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August 5, 2009
Posted: 03:40 PM ET
Scene of the shooting near Pittsburgh.
Scene of the shooting near Pittsburgh.

George Sodini silently walked into LA Fitness gym outside Pittsburgh Tuesday evening, turned off the lights and fired 50 rounds, killing three women before killing himself. That's according to police there.

Sodini was carrying a gym bag with a note inside it. He was found dead in the aerobics room of the gym, lying on top of one of his guns about seven feet away from one of the victims.

Go here, to CNN.COM's excellent coverage of this story. Read the shooter's blogs, and see a video about who he MAY have been targeting.

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vannamocha   August 5th, 2009 3:41 pm ET

I thought Homeland Security was watching the Internet? If they missed the Pittsburgh shooter's website, what else have they missed?

Christa   August 5th, 2009 3:45 pm ET

MOTHER DRAGGING CHILD ON LEASH-
This is a red flag. This woman should be watched or counseled to avoid another tragedy like the recent one in El Paso, where the warning signs were ignored.

Ted   August 5th, 2009 3:49 pm ET

First, This is a very tragic event, and I am truly sorry for the lives lost. But, I hate when people use tragedy to push a political agenda. So the weapons the PA Gym gunman used were illegal up until 2004 when the Assault Weapons Ban expired. If they had been illegal he would have just used other guns that were legal at the time. If guns were illegal he would have used a knife. If knives were illegal he would have used a spoon. When evil people have it on their mind to do evil things, they will

AlleyCatKD   August 5th, 2009 3:51 pm ET

Rick,

It's sad that moments like this exits. What's just as sad is the lack of emphasis on mental health in this country, especially for males. Because we're "men" society dictates to us that we have to be "tough" so when we ask for help, a shoulder to lean on, or someone to just hear us out, we get looked at like we are less then what we are. This story was an eye opener. There was so much suffering on all ends and sadly I felt and still do feel the shooter's pain. The man was just lonely, he needed companionship. Let this be the moment we start being serious about gender and mental health issues. Thanks to the shooter, I decided to seek counseling today. Life might be bad now but I DONT want to end up like him. My condolences to the families of the victims. Moments like this should NEVER happen!

maeme   August 5th, 2009 3:51 pm ET

The mother and child issue, the story needs to be told fully. What was the child doing? cause as a parent there are many reasons for some of the actions of a parent today the way kids are today. Old school child raising, try it !!!!!!

john waldbaum   August 5th, 2009 3:52 pm ET

since I cannot find the exact place to make my comment on the tatterd flag the father is flying until his son returns from Iraq, I wil put it here.
As a retired CPO after 24 years in the Navy, I have been known to actually confront people about tatterad flags. Howevewer, in this case, I respect what the father is doing since I strongly beleive our men and women should not have been there in the first place. If anyone has been following the news, they would have noticed that no matter what the US is doing, the people in Iraq will continue to kill each other and all American lives will be lost for nothing. My son, in the Army, was also in Iraq for over a year and both his mother and I prayed the day would come when he was safetly home. In respect, I strongly support this father with the tatterad flag.

Robby   August 5th, 2009 3:55 pm ET

Sad thing besides the victims is it was either over love or money, neither of which is worth all that!

markum x   August 5th, 2009 3:55 pm ET

how come this isn't being called an act of terrorism? Because the man wasn't reading a quran and saying allahu akbar?

CPT Timothy Saugstad   August 5th, 2009 3:58 pm ET

"The Flag"

A true "American Hero" doing a special thing to this this place we call home. I'm a vet from OIF as well and this story made me proud to wear my uniform. Hope his neighbors are there to see what serving this great country is about. Wish all the news was like this a gives people hope that good things are happening. God Bless

Robby   August 5th, 2009 3:59 pm ET

Whats it say when one volunteers in the Navy, signed up for the Montgomery GI bill get out with a Honorable Discharge to have the government 5 years later tell you that you forfeited your college money that not only did you earn but paid into?

xrayinfinity   August 5th, 2009 3:59 pm ET

If you think the N.C. group of terrorists are bad wait awhile for the Ha mas supporters that Prez Obam signed a bill to give them $20.000.000 to let them immigrate to the U.S.

JIM   August 5th, 2009 4:01 pm ET

I just saw rick's story about the man who will not take down the American Flag until his soldier son returns home from Iraq.

