What We Know So Far About the Heartbreaking Murder of Moriah "Mo" Wilson

May 26, 2022 at 18:41
by Alicia Leggett  
photo
Mo at the recent Mid South 100-mile gravel race, where she placed 2nd. Photo: Ansel Dickey @vermontsocial

Where do we begin? One of the rising stars of gravel and endurance mountain bike racing – a friend, a daughter, an athlete who raced for the love of it – was murdered May 11 in Austin, Texas. 25-year-old Moriah "Mo" Wilson was traveling to race the Gravel Locos 150-mile race in Hico, Texas, where she was a favorite for the win until a vicious shooting ended her life and sent the off-road cycling community into a stunned, heartbroken unrest.

The Austin Police Department responded to a call the night of May 11 and found Mo Wilson dead from gunshot wounds in her friend's house, where she was staying. Since her killing, the details have only become more horrifying: police have issued an arrest warrant for Kaitlin Armstrong, the partner of high-profile gravel racer Colin Strickland, with whom Mo reportedly had a brief romantic relationship last fall during a time when Strickland and Armstrong had separated. In a statement released last week, Strickland said he and Mo remained close but not romantically involved after he and Armstrong reconciled. Text messages and statements from others included in the police affidavit appear to contradict what Strickland said, suggesting that he continued his romantic involvement with Wilson after reconciling with Armstrong.

The evening of May 11, Wilson went for an evening swim with Strickland, according to the affidavit. Soon after Strickland dropped Mo off at her friend's house for the night, Armstrong is alleged to have visited the house and shot Mo, whose friend returned later that night to find her shot multiple times with a 9mm handgun. She was pronounced dead soon after police arrived.

Now, Armstrong is on the run and authorities have issued an arrest warrant for first-degree murder.

Moriah Wilson celebrates as she wins the Sea Otter Classic Fuego XC the first round of the Life Time Grand Prix presented by Mazda
Mo celebrates as she wins the Sea Otter Classic Fuego XC 80k in April, the first round of the Life Time Grand Prix. Photo: @lifetimegrandprix

Mo Wilson

While it's hard not to focus on the horrific end of Moriah Wilson's life, there was so much vitality packed into the 25 years that preceded the May 11 events.

The former ski racer and longtime recreational rider only started to make a mark on the professional racing scene in the last year, but while just a year ago she was considered a dark horse, she's quickly become known as the winningest woman in the current American gravel scene, and was recently highlighted in an interview with our sister site VeloNews published May 11, just hours before her death.

Raised in northeastern Vermont near the Kingdom Trails, Wilson told Betsy Welch of VeloNews, she learned to ride at an early age with her parents and brother. Her father was a professional ski racer, and the natural path for Mo was to follow in his footsteps, attending Burke Mountain Academy, a private college-prep school with a focus on training elite ski racing athletes, before joining the Dartmouth College Ski Team, one of the top Division 1 collegiate ski teams in the US, playing competitive soccer and earning a degree in engineering along the way. During her competitive ski career, Wilson used mountain and gravel bikes for cross-training, injury recovery, and fun with her family and friends. One coach joked over the years that she should pursue bike racing once she was done ski racing, she said, because she’d probably be pretty good at it.

As it turns out, she was.

photo
Mo chats with reporter Ben Delaney at the finish line of The Mid South. Photo: Christopher Stricklen @creedub

Throughout the 2021 and early 2022 seasons, Wilson was on a tear, winning many – if not most – of the US's biggest high-mileage events. Last fall, she placed second at the Leadville Trail 100 MTB and won Big Sugar before coming back even stronger this spring to take wins at Rock Cobbler, the Huffmaster Hopper, the Shasta Gravel Hugger, the Belgian Waffle Ride (which she won by 25 minutes), and the Sea Otter Classic Fuego 80k. For American gravel racers, the spring season builds up to the Unbound Gravel 200 mile race, which is scheduled for June 4 and where fans have looked forward to watching a showdown between Wilson and last year's winner, Lauren de Crescenzo.

On her quick rise to the top, Wilson said, "I work really hard and even though I haven’t been in the sport for long, my experience as a ski racer and background in the sport recreationally have converged. So that's been cool because it's actually like, ok this has been many, many years and hours of being coached and doing something recreationally."

Compared to last season when Wilson had minimal support and, unlike most of her fellow top racers, was working a full-time job at Specialized, Wilson had professional support for 2022 – including from Specialized – and, just last month, gave notice that she’d be leaving her demand planner role to train full-time. Her last day of work was set for June 3, the day before Unbound.

As she moved into racing full-time, she recently started a newsletter that included race reflections, interviews with industry figures, and vignettes that painted her as a thoughtful, insightful person with a unique balance of humility and quiet confidence. Her obituary describes her as a lover of Taco Tuesdays, Italy, and Settlers of Catan, and as a bighearted rider who recently moved back to her home state with the vision to "create a local community space in East Burke, Vt. where bikers could gather throughout the day, feel welcome, share a good cup of coffee and a bite of locally sourced food."

In short, Wilson and those around her anticipated a lifetime's worth of on- and off-bike experiences, and her too-short time leaves a million "what if" questions behind.

She's remembered by the Gravel Locos race founder Fabian Serralta as a "role model, a shy compassionate person, a spirited tactical racer and a competitor that genuinely cared about those competing against [her]."

photo
The suspect appears to have boarded a plane to New York May 14.

Kaitlin Armstrong

The evidence that ties Kaitlin Armstrong to the crime is significant. Wilson returned to her friend's house at 8:36 pm the evening she was killed, according to her friend's electronic keypad records, and at 8:37, a neighbor's surveillance camera caught what appeared to be Armstrong's vehicle slowing and stopping outside of the residence where Wilson was killed.

In investigating the case and searching Strickland's and Armstrong's home, police discovered Armstrong had an outstanding, unrelated misdemeanor warrant for her arrest, so she was brought to the police station and interviewed by a detective. Soon after, it was discovered that the arrest warrant was not valid due to a discrepancy in her listed birthdate in police records, and Armstrong was declared free to leave. During her brief interview while she was at the station, Armstrong did not deny that she was outside the residence where Wilson was killed, and nodded in agreement with the statement "maybe you were upset and just in the area," according to the affidavit.

Police found two handguns at Strickland's and Armstrong's residence, which Strickland told police he purchased – one for himself and one for Armstrong – between December 2021 and January 2022. Forensic evidence suggests "significant potential" that it was Armstrong's firearm that killed Wilson.

photo

An anonymous friend of Wilson's, identified in the affidavit as "Jane Doe," told detectives that Wilson and Strickland had been in an "on again, off again" entanglement that began last fall, and that Armstrong had repeatedly and aggressively contacted Wilson to tell her to stay away from Strickland until Wilson blocked Armstrong's number.

A second anonymous caller told the investigators that in January 2022, Armstrong had discovered that Strickland and Wilson were still romantically involved and had become so angry that she said she wanted to kill Wilson. The caller refused to be identified, but police corroborated enough details to believe the input was credible.

Two days after the crime, Strickland said, was the last time he saw his girlfriend. Armstrong has been on the run ever since, and her whereabouts have been unknown since then. On Wednesday, police released video that appears to show Armstrong boarding a flight from Austin to New York May 14. The warrant for her arrest was issued May 17, and she remains at large.

Update 6/19/2022: Police now say Armstrong was last seen in New Jersey on May 18. She remains at large, and the investigation has been upgraded to "major case status." US Marshals are offering a reward of up to $5,000 for information that leads to her arrest. She was also allegedly spotted at a campsite in upstate New York, about 2.5 hours from the Newark Liberty Internation Airport.

Update 6/30/2022: Armstrong has been captured in Costa Rica. She is currently in police custody and will be deported to the United States, where she will be charged with first-degree murder. She reportedly boarded a flight May 18 from Newark, New Jersey, to San Jose, Costa Rica, using a fraudulent passport, and is said to have undergone plastic surgery. Read more on VeloNews.

photo
Colin Strickland. Photo: Sean Berry @seanberryphoto / Red Bull Content Pool

Colin Strickland

And there, in the middle between the victim and her alleged killer, is Colin Strickland. One of the top US gravel racers and a Red Bull athlete, Strickland is central to the story not only because a woman appears to have killed another because of his relationships, but because most of the public details about the story have come from Strickland's police interview, detailed in the affidavit.

Strickland told investigators that he and Wilson had been briefly romantically involved last fall, during a time when he and Armstrong had been broken up for one or two weeks. He said his relationship with Wilson only lasted about a week and faded out, though others say otherwise. Text messages found on Wilson's phone and included in the affidavit suggest that as recently as January, Wilson believed she and Strickland were romantically involved, at least in some capacity.

photo

The affidavit also details how Strickland changed Wilson's name in his phone and how, after dropping Wilson off the night of her death, he texted Armstrong and lied about his whereabouts to hide that he had spent the evening with Wilson.

photo

As details around the crime began to surface, Strickland released a statement to Austin-Statesman reporter Tony Plohetski expressing his regret and torture he feels about his "proximity to this horrible crime."

In his statement, Strickland also attempted to clarify the details reported about his relationship with Wilson, though his words seem to contradict the timeline he told investigators about their relationship and what multiple sources have said.

bigquotesI am reeling from grieving Mo Wilson's death and from the facts that have emerged during the investigation. I cannot begin to imagine the pain felt by Mo's family and her close friends.

There is no way to adequately express the regret and torture I feel about my proximity to this horrible crime. I am sorry and I simply cannot make sense of this unfathomable tragedy.

Although it will be a matter of small consolation to anyone else who cared for Mo, I want you to know that I have cooperated fully with investigators ever since I learned the terrible news and I will continue to do so until some form of justice is served.

As a point of clarification to facts previously reported, Moriah Wilson and I had a brief romantic relationship from late October-early November 2021 that spanned a week or so while Wilson was visiting Austin.

At the time, she and I had both recently ended relationships. She returned to her home in California and about a month later, Kaitlin Armstrong and I reconciled and resumed our relationship.

Since then I often saw Mo at cycling events, and always in public settings. We both competed in Bentonville, AR, Stillwater and Monterrey, CA. We also met for a 4-hour training ride in Santa Cruz after the Sea Otter Classic in Monterrey.

After our brief relationships in October of 2021, we were not in a romantic relationship, only a platonic and professional one. It was not my intention to pursue along an auxiliary romantic relationship that would mislead anyone. Moriah and I were both leaders in this lonely, niche sport of cycling, and I admired her greatly and considered her a close friend. I am deeply grieving her loss.
Colin Strickland

Strickland's proximity to the murder has affected him professionally too. Former sponsors Specialized, Enve, and Rapha have all cut ties with the rider, and Allied Cycle Works has suggested in a comment to VeloNews that it will do the same: "Given the circumstances, Colin Strickland is not expected to represent Allied at future races," the brand said. His sponsor Red Bull has declined to share its plans, calling the situation "a matter for the authorities."



photo
Photo: Ben Delaney @ben_delaney

The tumult following Wilson's death transformed the Gravel Locos race weekend from a pre-Unbound shakedown to a mournful remembrance ride. A statement from Wilson's family was read before the race began, and every rider who toed the start line seems to have taken it to heart:

bigquotesWe know that Moriah would want the event to carry on, for her compatriots to test their limits, as she would have been alongside her friends on the race course. We hope everyone feels her passion and support as they chase their own dreams. Her spirit will be there with you all, while training and on every race day.

photo
We're used to seeing pain on riders' faces, but never like this. Photo: Marc Arjol Rodriguez @velophoto.tx

VeloNews shared a poignant gallery from the event. The grief shared among those who knew Wilson is beyond heavy, as is the sense of horrific finality of such an abrupt and unjust killing.

Wilson's family has started a GoFundMe campaign to support "community organizations that help youth find self-confidence, strength, and joy through biking, skiing, and other activities that Moriah was passionate about," the campaign description states. Wilson's brother has also shared links to support the Dartmouth and Burke Mountain Academy ski programs in lieu of flower donations.

We at Pinkbike offer our condolences to Wilson's family, her friends, and the greater cycling community for this unfathomable loss.

Author Info:
alicialeggett avatar

Member since Jun 19, 2015
741 articles

641 Comments
  • 1504 257
 It's almost like firearms should be heavily controlled.....
  • 201 1851
flag Bro-LanDog (May 27, 2022 at 9:52) (Below Threshold)
 Not the place for your dogshit opinions.
  • 435 56
 That is stupid talk. Only odd countries would ban or heavily restrict weapons after one mass murder at a school.
  • 151 104
 Do love triangles gone bad murders not happen in the UK?
  • 104 266
flag SATN-XC (May 27, 2022 at 10:03) (Below Threshold)
 pretty certain firearm controls would not help in this situation, Armstrong was a young white female, her having a gun in Texas would raise absolutely no red flags (especially for self defense). That said, if she had any instability, Strickland purchasing the gun for her is certainly not a good look for him
  • 187 44
 Someone needs to mess with Texass
  • 232 55
 I don't think so, there were only 45,222 deaths by firearm in 2020. With a population of 329 million that is such a small amount of the population. No problem here except that we need more guns.
(sarcasm)
  • 50 243
flag mm732 (May 27, 2022 at 10:09) (Below Threshold)
 how's that working out for knives over there. i hear getting a machete through the windshield is alot of fun.
  • 94 286
flag TheRaven (May 27, 2022 at 10:10) (Below Threshold)
 @HB208: Just wanted to duck in here and note that I just learned, in a roundabout way due to the events in Texas, that Australia has one of the highest rates of this type of murder...and they have full-on gun control exactly like the type that some of the more extreme Americans are calling for. They've had more than 60 such murders since 1996 (when the gun legislation was passed).

That's all I got. Just wanted to put that random knowledge to use.
  • 566 57
 @bubbrubb: Texas: Abortion is murdering children We MUST STOP IT AT ALL COSTS!!!! Public people: so are we going to change the rules to stop children being murdered in schools? Texas: ..........Well lets not be rash....
  • 233 52
 @Bro-LanDog: Dernt take mah gerns ferm me! No! Erm an Ermehrican! 2nd Ermendment! Libtards! Duhhrrrrrrrrrrrrr
  • 55 437
flag Bro-LanDog (May 27, 2022 at 10:12) (Below Threshold)
 @netracer-enduro: uncouth swine will never let a tragedy go to waste to push an agenda. You're disgusting.
  • 28 173
flag Pinemtn (May 27, 2022 at 10:13) (Below Threshold)
 @moturner: the dunning Kruger effect is strong with this one..

You realize leftists support gun rights? Lol so many politically ignorant on this site. I don’t blame them though, it’s a mtb site after all.
  • 38 98
flag moturner (May 27, 2022 at 10:14) (Below Threshold)
 @Pinemtn: I'm a gun owner/advocate
  • 10 87
flag Pinemtn (May 27, 2022 at 10:14) (Below Threshold)
 @SATN-XC: shut up Bigot! Guns are
Inherently evil.
  • 168 4
 @TheRaven: are you referring to love-triangle, crime-of-passion murders or mass shootings? I read this recently: "Just over a year ago, Australia marked the twenty-fifth anniversary of the transformation brought about by the Port Arthur rampage. In a country of roughly twenty-seven million people, there are still a lot of guns in private hands—in 2020, there were an estimated 3.5 million. But the number of mass shootings, defined as attacks in which at least four people are killed, has declined precipitously. In the decade before Port Arthur, there had been eleven such incidents. In the quarter century since, there have been three, the worst of which involved a farmer in Western Australia killing six family members."

www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/how-to-prevent-gun-massacres-look-around-the-world
  • 123 21
 @Bro-LanDog: didn't know ted cruz had an account on this site. fun!
  • 132 23
 Another pathetic chapter in the story of America: Another loser with a gun.
  • 54 4
 @HB208: you're right in this case gun , knife, hammer no difference - happens world over.
Mass shootings are a totally separate issue
  • 61 6
 @Bitelio: Dunblane - banned all handguns etc. After hungerford in the late 80's we banned the ownership of semi-automatic centre-fire rifles and restricted the use of shotguns with a capacity of more than three cartridges.
  • 7 115
flag Bro-LanDog (May 27, 2022 at 10:21) (Below Threshold)
 @moturner: What a compelling, deeply intellectual comment.
  • 6 122
flag Bro-LanDog (May 27, 2022 at 10:22) (Below Threshold)
 @tpg512: Your quips mean nothing besides that politicians are living rent free in your head. Must be some life, I'd suggest going outside.
  • 27 51
flag mtnbikermaniac (May 27, 2022 at 10:24) (Below Threshold)
 @rcrocha:
The vast majority of those "gun deaths" are suicide.
  • 17 1
 @mtb-scotland: Dunblane reference too subtle for some. You're right though UK Gov stepped up for once
  • 208 31
 Republican quandary: are we against abortion if it’s committed with an AR-15?
  • 32 32
 @SangamonTaylor: I was referring to domestic relationship-related murders.

