Canadian PM hid in store cupboard while gun battle was fought nearby [View all]

Canada’s prime minister, Stephen Harper, hid in a cupboard used to store electrical boxes and a ladder while a gun battle ensued in a nearby hallway of the parliament building in Ottawa this week, it emerged on Friday.

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As he entered the building, parliamentary security guards opened fire on Zehaf-Bibeau, a petty criminal with a history of mental illness, brandishing a 30-30, lever-action Winchester rifle that he’d moments ago used to kill Nathan Cirillo, an honor guard on duty at the nearby National War Memorial.
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Parliament resumed on Thursday, a day after the attack, in a show of resilience by Canada’s politicians. The Canadian government indicated that it intends to speed up proposals to toughen the country’s anti-terror laws in the wake of the attack, including a measure that would allow “preventative detention”.

The governing Conservatives have made no secret of their plan to install new anti-terror powers, giving the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) more powers to track, investigative and detain would-be homegrown terrorists. Harper promised the proposals would be brought forward.

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http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/oct/24/canadian-pm-stephen-harper-ottawa-shooting

Meanwhile CBC is using headlines like "The Fear Within"

So.
Harper hid out, first in a closet then somewhere else for the rest of the day, reminiscent of the way Bush hid out after 911. Not that I'm comparing the attack of a lone mentally ill shooter to 911 in any way shape or form. However, Harper is using this unfortunate event to ram through "anti-terror" legislation instead of reviewing and revising the atrocious way we treat our mentally ill people here in Canada.

And Kevin Vickers, the house of commons sergeant-at-arms, deserves a medal for the way he handled himself.