[nolemmings]

In Arizona you don't even need a permit. Why didn't anyone take down Jared Loughner, surely people in that large Arizona crowd had guns. My supposition -- when it happens that fast, it's a lot easier to react in theory than in practice.

Peter, there was indeed a young man at the Tucson shooting who was armed and I believe he even drew his weapon coming out of the Safeway. He was asked why he didn't fire and he stated something to the effect that the chaos and speed at which events were happening made him at first uncertain of his target and then concerned that he might hit others. I don't want to put words in his mouth so I am sure you can get better info through googling, but I remember seeing his TV interview and that was the gist of what I recall. I know I was glad he didn't fire given the way he described the scene, and I remember that the topic of an armed crowd was discussed, with law enforcement commenting how that scenario would almost certainly have made things worse.

Edited to add: the crowd was not that large, it was just a meet and greet outside of a grocery store on a Saturday morning, and I do not believe it was even all that widely publicized