However that bit about mass shootings is very misleading. While mass shootings have gone down, mass killings through other means have increased so much that there are actually more now than before the gun control measures. Australia has actually had one more mass killing in the 26 years since they implemented gun control than they did in the 26 years prior to doing so.
  • 4 58
flag Bro-LanDog (May 27, 2022 at 10:33) (Below Threshold)
 @RonSauce: you should really be ashamed of yourself for this comment.
  • 6 21
flag KK11 (May 27, 2022 at 10:44) (Below Threshold)
 Cocked and locked…
  • 3 0
 @Bro-LanDog: They should be. Coming from a gun owner. That's what my friend said anyway
  • 134 6
 You know what? If we just got rid of the 10-15% of the far left and 10-15% of the far right, and if we stopped letting politicians and 'news' drive us into stuporous insanity, we might actually be able to do something.. It's almost as if our political parties have learned that it's to their advantage to drive us apart while sidling up to various lobbies.. The largest diverse (in all ways, shapes, forms) nation on the planet certainly can succeed without compromise, right?
  • 60 36
 Murica: just give your goddamn assault, eh protection rifles to the ukraine and call it a day. I mean the main thing, above everything else, is to protect lif…eh the NRA anyway. BUT, at least the „civilized“ world hates you a bit less than russia. Well done you. Ok, bit dramatic, don‘t take it 100% serious…good night.
  • 77 14
 I read the entire article and it is clearly the guns fault.
  • 69 10
 @Bro-LanDog: agenda? Are you f*cking serious? Ya how about an agenda to not have people in schools, parks, grocery stores get shot? Is that a decent agenda? Oh right, now is not the time. Let’s wait for the next on.
  • 6 1
 @HB208: yes they do, but not that often. Only a very limited number of people have access to a gun.
  • 23 20
 @Wyndbrook: Yes, because everyone knows the only way to kill someone is a gun.
  • 63 107
flag danielfloyd FL (May 27, 2022 at 11:22) (Below Threshold)
 I don't think America has a gun problem. I think we have a mental health problem disguised as a gun problem. There's 330M+ people here, and there's more guns than there are people. There are laws controlling who can and can't purchase a gun, but the problem is, the kind of people who are psycho enough to commit gun violence don't care about laws. Even if you made guns illegal, they would still find guns. We don't need more restrictions on guns, we need to do a better job upholding the current laws, and we need to get people the mental help they need.
  • 39 19
 @Bro-LanDog: ban this dipshit
  • 7 25
flag BEERandSPOKES (May 27, 2022 at 11:40) (Below Threshold)
 @SATN-XC: ban this dipshit!!!
  • 47 18
 @danielfloyd: Did you just copy/paste this from a Fox New article?
  • 3 16
flag Bro-LanDog (May 27, 2022 at 11:41) (Below Threshold)
 @sunringlerider: I think that's a pretty good agenda. Do people want those things to happen or something? I don't understand.
  • 31 12
 We're here to learn about what happened and mourn for a lost life, not to have another political discussion.
  • 11 17
flag danielfloyd FL (May 27, 2022 at 11:41) (Below Threshold)
 @sino428: Fox sucks. I was just stating my personal opinion. I'm pretty much middle of the road, politically, so the stuff they say on Fox news doesn't generally appeal to me.
  • 61 6
 @danielfloyd: Fine. Do you know how Texas is enforcing a $10k bounty on those who seek abortions? Let's do the same with those who illegally sell/purchase firearms.

Or we can just do nothing, as you suggest, because doing nothing has obviously shown radical improvement over trying literally anything else. Doing nothing gets kids shot and people murdered, so that sounds great. /s
  • 11 54
flag Bro-LanDog (May 27, 2022 at 11:53) (Below Threshold)
 @BEERandSPOKES: sorry to be a damper in your echo chamber. Your emotional response and passionate interaction is exactly what outside™ wants.
  • 23 68
flag danielfloyd FL (May 27, 2022 at 12:02) (Below Threshold)
 @cgreaseman: If you don't like Texas don't move there. There's plenty of places where abortion is legal all the way up to birth (which I personally find despicable), but there's something for everyone here.
  • 19 5
 @BEERandSPOKES: ...easy there buddy. "Ban this dips**t"... for what?? what did I say? I'm all for firearm control [even a ban on assault rifles]; however, I simply stated it likely would not have prevented this tragic event. Armstrong is clearly unhinged but, other than an all out ban on guns, I'm not sure what controls would have prevented her from obtaining one. Hell, it wasn't even her gun...Strickland bought it for her.
  • 27 7
 @danielfloyd: I think we have many problems, but I don’t think that means we don’t have a gun problem. It takes nothing more than statistics to see why other countries don’t have mass shootings. Less guns, less shootings. The fact that many US senators come from small states but hold so much power over shaping gun laws doesn’t help. Why we need (bad ass) but stupid automatic and, even semi automatic guns with 30 round mags baffles me.
  • 16 54
flag mtnbikermaniac (May 27, 2022 at 12:34) (Below Threshold)
 @cgreaseman: let's start with Hunter Biden!!!
  • 8 2
 @cgreaseman: that would actually be a great start! I heard California was actually talking about that, curious if anything came of the proposal
  • 28 3
 @danielfloyd: Do you think rates of mental health differ dramatically in all other western countries that have far less deaths by fire-arms? If not- the argument may need to be tweaked.
  • 36 4
 @danielfloyd: so the solution to this mental health problem is implementing free, national health care, right?
  • 7 3
 And they are. But one is not a criminal until they decide to be on the wrong side of the law, whether that law is good or bad does not concern the law. Anyway, laws do not stop or curb crime, they only allow the prosecution of those who have not followed the law.
  • 13 28
flag danielfloyd FL (May 27, 2022 at 13:08) (Below Threshold)
 @snl1200: I don't think the rates are different, I just think that we have a lot more people than pretty much any other western country. So the rates might be the same, there's just a greater volume here. There's almost a million and a half more people in California alone than there are in all of Canada.
  • 1 1
 @HB208: not really no.
  • 13 52
flag scary1 (May 27, 2022 at 13:21) (Below Threshold)
 @netracer-enduro: let’s make a deal then. Confiscate all guns, ban all abortion.
Yeah, didn’t think so
Good news is of the tens of millions of dead humans through abortions, you saved us from a at least 3-5 mass school shooters
  • 1 7
flag scary1 (May 27, 2022 at 13:22) (Below Threshold)
 @bsarfino: Uhm..yes.
  • 17 29
flag danielfloyd FL (May 27, 2022 at 13:25) (Below Threshold)
 @sspiff: @sspiff: If you want that, you can go to Canada, where the sales tax is 15%. Nothing is really free. You can slap a label on anything to make it look free, but whenever the Government says "free" in front of anything, they really mean "paid for by tax-payer's dollars," or "along with more inflation." I do think there's a lot that could be done to cut costs of health care, such as paying doctors less for their signatures, and I think that a limited social welfare program is a good thing to help people get back on their feet in hard times. But even that money has to come from somewhere. The idea that we can keep pumping money from nowhere into the economy is ridiculous. It's gonna fall apart eventually, just like Wiemar Germany did in the early 1900's.
  • 18 59
flag scary1 (May 27, 2022 at 13:26) (Below Threshold)
 Ban Democrat spawn from owning
Guns. Statistically, there’d be a 97% reduction in gun crimes.
So, there’s that.
  • 82 21
 @TheRaven: Absolute bullshit. Does Australia have a domestic violence problem? Yup. A firearm murder problem. No.

America is sick and broken, and no amount of false equivalencies will fix that.

Either keep ignoring the problem, or be condemned to catastrophic failure as a society. Your choice.
  • 27 25
 This is not a gun control issue, this is a person who murdered another person in a crime of passion with what sounds like a reasonably, legally obtained fire arm. The Robb Elementary school shooting is a gun control issue. A likely unstable 18 year old who bought two high powered semi automatic rifles for no reason. It's not unreasonable for a lot of sane adults to have a gun, regardless of your personal view on guns. It is unreasonable for an 18 year old to have two. I don't even like guns either.
  • 18 2
 @danielfloyd: Have a look on Wikipedia at homicide rates and gun related murders to find out just how wrong you are.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_intentional_homicide_rate
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_firearm-related_death_rate
  • 28 6
 @danielfloyd: I'd be willing to bet efficiency comes with centralization, but don't really care to argue about that. I'm just tired of this weak "mental health" deflection tactic as a way of continuing to do nothing. Either we're the country with too many guns or the only country with a crippling mental illness problem. Argue however you want, but then at least get behind a solution.

Otherwise the logic flow I'm getting is:
1) not guns, mental health
2) healthcare is expensive
3) $ > people's lives
  • 11 61
flag TheRaven (May 27, 2022 at 13:53) (Below Threshold)
 @caltife: Australia has every bit as big a problem with murder as the US...whether mass murder or individual. Unless you want to make the claim that deaths are fine as long as they aren't caused by bullets?

America is a mess...but Australia is much worse. At least our government doesn't aspire to be China.
  • 19 4
 @HB208: the per-capita homicide rate for women is over 3x higher in the US vs the UK.

Firearms are now also the #1 cause of child deaths due to injury, passing vehicle crashes this year.
  • 10 9
 @dthomp325: We have some super dangerous areas in the US, like some areas of Chicago, LA, St. Louis, and Baltimore. Not that it excuses are homicide rates, but in general, the US is a very safe place to live. A few hot spots really throw the numbers up.
  • 16 0
 @TheRaven: Can you provide a link for that, because everywhere I'm looking says otherwise.
  • 12 12
 @warmerdamj: that wasn't a gun control issue either. There were multiple points that the police completely failed on. They.couldve stopped him at least two separate times before he entered the school. This guy murdered his grandma before shooting up a school. Sounds like a psycho to me.
  • 15 0
 @TheRaven: Got a source for this piece of news?
  • 16 7
 @danielfloyd: yeah, sounds like a psycho to me too. Hence why this is a gun control issue. He never should have been able to buy the guns, the police failures would be irrelevant had his access to the guns been controlled.

You think he's a psycho but see no issue with him having a gun? Actually 2 guns, machine guns.
  • 26 3
 @danielfloyd: I pay almost 10% sales tax and our roads are shit and usless cowardly "swat" teams gobble budgets up.

15% sales tax and real healthcare and infrastucture sounds like a f*cking DEAL!
  • 23 7
 @TheRaven: Lol you are a dumbarse sucking down ridiculous propaganda. Our country is following you idiots down the rabbit hole towards conflict with the Chinese government. We host multiple US military bases and just signed another alliance pact with the US and UK. Get off the internet and into the real world.
  • 102 4
 I will probably be crucified, but here it goes:

Longtime firearms owner, including a Colt H-Bar (lawfully purchased, registered, and grandfathered here in California). I don't know that "heavily controlled" is the answer. Background checks, absolutely. Waiting periods, at least for the first purchase, seem like a wise idea. Raising the age to purchase to 21, probably a good idea given a significant number of shootings seem to involve younger people. These would at least hopefully decrease the rate of these crimes, but not eliminate them.

The real problem is that it seems that most want to make this a binary decision, either unlimited and unrestricted ownership of firearms, or no ownership. There is something more than just the firearms, as they have been widely and easily available in this country for 100+ years (in fact more easily available in the past). To help reverse the is problem is going to take much more than just looking at firearms, but the underlying reasons that people are turning to individual and mass acts of violence as a "solution", where they didn't in the past.

It is going to take getting past the binary thinking and blaming to even start working on a solution. If we want a real solution, we are going to have to accept that it will likely be some combination of firearm purchasing/ownership restrictions, better identification and treatment of mental health issues, and some other, who knows what changes. It will require understanding that if we come up with 10 good ideas of changes, only 1-3 will work, and we will have to revaluate and adjust if we want to make real change. The problem is decades in the making and will take as long to hopefully fix.

What isn't working is what we are doing, blaming each other, blaming the other party, and doing nothing. It is better that something be tried and to fail, then to try nothing.
  • 33 6
 @TheRaven: Have you lived in or been to Australia? Or are these just your NRA talking points? What is the murder problem in Australia that you're convinced is as bad as the US?
  • 24 10
 @danielfloyd: "There are laws controlling who can and can't purchase a gun, but the problem is, the kind of people who are psycho enough to commit gun violence don't care about laws."

Are you deliberately this dense? The kid tried to get his sister to buy him a gun we he was 17 and she wouldn't. He waited until 2 days after he turned 18 and could LEGALLY by it. If he wasn't able to legally purchase guns designed for war this wouldn't have happened. Get out of here with that propaganda bullshit.
  • 6 0
 @carym: I agree with you, though I don't think many people are in favor of no ownership of guns. It seems that most people see hand guns for protection and hunting rifles as absolutely fine. And I also think that many gun owners are supportive of some level of restrictions too. It's the media, politician and NGOs that seem to talk in extremes and then no progress happens.
  • 20 25
flag Bro-LanDog (May 27, 2022 at 14:57) (Below Threshold)
 @ridingsteeps: is it too much to fathom that if someone is motivated to take the lives of many, they'll find ways to do it? People have killed dozens driving a truck through crowds, knifing people in crowded areas, blocking fire exits and commiting arson, the list goes on. Do you really think making some inanimate object disappear removes irrational hatred and nothing-left-to-lose motivation?
  • 41 5
 @carym: No one is seriously calling for no ownership. Like many political issues, especially in the US, the binary nature of things is an illusion put in place to drown out any serious discussion on the matter by people who don't ever want to work towards actually solving the problem.

Research, discussion, and voting on effective gun control to minimize gun deaths = They're taking all your guns away.

Women's reproductive rights? = Unrestricted late-term abortions.

Affordable healthcare? = Government takes all your money and gives it to poor people and illegal immigrants.

If you try and look past your crazy-ass US media, it's pretty easy to see who tries to obfuscate the problem by pandering to extremes.
  • 16 4
 @Bro-LanDog: Do you really believe other countries don't have irrational hatred issues too? This only happens routinely in the U.S.and it's not hard to figure out why. You sound like someone who values guns over human lives. You seem nice...
  • 13 4
 @Bro-LanDog: Mass killings using other objects besides guns is pretty rare in the US compared to mass shootings. Other countries have removed easy access to guns and they don't have these other incidents as a replacement issue.
  • 31 5
 @mtnbikermaniac: You’re correct that the majority of gun deaths are suicides. Do you not see that as a problem?

Easy access to guns for self-harm is one of the strongest rationales there is for a more sane approach to gun control. Suicide is more often than not a desperate and impulsive act. And 90+% of people who attempt suicide by firearm die. The rate for those who use other methods—eating too many pills, carbon monoxide poisoning, cutting, whatever—is far far less. All the data in the world bears this out. Every failed suicide attempt is an opportunity to get someone help. Every successful suicide is just more pain and loss in the world.

So whatever you’re trying to get at when you point out that most of the massive number of gun deaths are suicides, you’re wrong. No, they’re not just going to find another means. No, we shouldn’t just accept that they don’t want to live. Yes, they are just as much a part of the illness that we have when it comes to guns in this nation.

If you can’t see that, you’re heartless, you’re a liar, or both.
  • 6 21
flag Bro-LanDog (May 27, 2022 at 15:15) (Below Threshold)
 @ridingsteeps: the other countries are actually where I'm referencing mass killings via truck or stabbings.
  • 6 10
flag danielfloyd FL (May 27, 2022 at 15:19) (Below Threshold)
 @warmerdamj: I didn't say I have no issue with HIM having a gun. I just don't think the solution is banning all guns. The vast majority of gun owners are good people. The laws are in place to prevent people like that from getting a gun, and unfortunately in this case, those laws were bypassed. Laws are just obscure words on paper to a homicidal freak like him. As long as there are guns being trafficked illegally, no amount of gun control laws will stop people like him. This was just a complete failure of the system across the board.
  • 4 21
flag Bro-LanDog (May 27, 2022 at 15:19) (Below Threshold)
 @AndrewFleming: this is not true if you search massacres in other nations. There have been killings in japan from intentional fires that killed 44 people and the suspect was never caught, for example. There have been poisonings in crowded subways, bombs made from basic agricultural equipment, the list goes on.
  • 18 10
 @Bro-LanDog: No one believes you. Cite your sources or STFU. You have no clue what the hell you're talking about.
  • 13 0
 @Bro-LanDog: Those things happen in the US too.