I'm a Viet Nam veteran also and you better believe I support him 100%.

Where were people like him when WE were in Viet Nam?. We were overlooked by the American public when we came home and continue to be overlooked to this day.

We need more people like him so the mistakes of the past won't happen today.

Robby   August 5th, 2009 4:10 pm ET

Enough of Obamahood, my grandchildren should not have to pay for $8000 home credits and $4500 car credits to people who otherwise couldnt afford these things! Thats part of the American dream, there was never any guarantee that you would be able to own your own home or that you would be able to drive a new car, these things have been taken for granted and we should not be mortgaging our kids and grandkids future with free frivilous giveaways!

Edith   August 5th, 2009 4:11 pm ET

As I watched the man being tased, I could feel the anger rise within me. At the end of the clip you said, "that was fun to watch" HOW DARE YOU! If this man was spanish would you have said it was fun to watch? Only Blacks are tased. We are still treated like animals!

Robby   August 5th, 2009 4:16 pm ET

Edith newsflash I live in mostly all white mid Michigan and white boys are being tazed by the dozens, believe it! Not only that it doesnt even make the evening news here! Stop feeling sorry for yourself!

lilly   August 5th, 2009 4:52 pm ET

Mr Klein and Mr Sanchez

Like your show. Can you also put Lou Dobbs more.

Most CNN stories are bias, corrupt and unreliable. Can you work on that.

Just the other day there was a CNN show where black people were saying shop at BLACK OWNED BUSINESSES only. Who is racist, mmm...

Well we do have freedom to do that and I guess white people, asian people, latin people should do that as well.

I am also sick of CNN's bleeding heart shows like Black in America. What about Latin in America, Asians in American, Middle Eastern in America. We all come to America and we all have our struggles. How we behave is up to us.

Your shows seem to use and abuse the race car, like if you can brainwash us.

Instead, you should really think about loyalty to our country, our constitution, our citizens and our soldiers who protect our lands and our freedoms. They even help protect foreign lands.

obama pledge an oath to the "AMERICAN" Constitution.
Not Moscow or Cuba.

obama is a crazy, sociopath that will lie and cheat for his own personal agenda. Reminds me of Hitler.

If obama and these crazy radicals do not like America and its ways.

They can Get Out and go to Moscow or Cuba
where THEY can't own their home because the gov owns it,
or have a business because the gov owns it or go to
a doctor of choice because the gov decides.

My family came to America, Land of the Free for a better life where we have freedom and a choice to choose, say and do what we like.

And Lou Dobb is right we all have to present our credentials for our job.

So should obama. After all it is a job, that we the taxpayers hired and are paying for.

obama is doing a terrible job. He is not qualified and is probably a fraud, crazy sociopath radical. No wonder North Korea did not want him. No one likes him. He is an arrogant crazy sociopath but of course lets blame others...

WhyWomen   August 5th, 2009 6:26 pm ET

This is definately a very difficult situation for everyone to deal with.

As a mom, I wish that there was a way to tell the children of these women that their moms didn't do anything wrong. I wish there was a way to give an explanation to the families. I wish that there was a way to tell their friends / co-workers / neighbors that that this was senseless.

I hope that people realize that when they are at their lowest point, it does not make things better to take away innocent lives and that if they believe it or not "someone out there cares about them too"!

Nathan   August 5th, 2009 8:43 pm ET

Are these the sort of things that happen in the so-called "Land of Free", where we're hardly free at all? Clearly, this man was disturbed. George Sodini is like that angry middle school kid who's reluctant to express his problems because he fears his peers will perceive him as being weak. So, he lashes out and causes classroom disruptions. What was being done to accommodate the troubled student in the classroom so he feels included? What interventions were implemented so he's successful? Very little! The same question should be asked about Sodini. He's still accountable for his actions, however, could they have been prevented if we didn't have a crumbling school system and dogmatic laws? Sodini claims he did not have a sexual encounter for 30 years. That sounds psychologically detrimental! Imagine sex is equivalent to a desert oasis, so 30 years in an arid climate without a visit to an oasis will make people do crazy things. Would Sodini have built up so much anger if he had a sexual outlet, like legalized and regulated prostitution found in the Netherlands?

