Another shooting near the National Zoo

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was just driving up Rock Creek when I noticed all the park police zooming past me. I figured there was an accident ahead. By the time I got near Calvert, I heard the helicopters and then knew it wasn't an accident, but had to be a shooting at the zoo. Sure enough, it was.

I love this city, and I hate this nonsense.

This needs to be the last such event for a while. There have been multiple shootings at this event in the past 14 years. Time to end the "nonsense."

So we close the National Zoo all week after Easter? Thugs be thugs.

[jsteele]

Anonymous wrote:

jsteele wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

jsteele wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

jsteele wrote:Apparently many of you did not notice my request to tone things down. At this point in time, nobody really knows what happened today. A lot of assumptions are being made that may turn out to be true, but may not. So, let's all calm down a bit.

With all due respect, I've read that some of the posters here were eyewitnesses to the mayhem.

Such posters' input is more then welcome. But, some of the most extreme posts have come from posters who weren't there,

I wasnt in the middle of the shooting. I was with my kid not more than 500 feet from the zoo entrance when a helicopter came on top, you could hear sirens everywhere, people were running out and my spouse, having heard some news in the radio, called me to see where we were and how we could leave the area fastest.

Am I qualified to comment?

Yes, but unless you were in the zoo, you are not qualified to comment on what happened in the zoo. Of course, if you were in the zoo, comment away.

We were not inside the zoo but right outside when all i described happened. Who are you to tell me what my kid and i saw and felt and what we didnt? Why do you even participate in this thread unless you were right in or out of the zoo?

Okay, your participation in this thread just ended. Have a nice evening.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Here's cell phone video of mayhem outside the zoo courtesy of PoPville:

http://www.popville.com/2014/04/reader-report-gunshots-fired-by-woodley-park-metro-around-5pm/

No, this is the incident from last week (4/14 according to the posting) and the location seems to be the Calvert bridge into Woodley Park.

[Anonymous]

I took my kid to school today.He came back out and said:"no school today, my mom foreigner, can't read".
I had misplaced my DCPS calendar.,.
Well, glad we didn't go to the zoo today.I hadn't heard about the violence at the zoo on Eastern Mondays over the years, but I had heard that it's a AA family event.I was surprised that the news called it simply family event.Good one!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you cancel the event I promise you there will be people on this site and in the city that will claim racism.

Who gives a f*&#. It should be shelved and re-vamped. Being against violent thuggery is not racism.

Time for leaders in the AA community to step up and clean this growing mess. Where are they?

Calling Al Sharpton? Where are you?

[Anonymous]

I was at the zoo but left before the shooting. We go there a lot, and I will say today was definitely an all time zoo record for the number of f bombs I heard being dropped there. Haha.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you cancel the event I promise you there will be people on this site and in the city that will claim racism.

Who gives a f*&#. It should be shelved and re-vamped. Being against violent thuggery is not racism.

Time for leaders in the AA community to step up and clean this growing mess. Where are they?

Calling Al Sharpton? Where are you?

Forget Sharpton, I'd like to see DC political leaders step up. But alas I imagine that Bowser will issue an equivocal statement calling for a committee to study the problem and report back in 2019 or something.....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was at the zoo but left before the shooting. We go there a lot, and I will say today was definitely an all time zoo record for the number of f bombs I heard being dropped there. Haha.

Tolerance, please.

[Anonymous]

jsteele wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

jsteele wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

jsteele wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

jsteele wrote:Apparently many of you did not notice my request to tone things down. At this point in time, nobody really knows what happened today. A lot of assumptions are being made that may turn out to be true, but may not. So, let's all calm down a bit.

With all due respect, I've read that some of the posters here were eyewitnesses to the mayhem.

Such posters' input is more then welcome. But, some of the most extreme posts have come from posters who weren't there,

I wasnt in the middle of the shooting. I was with my kid not more than 500 feet from the zoo entrance when a helicopter came on top, you could hear sirens everywhere, people were running out and my spouse, having heard some news in the radio, called me to see where we were and how we could leave the area fastest.

Am I qualified to comment?

Yes, but unless you were in the zoo, you are not qualified to comment on what happened in the zoo. Of course, if you were in the zoo, comment away.

Wait - someone isn't qualified to comment on the news unless s/he was there? Come on.

Now you are just being difficult. There have been comments in this thread saying that such and such was happening in the zoo that were made by posters not in a position to know. Those accounts were contradicted by posters who were in the zoo. What good is uninformed speculation and unfounded claims?

As I said in my first post in this thread, there are a few posters who seem to be showing a great deal of glee about today's event. You would almost think that they would have been disappointed had today's event go off without a hitch. Similarly, there is an unfortunate eagerness to rub black peoples' faces in it. None of this is helpful.

We don't know if the shooting was connected to the event at the zoo. We don't know if last week's shooting was connected to today's. We don't know a lot of things. So, let's just ease off a bit with comments about things we don't know.

It's an anonymous message board - it's all "uniformed speculation and unfounded claims".

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How do you go about canceling a tradition that is held in a public space? This is a ridiculous idea. What do you all suggest the zoo do? Put up a big sign on Easter Monday that says "no African Americans allowed today at the zoo"

No. The zoo would just be closed. DCPS would be open for school. Problem solved.

So you want the zoo to close on

1. Christmas
2. Easter Monday?

Right.

