Gun Hub Forums banner

Urban Sniper

4K views 34 replies 14 participants last post by  TommyGunn 
#1 ·
Fifty-one years ago an ex-marine suffering from a brain tumor climbed the tower of the University of Texas in Austin and started sniping at people. In the early stages of his rampage fifteen people were killed, but then citizens, including university students, started firing back from every side of the tower and Whitman's ability to make aimed shots was severely diminished.

We are more civilized now.
 
This post has been deleted
#8 ·
Top, realistically how many of us here are in Elmer Keith's league? I know I'm far from it... if we got the whole board together on the same range and shot for beers I'd probably end up being the one buying the round, and most of the time when I was shooting alongside some local cops in college the only reason I never had to buy was that when I didn't get lucky on scores there was somebody getting hit with a Sportsmanship Penalty that put their score below mine. lol
 
#11 · (Edited)
Top, realistically how many of us here are in Elmer Keith's league? I know I'm far from it...
Sixty years ago I was almost that good with a 6" barreled .357 and a rest but not any more. Oh, and my target was the size of a car and maybe 300 yards out. Today I'm happy to keep them all in the chest area at 7 yards rapid fire.

About 8 years back I was shooting against a young BP agent at 10 yards and the instructor was calling the shots. While I matched him shot for shot I can't do that today.
 
#12 ·
I was there all weekend, seminar at the Mandalay. Gave a couple of drunk Canadians a ride to the concert. My plane left probably as the excitement was starting. It's a LONG shot indeed, I bet Tim's provided range is probably about spot on.

If you were outside to see what was going on, you wouldn't be able to return fire. If you were inside the hotel/casino, you likely wouldn't know what was going on until it was pretty much over. Nor would you know where the shooter was.

This was a situation where a CC holder just wasn't going to make a difference.
 
#15 ·
This was a situation where a CC holder just wasn't going to make a difference.
I've given this some thought, and I'd have to agree. But it was an exceptional circumstance, and as we all know, CC holders do make a difference almost every day--if not several times a day.
 
#14 ·
Just to clarify, my original post had nothing whatsoever to do with handguns or concealed carry...I'm not sure how that logical leap was made. In Austin, folks actually went to their dorm rooms or apartments and retrieved long guns.

I was commenting on the fact that in those days this seemed like a logical thing to do, and by all (non-media) accounts it was at least partially effective. Nowadays urban denizens seem to be much less willing or able to grab a long arm and defend what's theirs. Still, in the hurricane-prone parts of the country where defense against looters is a genuine concern, this scenario might well have had a different outcome.

Kevin, I'm sure I speak for everyone when I say we're glad that you got out of there unscathed. Great story.
 
#19 ·
BTW, we need a Fire Mission on why a Commiefornia prosecutor posing as a "conservative" on what used to be RedState is all wet echoing the calls for bans on bump-fire, and how full of it he is that it'll be "just this, won't ban anything else."

https://www.redstate.com/patterico/2017/10/03/bye-bye-bump-stocks/

Hit this one HARD, folks! :)
 
#20 ·
Like it or not, the jihad against bumpstocks has already begun, and IMHO, will likely happen. I personally think these stocks are a stupid novelty item for people who enjoy wasting ammo, however I don't WANT a ban.
I REALLY HATE this "legislating by atrocity" concept the politicians seem overly fond of the past few decades. It WILL bite the Constitution so badly one day it will be damaged beyond repair ---- and some say that's already happened.
Whatever does result legislatively, the libs' eternal war on the 2A will continue ad infinititum.
 
#22 ·
Like it or not, the jihad against bumpstocks has already begun, and IMHO, will likely happen. I personally think these stocks are a stupid novelty item for people who enjoy wasting ammo, however I don't WANT a ban.
I agree with you there, Tommy. I always thought the BumpFire stocks were silly things with no real practical value. (Unless you're a maniac who wants to unload as many rounds as possible into a sea of living human beings).

I too think that the "banning" of these accoutrements is going to happen. I just wonder how they are going to deal with all of the ones that are already in private hands.

It's real easy to say "Let's get rid of them!" Coming up with a way to do that efficiently and effectively in a free country is the problem.

That's why the left pushes "firearms registration" so hard. They would love to have that info at their fingertips.
 
#25 ·
To All,

Fwiw, I was present on the BAD day when Whitman shot up "The 40 Acres". = HID with my GF behind a large/raised/concrete flower bed about a block away.
(We 2 UT Freshmen were "scared spitless", the whole time.)