Of course, now we have to resort to saying "Naww that happens way more in other countries", which would lead to us comparing statistics on mass killings and finding that the US is still well ahead of the pack of developed countries.
  • 1 16
flag Bro-LanDog (May 27, 2022 at 15:25) (Below Threshold)
 @ridingsteeps: you don't have to believe me. Scroll down to 1 September 2001 en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_massacres_in_Japan
  • 1 0
 That’s completely once sided @darkstar66
  • 4 17
flag Bro-LanDog (May 27, 2022 at 15:27) (Below Threshold)
 @JulioValeinte: sure, I'm not arguing that. I believe there is an extremism epidemic that isn't solved by removing inanimate objects from an overwhelming majority of law abiding, well mannered humans.
  • 1 1
 It's almost like that.... wont change a thing there, kiddo.
  • 12 5
 @Bro-LanDog: Yes, I know awful things happen in other countries too but compare these rates per capita to the mass shootings in the US. And if the theory that "criminals will get their hands on guns even if they are illegal" was true, why aren't the crazy people in these other countries using guns instead of other things? I'll tell you why... it's because gun control works.
  • 8 3
 @carym: I agree with most of what you are saying but I'm not sure its fair to simply say firearms have been widely available in the country for 100+ years, as if nothing has changed. That is a massive over simplification as the types of firearms that are available to the general public has changed massively over the last 25-30 years. For example, production and sales of guns like the AR-15 style weapons that are often used in these mass shootings has exploded over the last 20 years, starting with the expiration of the Federal assault weapons ban in 2004.
  • 4 13
flag Bro-LanDog (May 27, 2022 at 15:58) (Below Threshold)
 @AndrewFleming: generally in countries with strict gun control they don't have populations where the amount of firearms outnumber the populace, and an outstanding number of crimes (nearly 70%) commited with firearms are done with stolen firearms or those provided by friends/family. If you'd like my source please scroll to page 7. bjs.ojp.gov › suficspi16PDF
Source and Use of Firearms Involved in Crimes: Survey of Prison Inmates, 2016
  • 27 0
 @Bro-LanDog: You just basically argued in favor of gun control. Countries that have strict control don't have as many guns that are then stolen or taken by friends/family. Your words, not mine. Seems like the answer is fewer guns in circulation, I guess that's what you are saying.
  • 4 0
 @danielfloyd: I never said ban all guns.

I disagree 100% that gun control would not have stopped this person. If he was comfortable acquiring an illegal gun he would have done this before he turned 18. He literally waited until the first day he could legally acquire a gun to do so. Bullied kids like this arent seeking to break the law in traditional terms. He didn't set out to commit a crime even though he was committing multiples of the worst crime. He set out to right how he felt he had been wronged and make people suffer because he had suffered. I doubt most bullied, 18 year old loners would have the stones to actually go out and acquire an illegal weapon. It's a completely different type of illegal action and thought process.
  • 17 7
 I was waiting for the comment section to turn into a dumpster fire. Can’t say I wasn’t expecting better from my fellow mtbers. Especially pinkers. Let’s just give our condolences to all those affected by this and the many other acts of violence that have happened recently. Vote for representatives that share you logic on what should be done about gun regulations. Obviously it’s important for us to discus our views and ideas. But I think you can show a bit more decency and love right now, we aren’t equestrians. And ride your damn bike!!! I know I’m not perfect, my girl friend makes sure I don’t forget it, please don’t kill me, just downvote if you don’t agree.
  • 9 6
 @ArturoBandini: this argument to give Ukraine our guns is so very Pro-2a lost on you. This is the SOLE reason we have 2A, to protect ourselves when the gov't cannot.
  • 2 1
 @sino428: Good point. I haven’t tracked those numbers.
  • 6 15
flag Thirty3 (May 27, 2022 at 17:00) (Below Threshold)
 Stab, slash and gouge! What a dickhead you are. If she wasn't shot she'll be murdered some other way.
  • 11 15
flag Thirty3 (May 27, 2022 at 17:06) (Below Threshold)
 I own a few guns and never killed anyone. 99.9% of gun owners are responsible citizens and never had any gun crimes. Amazing how that is.
  • 8 20
flag scary1 (May 27, 2022 at 17:18) (Below Threshold)
 @caltife: you mean like our government having complete and total control over when we can or can’t leave our houses for months on end?
  • 29 9
 @scary1: Ah yes, like clockwork. The old "lockdown repression" argument... except that our population was overwhelmingly in favour of these measures because it demonstrably saved lives (and beyond that, our economy). Of course we didn't like it, but we're conscious enough of our community obligations to accept it was necessary. Unlike your pack of selfish sociopaths. But sure, keep on recycling the same garbage that you have no idea about.
  • 1 1
 @danielfloyd: what a sensible guy you are.
  • 2 0
 @bubbrubb: it'll soon be the lone person state.
  • 2 7
flag likeittacky (May 27, 2022 at 18:34) (Below Threshold)
 Then the warewolves will come for yo soy ass as soon as you're disarmed
  • 1 1
 @ArturoBandini:

So "assault rifles" are needed by the generation populations in countries sometimes and that's why we give ours up?
  • 32 5
 Some real narrow mindedness on here.
“Gun crime happens everywhere”
“If not a gun it would have been a knife”
“Its not the gun its the user” arguments.
Yes gun crime happens everywhere but guess what? Where guns are not readily available it happens a lot less!
The UK has very tight gun laws but it still occurs sadly. My county has the largest gun per person ratio in England and Wales and its super rare. And we are talking db shotguns - vermin control and pheasant weapons. We had another national gun amnesty end last week because we know people have brought back weapons from WW2 onwards.
I don't get what is so hard to understand about this concept ‘the less guns you have, the less chance people get killed by them’.
You have to start somewhere and it will take years to get there so start now.
RIP - ride in peace.
  • 9 6
 Mexico only has one legal gun shop in the entire country and holds the top 5 out of 6 most dangerous (most homicides) cities in the world.
  • 7 4
 Did your government commit like 10 mass shootings in Ireland in the past 50 years?
  • 2 5
 Shut up redcoat
  • 7 9
 @carym:
As a Canadian father of two who:
1/ Lives 10 miles from the border.
2/ Road rides, or used to, from home to the US.
3/ Does not own a gun nor hunt, but grew up with hunting rifles/shotguns safely stored in the back of dad's closet.
4/ Is now suddenly questioning the safety of family vacations (MTB or otherwise) to the US.

Please run for POTUS. Your common sense is far too uncommon.
  • 1 18
flag adamdigby (May 27, 2022 at 20:30) (Below Threshold)
 @ridingsteeps: This is literally a fake news article. Typical liberal pushing FAKE NEWS and not looking into sources or doing any critical thinking. Hopefully next time you can read the very clear satire in the article, CLOWN. smh my head
  • 16 1
 Walks in, reads comments....

"Yikes"

Leaves

*Scene
  • 1 11
flag adamdigby (May 27, 2022 at 21:14) (Below Threshold)
 @ridingsteeps: Whoosh to you too *rolls eyes* smh my head
  • 10 1
 @adamdigby: Sir,this is an Arby's drive thru. If you really have to point out that an Onion article is satire then you're obviously not too bright.They post this exact same article every time there's a mass shooting in the US. Thanks for the legit lol though. I needed some levity today.
  • 10 3
 @tacklingdummy: Could the firearm violence in Mexico be related to the insane volume of weapons freely available in the USA?

www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/aug/06/american-guns-mexico-illegal-weapons
  • 12 0
 @adamdigby: "smh my head" Is that from the department of redundancy department?
  • 3 1
 Read the first comment and not a word in between. I can only assume minds have been changed and lives have been saved?
  • 5 2
 @caltife: Mexico and all of Central American and South American countries all have extremely tight gun laws, yet they hold about 40 of the top 50 most dangerous (most homicides) cities in the world. Illegal guns are the biggest problem by far. The problem with the all the gun control measures is that they only are gun control for legal guns and not illegal guns.
  • 9 3
 @TheRaven: You are full of crap. It is absolutely hilarious this right wing nut-job penchant for just making up outlandish bullshit that you fantasize bolsters your side of things. Pro tip, if it sounds too stupid to believe, you probably got it from tucker carlson... Pull your head out of your poop chute, you need some fresh air.
  • 1 6
flag nickfranko (May 27, 2022 at 22:09) (Below Threshold)
 Yeah, which is why Jo Cox is still alive in the heavily-controlled firearm country! Oh, wait...she's dead. It's almost like people will still illegally obtain weapons and use them.
  • 2 2
 @rcrocha: How many of those deaths were by legally-owned firearms? Even better, how about you list the actual statistic breakdown and notice that most of those deaths were suicide, not homicide. 54% to be exact.

If you're going to use statistics, don't fallaciously exclude data.
  • 8 1
 @nickfranko: Nobody is saying that gun control eliminates gun violence entirely. If someone is determined enough and can find the right connections, they can still source a firearm to commit violence. The point is that it becomes onerous to do this, and far more easily detected by law enforcement.
  • 6 9
 @AndrewFleming: of course. I beieve you're correct. The problem is wrangling up the 400,000,000 guns in the US. Do you have a plan for that? I'd give up my guns if there was a guarentee there would never be bad actors, civilians or government, who would have the ability to use them against me.
  • 3 0
 @tacklingdummy: Right, and where are a huge percentage of those illegal guns coming from? According to the US government, it's America:

"ATF tracing data for approximately 27,000 firearms recovered from 2015 through 2019—the most recent data available—show that 40 percent came from the U.S. and the rest from 39 other countries. ATF data also indicate that almost half of the U.S.-sourced firearms were likely diverted from legitimate commerce in the four countries rather than smuggled from the U.S. "

www.gao.gov/products/gao-22-104680
  • 2 7
flag KalkhoffKiller (May 27, 2022 at 23:41) (Below Threshold)
 No, more gunz wuould have prevented this tragedy. t. IQ89 Trumpf supporter
  • 6 25
flag c40mark (May 27, 2022 at 23:58) (Below Threshold)
 Do some research more guns lead to on average 35-40% lower violent crimes. As they are detergents, and there is a significant amount of research in this area. The highest authority relative to massive research studies has been don't by John Lott. He has written at least two books on the subject. Watch the world stage as Country's are abusing their citizens because they can. The US has had much more resistance to these tyranical treatment for two reasons. We have a Constitutional Republic which forces judges to reject many unjustified mandates, and we have millions of firearms to defend us from Gov tyranny. Almost all of our past mass shooting were done by our FBI & CIA influencing mentally ill people with drugs and brainwashing IE MK Ultra mind control programs. Many of our politicians want all our guns so we can be treated like bitches, like the rest of the world does to their people. Brainwashed shooters related to project paperclip over 10,000 Nazi's were brought to the US to join the CIA=mind control, Space program etc...
  • 10 4
 @c40mark: Do some research ? Sounds like you did yours on the NRA website .
My brief take , I understand the need for 2nd amendment rights, but when it was written I doubt they envisaged every toothless hick could afford one. Back in the day only 10% of militia members could BYO, typically the officer class, the majority of privates had guns handed to them by the states.
I think you should go back to the good old days, ban gun ownership from anyone with an IQ less than 90 and the mentally unstable. Guns ownership is a right but it should also be a privilege and responsibility, US society seems to have lost sight of the last two
  • 4 3
 @caltife: Not debating those facts. Those are illegal guns getting smuggled. So again, illegal guns are the big problem. The US population are buying more and more guns because of rising crime. One of the most leftist areas on the planet (Hollywood/Beverly Hills) has seen extreme increase people in buying guns. Also, just like guns, all the fentanyl, opiate drugs, etc. and human trafficking is getting smuggled over the border. The border is not secure, but that is another debate.
  • 32 4
 @c40mark: Quite the fiction you've got going there L Ron Hubbard. But here's the reality:

* The US is swamped with more firearms than any other nation, using any metric
* The US has a huge mental illness problem, exacerbated by a lack of affordable health care (you may want to take a look in the mirror on this point)
* The US mental health problem is itself exacerbated by the proliferation of pharmaceuticals that are prescribed en masse at the behest of an industry that thrives on addiction, but your Congress is OK with that because money and power
* Mass shootings are an insidious "meme" that your fellow countrymen see as an increasingly valid alternative to suicide. Basically, it's now the hot thing to kill a bunch of people before you eat a bullet. Totally cool and normal for a modern human society
* The US is failing as a nation state, underpinned by the fascistic ignorance of an astounding number of people like yourself
* If your politicians ACTUALLY wanted to take your beloved guns, they would have done it by now (cf Sandy Hook). But don't worry, they are either too weak or morally corrupt to do it. So go for it mate, clutch your little AR nervously and keep waiting for the police to storm in and take your liberty...oh wait they won't, because it's too dangerous and there is precisely zero political willpower to do that!
  • 4 1
 @tacklingdummy: First of all, I appreciate you're coming back at me with considered arguments, not just hysterical nonsense. But the example I gave explicitly notes "legit" imports from the US as being a problem in Central America as well.

And as for your "leftist area" example, well no kidding - I'm completely against the general populace having unlimited firearm access, but if I moved to the US I'd absolutely buy a gun as well, it's an unpredictable basket case over there. So I don't blame Seth Rogen or whoever for wanting to arm themselves as well. "Can't beat them, join them" kind of situation imo
  • 14 3
 Interesting to see that guns were banned from the NRA rally where Trump was speaking yesterday. Why would they do that when he vigorously defends the right of people to arm themselves?
  • 6 7
 "Bro-LanDog": One of us need to report this person to the FBI, because "Bro-LanDog" seem to be unhinged. This is similar behavior to what all the other mass shooters displayed, and people ignored it. @pinkbike, you need to report this person to the FBI.
  • 3 8
flag Bro-LanDog (May 28, 2022 at 4:21) (Below Threshold)
 @abzillah: ahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha You're a delusional lunatic. Thanks for the morning laugh.
  • 2 0
 @Bro-LanDog: Can we get the cost of bike parts down by giving everyone a bike, then hire security on all double black tracks incase they ride them?
  • 4 0
 @c40mark: I didn't know guns could wash dishes.
  • 5 0
 @Bro-LanDog: Can we keep cost of guns down by convincing everyone they need them, creating a massive industry, then hire security on locations where they shouldnt need to use them?

I am not against guns, but we don't all need fully automatic rifles or high pivot downhill bikes when the average trail bike is good enough.
  • 3 4
 @Bro-LanDog: Do you think all of the mass shooters gave out signs of their craziness, and people didn't report it? How invested you are in this thread makes you look unhinged similar to all of the mass shooters, and I'm afraid that you may be the next bad guy. You definitely sound like the bad guy.
  • 3 0
 @dlford: 6) investors. Guns are a great low-risk (financially) investment
  • 4 1
 @HB208: I'm sorry how many schools have been shot up in the states? Is a hobby worth so many innocent deaths? UK citizens gave up handguns and automatic weapons because they didn't think it was.
  • 1 3
 @HB208: Which, by the way, the strictest gun laws in the country. They obviously aren't working. America is just different. We have a completely unique culture from any European country and even Canada..
  • 8 6
 @commental: I hate trump and the NRA. They're all a bunch of bootlicker Republicans.
  • 4 1
 @psyfi: I agree. Honestly, shame on pinkbike for even having a comment section for this article
  • 2 0
 @likeittacky: spoken like a scared little boy
  • 8 2
 @tacklingdummy: illegal guns start off as legal guns. They get stolen, they get straw purchased, whatever. So, again, a readily apparent root cause is that there are too many guns.
  • 6 0
 @TheRaven: so 60 in the last 26 years so on average of just over 2 people a year versus 40k a year even adjusting for the population difference it's not even close
  • 2 0
 @Bro-LanDog: Thoughts and Prayers. Don't need to do anything then
  • 7 0
 @Bobohunter1776: So we’re different and completely unique and stuck with mass shootings? We can’t learn anything from what’s been tried and helped elsewhere because we demand more freedom?
  • 3 3
 @caltife: interesting you quote the ATF - they're a great source! They do a bunch of the gun-running and selling themselves!

Remember "Operation Fast and Furious"? and all the other gun"walking" ops? And that's just what we know about!

