Monday, March 29, 2004

An Event

I answered questions in a live chat at Washingtonpost.com. Here's the transcript.

Wednesday, March 17, 2004

If Somebody Isn't Shot, It Isn't a Shooting

Those incidents in Ohio involved someone shooting a gun, but only the one in which a bullet hit a person was a shooting.

Dictionary definitions vary in their rigor about this point, but think about it: If the neighbor kid is practicing with a .22 and a tin can, do you think a series of shootings is going on next door?

So, what do you call it when a guy fires a gun into a tree or a door frame -- or, unsuccessfully, at a person? I don't have a good answer. Shooting incident isn't great, but it's better than shooting. In the Columbus case, sniper incident also works.