The massacre in Binghamton boggles the mind and breaks the heart. The sadness is only matched by the lunacy of the rampage. What happened inside the American Civic Association is also a reminder that in the most terrifying and tragic situations, ordinary people are capable of the most extraordinary things.
Shirley DeLucia was the 61-year-old receptionist on Friday morning when Jiverly Wong walked through the door. "Hello, how can I help you," DeLucia asked. The killer pulled his weapon and opened fire, hitting DeLucia in the abdomen. She dropped to the ground while Wong shot the other receptionist. DeLucia played dead while the attacker shot his way through the building. At 10:31 a.m., DeLucia somehow managed to call 911. Police responded within two minutes and found 13 people dead, including the other receptionist.
The Binghamton police chief believes DeLucia's quick thinking and action made a big difference. "She's a heroine and I believe she saved some lives," says Chief Joseph Zikusky. Thirty-seven people managed to escape. DeLucia is in critical condition now and will make a full recovery. Her brother says she rolls her eyes when she's hailed as a hero. She's a strong woman who made it through the loss of her husband Christopher to cancer three years ago. A friend and neighbor of 26 years adds: "Most people's first instinct would have been to get down and stay quiet - but not Shirley's."
The Theory of 10-80-10
It's true: DeLucia's response was remarkable. In a crisis, survival experts say that only 10 percent of us do the right thing with clear, quick thinking and decisive action. Most of us - around 80 percent - freeze in fear or bewilderment or fall into a stupor. The remaining 10 percent of us do the wrong thing and engage in self-destructive or counterproductive behavior.
What did DeLucia do right? Some combination of thought and instinct told her to play dead. In the animal kingdom, it's known as thanatosis - an animal feigns death in order to evade predators or unwelcome mating attention. Opossums are best known for playing dead. Many other species - mammals, birds, lizards, insects -- do the same. (One study of young fire ant workers under attack from neighboring colonies showed that playing dead increased survival chances four times compared to older worker ants who fight back).
In April 2007, Clay Violand was in French class at Virginia Tech when a shooter barged into Room 211, spraying the room with bullets. The shooter left the room briefly and Clay quieted his friends and and told them: "Pretend you're dead." The shooter returned, fired some more rounds and took his own life. Twelve students and the teacher died in that classroom. Clay was the only one who wasn't killed or injured. Why? Violand remembers"I think it's just simply because he either honestly thought I was dead already -- I really didn't move or talk at all -- he never saw me like move I don't think."
Of course, playing dead offers no guarantee. Without question, some of the victims in Binghamton and Blacksburg did everything right (and possible) and yet they perished. Still, survival is a learnable mindset - a way of approaching virtually any crisis. While nothing is ever certain, experts insist that you can improve your chances if you're ready to take action.
Survival Strategies for an "Active Shooter"
It's a sad reflection of our society, but many people wonder: What can you do if you end up in one of these terrible, terrifying situations? At the University of California, Davis, veteran Police Lieutenant Matt Carmichael teaches workshops on how to survive what he calls an "active shooter." Among the recommendations:
1. Escape (if you can).
2. Cover (find protection behind an object that will stop a bullet; look for chances to escape, especially during reloading).
3. Hide (then look for opportunities to escape.
4. Play dead (and look for ways to escape).
5. Attack the attacker (as a last resort, catching him by surprise or from behind).
These suggestions may seem obvious, but remember: In a crisis, 80 percent of us freeze and don't know (or remember) what to do. It's easy to dismiss a list of safety ideas. After all, 60 percent of us pay no attention to flight safety briefings or information cards on airplanes. But planning ahead can make all the difference - on a burning jet or in any crisis - especially if you're like most people and don't have Shirley DeLucia's incredible instincts.
Ms. DeLucia was certainly smart to play dead -- an act of self-preservation, not heroism. Her 911 phone call also was smart -- another act of self-preservation, tinged with altruism; I'm sure she desired to save others as well as herself.
A hero is someone who knowingly puts him or herself in great danger, in the effort to save lives, disregarding existing safer options for self-preservation. A 3 year old who calls 911 when a parent passes out is smart and resourceful, but not a hero. A pilot who lands a damaged plane safely is a great pilot, and deserves our thanks and appreciation, but is not a hero; after all, he was saving himself, and had no other options under the circumstances.
I think we need to reserve the term hero for those special individuals -- firefighters, teachers, soldiers, parents, and even animals -- who make those split second decisions to sacrifice their own safety, and often their own lives, in order that others may survive.
Having said that, a tip of my hat to Ms. DeLucia for being so smart and resourceful. And to phone owners everywhere, this is another example of how phones save lives. To paraphrase the late Chuck Heston, anyone who wants to take my phone is going to have to pry it from my cold dead hands.
Again, I believe that extraordinary self-sacrifice is a prerequisite for anyone to be labeled as a hero. Otherwise, the term becomes a another meaningless word subject to the broadest of interpretations, and loses any inherent value it once had.
And no one seems to mentioned how many people DIED when they pulled out their gun and were shot by the home invader.
People who like guns are like people who like be monster trucks. Viagra is cheaper, and I don't have to worry about you hitting me.