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ATF_gunwalking_scandal
  • 2 0
 @carym: I agree this seems to be the argument all or nothing. There should be some form of control in the sense you are mentally stable able to safely handle the forehead and can store it securely. Basically a licence that can be suspended or revoked if you prove yourself not responsible to handle firearms. Exact same system that's required to drive a car in essence
  • 5 6
 @abzillah: yeah go ahead and report me to the authorities I'm sure they'll look at my posts and think it's a spectacular use of their time LMAO you call the cops on everyone you disagree with? Jesus dude.
  • 3 8
flag Bro-LanDog (May 28, 2022 at 9:35) (Below Threshold)
 @richard01: I really like having a variety of different bikes for different uses. Trail bikes, dirt jumpers, big ol' enduro bruisers. Same thing with firearms. There's super accurate target guns, lightweight hunting guns, and guns for when a tyrannical dictatorship decides they want to send troops to your home. 'need' is always relative. Nobody 'needs' anything in a utopia.
  • 4 6
 @briain: plenty of solutions that don't involve putting everyone in a diaper when one person shits their pants.
  • 2 0
 @caltife: I did once read somewhere that the cartels sometimes take payment in guns from their U.S. buyers
  • 10 1
 @Bro-LanDog: thousands dead a year isn't one person or close to it. Gun misuse at this level is a problem entirely unique to the U.S.. so you either accept your going to have 100s of mass shootings a year, thousands of gun related deaths or you make changes to improve the situation
  • 5 2
 @scary1: a fetus is as much a human as an egg is a chicken, and lets assume you have that 10mil unborn kids, what would you do with them? Round them up for shooting practice in schools!? Because education and jobs is something you are not oblige to give'em, as long as you pop out that vigina your rights are done isn't it!
  • 2 10
flag Bro-LanDog (May 28, 2022 at 10:47) (Below Threshold)
 @briain: sure, I agree! we just create a great utopia with no culture wars, depression, adversity, or hopelessness. Then, there'd be no reason for guns. Easy! Funny you post this when more than 4,000 defenseless civilian ukrainians have died at the hands of an evil dictator. But you're right! Gun violence is strictly an american problem! Get a grip buddy.
  • 5 0
 @Bro-LanDog: Well if you want to play it like that it could be argued there's a war in the states....on the schools.....literally. Except its a bit more one sided with defenceless kids against a murdered with a shop bought AR15 mate....
  • 3 3
 @darkstar66: if the school death numbers constitute a war there is also a permanent war in every large democratic city with strict gun control..
  • 3 0
 @Garradmiller: er yes I'd agree with that for sure.
  • 2 11
flag Bro-LanDog (May 28, 2022 at 12:29) (Below Threshold)
 @darkstar66: you're definitely correct. Shame teachers, parents had no legal means of defending themselves of utmost evil due to being reliant on cowardly public officers who would pepperspray or tase anyone trying to enter the build to save lives.
  • 2 2
 @darkstar66: and where has that outrage been? It's not about saving lives It's about the most advantageous time to shove anti gun legislation through.
  • 2 4
 @BrambleLee: The crime is rising extremely high the last few years and overwhelmingly in leftist states with already the strictest gun laws. Many leftist states are emptying out prisons. Chicago now is not pressing charges on many gang shootings because they consider them "mutual combatants". So, until the crime and illegal guns are addressed people are going to push back on gun control.

I live in California which is one of the most anti-gun states and the sale of guns in the state (as well as other leftist states) are buying guns like crazy. What does that tell you when tons of anti-gun people are buying guns at an extremely high rate?
  • 1 2
 Stfu u clearly don’t understand
  • 5 3
 @Bro-LanDog: look your delusional if you think mass shootings are comparable to an actual war, it's terrifying you think it's the same thing. But to clarify every Ukrainian adult who wanted a gun to defend themselves or protect their country was given one by the Ukrainian government. I'm not even talking about taking people's guns away simply making sure dangerous people with mental health issues can't get or keep their guns. Also the argument that good people with guns stop bad people with guns has been categorically proved to not be true
  • 3 0
 I’m from Texas and guns are a religion
  • 3 4
 Mexico is a perfect example of what happens when u heavily control guns. . .
  • 5 1
 @EnduroEli14: There are a few other examples that look nothing like Mexico.
  • 4 10
flag Bro-LanDog (May 28, 2022 at 13:12) (Below Threshold)
 @briain: good people with guns is the ONLY way bad people with guns ever get stopped aside from bad people with guns committing suicide. You think law enforcement rolls in with feathers looking for a tickle fight?
  • 4 1
 @Bro-LanDog: Yes, once bad people have guns and have bad intentions, we’re f’ed and “good guys” with guns is our only hope, though they are too often too little and too late. I’d like to think there must be ways to create fewer bad guys with fewer guns with less bad intentions but maybe I’m just optimistic.
  • 7 1
 @Bro-LanDog: care to cite examples. Cause if everyone has a gun then you need a bigger better gun to protect yourself and so on and so forth. Law enforcement at least have training to deal with these problems. Your mindset is all about escalation. To me it's just adding fuel to the fire, I see the solution as descalation, removing guns from those who prove themselves dangerous or too irresponsible to handle/ own guns. It's the exact same principle as a car licence
  • 2 1
 @AndrewFleming: what examples had guns to the level we have them and were taken away peacefully?
  • 3 0
 @Bro-LanDog: On the contrary. The comment section is very much the place for opinions. It's 2022, you should know this by now.
  • 13 1
 @netracer-enduro: HELL NO! We can't do "extreme" measures like raise the purchase age from 18-21 or have universal background checks. We need common sense solutions like fortifying schools and arming teachers. Granted, this would be at the teacher's own expense because we aren't f*cking socialists! (Sarcasm)
  • 1 1
 @Dopepedaler: start using statistical correlation to make gun laws and the people on your side will be against you really quickly when they see what happens.
  • 2 0
 @Garradmiller: There probably isn’t another country that 1) amassed the number of guns the US has and 2) then took them away, or anywhere close to that. I don’t think that taking guns away from law-abiding citizens is gonna work in the US. I think a gun buy-back program would be something to consider. Then change what types of guns and ammo are sold going forward. Also take away guns from convicts and mentally unstable people. All of this would put fewer guns in circulation that end up in the wrong hands.
  • 2 2
 @bsarfino: @Brilliant comment! I also propose...If Republicans could screw each other to make guns, is it an AR-15 at the moment of conception or when they pull it out of their ass?
  • 1 2
 @AndrewFleming: buybacks if optional literally no one is against. Change types of guns and ammo to what? Get rid of the scary looking ones and don't touch pistols that are involved in the majority of gun crime seems to be the norm. Suicides are over half of gun violence that dishonest people lump in to a general category as well. Lowering suicide is the best solution to lower gun violence. Banning the ar-15 wasn't enough for theeft after the last time they did it. Crimes still occured and they pushed for further gun control.
  • 1 0
 @ridingsteeps: wasn’t going to comment on this article. This particular part of the thread made me lol. Thank you.
  • 5 0
 @moturner: I propose that if there will never be a legitimate third party than the electorate must become the third party. Everyone should change their voter registration to "independent" to force democrats and republicans to compromise and meet us in the middle.
  • 5 5
 The gun didn't kill the shooter did............
  • 3 2
 @Garradmiller: I’m no expert in this, but if you ask me, ban the sale of ARs since these have been used in most mass shootings and ban high capacity magazines and put background checks and waiting periods and training on hand guns. That’s my answer since you asked. Gun advocates invalidate all restrictions but then offer no solutions in return except “it’s a mental health problem” and “we need more guns everywhere”.
  • 2 0
 @mtboaxaca: What do all those dots mean?
  • 5 2
 @AndrewFleming: you don't have to be an expert to know that regular people shouldn't be able to buy assault rifles. You have to have a shred of common sense.
  • 8 0
 @AndrewFleming: There are gun murders here in Australia. They mostly involve criminal elements finishing each other off, which is just fine by me. They can get hold of guns without ownership being legal.
Unfortunately there are still a few domestic violence murders involving guns that have been legally obtained over the years.
But having guns more easily available would certainly not reduce those numbers any.

If you give people easy access to guns, more people will use then to shoot other people. It's what they were made for.
  • 10 0
 @JiminOz: I lived in Adelaide for 4 years, 2013-2017. It was refreshing to see and live in another countries culture and perspective towards guns. On my construction projects, even the toughest tradies covered in tats wonder why Americans were so infatuated by guns. And it was amazing how safe it felt everywhere. School kids on the train... City streets at night.. etc. And I was from a low crime area in the US prior to moving there.
  • 2 2
 @AndrewFleming: if you're going to try and make a point at least do enough research to tell the truth.. 77% of mass shootings were with pistols.
  • 3 5
 @warmerdamj: ar-15 isn't an assault rifle
  • 4 0
 @Garradmiller: Like I said I’m no expert... Seems like ARs are used in the school shootings and that’s what I meant to say. My mistake. All mass shootings include every gang hit that leaves 3 or 4 or more dead and hand guns are used in those which is where you get your 77% statistic. Whatever, man, it’s all so grim.
  • 1 5
flag Garradmiller (May 28, 2022 at 18:04) (Below Threshold)
 @AndrewFleming: do you beleive some deaths matter more than others? That's the only way your stance makes sense.
  • 10 1
 @Garradmiller: You looked up that question from your NRA playbook. I’ve heard it before. Since you asked, this tendency from gun humpers is so annoying. You want to make sure you have every angle covered to get to the conclusion that gun restrictions won’t work while offering no alternatives. I go through this often in healthy debates here in Georgia. All the “ARs aren’t assault rifles” and “what about Chicago” little sound bites are so old and tired. Any solutions besides arm the teachers? I don’t care if you think I’m an idiot. And yes, I do think that school children's deaths matter more than drug gang members shooting each other.
  • 2 2
 @AndrewFleming: not am NRA member but good guess. You're right i don't think gun restrictions will work, i think some forms of gun control could help some. I'm for universal background checks on all sales but make it free and easy so it's used more. Red flag laws are good as long as they have some due process.
  • 3 0
 @Garradmiller: Well then, sorry I snapped. That’s reasonable compromise. From my experience, many gun advocates consider background checks a restriction.
  • 2 0
 @Garradmiller: From the pamphlets of research on gun violence in the last 30 years, what statistical correlation do you speak.
  • 2 1
 @Dopepedaler: there are many different statistical correlation, im speaking of your example of 18-21. That extends forever, what age limit makes us most safe? Do you think it's 21? Ban all males from gun ownership? The race with the highest murder rate maybe?
  • 1 1
 @AndrewFleming: they are a restriction which is why they should be minimally a burden while being maximally affective at keeping guns out of the wrong peoples hands. Not owning tanks grenades etc all restrictions that most are ok with even big 2a advocates.
  • 2 0
 @Garradmiller: I’d love a tank to get through Atlanta traffic.
  • 11 1
 @carym: lifetime gun owner and hunter here. Was an NRA member at one time, until Heston started spiuting the "more guns make us safer" BS. These people watch too many Joh Wayne flicks. The reality is that the bad guy wins half the time. There are, in fact, two points in my life where either I or some other dipshit with a gun would have died had I been armed. I wasn't so the situation diffused itself.

I got off an a tangent there, but I thing one of the primary drivers of our mass shooting problem is that somewhere along the line people started looking to guns as a solution to their fear and anger, and the industry smelled this and captitalized on it in a big way. When I was a kid in the 80's, we looked at guns entirely differently than they are looked at today. They are glorified in a very disturbing way now, and I think that that, the culture not the guns, is the problem. And any real change will have to come from the people who are economically benefiting from the status quo. Not promising.
  • 3 0
 @AndrewFleming: Also from Adelaide here. It's a great place to live, safe, easy to get around and has so much riding on the doorstep it's ridiculous.
  • 4 0
 @Garradmiller:
Please clarify. Are you stating that in a country which refuses to institute free (ie: taxpayer funded) health care for every citizen you think it worthy to have free (see above) processing for all firearms and ammo purchases?
  • 1 1
 @dlford: mot sure why you thibk their is a li k between health care and firearm processing seems like a non sequitur. I do think it's worthy to have free background checks and transfers on individual to individual firearm sales to maximize the number of legal transactions. The government already deems it worthy to provide the NICS system to FFL holders. I didn't say anything about ammo purchases.
  • 1 1
 @AndrewFleming: But it is not just Mexico, it is most of Central and South American countries that have the same pattern. Look at the top most dangerous (most homicides) countries in the world. About 40 of 50 cities are in Mexico, Central, and South America.
  • 2 9
flag Bro-LanDog (May 28, 2022 at 22:10) (Below Threshold)
 @briain: you want me to cite examples of every armed law enforcement, security, swat, military, etc example where bad guys with guns are taken out by good guys with guns? Training doesn't impart morality, it only increases effectivity. But yeah any sane person would agree to remove guns from those who prove themselves dangerous... Felons aren't allowed to own firearms, neither are those people with mental health or drug histories already. My favorite part about anti-gunners is when they impart rules that already exist like they're great ideas lmao
  • 8 9
 @Bro-LanDog: Again ban this dipshit!!! @pinkbike what the fu(k are you doing to stop dipshits like this from spouting garbage like this. Free speech is free speech, but for fu(ks sake tell this dbag to go back to PARLER!!!
  • 3 0
 @tacklingdummy: Now do the UK, western Europe, Japan, Australia, New Zealand…
  • 11 7
 @BEERandSPOKES: imagine being so soft you want people with different ideas than you to not be able to speak their minds.
  • 3 1
 @Garradmiller: if gun restrictions don't work why aren't people in the US shooting each other with machine guns? Oh right...
  • 2 2
 @Clink1983: not sure what you think your point is?
  • 3 1
 @Garradmiller: people were going around shooting each other with machine guns, so the US heavily regulated them with the gun control act and gun violence with full autos is now pretty much nonexistant. GuN CoNtRoL DoSeNt WoRK though!
  • 3 1
 @Garradmiller: Automatic “machine” guns are illegal. There are full restrictions on sales to the public. And they aren’t used frequently by criminals or the mentally unstable. Why is that? Seems like that gun control works.
  • 4 0
 @AndrewFleming: they aren't illegal, just heavily regulated. I've shot them before.
  • 1 1
 @Clink1983: when did I say gun control doesn't work?
  • 2 0
 @Clink1983: Shit. Really? My 50th is less than a year away. New bike will have to wait.
  • 1 7
flag Bro-LanDog (May 29, 2022 at 7:47) (Below Threshold)
 @Clink1983: this is patently false. The US created the NFA based off of hollywood lore, not crime statistics. If the nfa was about 'people going around shooting each other' they would have banned the 22lr
  • 2 0
 @Bro-LanDog: That still doesn’t answer the question of why automatic “machine” guns aren’t used more frequently.
  • 2 0
 @Garradmiller: "You're right i don't think gun restrictions will work, i think some forms of gun control could help some."
  • 1 1
 @Clink1983: you just quoted me saying gun control could help as evidence that I said gun control won't work?
  • 2 2
 @AndrewFleming: literally any tyrant militia since the dawn of the automatic rifle uses them explicitly. Also, you know AR style rifles make up significantly less murders than handguns right?
  • 2 0
 @Bro-LanDog: Right but how many tyrant militias are there in the US going around blasting people with automatic weapons. That’s the point. And we covered that, handguns are used by inner city drug gangs to kill each other and that’s the majority of mass shootings.
  • 4 0
 @Bro-LanDog: Gun restrictions and control work. You would be surprised what keeps getting handed in in the UK. It's not an on/off switch and takes years. Yes I might get stabbed, but at least I can run away.

www.chesterstandard.co.uk/news/20158186.machine-gun-handed-cheshire-police-firearms-amnesty
  • 1 4
 @AndrewFleming: there seems to be a not insignificant amount in ukrain, mexico, and south and central america...
  • 2 2
 @richard01: more guns were sold in the United states last black friday than what exists in the entire USMC arsenal... Surely making guns go away would work but this ain't Australia, you ain't putting the genie back in this bottle.
  • 2 0
 @Clink1983: Correct. You have to apply for and get a federal license to own an automatic firearm, assuming your state does not prohibit them. In California, personal ownership of automatic has not been legal for 80+ years.
  • 4 6
 @richard01: how do the people who can't run defend themselves?
  • 6 1
 @Garradmiller: That's about as valid as me asking you how people with no fingers defend themselves.
  • 1 4
 @commental: ok then, is it valid to ask why a woman should be expected to run away from a man with a knife to defend herself?
  • 5 1
 @Bro-LanDog: I really can't be bothered to argue with you over this, I mainly commented to save having to endlessly scroll down to see what bullshit justification for gun culture was posted next.
  • 2 7
flag Bro-LanDog (May 29, 2022 at 12:01) (Below Threshold)
 @commental: gun culture isn't murder culture
  • 5 0
 @Garradmiller: For 18-21...I am referencing the research done on brain development. Specifically executive function and impulse control. Two very important items considering you're using a mechanism, whose sole purpose is to propel a solid metal projectile at supersonic speeds, with the intent of causing lethal damage to another human, all at the flexing of a finger. Two very important items that are sorely underdeveloped in the young brain.
  • 1 1
 @Dopepedaler: why 21 then? Brain isn't fully developed until 25. Violent crime goes down with age why not 30 40 50?
  • 5 2
 @Garradmiller: I'd be all for that! Personally, I think you should have to pass several qualifications/examinations prior to and throughout gun ownership.

