3 dead in Jewish center shootings

Just when you think the world isn't sufficiently depraved...

A gunman shot at least three people to death in two separate shootings this afternoon at Jewish community facilities in the Kansas City suburb of Overland Park. Police say two people died at the Jewish Community Center of Greater Kansas City campus in Overland Park, and one person died at the Village Shalom assisted living facility a few blocks away. (Story from KSHB Kansas City). A 15-year-old boy is in critical condition.

As the suspect was taken into custody, reports say he said "heil Hitler."

Story link here

You'll pardon me if this hits a little close to home. Our little town has a JCC, as well, and my family and I practically live on the campus that includes the center, a seniors' apartment building, a school, and a synagogue. Just this afternoon, probably around the time this idiot was hunting people down, I was parking my car in our local JCC's parking lot. Our kids often idly wonder about the police cars parked across the way, or the officers who stand guard during festivals or times of raised international tensions or threats. And just like I felt when I was their age, they feel vulnerable. All because they're Jews.

So you'll also pardon me if I shake my head at the growing intolerance that seems to be spreading into every nook and cranny of this planet. I grew up surrounded by enough people who hated me not because they knew anything about me - they didn't - but for the simple fact that I was a Jew. I grew up surrounded by the first-hand stories of those who had survived the Holocaust. I grew up surrounded by those who deny any of this is a problem. I go online today and witness it each and every day.

Well here's the thing: It remains very much a problem. And today, some psycho came looking for the Jews. Tomorrow, I'm quite certain they'll come looking for anyone else - maybe even you.

Update - 11:25 pm ET: Officials have confirmed the suspect is one Frazier Glenn Cross, and he will face charges of pre-meditated first degree murder when he makes his first court appearance in the morning. Here's the snippet from the CNN piece:

The Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks hate groups, described Cross as a longtime, "raging anti-Semite" who has posted extensively in an online forum that advocates exterminating Jews.

And here's more from CNN.

Related:
KCTV5 CBS Kansas City
Associated Press
Reddit 2014 mass shooting tracker