Soldier shot - Ottawa in lockdown

I was thinking exactly the same thing.

 

And it's not even noise. It's drunk Uncle Doug or Gord having a conversation with himself at a family Thanksgiving dinner in Canada. We ignore him and hope he'll just pass out.

 

Damn.

 

Actually, the shooter had a history of mental illness, so unless the rules of discourse are different in Canada than in the U.S., we're not allowed to blame anything but mental illness for it, or even discuss any other factors, lest we politicize a tragedy. Sorry.

 

For real. So incredibly sad.

 

House of Commons Sergeant-at-Arms Kevin Vickers, who famously ended the October rampage of a gunman who attacked Parliament Hill, will be named Canada’s ambassador to Ireland.

In his formal announcement of the appointment mid-Thursday, Prime Minister Stephen Harper praised Vickers’ heroic “actions in stopping the terrorist attack of October 2014.”

“Kevin Vickers has shown profound leadership and dedication to the security of Canada and its national institutions. His extensive experience working with Parliament, as well as his bravery and integrity, will serve to deepen close bilateral relations between Canada and Ireland in the years ahead.”

Vickers, 58, served as the top security officer for the elected legislature since 2006 after a 29-year career in the RCMP during which he never fired a shot at a suspect. However, on the morning of Oct. 22 when Michael Zehaf-Bibeau stormed onto the Hill and was wounded by Vickers’ security team, it was Vickers who finally brought down the assailant in a hail of bullets.

http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/...ickers_to_be_named_ambassador_to_ireland.html