The sole function of a gun is to kill someone. You don't pull it out to scare them. You don't pull it out to hurt them. You pull it out to put a bullet between someone's eyes. A prospective gun owner needs to feel, to know, just how easy it is to end a life with a gun in your hand.
  • 9 3
 @Bro-LanDog: No...Gun culture is wannabe tough-guy that needs to overcompensate for something culture.
  • 3 8
flag Bro-LanDog (May 29, 2022 at 13:11) (Below Threshold)
 @Dopepedaler: I'll let my gf know she's a wanna-be tough guy that needs to compensate for something lmao
  • 4 12
flag likeittacky (May 29, 2022 at 13:13) (Below Threshold)
 Their is currently a total of 1156 + brainwashed people here that apparently think abolishing weaponry will somehow solve the problem of a handful of lunatics, that are either possessed or so mentally warped from something and all the BS they ingest, as to assassinate other people. The real problem is in everyone's understanding of psychosis but they choose to evade the truth and feed from the trough of illusion and bid for the very atmosphere that will render All subject to obedience,tyranny and loss of liberties at the hands of those that program the game.
  • 2 4
 @Dopepedaler: same would be okay for other constitutionally protected rights or just that one? Pass some tests to vote maybe?

The sole function of a gun is not to kill someone. Guns don't have a sole function.
  • 3 1
 @Garradmiller: If the act of filling in a couple bubbles on a piece of paper had the potential to maim or kill one or more people, yeah, I should have to pass some sort of qualification.

The act of voting ins't analogous to possessing/using a weapon that, despite your protestations, is a force-multiplier designed and built to inflict lethal damage, on soft tissue, at range. If this isn't a gun's function then why is it manufactured?
  • 6 0
 @likeittacky: Now we are talking! Expanding/improving access access to mental healthcare! Or, is everyone going to then complain about that being socialist and not wanting to pay for it?!
  • 1 2
 @BrambleLee: "No, we shouldn’t just accept that they don’t want to live." who the hell gave you the authority to tell someone what they were or not allowed to do with their own life?
  • 2 1
 @Bro-LanDog: Fun hearing this from a limp d!ck muthafu(ka. Push rope much?
  • 3 4
 OUTSIDE / PB IS CONTROLLING THE VOTES; out of roughly 1300 total votes there are only 521 comments and a lot of those are people bickering back n forth. I say we have BOTS on PB!

THIS IS EXACTLY THE SAME REASON ELON MUSK PUT A HOLD ON PURCHASING SHWITTER!
  • 6 0
 @TheRaven: Sorry mate, the Murder rate in USA is 4.96 in Australia it's 0.89.
The States has an actual rate more than 4 times higher than Australia but Australia is worse!?
  • 1 6
flag likeittacky (May 29, 2022 at 21:02) (Below Threshold)
 @Brownsworthy: ASTL population 25.69 million, US population 329.5 million (2020).
  • 7 0
 @likeittacky: I'm quite aware of the population difference these figures take that into account rate is per 100k population.
  • 7 0
 @Brownsworthy: some people lack basic logic, you are asking too muchfrom them, like understand how % works...
  • 2 1
 @scary1: tbh dude I'd take that deal,most people who get abortions consented to sex . Nobody consents to being murdered by gun...
  • 4 0
 @likeittacky: Yeah, I guess in your mind Bots are somehow manipulating those murder rate figures too.
  • 1 2
 Yeah cos it's so hard to murder someone without a gun?
  • 3 2
 @cains08: actually it is
  • 6 0
 @Bro-LanDog: you’re a fuQin idiot arent you
  • 1 0
 @HB208: totally like that hotspot where random kids got killed while they were in grade school. Other than that, yeah were real safe here in murica
  • 1 0
 @tacklingdummy: nice defense
  • 3 0
 @Bro-LanDog: you gotta be 12 years old…hahahahahahaha what a baby clown you are
  • 3 0
 @Bro-LanDog: you sure talk a lot of shit for someone hiding behind a no pic. Typical
  • 1 0
 @Bro-LanDog: Are you saying this so I believe you have a girlfriend or you believe you have a girlfriend?
  • 1 1
 @moturner: 100% correct, sir. there's no middle ground or compromise - just the bullshit partisan theater played out on C-SPAN & promoted by corporate douchebag mass media. f*ck the politicians w/their hidden agendas, corporate government & "religious morality." it all boils down to money - whoever pays the most will get their interests pushed the hardest, no matter the collateral damage. in this case, the gun lobby - case closed.
  • 1 1
 @Dopepedaler: filling in those bubbles has the potential to kill lots of people.

Voting isn't analogous to possessing weapons no but requiring hurdles to exercise a constitutional right for either one is a fair comparison.

Many guns are manufactured for the purpose of target shooting.
  • 1 0
 @pargolf8: you want pics of today's ride or do you just think dissent means people are bots?
  • 1 0
 @Dopepedaler: rosie palmer has been very good to me, how dare you insult her
  • 2 0
 @jcwmtb: Freedom isn't free. But, it is for sale.
  • 3 6
 @TheRaven: also high rates of hot burglary... ya know, because grandma and grandpa are most definitely unarmed, so no need to wait until they're gone. Just head in, rough em up and take what you want. New Zealand is supposedly also bad. The UK's assault rates are many times higher than the US (I think Scotland was almost 6x higher recently.) No one wants to talk about that though.

I'd also posit that I don't want to live in a place where your self determination is restricted in whatever way possible so long as it's data driven. That opens the door to all kinda of totalitarianism. If you're into that stuff though, I hear China is lovely. Go ahead and downvote me, but go re-read Brave New World and 1984 after you smash that neg button
  • 7 0
 @trialsracer: I'll take getting punched over getting shot any day of the week......your choice.
  • 3 0
 @Garradmiller: And here is where anger and impulse control come in to the conversation. While I agree that voting has long-lasting and dramatic consequences no one is going to go into an elementary school (twice) and vote kids to death (in the metaphorical sense of our argument). It takes many people to elect one person. Guns work in the opposite manner....enabling one person to kill many.

While I can see similarities in the mechanism, the intent isn't the same. We are talking about the the second amendment, correct? The constitutional right "to bear arms?" An "arm" as-in an "armament"...a weapon? A weapon being something built to inflict bodily harm, damage or death?

The more accurate analogy would be corporate lobbying and campaign financing. That's where one entity can elect many...facilitating a disproportionate effect over many more.

"Target shooting"...thanks for making my point for me. I'd say all guns are manufactured for shooting a target.
  • 1 1
 @Dopepedaler: depending on your interpretation of what can be killed voting kills 100s of thousands a children a year.

Your point wasn't that they are made to shoot a target.
  • 2 0
 @Garradmiller: I'll agree that voting can have unseen or intended consequences that lead to the deaths of others. Should you want to open this argument up to those situations, I am more than happy to do so.

My point is that whatever is at the business end of the barrel is a "target." Be it an inanimate object but especially another person. That person's (or peoples') health and safety are now in the hands (or fingers) of someone else with whose intent the "target" must assume wants to end the life of. So, am I to just reconcile that my life rests in the hands of someone with whom I must just assume knows how to handle said weapon just because they are American?

I am intensely curious though and this might be the fundamental impasse in the debate...If guns aren't just weapons, what else are they to you?
  • 1 1
 @Dopepedaler: why especially another person? Non people "targets" are the vast majority.

If everyone walked around with loaded guns pointed straight ahead of then and their finger resting on the trigger, that's not the case. You drive down the freeway and ypur life is in the hands of every car you drive near as well using the same logic.

Yes being American means having the 2nd amendment.

By definition a gun is a weapon I'm not going to argue against that, my stance isn't affected by that.
  • 3 0
 @Garradmiller: Yes, I do put my life in my others hands every time I drive. I also know that in order to get a license you need to pass a written and practical exam. Passing those exams assumes some sort of practice and basic understanding of the vehicle itself and the physics involved in driving 2 tons at 65mph. They aren't handing out drivers licenses to 16 year-olds simply because they are American.

Continuing with the car metaphor...driving recklessly and irresponsibly has the potential to end many lives but also result in the revocation of your ability to drive.
  • 2 2
 @Garradmiller: So, I look at lots of gun stuff, internet, magazines, etc... And overwhelmingly the ads are geared towards preparing for combat, killing a bad guy. So it would seem to gun sellers that that is their overriding purpose. IE, "To crush your enemies and hear the lamentations of their women".
Pick up any gun mag or check the internet to see for yourself. Just check out the company names, Daniel Defense (brand just used in the Texas school shooting), Wilson Combat Arms, I could go on and on.

If most guns are marketed as weapons of war, what does that say about the people to whom they are sold?
  • 2 3
 The fact that this comment section is still going in unbelievably disrespectful to the family of the person it's about. It's also shown a bunch of us to be complete bottom feeders of society, a couple in specific who I'm sure will pipe up over this yet again. Theres a huge line between telling each other off about our preferred wheel size, electric drivetrains and bike brands vs the shit that's being said in here.
  • 3 2
 @Dopepedaler: driving is a privilege, gun ownership is a right so some differences there make sense.

Using a gun recklessly or irresponsibly will also result inability to not own guns.
  • 1 1
 @danger13: yeah a lot of gun media is geared around self defense because that affects the most broad range of customers. Hunters, target shooters, etc are a smaller percentage of the population than those who think a gun might help them defend themselves at some point. I don't think that means gun companies see that as their purpose they just see that as the best sales tactic, like every other company they try to maximize profits while following laws.
  • 1 1
 @Dopepedaler: ability =/= permission. An incredible amount of people drive without permission.
  • 2 0
 @Garradmiller: I realize that. But, you brought up the driving analogy. How many people are driving their cars into school buses with the express purpose of killing kids? The root of the word amendment is "amend." Thomas Jefferson even wanted the amendments revised every 20 years or so.
  • 1 1
 @Dopepedaler: bastille day in Nice, france 2016 ring a bell?
  • 1 1
 @netracer-enduro: abortion kills millions every year. These two issues are not related at all.
  • 1 1
 @psyfi: that's what I'm saying why the hell are we arguing about gun rights when something f*cked up just happened
  • 4 1
 @Garradmiller: Yeah, that didn't work out for Remington after the Sandy Hook school massacre. They wound up paying millions because of their "combat" oriented marketing. I can't believe that none of these companies lawyers haven't wised up, but I don't think obeying the law is in their primary mindset.

For instance I get email everyday that offers instruction on converting your semiautomatic weapons to full auto. How is it that someone who's soliciting you to commit a crime isn't on the government's radar.

Or the whole ghost gun thing. Hell, I like guns, but the only reason to have a weapon without a serial number is to commit crimes with it. If you have some anti-government fantasy you're trying to live out, good luck when they call in an air strike on your house.

Gun culture in America is all about fantasy, kill the bad guys and be a hero. In reality most gun owners wind up killing someone who was playing their music too loud, or some similarly egregious crime, then trying to use a stand your ground law or something similar to get away with it. It's the ultimate gun nutfantasy, grease someone and get off scot free.
  • 1 2
 @danger13: what didn't work out for Remington? I was just answering a question.

You don't get emails from anyone reputable or actually in the gun industry to help you convert your weapons. How does that fall on gunmakers in any way? If you got emails trying to sell you fentanyl is it pfizer and mercks fault?

Unless youre going to stop the sale of metal and plastic you wont stop ghost guns from being manufactured, it's never been illegal yo manufacturer your own unserialized gun for personal use, it is illegal to sell those guns. You're proving the point you say doesn't exist, if the government has the power to call in an airstrike on your house making sure they dont know you have a gun makes sense.

Gun culture isn't a fantasy it's our reality. Most gun owners kill no one at all be intellectually honest.
  • 1 2
 @Garradmiller: Maybe so, but judging by the gun owners I know, they all fantasize about it.

And I live in one of the most heavily armed states in the country, believe me, I know what I'm talking about.
  • 1 0
 @Dylpickel: to be considered an actuall kill, it must be born first...
  • 1 0
 @Bro-LanDog: apparently you’re wrong, bro.
  • 2 1
 @KK11: racist piece of shit
  • 1 0
 @danielfloyd: we’ll, that’s not true.
  • 1 0
 Sometimes I think I’m becoming more conservative, then I read the comments by these people and do a sharp u-turn. You’re your own worse enemy and will bring upon yourself the things you fear the most.
  • 1 1
 @Bro-LanDog: Just because you have the right to bear arms =/= your ability to bear ams.
  • 1 1
 @adespotoskyli: is that so? No double murder ever for pregnant women?
  • 1 0
 @Garradmiller: how's a double murder?
  • 1 0
 @adespotoskyli: you said to be considerrd a kill has to be born first. Many people have been charged with killing children who haven't been born yet.
  • 1 0
 @Garradmiller: and is that ok? That's the question.
  • 1 1
 @adespotoskyli: no your false statement was the topic. There will always be a disagreement on thar topic i just wish more people were consistent with their beliefs on it across the board.
  • 1 0
 @Garradmiller: how's my statement a fetus isn't a human is false, and abortion isn't murder? Where do you draw the line and why?
  • 1 1
 @adespotoskyli: your false statement was that something has to be born to be killed.
  • 1 0
 @Garradmiller: no the point is abortion isn't a murder, nor the use of contraception, so is "double" murder, but some people like the drama I guess.....
  • 1 2
 @adespotoskyli: the point is there is an inconsistency, people want to decide if an unborn child is a life based on if the mother wants it not science.
  • 1 0
 @Garradmiller: the party of anti-science cares about science now? LMFAO
  • 1 0
 @Dopepedaler: it's that piece of rabbit fur he rubs on his (four letter word (more than likely has a 12k bike he can't ride)) every night.
  • 3 0
 @dontcoast: both parties selectively apply science what does thwr have to do with me.
  • 1 0
 @Garradmiller: science facts aren't up to discussion and certainly not up to the opinion of unqualified "specialists" an embryo is a human being according to science, the issue is if it’s simillar/equal or of a llesser importance of a human person, a very complicated matter indeed.
  • 2 1
 @Garradmiller: one party selectively applies it, the other actively sabotages it. Have fun running experiments in a peach-tree-dish.
  • 1 0
 @adespotoskyli: not viable by itself -> not a full human being. so totally debatable.
  • 2 0
 @dontcoast: Peach tree dish! Mmmmm!!!
  • 2 1
 @dontcoast: not being able to define a woman is actively sabotaging it.
  • 1 1
 @dontcoast: not sure was debating what is or isn't a full human being, wasn't me.
  • 1 1
 @dontcoast: embyology text books say otherwise. The debate is on a different level and subject and more complicated than that
  • 1 0
 New feature on Outside: www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/biking/moriah-wilson-murder-gravel-racing (classified under "Adventure", WTH). Also, disappointing to see the article being so Strickland-centric in the opening chapters - rather than focus on the victim.
  • 165 14
 As someone who was born and raised in Texas for 35 years, I’m pretty ashamed of my state over the last week. These stories are becoming far to common!
  • 107 8
 ...as a Texan, I've been ashamed for quite a bit longer than just the past couple of weeks
  • 23 82
flag Bro-LanDog (May 27, 2022 at 16:02) (Below Threshold)
 If you're ashamed of texas for the fringe actions of a few in the past that you had no control over, wait till you learn about what germany did
  • 56 1
 @Bro-LanDog: yea and their education system sure makes them feel guilty for it. Not hidden behind some BS righteousness.
  • 7 32
flag adamdigby (May 27, 2022 at 20:33) (Below Threshold)
 @Bro-LanDog: LMAO, that's a good one! These people are such clowns.
  • 6 23
flag Bro-LanDog (May 28, 2022 at 9:38) (Below Threshold)
 @adamdigby: the self back-patting is real with these ones. Oh well, cheap entertainment.
  • 11 18
flag Garradmiller (May 28, 2022 at 15:20) (Below Threshold)
 Texas is the #1 state for gun ownership and the #27 for murder rate... if guns in general are bad explain that one.
  • 152 1
 This is a really well done article about a horrible tragedy, nicely written Alicia.
  • 14 1
 I agree, detailed, fair, well-rounded.

It's an absolute tragedy, beyond the obvious gun control angles almost Shakespearean.

