steady hand. More details will emerge.

So what is the prepper’s takeaway here? Several as it turns out.

First, today, if you live anywhere near Las Vegas – please go and give blood. The hospitals need it badly! The number to call for victim or assistance is 866-535-5654.

Second, I’d like to address the firearms angle, briefly. Some lower, dumber politicians are already politicizing this tragedy. If they want to use criminal acts as the basis for gun control, this is their great chance. They’re already trying. We must resist this. Period. The weapon(s) really do not matter. I’ll get to the real problem in a second.

Next, I’d like to praise the police and first responders. They responded to what was a real war zone in about 10 minutes. That’s very fast. And they rapidly pressed the shooter into offing himself. Good. Still, this response, as great as it was, was reactionary.

Terrible things like this are going to happen and lately they seem to be happening all over and all the time. It’s up to us (not the police) to do what we can to protect ourselves.

Back to the guns, most of you, here, practice CCW – almost universally with handguns. I hate to say that with an attack like this, those weapons would have been utterly useless. The odds of effectively engaging a shooter with a rifle and in a protected, elevated position so far away are effectively zero. (You should still keep carrying, however, just not to stop things like this).

Your .38, 9mm, .45, or .40 simply lacks the power and range to reach such distant heights. The only weapons which would have made a counter difference here would be a heavy rifle or a rocket launcher – neither practical.

What do we do to protect ourselves?

First, keep up the general preps. Keep up the training, the education, and the prayers. Beyond that, the only way to avoid being caught in a situation like this, is to simply not be there. The only way to avoid problems like this is to avoid large public crowds. That’s hard, I know. That takes some of the fun out of daily life. Still, it’s the only safe option in a world gone utterly mad. Please consider abstinence as a survival strategy.

The world gone mad it the real problem. This shooting, as terrible as it was (is), is but a small part of the larger disintegration of our societies. The crime, the terror, the war, the invasions, the politics, the hatred, the kneelers, the Nazis, the commies, the economics, the decline of civility – it’s all connected. Everything decent in the world is under assault.

I do not …

I just got confirmation the distance from the shooter’s vantage to the field was 1,100 feet… I’ve also read or heard 800 – 1,700 feet. I’ll stick to 1,000…

I do not have answers for this omnibus problem. All I can offer is that we must maintain faith and persevere the best we can. That’s really all we can do.

For my part, I vow to keep bringing you information of the topic and possible, plausible ways out. The rest is up to you. And whatever you do, so long as you’re doing something, will have to suffice.

God bless and keep you all.

Getty/Daily Mail.

This crap can really stop anytime now.