Just read about Trenton...

is everyone here alright?  Your friends, extended families, colleagues?

I'm just reeling, I can't imagine how you're feeling...

{hugs} (wish it could be something more practical)

My brother, his friend, my sister and BIL, and 5 cousins were there, but left before midnight.  That's such a great event for Trenton.  They are all going back next year, and I will try to go.

Sadly there consistently is some level of violence in the state's largest cities, and it doesn't have much impact outside of those cities.

This is a few miles from family. I think people feel violated as the area was starting to slowly build a reputation in the arts and revitalizing a bit. On the other hand, for some time now some folks have questioned the rationale of having the event running 24 hours straight (it starts at 3 pm on a Saturday and ends at 3 pm the next day).

If there's any positive news here, apparently the police were aware of threats of potential violence, so they had more of a presence there. If the shooters had just appeared without any warning or expectation, the number of victims perhaps would be much larger.

Last I heard the only confirmed fatality was thankfully one of the shooters, recently paroled, at the hands of police.  The other shooter is in custody, hopefully to go away for a long time. 

Hope the boy in critical condition recovers, along with those others injured. 

FilmCarp said:
My brother, his friend, my sister and BIL, and 5 cousins were there, but left before midnight.  That's such a great event for Trenton.  They are all going back next year, and I will try to go.

 You're so brave

apple44 said:
Sadly there consistently is some level of violence in the state's largest cities, and it doesn't have much impact outside of those cities.
This is a few miles from family. I think people feel violated as the area was starting to slowly build a reputation in the arts and revitalizing a bit. On the other hand, for some time now some folks have questioned the rationale of having the event running 24 hours straight (it starts at 3 pm on a Saturday and ends at 3 pm the next day).
If there's any positive news here, apparently the police were aware of threats of potential violence, so they had more of a presence there. If the shooters had just appeared without any warning or expectation, the number of victims perhaps would be much larger.

 I'm sure you will do everything in your power to build a stronger and healthier community in the aftermath of this tragedy.

ctrzaska said:
Last I heard the only confirmed fatality was thankfully one of the shooters, recently paroled, at the hands of police.  The other shooter is in custody, hopefully to go away for a long time. 


Hope the boy in critical condition recovers, along with those others injured. 

All of us should be thankful that violence always equals death.

Well, no.  Notsomuch. 

It's an imperfect analogy, but Art All Night is somewhat like Maplewoodstock in that it is kind of distinctive, it's run by volunteers who work very hard and for months every year to make it happen and they've seen it grow over time - so naturally those folks (and people who visit it) are deflated and have a sense the event will never be the same.

In addition to the pride of building an arts community, another point of pride in Trenton is its manufacturing past. The building housing the event was once a thriving factory which produced industrial wire - the cables of the Brooklyn Bridge, the Golden Gate Bridge and others were made there - so somehow that adds to the sadness of the incident.

Of course the bigger concern is for the victims - and it all raises once again the problems of our gun culture and the inability to change it. No doubt the NRA will point out that NJ has relatively strict gun laws that didn't prevent this, so why change laws?

we just keep wondering what will be the event that makes you all finally say ‘that’s it, we can’t take accept this state of affairs any more’. 

joanne said:
we just keep wondering what will be the event that makes you all finally say ‘that’s it, we can’t take accept this state of affairs any more’. 
  

Probably wont happen.  

Remember at Sandyhook 6 and 7 year old children were slaughtered point blank - if that didn’t do it I don’t think anything will...

Also, between severe gerrymandering and the Electoral College, the minority Republicans are running the nation...

Scully said:

joanne said:
we just keep wondering what will be the event that makes you all finally say ‘that’s it, we can’t take accept this state of affairs any more’. 
  

Probably wont happen.  

Remember at Sandyhook 6 and 7 year old children were slaughtered point blank - if that didn’t do it I don’t think anything will...

Also, between severe gerrymandering and the Electoral College, the minority Republicans are running the nation...




 

 We wont be able to stop this until people like Blitzed die off.

was the Trenton incident planned mass murder? I got the sense it was stemming from some individual beef/fighting and possibly gang -related violence? Still horrible, still a reason for gun control but, to me, this is different than someone walking into a school and just shooting everyone. I’m not familiar with this event but I can’t imagine much good can come from an all- night event. People are at their stupidest (drunkest, etc) at 2am or 3am. Probably some lessons other than gun control to be had here.

my friend who lost his daughter, Jaime, in Parkland is doing good work in the gun control fight. Join him.

Orangeribbonsforjaime.com

conandrob240 said:
... I can’t imagine much good can come from an all- night event. People are at their stupidest (drunkest, etc) at 2am or 3am. ...

Agree. I think the goal was to show Trenton reinventing itself and to break out and be distinctive, and being all night achieved that - after all, there are all kinds of festivals and events in NJ. And that a visible way showing that a dangerous city was turning around would be having people out and about and looking at art and creative stuff at 3 a.m. And for years it worked. For whatever reason, this year it didn't.

I’ve enjoyed public  all-night movie marathons, and still do; I often read all night as there are nights I can’t sleep. I know I’m not the only one. 

Considering some shops and some restaurants are open 24hours, why not occasional cultural events? Why discriminate against shift workers and others who are unable to attend at more conventional times?

But apart from those queries (which weren’t why I started the thread), I’ve just read some alarming information. Haven’t delved into methodology yet, still just a quick skim is enough to make one pause and gasp:

https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2018/jun/18/civilians-own-85-per-cent-of-world-1-billion-firearms-survey-reveals