Colin Strickland certainly isn't responsible for the murder, that's 100 percent on Kaitlyn Armstrong. But he certainly wasn't shy about provoking drama. Evening "swimming" with the much younger girl he had been screwing on a break from his steady? The steady for whom he decided it was a great idea to purchase a handgun? He bought the firecrackers and lit the zippo. Immature and/or dog-ish behavior juggling women. Can't have see the outcome but sometimes cake and eat it too goes sideways. Shakespearean for sure ....
  • 147 1
 RIP Mo. This is a horrible story.
  • 7 15
flag mtbflow24 FL (May 27, 2022 at 9:55) (Below Threshold)
 Hear, hear
  • 121 10
 So police arrested a murderer and had to let the murderer walk free because they had the birthdate wrong? What a great legal system..
  • 57 5
 Alleged murderer, at the moment.
  • 55 29
 yeah let's just shut down bank accounts if people have the wrong opinion thats a real legal system
  • 37 2
 @mm732: you mean "asset forfeiture" without conviction? it's a hallmark of authorized gang extortion tactics in the fine usa. Sorry i mean police theft. samesame. totally legal and cool.
  • 19 0
 No. They arrested a suspect with a non-related warrant. Which is a way to go after a likely suspect if you don't yet have enough evidence to properly arrest them or request a warrant. Then they had to let her go for a clerical mistake which you'd be shocked to know how often it happens. (wife is an attorney and tells me this stuff, some of her stories sound straight made up!)
  • 1 0
 It was a warrant for outstanding Betox bill.
  • 83 15
 a few of my personal observations from reading these comments.

-easy access to firearms is killing innocent people every damn day and irresponsible gun owners are to blame by supporting anti gun control politicians and organizations. It is as simple as that. those who say that a person can just as easily be killed by a butter knife or ball peen hammer are utterly downplaying the efficiency of firearm. you can stand 20ft away from someone and fire off a few rounds at someone in a fit of anger and you will have a very good chance of killing them. any other weapons pail in comparison.

If this woman did not have easy access to a firearm than there is a very good chance that Mo would still be alive and riding bikes with a smile on her face.
-if that unhinged 18yo kid didn't have easy access to a firearm and wasn't able to walk into a store and legally buy two AR15s, 1500 rounds of ammunition and 58 magazines than you can for damn sure know that those kids and teachers would still be alive today enjoying life.

-gun control works. simple as that. every first world country with gun control is proof to that. which is basically all of them of them except for one. there is absolutely no denying that in places where firearm access is regulated far far less people die of homicides. enjoy and treasure your freedom? being free of threat of getting shot is a far greater freedom then owning a gun. I would argue people in places with gun control enjoy far greater freedom than those at the mercy, stupidity and recklessness of unregulated gun owners.

-Ted Cruz is a huge d*ck, so is Abbott. Wayne LePieirre too huge f*ing loser. Texas deserves so much better. America deserves so much better politicians than those payed off by the gun lobby. Say what you will about politicians payed off by environmental groups or big pharma or whatever your poison only the gun lobby blatantly puts gun rights ahead of human rights.

my 2cents
  • 32 4
 Worth more than 2 cents. Nailed it on many levels.
  • 16 1
 All points right on.
  • 6 33
flag Bro-LanDog (May 27, 2022 at 22:06) (Below Threshold)
 Gun control works, except in the largest cities in the US with the highest rates of firearm crime.
  • 5 0
 @Bro-LanDog: Didn’t seem to work in Uvalde, or do you consider that the largest of cities?
  • 10 10
 @carym: I'm considering LA, Chicago, NYC, all have the strictest gun laws in the nation and some of the greatest amounts of gun crime simultaneously.
  • 10 2
 @antihero "being free of threat of getting shot is a far greater freedom then owning a gun. I would argue people in places with gun control enjoy far greater freedom than those at the mercy, stupidity and recklessness of unregulated gun owners."

This is the point that America will never get though (or at least one side of it), the only response they have to this is that if you give people more guns they will stop the reckless gun owners. Their answer is always just get more guns.
  • 4 12
flag Bro-LanDog (May 29, 2022 at 8:39) (Below Threshold)
 @warmerdamj: imagine thinking the government makes you free from the threat of getting shot LMAO
  • 17 3
 @Bro-LanDog: Imagine arguing with people for 2 days strait in support of guns in the comment section of an article about a cyclist who was murdered with a gun. That's the real perplexity going on here.
  • 5 12
flag Bro-LanDog (May 29, 2022 at 9:18) (Below Threshold)
 @warmerdamj: I don't have to imagine, I do it every day :-)
  • 5 4
 @brianpark if there was ever a reason to ban an absolute piece of shit from your website this (↑) is it. That or lock these comments up. This is just getting disturbing.
  • 2 9
flag Bro-LanDog (May 29, 2022 at 9:29) (Below Threshold)
 @warmerdamj: LMAO you're so soft man. Go ahead, run to daddy he'll make things right.
  • 8 0
 @Bro-LanDog: LMAO all you want but government and specifically government regulations saves countless lives everyday and furthermore it does it way that is an infringement on our freedoms.
for example:
we as a society accept that people need to have passed a driver's exam and have a driver's licence in order to operate a motor vehicle. why? because we want people to be safe and we want to have confidence that other drivers have knowledge of the rules of the road and have the skills to operate their vehicle in safe manner.
we accept that we need to pay taxes so that we can have confidence that the services and infrastructure that we demand are funded and that they are safe. services like law enforcement, garbage pick up and an effective military. and Infrastructure like bridges and highways.
we accept that we need building code so that we can have confidence that our dwellings are fit for occupancy.
and i could go and on.

however these are all infringements our freedoms but we as a society accept these infringements because reasonable people know that this how society needs to function in order to keep it's people safe and to ward off chaos.

so yeah government regulation that keeps guns out the wrong hands and lowers the overall amount of guns on the streets can make you free from the threat of getting shot. it's really as simple as that
  • 3 6
 @antihero: vehicle licensing is an absolute joke and not required to own and operate a vehicle on private property, and taxation is theft :-)

You say government regulations make you free from getting shot while government regulations do nothing to keep more than 46,000 people from dying from car crashes every year... They should just make drunk driving and texting illegal, that'll solve it!
  • 4 5
 @Bro-LanDog: I love coming into these comments and seeing that there are a few people who aren't hopelessly brainwashed into worshipping the nanny state and so naive to think that they should become entirely dependent on massive corporations and centralized powers for the entirety of their security. Warms my heart that at least a few people like riding mountain bikes and still read history and have some sort of awareness outside of their coddled worldview. keep it up bud
  • 2 5
 @trialsracer: Thank you. Cheers to that
  • 3 1
 @Bro-LanDog: you should put a profile pic up so we know to avoid you in public. You’d be doing the community a great service.
  • 1 1
 @1stevenml: grow up. People in your community can have different opinions.
  • 1 1
 @Bro-LanDog: Flawless reasoning! I can see you got your grade 2!
  • 2 2
 @Bro-LanDog: you peice of shit, all you probably do is sit at your computer on on your couch with your phone arguing about gun rights an the comments section where we should be paying our respects to the Mariah Wilson
  • 1 0
 Sorry about the autocorrect Moriah Wilson
  • 2 0
 @Bikes-are-awesome: i agree. Unfortunately, I only reapond to peole arguing about gun runs. I never started it :-) you just disagree with me so you get big mad (this is you when your echo chamber is disrupted ->Wink >Frown
  • 2 1
 @1stevenml: you'd be surprised the amount of close friends, colleagues, and relatives you may have that share my views but are too afraid to talk about them for fear of being doxxed and ostracized by people like yourself. It's a pity because wars on ideologies are one by nobody, we can only hope to reach an understanding. See you on the trail :-)
  • 1 1
 @Bro-LanDog: lol it has nothing to do with the ideology. The problem is your a relentless troll.
  • 1 0
 @1stevenml: *you're.
  • 1 0
 lol.
" irresponsible gun owners are to blame by supporting anti gun control politicians and organizations" ah yes, because supporting politicians who don't mindlessly foment gun control legislation is "irresponsible". Do you know how often these red flags that already get checked go missed by authorities?
It might work in some countries, but restricting gun ownership in a country with no effective border control will just create a strong black market supply chain and increase illegal firearm trades.
it's so funny to hear that people want to regulate drugs bc the war on drugs is so obviously a failure, but that somehow we should just "ban guns" bc that would totally work.
lol, no consistency in any ideologies anymore these days.
  • 1 0
 @carym: I think he meant cities like Chicago, in which a mass shooting that killed 50 people in one weekend wasn't even covered by the news bc......well it's nothing new lol
  • 80 14
 RIP Mo. Another senseless act of violence in the cult of violence that is America. Who tf buys a gun and give access to any weapons to someone who clearly was jealous and had a history of crime?
  • 38 0
 @kokofosho seemed like a good idea to Colin Strickland apparently.
  • 13 1
 and the firearm was found AT his house, meaning she went back to his house afterwards, oh man.
  • 4 0
 @SATN-XC: well they lived together soo.
  • 18 3
 @kokofosho and then continues to cheat after giving her the firearm
  • 2 2
 @karpiel002: didn't put that together...assumed the article was referring to each of their houses individually...not the same house.
  • 30 3
 this just in--strickland is a piece of shit
  • 1 0
 @karpiel002: This is quite a weird twist ind
  • 7 0
 (sorry for my sausage fingers) This is a weird twist indeed. He must have known she was jealous. And yet he bought a gun for her and still continued in secret a second relationship. Is that stupidity or is there more?

Anyhow, what a tragedy.
  • 3 2
 cult of violence? Does anyone check other first world countries crime stats? I agree that we seriously need to get our culture of violence under control, but acting like this is a thing specific to the US is just asinine. We certainly have a cult of self hatred, that's for sure
  • 65 2
 Fantastic write-up. As tragic as it is, thanks for covering the topic and including the GoFundMe link, PB. Just an incredibly ridiculous situation. Looking forward to seeing Armstrong brought to justice...
  • 11 0
 As a Brit living in Switzerland I find the detail in the story incredible. In the UK this level of detail in the media would be regarded as prejudicing the trial and here in Switzerland they don't normally make public the surname and photo of suspects.
  • 3 1
 @korev: In the UK they also allow hearsay testimony and weigh the hearsay. In the USA we do not allow hearsay. Similar, but different legal systems. I am guessing that the jury selection process in the UK is also different. In the US, it (unfortunately) will not be hard to find a jury who has never heard about the case, as most don't care about some young bicyclist. The sad fact: Someone getting shot is background noise.
  • 75 13
 Easy access to guns makes it far too easy to kill people. This has to stop. Look at the suicide stats in the US, same deal. Make it more difficult to kill and there will be less killing. Sadly I think we have missed the point of no return. The media(movies) has to take some responsibility here. The amount of gun porn I see on TV is insane and they make it look like killing has zero consequence. RIP Mo.
  • 5 69
flag Bro-LanDog (May 27, 2022 at 10:41) (Below Threshold)
 The media has to take some responsibility? Dude.
  • 29 0
 @Bro-LanDog: I think he makes a good point. The Media does play some role in perpetuating a unique American culture surrounding violence and firearm use. Wether "the media" can meaningfully take responsibility is another question, but I think the central idea is worthwhile.
  • 3 22
flag Bro-LanDog (May 27, 2022 at 11:48) (Below Threshold)
 How does eliminating violence in media, theatre, games, and drama eliminate hatred and violence in real life?
  • 3 0
 @Bro-LanDog: I don't think anybody is suggesting that the media is the single cause for gun violence in the United States. I think in this case, if Armstrong was indeed the person who killed Wilson (which it seems she was) the media probably had little to no effect. However, in other situations involving gun violence, the media certainly plays a role. Various mass killers have noted that they were inspired by the Columbine school shooting. While these individuals were obviously seriously deranged beforehand, the way these events are portrayed in popular media certainly has an effect (the guy who did the Virginia Tech Shooting noted that he felt the perpetrators of the Columbine shooting were "martyrs"). I think nearly everyone can agree the way people understand these criminals is related to the way they are portrayed in public information sources - often news media and true crime television.
  • 4 7
 @WE-NEED-MORE-ROOST: 'gun porn, making it seem like killing has zero consequence' made it seem like c4 was alluding to dramatizations in art, theatre and the like. I agree the evil beings who commit such acts should never get the attention they crave.
  • 2 7
flag sino428 (May 27, 2022 at 13:08) (Below Threshold)
 @WE-NEED-MORE-ROOST: I'm not sure I understand. So your blaming the media for covering one of the most deadly school shootings in history (Columbine)?
  • 4 1
 @sino428: Not entirely. It would be delusional to suggest that the news should't be allowed to report on school shootings. Obviously, these things need to be reported, for reasons of public safety, among other things. But there is certainly wrong way to report on these things. Plastering the name and face of mass killers all over the place certainly does cement them in the public's imagination. I think that this becomes dangerous when you have other individuals who are deranged and considering committing a similar crime. To people like this, particularly if they have a manifesto or political goal, this potential for publicity must certainly be appealing. To give credit where credit is due, I've seen many news outlets reporting less on the details of the perpetrators or their motivations. I think covering events like this and amplifying the messages and personalities of perpetrators is the right way to go about these things. Obviously I don't have all the answers, but my $0.02 is that this media environment is one of many motivating factors for these people.
  • 5 2
 We don't have TV gun porn in the UK. Video games are another matter though. 'Fortnight' introduces 12 year olds (every parent obeys the age limits right?) to mass shoot outs - 100 people start, one person is left standing. And in the world of gaming this is one of the tamer games. My 8 yr old already knows what an AK47 is - he goes to school after all.
  • 4 3
 Trust me no matter what, people are gonna find other ways to kill people. The two deadliest attacks in US history was with a few planes and with a truck full of other people. In Europe it was with a car. Humans are very good at finding ways to kill other humans unfortunately.
  • 5 2
 Lol I am what a lot would consider a gun nut and there are precisely zero gun commercials on TV. Wtf are you talking about.
  • 1 2
 Are you sure the suicides aren't an effect of social media and locking our country up for a year? The tiny school of 600 my mom's a therapist at has had triple the amount of suicide threats especially in 6th and 7th grade girls.
  • 51 2
 An interesting fact about the results of the difference between the very tight gun controls in the UK vs the USA’s very high gun ownership per head, is that the most recent data for the UK shows 1.17 homicides per 100,000 whilst the USA has 4.7 homicides per 100,000. However, of those US homicides 4.1 per 100,000 are commited with guns whilst in the UK 0.04 per 100,000 are gun homicides.

In the UK there’s about 1 gun per 100 people in legal ownership vs 120 per 100 in the USA. And there’s just over 100 times as many gun homicides per head of population in the USA as the UK, so gun homicides and legal gun ownership correlates.

Easy access to guns makes it much easier to commit both homicide and suicide. We can only hope that the US children who’ve grown up under their terror vote to change the system in the future because the adults appear too entrenched in their beliefs to listen to reason or admit that there’s a clear correlation between a huge amount of guns and a huge amount of guns deaths vs every other wealthy country.
  • 8 2
 The number of guns compared the the number of Americans always perplexes me. It's estimated that only 32% of American adults own a gun. That just goes to show that gun owners have a few guns each.
  • 24 0
 Access to guns by untrained and mentally unstable individuals makes it easier to commit both homicide and suicide. Canada and the Czech Republic have relatively easy access to firearms, but the vetting process weeds out most applicants who pose a threat to themselves or others. Coincidentally, both those countries have 6 times fewer gun related deaths per 100K citizens than the US, and the VAST majority of those deaths are self inflicted. Homicides by firearm are 3-6 times more likely in these 2 countries than in the UK. Responsible gun ownership/ legislation is a thing.
  • 7 1
 @AndrewFleming: It’s the same in the UK - there may be 1 registered gun per 100 people in the UK but only 0.25% of the UK population are certified firearm holders (and the majority of them are farmers, gamekeepers, or part of the rural grouse/pheasant shooting set - legal guns in towns/cities are v rare here).
  • 30 0
 As someone who works in statistics, I feel obliged to point out that correlation is not causation.
However, in this case there is also a lot of evidence that easy access leads to more successful homicide and suicide attempts.

However, the problem runs deeper. There is also a culture in which lethal force is considered one of the primary ways of resolving conflicts. Which is even worse when combined with the uniquely American way of dealing in absolutes. "The bad guys" vs. "The good guys"
In reality, everyone belongs in both, to a larger or smaller degree, at various points in time.
  • 6 0
 @AndrewFleming: Guilty as charged. There are really five basic types of gun owners:

1) Hunters- Shotgun and a rifle or two, and a handgun.
2) Farmers and Ranchers- Rifle, maybe also a shotgun or handgun.
3) Homeowner for defense- shotgun or handgun, maybe one of each.
4) Shooting enthusiasts- Guys like me. Just like bikes n+1 is good. Have about 10 firearms.
5) Collectors/Gun Nuts- My buddy, 100+. Loves shooting, hunting, and getting different toys.