For the next couple of years, that might be the prescription.

Charge $25.00 a person.

Exactly.
Or if folks are adamantly opposed to closing it, then the Zoo could be open, but could treat it as a special event like Boo at the Zoo. Charge an outrageous ticket price like BATZ. Or have it run like the Easter Egg Roll: free tickets, but you have to enter a lottery and are given assigned times to enter.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

jsteele wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

jsteele wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

jsteele wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

jsteele wrote:Apparently many of you did not notice my request to tone things down. At this point in time, nobody really knows what happened today. A lot of assumptions are being made that may turn out to be true, but may not. So, let's all calm down a bit.

With all due respect, I've read that some of the posters here were eyewitnesses to the mayhem.

Such posters' input is more then welcome. But, some of the most extreme posts have come from posters who weren't there,

I wasnt in the middle of the shooting. I was with my kid not more than 500 feet from the zoo entrance when a helicopter came on top, you could hear sirens everywhere, people were running out and my spouse, having heard some news in the radio, called me to see where we were and how we could leave the area fastest.

Am I qualified to comment?

Yes, but unless you were in the zoo, you are not qualified to comment on what happened in the zoo. Of course, if you were in the zoo, comment away.

Wait - someone isn't qualified to comment on the news unless s/he was there? Come on.

Now you are just being difficult. There have been comments in this thread saying that such and such was happening in the zoo that were made by posters not in a position to know. Those accounts were contradicted by posters who were in the zoo. What good is uninformed speculation and unfounded claims?

As I said in my first post in this thread, there are a few posters who seem to be showing a great deal of glee about today's event. You would almost think that they would have been disappointed had today's event go off without a hitch. Similarly, there is an unfortunate eagerness to rub black peoples' faces in it. None of this is helpful.

We don't know if the shooting was connected to the event at the zoo. We don't know if last week's shooting was connected to today's. We don't know a lot of things. So, let's just ease off a bit with comments about things we don't know.

It's an anonymous message board - it's all "uniformed speculation and unfounded claims".

I think the moderator is referring to "known unknowns." Or it is :unknown knowns"? Paging Donald Rumsfeld.

[Anonymous]

jsteele wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

jsteele wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

jsteele wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

jsteele wrote:Apparently many of you did not notice my request to tone things down. At this point in time, nobody really knows what happened today. A lot of assumptions are being made that may turn out to be true, but may not. So, let's all calm down a bit.

With all due respect, I've read that some of the posters here were eyewitnesses to the mayhem.

Such posters' input is more then welcome. But, some of the most extreme posts have come from posters who weren't there,

I wasnt in the middle of the shooting. I was with my kid not more than 500 feet from the zoo entrance when a helicopter came on top, you could hear sirens everywhere, people were running out and my spouse, having heard some news in the radio, called me to see where we were and how we could leave the area fastest.

Am I qualified to comment?

Yes, but unless you were in the zoo, you are not qualified to comment on what happened in the zoo. Of course, if you were in the zoo, comment away.

Wait - someone isn't qualified to comment on the news unless s/he was there? Come on.

Now you are just being difficult. There have been comments in this thread saying that such and such was happening in the zoo that were made by posters not in a position to know. Those accounts were contradicted by posters who were in the zoo. What good is uninformed speculation and unfounded claims?

As I said in my first post in this thread, there are a few posters who seem to be showing a great deal of glee about today's event. You would almost think that they would have been disappointed had today's event go off without a hitch. Similarly, there is an unfortunate eagerness to rub black peoples' faces in it. None of this is helpful.

We don't know if the shooting was connected to the event at the zoo. We don't know if last week's shooting was connected to today's. We don't know a lot of things. So, let's just ease off a bit with comments about things we don't know.

NP here. I don't see any glee, only justifiable fear, confusion, and anger. The anger seems to be about the shooting and riot-type atmosphere in broad daylight in a normally safe neighborhood. The anger also seems to be directed towards the media for giving vague and useless information. I don't know where to turn for credible information since the local media is so vague, hours after the event. I want to know more so I can deduce if my family and I will be safe at the zoo over the next few days (Zhenjiang I was considering visiting). I don't see any glee from anyone. Stop projecting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was at the zoo but left before the shooting. We go there a lot, and I will say today was definitely an all time zoo record for the number of f bombs I heard being dropped there. Haha.

Tolerance, please.

Yes, please have tolerance for foul language and behavior at a family event.

[Anonymous]

Could we please clarify DCUM standards, so certain posters aren't singled out because of their opposing views? Or maybe the presentation of their views isn't up to DCUM standards. Thank you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
NP here. I don't see any glee, only justifiable fear, confusion, and anger. The anger seems to be about the shooting and riot-type atmosphere in broad daylight in a normally safe neighborhood. The anger also seems to be directed towards the media for giving vague and useless information. I don't know where to turn for credible information since the local media is so vague, hours after the event. I want to know more so I can deduce if my family and I will be safe at the zoo over the next few days (Zhenjiang I was considering visiting). I don't see any glee from anyone. Stop projecting.

Jeff has taken down quite a few posts in this thread. It's true that the media coverage has been pretty vague.

Easter Monday is a traditional AA family day at the zoo, and there have been disruptions in the past, as there were this year.

On any other day, the zoo is entirely safe. Have fun with your family. Bring sunscreen and be prepared for a tough time getting a parking space.