Jo's Cafe

On March 27, 2008, 63 year old Charles Johnston took three guns into the Doctor’s Hospital in Columbus, GA, went to the 5th Floor hunting the nurse who took care of his mother, deceased since 2004, while she was in that hospital.

Three dead bodies later and Mr. Johnston is in the Medical Center under police guard after a plain clothes Marshall shot him in the shoulder – stopping his rampage.

Police said Charles Johnston, 63 [...] for years held a grudge against a Doctors Hospital nurse who had treated his mother before she died at the hospital in 2004. Shortly after 2 p.m. Thursday Johnston came to the hospital with three weapons: a .32-caliber revolver, a .380-caliber semi-automatic pistol and a 9 mm semi-automatic pistol.

Johnston went to the fifth floor, shot the male nurse he was looking for, and mortally wounded an administrative assistant, authorities said.

He then went downstairs, emerging from the emergency room doors and heading into the parking lot. There, a man pulled up in a pickup truck. Thinking the man was trying to stop him, Johnston shot the pickup driver in the head, Boren said.

The nurse was killed on the fifth floor, Boren said. The administrative assistant and truck driver died later in surgery.

This is a sad event in the life of any person, be it the victims or the aggressor.

What is eye opening is the rabid comments made on this story at the Ledger-Enquirer, the Columbus’ main local paper.

They ran the normal range from “GUN CONTROL!!!!”, “SECURITY SECURITY” to “COLUMBUS IS A GUNSLINGER TOWN”.   Gag me with the ever loving spoon for god’s sake.

Example of one commenter:

1-Is it safe anymore to go anywhere. 2-If Columbus regional had not cut the security staff down to nothing, 3-then the could of been prevented. 4-You never know who is going to loose it. 5-Also if the staff at these hospitals treat customers with respect, then this may not of happened.
I am glad the man got captured alive, so that he can see what he has done.

Okay, let’s dissect this comment.

1-Yes, it is safe to go places in Columbus, GA.
2-Cutting security staff does not prevent an emotional unbalanced person from committing crimes.
3-How could this have been prevented?  They are not psychic?
4-DUH, see #3
5-So now its the staff’s fault, not the police, not the city, not the hospital for cutting security staff?

See anything in there blaming the suspect? 

Nope, and you won’t.  Not from people who can’t see the forest for the trees.

Then there are those that need adult supervision 24/7:

THIS TERRIBLE INCIDENT LETS US KNOW NOW THAT THE POLICE DON’T NEED THAT 1 CENT TAX INCREASE, THEY NEED TARGET PRACTICE AND THATS FREE- THANK YOU MR. JOHNSTON,AND ALSO DOCTORS HOSPITAL WILL BE HAVING A JOB FAIR ALL DAY MONDAY. ITS THE ADMINISTRATION PERSON FAULT CAUSE IF THEY HADDA SPOKEN TO THE MAN IN A NICER WAY, THIS WOULD NOT HAVE HAPPEN. DOCTORS HOSPITAL YA’LL KILLED HIS MOTHER NOW HE KILLED SOME OF YA’LL

(And in my ears is playing Queensryche’s Empire — who am I to talk?)

What we need are psychic policy officers who can predict when someone is going to go off the deep end and commit crimes.

Sounds like a good movie anyway doesn’t it?