It’s the last two that skew the numbers.
  • 1 0
 @woofer2609: Fully agree
  • 11 1
 @woofer2609: This. ^^^ Guns are fun and I own a few because I live in a rural part USA. (Also I like historical firearms.)

But... the way the USA allows firearms to be purchased is ass-backwards. In many countries (Canada, Germany, Czech, Finland, etc.) you can own the same types of guns as you can get in the USA, but the process takes into account safety, training and the person purchasing them. All of which you have to do before you can buy firearms. The result? The use of firearms in crimes/suicides is much less in those countries. My state has permit-to-purchase for pistols and the result is we have less pistol related murders than surrounding states. I'm so frustrated with the weird dichotomy in talking about firearms, its either "Guns are the devil" or "Guns are angels". They are neither - they are tools. And the how we handle those tools says more about us than it does about the tools themselves.
  • 3 0
 The effect of gun control on suicide in Australia was gigantic.
  • 1 1
 @Afterschoolsports: Gun control may have affected suicide deaths by firearms but...
"Over the last decade, the age-standardised suicide rate for males increased from 16.2 deaths per 100,000 population in 2011 to 18.6 in 2020. Female rates also increased from 5.1 deaths per 100,000 population in 2011 to 5.8 in 2020."
Suicide rates per 100,000 have remained relatively flat over the past 50 years.
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics
  • 6 0
 @woofer2609: Just imagine how high those numbers would be with the very high success rate from firearm suicide attempts.
  • 50 19
 While Kaitlin Armstrong (allegedly) bears all the responsibility for this crime, can we all agree that Colin Strickland should get the swizzle dick of the year award?

Open relationships or dating/see other people are fine if everyone involved is cool with it. But its very clear at least one party wasn't so cool with it. And it would be up to Colin Strickland, the apex of the triangle, to choose one or the other if that was the case. Again, while Kaitlin Armstrong (allegedly) deserves whatever punishment she receives, she could rightfully argue there were circumstances guided her down that path - namely Colin Strickland.
  • 3 1
 But it was not his intention. I guess the other head took over.
  • 11 0
 If nothing else it was irresponsible of him to keep guns in a house where a member of the household had been verbalizing death threats agains a specific person.
  • 13 3
 He appears to be both a proximate and actual cause of Mo's death. He created the situation and even bought the gun used to kill her. I suspect Mo's parents will successfully prove civil liability and he will lose everything he has. I'd represent them. Seems better than a GoFundMe
  • 39 10
 America really shows us constantly why easy access to guns is a bad idea. US really likes to be a testing grounds for dumb ideas.
  • 22 3
 They also makin comment sections look like bad ideas
  • 28 13
 Amazing how many millions of people came to the US to escape all those wonderful European ideas.
  • 11 0
 @browner: There's a reason lots of US based newsites have eliminated their comment sections.
  • 5 2
 @krka73: In fact many millions of people went to the US to do the European stuff... but turned up to 11
  • 3 0
 @krka73:This answer.. They don't escape for guns lol.
  • 9 5
 @krka73: The problem today is that the US firmly believe in their own superiority and are therefore unwilling to learn from mistakes. Not from their own and certainly not from anyone else.
They are in a very similar position the British Empire was in shortly before it fell.
  • 24 1
 I'm not sure what I was expecting when I read the comments, but I'm certainly a bit disappointed that I read the comments. I hope that Mo's family is able to gain some closure at some point. This is such a tragic loss of life.
  • 23 1
 What an horror story. Ive never heard of Mo before but from her smile she looks like an awesome human being. Hope the responsible will pay for this crime. Rip and thoughts to the family.
  • 61 40
 Guns kill people. AMERICANS GUN OWNERS ARE STUPID. so many pointless deaths due to their stupid love of guns ... America claims to be a world leader but they are so backwards its embarrassing
  • 20 57
flag mulcahy17 (May 27, 2022 at 11:40) (Below Threshold)
 you're thicc'r than a snickers aren't you? this tragedy occurred at the hands of another person. and whether that person chose to use a butter knife or a ball peen hammer, it doesn't change the fact that the cycling community lost a great person and athlete. stop blaming in animate objects for human actions.
  • 27 16
 @mulcahy17: inanimate objects that fire bullets that kill children ......Well done your argument is totally sound. A butter knife would have done the same damage would it !!!!!!!as I stated before AMERICA GUN OWNERS ARE STUPID !!!!!
  • 6 1
 It’s not love for guns, it’s business and dollars.
  • 8 10
 Big words from a nation whose biggest export is independence days
  • 23 3
 This is just a horrible story. I'm sick of people killing people, and sick of guns making it so easy to do so. My heart breaks for her and her family.
  • 15 0
 So Armstrong and Strickland were in contact for two days between the murder and he "saw her last.". What kind of conversations occurred for those two days? It's unfortunate he has lost his sponsors in an altogether unfortunate situation but... Two days???
  • 14 0
 Yeah, I’m surprised no one is asking if he covered for Armstrong as she made her getaway. Seems like an obvious question to me. Wouldn’t she be acting strangely in the two days between the murder and when she disappeared. He girl he was with was murdered. Don’t you think the topic would have come up? And then he made a few misleading statements to the cops. Somehow he seems to be part of this — not necessarily part of the murder, but as an accomplice after the fact. Such a damn shame.
  • 12 1
 I disagree that it's unfortunate he lost his sponsors. Maybe unfortunate for him, but seems like the least they could do
  • 5 2
 @mtb-thetown: funny that redbull still sponsors him. They said it was a “legal matter” lol. Guy doesn’t deserve a single sponsor.
  • 4 2
 @slafy1: Research Redbull’s ethics, you won’t be surprised.
  • 18 0
 Disapointed that this became a firearms debate and the real culprite 'gravel racing' slipped out into the night un noticed.
  • 16 0
 Well this comment section is an yard sale of shithousery. Who'd have thought that would have happened?
  • 1 1
 I am sure it is a surprise to Pink"bike"/outside. They just wanted to privide us with innocent bike related content. Thousands of angry, hateful comments and millions of page visits wasn't part of their plan.
  • 1 3
 @drib: “hateful”...your progressive vocab is so tiresome
  • 29 16
 Absolutely devastating. It is a bit disturbing, however how much this article focuses on some random dude's romantic affairs and how precise he is about them instead of the actual murderer and the victim. Even his sponsors cut the guy off as if he was somehow guilty of this. Millions of people cheat on their partners and that's no excuse for murder. I hope the actual perpetrator is found and justice served, even though that's probably little consolation to anyone who was close to Wilson.
  • 26 1
 @bananowy well, in this case the romantic affairs were the motive for the murder. So it's not surprising to me there is so much focus on it.
  • 11 3
 ppl r being salty at you but i think a better way to phrase your point is the emphasis on the affair part, regardless of being the motive, was WAY too focused on and diluted the info. i ended up going to other sources online to get more concise info. considering the situation is currently fugitive on the run, that should be in bold fuckin letters, headline of the article, most important so that people have that context and can help out. might as well take out the like 3-4 times where they go over in detail how it was a love triangle. we get it. just say there was a love triangle and move on.
  • 13 1
 terrible story, been following it since it hit news cycle earlier this month. Not sure what blame Strickland has in the whole thing but he's unfortunately neck deep in it now. A few riders i've talked with said Armstrong used Mo's Strava feed to learn her comings and goings from the house.
  • 61 3
 Strava has an option to disguise your start/end point. Just an FYI for anyone that might be in a love triangle.
  • 66 4
 @SATN-XC legally he bears absolutely no responsibility. But morally he's bankrupt.
  • 3 11
flag cantaloupe13 (May 27, 2022 at 10:04) (Below Threshold)
 @krka73: wanna bet?
  • 6 1
 @Willikers: Um, no.... but it appears he will not be charged with anything. If that changes, I certainly won't be upset about it.
  • 3 4
 @krka73: not yet. If/ when Armstrong is caught more will come out.
  • 4 3
 @bocomtb: its a give take...Strava can either hide your start/end from a certain address only (like your home) or all start/end regardless of location. Chances are she had the former on and not that latter. If you hide ALL start/end locations, regardless of where you start, Strava won't count any segments that begin or end within that bubble.
  • 12 1
 @krka73: definitely not a good look to have been the one to purchase a gun for someone that is then used to commit murder, his Sponsors clearly agree
  • 5 0
 @SATN-XC: Fair points. Strava should have a list of addresses from which you can disguise your starting point. Or maybe a “disguise this ride” checkbox when you start the ride. Either would probably end up being too complicated for the general public though (so many folks can’t even figure out how to change their rides from Bike to eBike). But at least the privacy conscious would figure it out.

In any case, Strava is very far down the list of reasons why this tragedy occurred.
  • 5 2
 @Willikers: What will come out? Were you there and saw him hold her hand as she aimed or are you just chatting out your arse? You do realise it's obvious and pathetic when someone pretends to know what they're talking about, right?
  • 3 2
 @bocomtb: not throwing any blame at Strava, just sharing what I heard from fellow Austin cyclists. Just a terrible story all around [On the ebike thing, eBike riders don't switch b/c none of the bike segments show up on the activity...Strava doesn't cross populate bike segments with ebike activities...if they did, I bet he eBikers would switch)
  • 1 12
flag cantaloupe13 (May 27, 2022 at 10:29) (Below Threshold)
 @bananowy: still butt hurt? Aww
  • 1 2
 @SATN-XC: The cross populating of Strava segments sure would be nice. Let’s hope some of their engineers read Pinkbike comments.
  • 1 9
flag cantaloupe13 (May 27, 2022 at 10:30) (Below Threshold)
 @bananowy: since you have such a big mouth - I will bet you there will be either a civil or criminal trial about Strickland's culpability.

C'mon big boy..
  • 3 1
 @Willikers: Butthurt about what? Can't recall ever talking to you. Just answer the question or stop wasting air. What will "come out"? Go on pal, clearly you're an inside man.
  • 1 16
flag cantaloupe13 (May 27, 2022 at 10:36) (Below Threshold)
 @bananowy: I owe you nothing.

Either take the bet or not.
  • 5 0
 @Willikers: You never proposed a bet to me you complete knob, you don't even know who you're replying to. But cool, I take the bet. What now, child? What are we betting and how am I supposed to collect?
  • 1 11
flag cantaloupe13 (May 27, 2022 at 10:53) (Below Threshold)
 @bananowy: I didn't??
  • 6 0
 @bocomtb: "Strava should have a list of addresses from which you can disguise your starting point."

This is already the case. Personally, I've activated the recent feature to hide all start and end points.
  • 6 1
 @krka73: Really? You wouldn't be upset if he was charged with something?

While the guy is a scumbag, charging him with any crime here would be basically be a legal travesty. So any guy (or woman) who upsets their significant other would somehow be criminally responsible for any crimes they might commit because they were upset?

If he was somehow involved in the crime or helped cover it up then he should be charged. But there are no laws against simply being a douchebag.
  • 4 2
 @sino428: if he is actually charged with something, then the prosecutors will presumably have some good evidence he was in violation of whatever law they have on the books. I'm not a lawyer, I have no idea what law that could be, if any.

So really, if they have something on him, by all means full steam ahead. I'm not shedding a tear for the dude.

If you're thinking I'm advocating for him to be charged with something, or anything just for the sake of being charged because he's a douche? No, that's NOT what I'm saying.

From what I know so far, he's broken no Texas law and has cooperated fully.
  • 8 1
 @krka73: Thanks for clarifying. Your original comment did not come off the way you explained it.
  • 4 1
 I suspect that even if no criminal liability, Strickland is likely civilly liable and her parents will take every penny he has.
  • 1 1
 @mtb-thetown: not likely. How would he be liable in any way? This is not the first love triangle/murder and probably won’t be the last. I’m not aware of any case where the other person was found liable for the death. Like I said in a previous comment, there are no laws against being a douchebag and it doesn’t make someone responsible for the actions of another.
  • 2 2
 @sino428: Civil liability has very different standards/burdens of proof than criminal liability. I'm not a lawyer, but I think we can all imagine US a jury being convinced that Person A's act buying a gun for Person B, who later used that gun to kill Person C contributed to the death of Person C and therefore the family of Person C is entitled to damages from Persons A and B.
  • 2 0
 @pmhobson: @sino428: correct that civil liability is a lot easier to prove than criminal liability, which is a good thing. Losing your freedom should be harder than losing your stuff.

I am a lawyer and I've seen arguably less culpable parties held responsible for civil damages
  • 2 1
 @mtb-thetown: taking notes to self: don't comment early on a Friday, before or during happy hour.
Wait for someone else to say it, then drop in.
  • 1 1
 @mtb-thetown: seen your profile homie
  • 2 1
 No that the Friday foolishness is over..

Possible criminal charges:

Negligent homicide
Accessory after the fact

Civil suit: absolutely.
  • 18 2
 We need more guns to defend ourselves from these lunatics.
  • 11 1
 Only for the good guys though!
  • 6 8
 That's what the lunatics at the NRA keeps telling Republicans!
  • 17 8
 Horrible story and RIP. This will probably be unpopular, but I don't come to this site for true crime, gun control debates, etc. For me, coming to PB is a respite from all the other sites that throw that sort of content at you all day for clicks.
  • 13 0
 Rip Mo.
  • 8 0
 "Colin Strickland, with whom Mo reportedly had a brief romantic relationship last fall during a time when Strickland and Armstrong had separated"

From the second paragraph. It's not clear that the "while they were separated" version of events is corroborated by anyone other than Strickland himself, and per the messages from Armstrong in the affidavit, it doesn't seem like she knew they were separated.

The article is clearer later on that Strickland's version of events is deeply suspect, but in the above quote it shades towards presenting at least a part of his story as fact.

Also, Unbound Gravel is 200 miles, not "k".
  • 9 0
 Good heavens, I hope Mo's family doesn't scroll to the comments on this article.
  • 10 0
 Why would you buy your girlfriend a gun if you’re cheating on her?
  • 20 13
 America. You guys need to cop on. Guns are as easy to buy as beer if not easier. 'But it's our right'....just wake up you fucking idiots
  • 9 19
flag ChrisNJ (May 27, 2022 at 16:47) (Below Threshold)
 Hopefully you'll never visit
  • 14 2
 @ChrisNJ: He probably won't, you know, because of all the murdering
  • 10 1
 You can buy guns on Sunday in places you can't buy beer on Sunday and you can buy long guns at 18 but beer at 21, so it's legally easier I'd say.
  • 3 0
 @aldousfilcher: Unrelated and possibly/likely in not-so-good taste but when I read your comment it was in SNL Norm Macdonald voice-over.
  • 5 1
 @mtb-thetown: @mtb-thetown: I'm willing to bet alcohol kills more people annually than guns.
  • 4 0
 @ChrisNJ: maybe, although I suspect there's also a lot of crossover. Alcohol and guns are a bad mix
  • 3 3
 @mtb-thetown: Not Maybe. Definitely. For everyone's reference An estimated 95,000 people (approximately 68,000 men and 27,000 women) die from alcohol-related causes annually,15 making alcohol the third-leading preventable cause of death in the United States. The first is tobacco, and the second is poor diet and physical inactivity.

So you've essentially justified alcohol being banned on Sundays considering it's considerably more dangerous than guns are.