You don't possess the normal instinct and courage to defend yourself from a violent attack and therefore you lash out at people who do .You should consider getting some therapy for your disorders and quit insisting that people who aren't inclined to beg for their life when confronted with a violent attack like yourself live the way you think they should.
Oh, and please don't come back with the "I'm a former Navy Seal" crap.
Yup, things like waiting periods and background checks are EXACTLY THE SAME as a nationwide immediate seizure of all firearms and ammo.
Remember that. There are NO grey areas. ANYTHING other than total, unrestricted, unregulated ownership of all forms of firearm is EXACTLY EQUIVALENT to a totalitarian dictatorship run by liberal gays.
we've realized the need to protect ourselves from the dangers of second-hand smoke through smoking restrictions . . . can't we protect ourselves from the second hand dangers of gun ownership (i.e. their owners opening fire on us)?
If guns are so useless in protecting us from killers with guns, cops and soldiers would shoot spitballs instead.
Who would you call if someone was about to kill you? You'd call GUYS WITH GUNS! The only difference is that they'd take a while to get there -- you and any innocent bystanders would be on the scene as it happens. It's silly but true: "when seconds count, the cops are only minutes away."
L.A. Riots in April
Virginia Tech in April
Oklahoma City in April
MLK in April
etc. etc. etc.
Maybe it's part of the problem, maybe not. Just pointing it out.
Arm yourself with anything at hand and rush him with as many of your fellow Americans as you can muster, and rip his neck open. It won't be easy; nothing worthwhile ever is.
A handgun bullet is a deadly projectile, but it is not a bolt from Zeus. Most people survive pistol wounds. It's a lot easier to take careful aim and hit someone who's cowering in a corner than it is to hit someone charging you in a righteous rage -- not to mention 2, 3 or 25 people charging you.
It is not easy to run toward the gunfire, but as any infantryman knows, it's your best chance to eliminate the threat. Turn your terror into rage, rush that S.O.B. and end it!
Same thing as a combat medic; eliminate the threat first, then attend the casualty.
This unfortunate lady was forced into a godawful horrorshow and was able to keep her wits enough to avoid taking another bullet and to call 911. For that, she deserves our respect and thanks for doing the best she could with the resources at hand. She is not a hero unless she risked her own life to save others. She is a smart, tough woman who took responsibility and did the right thing under the circumstances, much like Capt. Chesley Sullenberger.
The term "hero" has undergone a long, long period of degradation, to the point now that it gets applied to steroidal millionaires whose only notable feat is throwing a ball well in a game. Perhaps we can resurrect the word and return it to its former glory. Perhaps then we can then be inspired to engage in "copycat" acts of heroism. Perhaps.
I can't help but wonder what Ms. DeLucia could have accomplished if she'd had a .38 on her hip, and the skill to use it. I suspect should would have used it heroically.
Many, MANY people have killed their attackers after being wounded first. If she was able to make a phone call, she may very well have been able to shoot the guy in the back while he was busy killing other innocents.
We accept a certain level of carnage so that the 2nd Amendment be protected.
If this revelation gives us a (collective) head ache, then start packing some aspirin.
It is unreasonable to assume that a woman who suffered a gunshot wound to the abdomen and is currently listed in critical condition, especially at her advanced age, is automatically going to survive. I have cared for such people and, a great many instances, they don't survive due to SIRS, not the original injury.
Second, someone shot in the abdomen may not have needed to "play dead", she may have been unconscious for a while, then regained consciousness and called 911. Real life is not like the movies-gunshot wound cause a great deal of damage.
Thirdly, we do not hear about people carrying concealed weapons saving the day on the news simply because it doesn't happen. We have a corporate owned media, not a "liberal" media, and, you'd better believe, the NRA and the gun manufacturers would trump such stories to the high heavens if they'd actually occurred. The whispers of "liberal media suppressing those kind of stories" are just that, whispers, designed cause distrust and division.
So much of the gun-love in the US is based on the TV-type fantasies played out in Westerns and Clint Eastwood movies. There are commentators on this thread claiming thousands of "self-defense" stories to justify arming us all to the teeth when, in fact, no real statistics are offered.
As for the "liberal" media: Anyone paying attention for the last 30 years knows this is balderdash. "If it Bleeds it Leads" applies across the board. If someone shot someone else in self-defense you can bet your AK47 the media would descend on the story like white-on-rice.
http://www.claytoncramer.com/gundefenseblog/blogger.html
There is a severe media bias against guns in the US. Self defensive use of a firearm occurs at a minimum of 6 times greater than gun homicides each year. Yet, we're told that more guns = more crime and that you should lay down on the floor like a good little subject and play dead.
Get rid of gun free zones and allow law-abiding citizens to exercise their constitutional right. Maybe a criminal will think twice knowing that he/she may run up against armed resistence instead of herded cattle waiting to be slaughtered.
Can you imagine what an amazing society we would have if every woman, man and child packed a Gloch?
Also your use of the word Glock tells me you get most of your information about firearms from the mainstream news media and movies. Glock are one brand of many different handguns.