According to a senior Texas Ranger (2 days later) the carnage would have been far worse had several hunters NOT run to get their deer rifles, started firing up at the sniper & "kept Whitman's head down to some degree". = Of course, no anti-gun IDIOT will ever agree with the Ranger, as they are not only hate-FILLED BIGOTS but CLUELESS, too.

Btw, the Austin policeman, who took Whitman out, was appointed as a Texas Ranger soon afterwards.

yours, sw
 
#27 ·
It is troublesome that Homegrown terrorist has blueprinted the way for real jihad's. A trained marksmen with actual automatic rifles would have easily quadrupled the casualties and wounded. Open air events will have to have over watch in the future. JMHO.

About the only way that CCW could have made a difference was if they where also staying on the 32 ond floor, or the room directly above or below the shooter.

Hopefully the jihadist's will not be bankrolled (ie think cost isn't worth it monetarily) by thier handlers, to repeat this type of attack with real automatic rifles and trained shooters.
 
#28 ·
Off Subjet

stand watie:

By any chance were you on campus when someone put a bottle of Palmolive dish soap into Littlefield Fountain. Boy, that was a mess.

The Army had UT put on a seminar for us folks the Green Machine was thinking about sending to Central America. :(
 
#32 · (Edited)
stand watie:

By any chance were you on campus when someone put a bottle of Palmolive dish soap into Littlefield Fountain. Boy, that was a mess.

The Army had UT put on a seminar for us folks the Green Machine was thinking about sending to Central America. :(
csmkersh,

NOPE. But I saw it on TV.
(I was in the local hospital with a broken foot.)

Fwiw, I was present on campus, when some "wag" put a hand-painted sign around the necks of the man/woman in front of the Economics Department (the statue has a child sitting on their shoulders), which said: WHY WE GOT MARRIED.
and
Was present when a Kappa Sigma member was chained nude to the MUSTANGS statue. - He got really COLD, as it was 45 degrees & windy that PM.
(Tommy P_________ had gotten engaged to a Tri-Delt that night & the UT Police freed him about 0200.)
and
When bright red lipstick was put on another campus statue.

Fwiw, I also was a "participant" in the announced/famous/"somewhat notorious" UT "SEX Demonstration" in front of the Tower in October 1965.
(3 of our brothers, including me, marched around the mall with the large "S", "E" & "X" signs that were generally used as part of the old "TT-TEX- X- X- XAS, TEXAS" football cheer.)

LOTS of SILLY college pranks, way back then.

yours, sw
Gee, thanks, guys, rub in how I missed the Good Old Days when there was actually fun to be had... :( the closest I got was a Fartjar I created being used to engineer the ouster of an even bigger stinker of an Adjunct Prof.

:p
 
#29 · (Edited)
csmkersh,

NOPE. But I saw it on TV.
(I was in the local hospital with a broken foot.)

Fwiw, I was present on campus, when some "wag" put a hand-painted sign around the necks of the man/woman in front of the Economics Department (the statue has a child sitting on their shoulders), which said: WHY WE GOT MARRIED.
and
Was present when a Kappa Sigma member was chained nude to the MUSTANGS statue. - He got really COLD, as it was 45 degrees & windy that PM.
(Tommy P_________ had gotten engaged to a Tri-Delt that night & the UT Police freed him about 0200.)
and
When bright red lipstick was put on another campus statue.

Fwiw, I also was a "participant" in the announced/famous/"somewhat notorious" UT "SEX Demonstration" in front of the Tower in October 1965.
(3 of our brothers, including me, marched around the mall with the large "S", "E" & "X" signs that were generally used as part of the old "TT-TEX- X- X- XAS, TEXAS" football cheer.)

LOTS of SILLY college pranks, way back then.

yours, sw
 
#33 ·
Diamondback,

Remind me sometime to tell you about the night that our frat STOLE the TX Governor's VW Bug & put it on top of the UT Library.
(The Senior Captain of our Ranger Service thought that prank was FUNNY, thankfully)
AND
The time when we "kidnapped" the Kappa Alpha's cannon from their front yard & "held it for ransom".
(KA finally agreed to host a beer party for "the kidnappers".)
AND
The night that we "kidnapped" the TCU Horned Frogs statue from the TCU campus.
(We though that it was downright humorous that a TCU security guard actually helped load the stature into a U-Haul trailer. - The brothers told him that a group of UT students were intent on stealing the Horned Frog & taking it back to Austin.)

Like I said, there were LOTS of "college fun & games", in those long-ago college "daze".

yours, sw
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top