There’s no proof of a connection to the mass shooting at Umpqua Community College, but plenty of people are talking today about a post on Internet bulletin board 4chan from last night that warned fellow posters not to go to school tomorrow “if you are in the northwest.”
The #Oregon shooter allegedly pre-empted the event with a thread on 4chan last night pic.twitter.com/pmwZ3NMdSu
— Adam (@gpia7r) October 1, 2015
*posts to anonymous image board about to go on mass murder*
Channers: "DO IT!"
And here we are. Again.
— Peter Coffin #Bernie2020 (@petercoffin) October 1, 2015
Shooter posted his plans on 4chan. Users egged him on and glorified his future actions. https://t.co/oOK0dIKdvo pic.twitter.com/hb5iyfCob4
— Peter Coffin #Bernie2020 (@petercoffin) October 1, 2015
The 4chan community is notorious for tasteless pranks, sometimes involving threats of violence from anonymous posters, so anything 4chan-related should be taken with a large grain of salt. However, this particular post, captured in screen shots, seemed eerily prescient.
https://twitter.com/jlangdale/status/649673396964474880
The post reads:
Some of you guys are alright. Don’t go to school tomorrow if you are in the northwest.
happening thread will be posted tomorrow morning
so long space robots
Follow-ups to the post egged on the original poster (OP), with some giving advice and suggestions.
https://twitter.com/ashleylynch/status/649675725474267136
“I suggest you enter a classroom and tell people that you will take them as hostages. Make everyone get in one corner and then open fire,” reads one reply. “Make sure that there is no way that someone can disarm you as it it possible. I suggest you carry a knife on your belt as last resort if someone is holding your gun.”
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Others on the thread has less supportive messages for the original poster. One wrote, “Hey OP. Please stop being a faggot. I’m asking you nicely. Also, if you are going to do something please don’t use any guns. It makes it harder for us gun owners who aren’t complete fucking faggots.”
Again, none of this is proved to be connected, but it is drawing a lot of attention, especially from those familiar with the previous exploits of 4chan regulars.
Even if that's not the shooter, that thread is a perfect example of why 4chan is the taint of the internet. https://t.co/w6NICjoT0u
— RBe (@RBPundit) October 1, 2015
https://twitter.com/JimmyRussells5/status/649666257235537920
4chan members are setting up fake Twitter accounts to tweet fake #UCCSHooting suspects at reporters and media orgs pic.twitter.com/RVZBa9h6Ml
— Ryan Broderick (@broderick) October 1, 2015
Oregon shooter posted warning on #4chan last night, & chanBros encouraged him. Because of course they did. https://t.co/jNghgLdG4i
— Gareth M. Skarka ↙️↙️↙️ (@gmskarka) October 1, 2015
https://twitter.com/thejoshl/status/649691024311361538
im seeing evidence that a bunch of 4channers encouraged and gave advice to a school shooter, yet ppl still don't think 4chan is a bad place
— Kuma☆ (@KumaZone) October 1, 2015
4Chan is the sewage system of the Web. https://t.co/lczpWmFzbX
— Bec (@beccanalia) October 1, 2015
So the Oregon terrorist was on 4chan last night bragging about his plans for the shooting and people fucking encouraged him….
— Hudson. (@AHostileHomo) October 1, 2015
Wow. Shooter possibly anonymously posted about this shooting yesterday on 4chan. People encouraged him. WTF IS WRONG WITH PEOPLE???
— Matt Vader (@MattVader74) October 1, 2015
https://twitter.com/ashleylynch/status/649693964145176576
@ashleylynch YES. There's no moderator who reported the post to admins or the police. 4chan's "free speech" without mods = no accountability
— Andrew @ METATOPIA (@dragontologist) October 1, 2015
Again, no connection between today’s shooting and last night’s 4chan post has been confirmed, but the posts on 4chan have confirmed for many just how low posters on the site can go.
The utterly toxic combination of nihilism and dissociation that prevails on 4chan is the logical endpoint of free speech-sans-responsibility
— Katherine Cross (@Quinnae_Moon) October 1, 2015
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