Michael Collins   August 5th, 2009 9:40 pm ET

The supurb broadcast of CNN is above the rest by such a long shot it isn't even speakable and as a long time, devoted viewer, I was was apalled to hear a respected newscaster utter the phrase "um?..." if it looks stupid in my letter, you should have heard it on CNN. Please leave the phrase "um?..." out of future important broadcasts . It just sounds so..... um?..........weak!

Sincerly, devoted viewer,
Emmy

P.S.
Sorry about the punctuation,
grammer and spelling. You are
the pro's here, your audiance counts on you!,......
To get it right. So,......... um?

Remby   August 6th, 2009 1:04 am ET

I wasn't very surprised to learn that this psycho revealed that he got his "strength" from jesus & god. It usually takes religion to wack-out a person enough to strap on a suicide vest, burn people alive, or go on a shooting spree.

Praise the lord & pass the ammunition.

christano X   August 6th, 2009 1:47 pm ET

I think it was wrong for him to do what he did. He was angry because women dont put out and fall in love with him. Well, he needs to be an interesting person first. Women just dont come up to you. He killed innocent people that had no idea how felt or even cared. It must have been a shock to see a crazy italian american man come in with a loaded weapon. Anglos(irish,english,germans) ,Mexicans,and blacks must have been scared to death I can imagine.

David   August 6th, 2009 3:19 pm ET

I live in Pittsburgh and it scary to say the least, but just think about the g 20 summit, and what could go wrong if pittsburgh dose not get support for security.

sorry for my poor spelling\grammer

dumpobama   August 6th, 2009 3:32 pm ET

Rick you sound like Rick Scott as an American does not have a right to speak or support his country. We have a Senator whose family made millions running booze when it was illegal or WRONG this particular Senator was also responsible for driving drunk and killing a young girl leaving the scene of the crime leaving her to drown in his car. Rick your breathless come on come on is childish Media Matters run by lib's funded by lib's one very wealthy lib George Soros one very angry lib who is trying to destroy the dollar. Rick where is your breathless come on come on. No no no you are playing with the facts. Like CNN? Rick you are worried that people are asking the same questions at the town hall meetings wow! I wonder why no matter what channel I tune into to watch the "news" it sounds like I never switched a channel the talking points are all the same that is why the "news media" has no credibility it does not matter what channel you are watching it is all scripted.

Serge Morel   August 6th, 2009 10:34 pm ET

Gun control!!
Who cares???
More death of US citizen by guns than in WWI and WWII!!
Let`s shoot us all!!
Man!!! : saw a guy going to a TEEN PARTYwith a AK47 in the trunk of is car!!!
Shot more than 30 rounds and killed a 15years old gilrl!!!!
Who cares???
Ah yes $$$$$$$$$$
Guns=$$$$$

Serge Morel   August 6th, 2009 11:56 pm ET

Scare of Bin Laden and of Al Qaeda???
Guns belonging to US citizens are killing more people in the US that they could ever dreamed of!!
So keep it on!!

Lucy-Gail Garcia-Henson   August 7th, 2009 3:33 pm ET

The health care issue is really heating up and seeing the obvious racism going on in response is heart breaking. I wish people could understand the real motives behind their actions.

We must reform heath care. I have insurance and still have to fight with my insurance company to get the testing and treatment I need for cancer.

Jim Long   August 11th, 2009 3:45 pm ET

The bad behaviors shown by the Republicans at the various town meetings are just desperate acts of people who have lost all reality concerning health care that will benefit all.

David   August 14th, 2009 1:05 am ET

Is there any way to find out what kind of Health Benefits Plans Congress and Senators have? and the President has? President Obama said one time that He him self has a good Health Benefit Plan and so does Congress.also does Congress and The President
have a different Retirement System,other than Social Security
Thank You
David Mora

David   August 14th, 2009 1:14 am ET

Rick
what kind of Health Benefit Plan does The President and Congress have?when Senators,Congressmen and Congresswomen Retire
do they retire through Social Security? Or do they retire thru Civil Service Retiement System? or do they have their own retirement system?

L.   November 12th, 2009 4:22 pm ET

Does not matter how this illegal family came to the U.S. The point is, they are illegal, as in they did not conform to the rules of the U.S. immigration policy, and this is a country of laws. No sympathy here! My sympathies lie with all the other people in this world, who are waiting in line, submitting their paperwork, and acting according to our laws, in order to properly enter the U.S., giving due respect to all the true American people!

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