Now. Where are all the SJW's preaching about banning alcohol.
  • 2 0
 @ChrisNJ: it's funny that banning alcohol, i.e. the temperance movement, was the first issue associated with those who people now refer to as SJWs. Although that whole prohibition thing didn't work out too well
  • 2 1
 @ChrisNJ: think it thru pal
I won't be using Alcohol to kill other people.
  • 4 2
 @flaflow: Neither will 99.9% of gun owners, you idiot. THATS EXACTLY THE POINT! You people are so dense you don't realize you're making my points for me LOL
  • 1 1
 @mtb-thetown: lol, exactly. I'd imagine any attempt to do the same w/ guns will ultimately have the same result in the end.
  • 3 1
 @flaflow: People get drunk everyday, drive cars, and kill innocent people. No one calls for the ban of cars.
  • 3 0
 @BlindMan77: well drunk driving is definitely illegal. And I'd be okay with a lot less cars on the road and think fewer people should be allowed to have and operate them. And their are at least minimal standards for getting a driver's license (which should be stricter) and insurance requirements if you hurt someone. A similar licensing and insurance requirement for guns would probably make sense. It would mean only people like me, i.e. people with the time and money to get licensed and insured, would have guns. Less egalitarian, but probably a lot less shootings.
  • 1 0
 @ChrisNJ: still missing the point
  • 1 0
 @flaflow: Nobody is surprised
  • 1 0
 @mtb-thetown: Shooting people without cause is illegal.
  • 1 0
 @BlindMan77: so is speeding or running a red light. Your insurance still covers other people's injuries if your illegal act harmed them.
  • 5 0
 The prevalence of popular mass media (movies, TV shows) that grossly underrates the life shattering effects of gun violence and suggests that the answer to every problem is a bullet is partly to blame, as is the ease in which some countries allow unstable individuals to obtain firearms. The Czech republic has relatively low gun violence, but access to a wide array of firearms. To access these, individuals must prove they are mentally stable, and will likely not pose a threat to others.
  • 6 1
 Really sad. I hope her family, friends and community feel supported as they come to grips with and begin to reorganize their lives with this loss. Also what a horrendous way to cap the life of someone who was doing so many cool things. Just sucks all around.
  • 8 0
 Sad because she was the type of person who wanted to make them world a better place and promote cycling, she will be missed.
  • 5 0
 I can't wrap my head around the idea of two cyclists in Austin wanting handguns. Gravel cyclist boyfriend to yoga instructor girlfriend: "hey honey, lets get his-and-hers 9mm Sig Sauers." ??? Not the demographic I expected that from. Clearly I don't understand gun culture.
  • 5 0
 So to all the anti gun restrictions commenters out there, if no restrictions, then what? Nothing has worked so far. Just for the record the second amendment states "A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed." It says right there "well regulated' which is certainly isn't.
  • 10 1
 texas
  • 4 1
 TEXAS!
  • 5 7
 Can we just agree that we'd all be better off without it?
  • 4 1
 @aldousfilcher: Hows all that gang and drug activity doing in ABQ
  • 4 0
 @ChrisNJ: You know, not all that great. But then again not all of us can manage to live in a perfect Xanadu like northern New Jersey.
  • 2 0
 @aldousfilcher: There's always TX.
  • 2 0
 @ChrisNJ: I'm there, just let me know where all the ribbons of singletrack winding their way through the high mountains are and I'll pack my bags
  • 2 0
 @aldousfilcher: There's a lot of fun places to ride. Just don't expect to find it in houston.
  • 6 2
 Will bullet proof vests be required at any events Strickland is at? Just asking. Don't cancel me.

Sorry to hear he is so upset about his proximity to the event. The proximity that he created and made worse. Poor guy. Everyone must feel so bad for him.
  • 10 1
 Colin's an a**hole. IMO
  • 9 4
 Sounds like Colin was manipulating them like he did the police department. He might even catch a case for giving false and misleading statements.
  • 3 0
 Have to scroll down pretty far to get past all of the noise... Incredibly sad series of events. Hopefully the murderer will be brought to justice. If the article proves to be accurate, there is clearly someone to be held accountable even if not facing legal liability. Just couldn't seem to keep it in the spandex. Lives ruined as a result. What a shame.
  • 5 2
 And of course, the comments section is off about guns. Focusing on the people involved, this is a tragic story about the loss of young woman. My condolences to the family and friends of the victim. I've seen all too many Dateline episodes where a love-triangle was the culprit of the death of an individual. This typically happens in a crime of passion where the murder weapon is a knife, not a gun. If you think getting stabbed 50 times is any less violent or better than getting shot several times, you're wrong. The person with the motive to kill someone doesn't require a firearm. They will use anything at their disposal.
  • 3 0
 SO, I own guns. I grew up in a rural area shooting from an early age. I’m a Dem, but also 2A supporter. I learned about gun safety when I was 6, and ever since. I have traveled and worked in some pretty f’’ked up countries, had foreign military members point weapons and yell at me, and have also worked closely with a variety of foreign and domestic (US) military and ex-mil professionals in the field. I don’t claim to be a gun-nut, but can operate and field strip AR, AK, and FN long platforms, and all types of pistols.

It is undeniably way too easy to buy guns here in the us. I’m not necessarily saying everyone should go through the process required to own a suppressor or SBR (FBI background check, finger prints, $200+ Application/tax fee, interview with local sheriff) to buy a .22 rifle for your 12 year old kid…. But I also wouldn’t be opposed to raising the purchasing/legal ownership age to 25, requiring an hour long chat with a clinical psychologist, and an extended (like, months?) waiting period. We don’t have to ban guns, and guns aren’t inherently evil, but the way Americans act around them is reprehensible in a supposedly civil society. Let’s get Swiss about this.
  • 2 3
 No i’ll pass on getting swiss on this. Shall not be infringed. Let’s stay sane on this...not emotional thinking that there is any solution at all.
  • 1 0
 @ChrisHaugh64: waiting a month to receive your .308 battle rifle isn’t “infringing” on your rights, but it will ensure that if you’re pissed off about something you won’t be able to act on that impulse within an hour. Chill out, shooting should be fun, and ideally a sobering, humbling, and empowering experience.

If you don’t personally know someone who has been shot (including yourself, depending on circumstance) then it can be hard to recognize the actual impact that guns have. If you have been shot (or shot at) get counseling, and try not to sleep with a pistol under your pillow and focus on hard external security instead. Maybe some breathing exercises too. Get a dog or three. I know the angles in my home, the weak points and defensible positions. The best defense in populated areas is talking with your neighbors and making friends. Don’t flaunt wealth, and NEVER put a gun company’s logo sticker on your car. Get your CCW. Take practical classes. Get a corrupt Colombian guardia-civil agent to hold you at gunpoint, bribe them, go on your way, and then come talk to me.

I agree, with more guns than people in the US yeah our situation is pretty f*****d. People buying auto-sears for glocks on wish.com is too.

Go buy a frickin’ Ma-Deuce or Mac-11 for all I care, as long as you’ve been vetted and cleared.
  • 3 0
 Is there anyone else besides me who doesn’t really understand why companies instantly cut sponsorship with Colin? I feel so ashamed of the death of Mo but still it is like Colin just lost a friend, a potentional love, someone who we mist have shared his soul for shorter or longer periods, and his toxic ex-gf did this horrific acts. I dont really get it, colina life just felt apart one day to another too, and companies seem like punishing him.
  • 7 0
 that terrible, RIP Mo.
  • 6 0
 RIP Mo. My heart goes out to her friends and family.
  • 1 0
 On the brighter side, the Pink"bike" will earn a lot on the customer interaction.
  • 6 2
 If she had used a bike shoe with a bomb in it, they'd require everyone to remove their shoes at the airport. Oh, wait a minute...
  • 3 0
 condolences to the family. A very sad end to to a promising young member of our community Rip Mo. thank you for the well written article Alicia.
  • 5 0
 What we have learnt. Love triangles end badly
  • 3 2
 Sweden have 40-50 murders by gun per year. But its mostly pistols not semi fully automatic assault weapons
Gangs 3D print or import from other countries
10mln people lives in the country and this "killed by guns" trend started for about 10yrs ago
  • 1 0
 What a terrible situation. Condolences to the family. But what is up with Strickland? He's got some screws loose. The info in this article indicates he manipulated Wilson and was not straightforward with her to an appreciable extent. Then bought the girlfriend he is two timing a gun. He seems stupid, dishonest and toxic.
  • 3 1
 Well done Pink"bike". Amazing customer interaction. You are really the most successful "bike" magazine. No other can achieve such number of comments and visits on bike related articles.
  • 1 0
 I don't really understand why everyone is glorifying Moriah Wilson as if she's some sort of martyr. Here's the way I see it: see was messing around with a man in a relationship and she paid the price. Of course, I'm not justifying murder, that part is wrong but to put her on some sort of pedestal purely because she was murdered seems odd.
  • 3 0
 All you people with your opinions . My thoughts go out her family and friends.
  • 2 2
 Has anyone thought that maybe, there is NOT a solution?

IMHO and US Constitutionally speaking, there should be zero gun restrictions that infringe on the right of the people to keep and bear arms. Thus placing the responsibility with the individual.

This is a cultural problem.
  • 1 0
 It IS a cultural problem, in that folks from the US romanticize gun violence as a function of our cultural associations with the ‘Wild West’ and WW2. I live in bear/cougar/coyote country and carry when in the woods… like way off trail in the mountains, then yeah either my shotgun or my 308. The biggest risk close to town in the front range is some random a*shole with a pistol who’s looking for an argument so they can feel less powerless about their station in life. Americans tend to use guns to eschew their personal insecurities.
  • 6 4
 He has issued his statement of garbage. Responsibility rests on Armstrong, but Strickland has to know this is a consequence of dipping his dog in two bowls too many.
  • 3 0
 i remember handing her bottles and energy at this years BWR. a hero gone too soon.
  • 3 4
 this is such a wonderfully texas story. texas is like a whole other stupid country. the idiot texan buys a gun for himself and one for one of his girlfriends. and then everyone is shocked, SHOCKED, when the idiot's guns kill the idiot or someone close to the idiot. FREEDUMB
  • 1 1
 Am i an idiot for concealed carrying to protect my family from violent leftists in our nation?
  • 1 0
 @ChrisHaugh64: hahahahahahahahahahahaha man, that’s a good one!!!
  • 1 0
 @ChrisHaugh64: yes, a yuge coward and frail little man all at once, the duality of a bagger--as soon as you find a violent leftist, you'll be the first. the only thing leftists do to folks like you is point and laugh.
  • 5 2
 I enjoy watching how third world some first world countries are...
  • 3 1
 this is the most political pb comment section ive ever seen. honestly fuck guns and this is a really sad story
  • 3 1
 Guns do nothing without humans using them! I have many guns, they just hang-out in the gun safe & never shoot people. Maybe you should direct your anger at the real problem, because it's not not firearms!
  • 2 0
 @BlindMan77: Yeah that's right, people do. People, creatures who can be depressed, jealous, drunk, hangry, suicidal, alienated, lonely, vengeful. Those people, in the America, can easily go out buy, own, and use a gun pretty much without any restriction, even if they are any of the things listed above.
That is the problem - people are weird and irrational by nature. They do not need weapons of war at arms length all of the time.
  • 1 0
 This IS a very sad and distressing story, about people who have extremely poor judgement, severe emotional issues, and a lack of appropriate technical training and appropriate cultural education (and legal education) about guns and gun safety. Your (and every other former empire’s prison colonies’) very existence, whereever you currently reside or hail from (looking at the AUS flag) is predicated on the terrible, usually unilateral, influence of guns against native peoples… saying ‘guns are terrible’, while living where you do (benefitting from their historical use) and not making reparations or just straight-up leaving the country is a tiny bit cognitively dissonant. The idea that nobody needs them anymore (or that the awful spectre of armed civil revolt is passé) is naive (at least here in the US where guns outnumber people). Don’t get me wrong, Port Arthur was terrible, and apparently preventable in your country. If we had acted in the early 90’s, events like sandy-hook, uvalde, las-Vegas, etc might not have happened. I’m glad that you’ve all managed to take that to heart and move on. Australia was ‘established’ after the US told the UK to go f itself in no uncertain terms, and then we Americans still managed a civil war after the fact and many generations of families in the south never got over it. We are still the only country in the history of the planet to use nukes in war - if that doesn’t make a country collectively worried about looking over their shoulder then I don’t know what would. Yes we have a sh*t-ton of societal/emotional baggage. Point being, the us psyche is inextricably tied to the idea of New Hampshire’s motto, “live free or die”. If there was a reasonable way to actually take everyone’s guns, I would support it. It’s literally never going to happen under our current constitution and state of our national psyche, so practically nobody is willing to unilaterally disarm themselves when you could literally face an angry mob of Molotov-cocktail chucking f*ck-wads marching down your street the next time one of our nazi-cops beats, shoots, or suffocates an unarmed civilian.
  • 3 1
 Does anybody has any good alternative to trailforks? I want to stop paying to Pink"bike"/outside.
  • 3 2
 Yeah...leave your electronics in your vehicle and ride a bike without any of it.
  • 1 3
 There looks to be some conflicting information in the article. The picture above says "The suspect (Armstrong) appears to have boarded a plane to New York the day after the killing." Then the article says "Two days after the crime, Strickland said, was the last time he saw his girlfriend (Armstrong)."

So, how did Strickland see his girlfriend (Armstrong) two days after the killing if she boarded a plane a day after the killing?
  • 2 0
 its a typo, she boarded the plane a few days afterwards (incident occurred on May11th, she flew to NY on May 14th)
www.kxan.com/news/local/austin/timeline-what-we-know-so-far-about-pro-cyclist-murder-investigation
  • 2 0
 RIP, and condolences to friends and family.
  • 11 13
 Pinkbike Editors: Colin bares 0 responsibility (nor does the gun) in Mo’s death, the shooter bares 100% of the responsibility and regardless of how she acquired the weapon her intent to kill Ms Wilson led to Ms Wilson’s death. His muddled story about his relationship also is irrelevant to Armstrong killing Wilson bc Armstrong, not Strickland killed Wilson. Mo a grown adult chose to continue a relationship w Strickland as did he, either could have broken off and both adults new Ms Armstrong was on paper Mr Strickland’s girlfriend. That’s a morality question not a “responsibility for murder question”. Unless we learn Strickland was a knowing accomplice to Ms Armstrong, at this time Ms Armstrong is responsible for the cold blooded murder of Ms Wilson. Its NOT bc Strickland was having two relationships they ALL were aware of the circumstances, complicated as they were you dont expect your partner to resort to murdering the other party!
  • 10 3
 Hi Colin, how she ended up with the murder weapon does matter to sane people, and in a lot of cases, to the justice system.
  • 5 1
 "This weekend was strange for me...my texts aren't going through...my mind has been going in circles...I just want to understand what is going on..."

That does not sound 'aware of the circumstances,' so much as an older person manipulating a younger person.
  • 2 0
 I saw it on a documentary on bbc 2
  • 2 1
 Guys, guys. Guys. GUYS!!!! Listen to MEEE!!!!

Ok? Everyone? Yo yo get this:

GUNS
  • 2 1
 Does Texas use lethal injection or electric chair?
  • 5 0
 Due to a shortage in lethal drugs, they now use firing squads. Oops sorry, that's South Carolina.
  • 1 0
 they just set em loose in the neighbourhood for local vigilantes?
  • 7 5
 they send them back to school
  • 3 0
 @slowmotionblur: Not so much a shortage in the classic sense, but pharmaceutical companies are refusing to produce and sell the lethal injection drugs. Firing squad would be my choice if I were on death row.
  • 5 2
 @wowoalmighty:
I really hope I'm misunderstanding your comment, and not that it's in INCREDIBLY poor taste.
  • 4 3
 @budgie-1: no you read that ok - it might not fit with your political agenda
  • 3 0
 @krka73: Refusing to produce lethal drugs, but happy to produce "non" lethal ones, that end up killing and seriously injuring people it seems.
  • 2 0
 holy fuck im so sad rn
  • 3 2
 Guns don’t kill people rappers do
  • 6 9
 Buddy of ours knows/rode with Strickland and said guy was super talented. Guy threw all that away over this mess.

Heart goes out to the families impacted by this. Totally sucks.
  • 6 1
 not sure you could say he threw it all way but he's certainly caught up in it now...its hard to think he would expect sneaking around on someone would lead to murder (unless there is more to it)
  • 5 4
 @SATN-XC: I mean she did literally say she wanted to kill Mo if he kept talking to her... (she's psycho AF but he had fair warning)
  • 9 2
 @SATN-XC: he posted on social media that he didn't have a relationship with the girl. He did.

He lost all of his sponsors and will carry that guilt with him forever.

I'd say that's throwing it all away
  • 10 0
 Gimme a break. Strickland passed on an opportunity to race for EF because he was too old and not talented enough to be anything more than a domestique. You know who was more talented than Strickland? Mo Wilson. She was destined for bigger things after US gravel, either in XC or world tour road racing.
  • 9 1
 @fentoncrackshell: that EF even offered him a ride is astonishing.

Lachlan is the real deal.

Strickland was a big fish in a very small pond.

He's now a very very small fish in the big pond of public opinion.

Mo had a tremendous engine. Her tech skills weren't great but nevertheless she waxed everyone at sea otter, including world cup racers.

She could have done absolutely anything.
  • 2 0
 @ATXZJ: all his sponsors except redbull lol
  • 1 0
 Incredible unfortunate.
  • 4 5
 Are Guns better than #Ebikes?
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